A Home Away From Home

I am writing this blog post on my way out of Copenhagen and can’t help but feel sad that the course is over. It is hard not to miss Copenhagen after spending a month here. Going into the trip, I believed that a month out of the country was enough and that I would be ready to go by the end. “Why would I want to spend any longer than a month out of the states?” I asked myself. I thought that I would be missing out of enjoying W&L if I left any longer than that. I had this irrational fear of missing out and I am not sure why I felt this way but this course has made me wish I spent a semester abroad. I have always loved meeting new people, seeing new places, and getting out of my comfort zone and I guess I just never connected the dots until now that studying abroad is all that and more. Although I am bummed, I am glad I got to experience aspects of studying abroad through this course.

I realized that I thought of Copenhagen as home when I was leaving Vienna with Cole to return to Copenhagen. The same feeling of relief I get when I arrived in Phoenix or Lexington rushed over me when I arrived back in Copenhagen. I was confused why I felt this way considering I only spent a month here but I realized that it’s because I have the same routine and comfortability with this city as I do at home. There wasn’t a moment in Copenhagen where I didn’t feel safe and happy to be there. Although I could not say that I gained the ability to navigate around the city, besides a few memorized routes, I felt comfortable walking/biking around the city.

Although there were times I wish I was back in Phoenix, I really enjoyed the overall experience. Some of my favorite experiences include eating at Nyhavn, The Glass Market, and Paper Island, taking a day trip around Denmark and a walking tour around Copenhagen, going to the top of The Church of Our Savior, visiting Sweden, having dinner with Danish families, going out with friends, biking around Copenhagen, and last but not least working with Claus. I am extremely grateful that I took this class and can’t wait to tell my family about my experience. I hope to visit Copenhagen again in the near future and find myself missing this place I called home for the last month. Hej Hej for now København!

Home is Where the Hygge Is

In a few days, we’ll be leaving Denmark. I can’t help but feel like this place is a little bit magical. It’s the hygge. That contented, coziness that is everywhere. It’s not that these aren’t people rooted in reality. Cancer is dangerously prevalent here. Just as anywhere else, alcohol and drug use are apparent. There are homeless gypsies who live outside of the museums and public buildings. There is definitely hurt here.

But I’ve found that the Danes are a caring people who really do work to eradicate this kind of thing. Healthcare for all. A chance to be part of society as long as you contribute equally. I talked with someone who attended the vigil for the DIS students without even knowing their names beforehand. I talked with a man who met the man who brutally killed several people years ago. He said he had looked him in the eyes and could see that he had changed. This is a country that believes in “life sentences” of under 20 years. They believe that people can change.

People are on time but rarely in a hurry, and they are always glad to see you — ready with coffee and pastries. They are well-educated and direct, but it always seems like they do what they do for the greater good. After all, as Claus likes to remind us, SMEs are primarily value-driven. It is the Danish way. I’m leaving on a jet plane, and unlike Dean Straughan, I am not sure when I will be back in Denmark. It’s been a pleasure to call this wonderful country home for six weeks of my life, and I will forever treasure the memories and experiences that will always be tied to this place. Tak, Copenhagen. Farewell for now. Hopefully I’ll make it up this way again someday.

Spring Sprung in Seconds

Copenhagen is cold, rainy, and windy through the brunt of the Spring, or so I was told. When packing, I made sure to bring numerous jackets, sweatshirts, and sweater, in order to cope with the wind. While the wind has remained, as it is ever-present in Copenhagen, the weather has certainly shifted since when I arrived. Our program might be finished but I figured I would spend a few extra days in Copenhagen with my sister who is also on a Euro-trip. Her arrival seemed to have brought the warmth to Copenhagen and it is near sweltering here.\, at least relative to my first few weeks.

 

Most of our time spent in Copenhagen was cool, crisp, and windy. Knowing rain could strike at the drop of a hat and that it is nearly impossible to predict the weather here, I always had a rain jacket our umbrella close by. Luckily, I can now enjoy the warmth of what seems to be Danish summer, although I have no summer clothes with me. What has been truly amazing to experience is how Copenhagen has transformed in a matter of days. From bleak yet beautiful to warm and lively.

Life seemed to be on pause near the beginning of our trip, with everything from the people to the plants protected in layers to keep the weather out. Since this heat wave has hit, everything in Copenhagen has come to life and the plants have all come out at once. Spring has happened in an instance. From buds hiding behind layers to flowers in full bloom, Copenhagen is lush in a way that is incomparable. Flowers are everywhere and the funny shaped trees which are everywhere now prove why they are cut and handle. Their knobby branches are filled with leaves and they are shaped beautifully, as if they are manicured every day. Bright green grass is everywhere and countless tulips are some of the most notable scenes in this beautiful space.

Even more incredible than the greenery are the people residing and enjoying these spaces. Given Denmark’s cold weather and lack of sunshine during most of the year, everyone flocks to big outdoor spaces when the weather turns. Parks are covered in blankets and towels with sunbathers as far as the eye can see. Music and children shrieks fill the air like never before. Noise was something that was absent in so many spaces. Copenhagen was very quiet for most of my stay here. This is no longer the case and happy sound seems to emanate from every direction. Outdoor seating is almost completely full at any café that offers it. Every glass seems to be filled with chilled beer, dripping with condensation.

While I have enjoyed every moment spent in Copenhagen, these few days have been incredible. Danish joy is palpable in this beautiful, summer-like weather. I have gotten to experience polar opposites and this has been an incredible and comprehensive way to know the city. My time here in Copenhagen will soon be coming to close but I will make sure to take all of it in these last few days.

Riding Solo

One weekend, I went to Italy to meet up with one of my dearest friends. She’s a year older than me and studied abroad in Madrid this past semester. Since I’m not entirely sure what the coming year holds for me in terms of studying abroad, there is a good chance this was the last time we’ll see each other while she is still in college.

To be perfectly honest, I didn’t want to go. Of course I wanted to spend time with my friend, and the idea of Italy sounded fun, but I was exhausted from the week’s work and our trip to Spain the weekend before. So when Friday rolled around, I begrudgingly made my way to the airport alone. I knew navigating Danish public transportation and the airport would be fine — everyone speaks English and will generally help you out. I knew not to expect the same elsewhere.

We were meeting in Florence, and all the flights I looked into were incredibly expensive, so I booked one to Milan instead with the expectation of taking a train the rest of the way. When I arrived in Milan, I realized that I had actually arrived in Bergamo. Although Bergamo is a gorgeous town at the foot of the Italian alps, I could not catch a train from there. Luckily, many people actually mean to go to Milan, and there is a very popular bus that runs every five minutes for five euros. Euros… exchange of currency… something else I anticipated but never sorted out the logistics of.

During the course of the trip, I found that while many Italians do speak English, many do not. I attempted in vain to ask a man who worked at the train station where my platform was, but alas, we could never actually communicate. I think maybe that is the most odd realization I had from this trip. There are still so many people in the world who do not know English, even though it is so universal. Part of me feels that as citizens of the world, it is our responsibility to make an effort to understand others through learning their language. The rest of me knows that it is not feasible to try to learn every language spoken and that perhaps, a person could make better use of their time by learning the most common or “useful” languages. Regardless, the inability to communicate was surreal.

I have never been more nervous or felt more empowered than I did during these three days. I was solely responsible for my wellbeing, and while there were people who loosely knew my whereabouts, they were at least a country away. Riding through the Tuscan countryside, I reflected on the first two weeks of the class. I didn’t know it then, but those would prove to be the two “easiest” weeks — the weeks when we focused almost exclusively on research and were not yet working the long hours that become so common during the latter half of our project. On the train ride, I also received the email notifying our program of the tragedy at DIS. I didn’t know then what had happened or who it had affected — if it was a terrorist attack or a freak accident. The email didn’t say. But I took solace in knowing that our professors had just arrived back in Denmark and could offer any assistance if needed.

Freedom is a tricky thing. It gives you the chance the grow as a person and to figure things out on your own, but it also gives you an immense appreciation for authority and structure. I found that although I enjoyed the time we had in the first two weeks alone here and venturing out on my own in Italy, I was relieved when I got back to find the professors had returned with the freshman class. I feel extremely lucky to have gotten to experience those first two weeks, though, and I hope that as the freshmen consider their spring term options for next year, they’ll think about coming back to Copenhagen again. I’m not sure that the length of the classes is as different as the responsibility, and I think they will find, as I did, that given a little bit of freedom and a whole lot of work, you leave feeling both accomplished and changed.

 

Sweden vs. Denmark: A Rivalry?

Somehow during our time here last year, I got the impression that the Danes didn’t particularly care for the Swedes. Perhaps it was something snarky someone said during a host family dinner, or perhaps it was something I picked up from Emma, Brittany’s Danish friend we hung out with last year. Whatever the initial reason, the history lesson we received from a teacher at DIS about Denmark’s territorial history solidified my impression. Denmark, the oldest kingdom in the world, used to have a much larger presence in Europe than it does now. In fact, at one point, the kingdom “included present-day Denmark, England, Norway, southern Sweden, and parts of Finland” (“From Vikings to Lutheranism”, Ministry of Foreign Affairs Denmark). Denmark was considered a superpower… and then that changed. The country lost a considerable amount of land and, over time, became the small, homogenous, happy country we know today. Except for some reason, I really thought they resented the Swedes for it.

So during our host family dinners, I brought the issue up. I asked the first family whether it was just a myth or whether there was merit to the rivalry. They laughed a little and proceeded to explain a little bit about Sweden to me. Apparently southern Sweden is quite a bit different from the rest of the country, which Anders also articulated during our visit to Malmo. The people who live in southern Sweden identify differently than, say, people who live in the Stockholm region do — even going as far as identifying more with the Danes. Two Swedes we met in Barcelona who were from the Stockholm area were quick to talk about how dangerous Malmo can be at night now since the government opened its borders to Syrian refugees — as if Stockholm, a much larger and much more prominent city, is not experiencing the same type of issues. In fact, one of the families told us how much the dynamic at the border has changed since the immigration crisis. The mom lived and worked in Stockholm for a while right out of college, and during a series of unfortunate events, lost her identification cards and couldn’t formally notify the Danish government when she came back into Denmark. What stood out to me from her story, though, is that she was still able to travel between Sweden and Denmark without identification. The border used to be more of an idea than an enforced barrier, and you didn’t even have to bring your passport when crossing over into Sweden. That reminded me a little of the United States’ relationship with Canada. Additionally, according to our host family, Swedes are typically more liberal than Danes and have stricter views on drinking, which caught me a little off guard as I generally just think of Scandinavia as one liberal region.

I’m not sure that a true rivalry exists — the Danes I spoke with claimed that it’s just historical friction that no one actually acts upon. They were very adamant about not feeling animosity toward the Swedes; however, I still consider it fascinating that two countries that people from other parts of the world often lump together are so different. They’re both part of Scandinavia, and they both have many of the same beliefs, but talking to Danes gave me a better understanding of how different the perception (and reality) of each country in the Scandic region is. Don’t even get me started on Norway.

http://ukraine.um.dk/en/about-denmark/danish-history-and-culture

Some Squad Statistics

As our group was finishing up our final presentations earlier this week, we began to reflect on our time here in Copenhagen. We would work for a few minutes on our slides, then someone would randomly bring up a funny moment that occurred during our trip. Finally, we decided some moments (and the frequency of those moments) were too good to just keep to ourselves. We decided to compile a list of statistics regarding our group’s time here in Copenhagen and hope you have a laugh or two at our antics!   -Emily, Cole, Hermione, and Cassidy

Pages of Google docs research: 71 pages

Number of links in research: 205 links or more, we may have missed a few when counting

Number of slides: 115 slides

Hours spent: A lot.

Fruit eaten (apples, pears, bananas): At least 3 a day per person, so maybe 96 pieces of fruit

Rolls stolen from hostel: ….a few…

Times yelled at by hostel for stealing food: Only once.

Fish cakes consumed: 8 delicious ones

Ice cream consumed: 18 cones? Or maybe 30? Who knows..

Tears shed: One by Cassidy for orangutans (s/o to Cole for the correct plural, Word autocorrected it to that).

Locations studied: 5 locations

How many packs of crackers Emily ate: 6 packs

Cups of coffee consumed: mmm maybe 128 cups minimum (at least 2 per day for our group’s two coffee drinkers)

Number of coffee places Cole went to: At least 7 different places

Hours spent traveling to company: 10 hours or more

Number of times kicked people out of room: 2 times, both were rather awkward experiences

Times missed bus: Once, but that was totally the train’s fault

How often Cole and Emily yelled “SQUAAA”: Probably too often..

Times we almost went to Sweden: Only one time

Hours Hermione spent working on a staircase: 2 hours

Number of times lost finding DIS building: Twice

Favorite new Danish phrase: “Here we do not say ‘no sense reinventing the wheel’. We say, ‘no sense reinventing the deep plate’.”

Number of “i”s in citrus: ONLY ONE.

Longest day: 12 hours

Number of debates over the Oxford Comma: Way too many than was necessary, everyone knows it belongs in our sentences.

Number of times Emily went to KFC: 7 times. Not ashamed either.

Number of doors Cassidy couldn’t open: I think we lost count, especially those tricky revolving ones.

Learning Outside the Classroom

As the class comes to an end, all I have to say is that is had been an incredible experience. The city is ever changing and I love discovering new corners of the city that I have not been to before. At the same time, it is interesting to go back to some of my favorite places to see if anything has changed. However, my favorite part of this class was learning outside of the classroom.

Towards the end of Winter Term, I had felt incredibly stressed and burned out. Even now, I am unsure of the cause of said stress, but I knew that I could not have done another traditional class. I wanted to continue learning, but knew that I could not learn very effectively in a classroom again unless I had a break. This class was exactly what I needed, even if I did not know that when I first applied.

Instead of thinking about the class in terms of “class time” and “homework,” I thought about this project-based class as “work time” and “leisure time.” Cassidy, Cole, Emily and I had structured our time so that our days were similar to that of a full-time job: work from nine to sometime in the afternoon on weekdays and then have the rest of the day and weekends to ourselves (mostly). I enjoyed working intensely for part of the day and then being able to not think about the project until the next time we met, because it meant that I had a much-needed break. Back on campus during Fall and Winter Term, breaks from academic work were non-existent.

Other than the structure of the class, I also appreciated the opportunity to apply both the technical and soft-skills I had learned at W&L to an actual project. While I acknowledge the value of case studies or simulations, concepts feel more tangible when there is a real purpose behind them. At the same time, I learned a lot about specific subjects that I have not, and will not, take classes on. This was an opportunity to explore subjects that are relevant to the workforce and the world that may not be appropriately examined in a classroom setting. Some of the most valuable experiences came from us setting the scope or direction of our project and providing the justification behind each decision.

My love for 7/11

One of my first observations here in Copenhagen was, “Wow, look at that 7/11. I love it.” Now, almost four and a half weeks later, my love for the Danish 7/11s persists. Before I am labeled as a weirdo (which some may already do), let me explain the reasoning behind my obsession.

First and foremost, the Danish 7/11s have freshly baked goods. Whether it be personal-size pizzas, blueberry muffins, or chocolate macadamia nut cookies, they have anything a professional late-night-snack-owl could desire. This is where I come into play.

Back in Lexington, I usually visit the 7/11 in the nighttime hours. Whenever I have hit a wall writing a paper or want to take a study break with friends, my favorite suggestion is getting some famous 7/11 Slurpee’s. Lexington’s 7/11 has pre-packaged snacks and some hotdogs rolling on a cooker, but nothing terribly appetizing.

However, here in Copenhagen, they have numerous displays filled with pastries and sandwiches. There are ovens behind the cashier counter, allowing customers to watch the employees as they pull out treys of cherry pastries and brownies. The store offers healthier options too. Yogurt parfaits and cold-meat sandwiches fill the refrigerated shelves. There is also a fresh pasta-salad bar right when you walk in the door. You grab your own bowl, fill it to your liking, pay, and you are on your way! These options are great for people in a time crunch who want to have something decent for lunch (i.e. not fast food) and want something at a below-average price.

As I converse with my fellow classmates, they say this “upscale” style of 7/11s is quite common in Europe and Asia. Honestly, if I had the means to, I would travel the world just to see the different 7/11s. A lofty goal? Sure. Does it make much sense? Nope, which is why I will not endeavor on that adventure. Nevertheless, the difference between the 7/11s in the United States and Copenhagen fascinates me. In Copenhagen, the stores are more than convenience stores used to buy junk food and soda. The stores have more substantial food options; one could purchase an actual meal and not simply an on-the-go snack. Back in the States, it seems as though 7/11 has a reputation for being a quick-stop shop for cheap, unhealthy snacks and mega-large sodas and Slurpee’s. I am not saying that is a bad reputation to have, but it seems to vary quite a bit from the perception of the 7/11s in Copenhagen.

 

I Was Adventurous!

As I have mentioned in previous blog posts, I am an absurdly picky eater. Almost every day I have been in Denmark, I have eaten cheese or potatoes in one form or another. So when I heard we would be eating traditional Danish cuisine for dinner, I freaked.

“What on earth am I going to eat?” I thought to myself.

My friends who had been on the trip in the previous year said the food was good, but may not be the best for picky eaters. They said one of the ladies on the trip last year was as picky as I was, and she did not exactly love the meal.

At this point, I am honestly terrified. I want to like all foods. I really do. I just can’t! The idea of any seafood makes me squirm, and I know that traditional Danish cuisine is full of it. I have a minor shrimp and salmon allergy that I quite honestly rarely think about, as I never am in a restaurant that serves one of those things.

When we got to the restaurant, Host, it was absolutely gorgeous. Anders said the restaurant had once won an award for the decor. We were seated in a beautiful, dimly-lit basement that was surprisingly warm. I thought the cellars and basements were supposed to be cold?

The waitresses came around to ask everyone about allergies and other dietary needs. I mentioned my shrimp and salmon allergies, but said I did not know if I was allergic to other seafood. She said the restaurant would just give me nothing from the sea, and boy was I relieved! Not only am I nervous because seafood is so weird looking and creepy, but I have a family history of seafood allergies. My mom is allergic to all fish, and my cousins are allergic to all shellfish. The only seafood I have ever eaten, enjoyed, and was not allergic to was crab. I have eaten it twice in my 19 years. I probably will keep up that year-to-crab ratio for the rest of my life.

Every time a course came out, I was suspicious. Everything looked so strange. However, I was reassured when I took a bite. There was nothing that I was served that I did not thoroughly enjoy.

The photo I have set as my featured image was the first course I was given. It clearly looks a little weird, but it was far from weird! It was a fruit base with green strawberries and a little bit of oil. I even enjoyed my beet salad, and enjoying a salad is a rarity for me! The delicious cheese sauce may have helped. The tapioca bubbles were likely one of my favorite parts of the meal. The main course was also divine; a pork piece with some sort of green sauce on top.

Although I came into the restaurant incredibly nervous, I cam out with a tremendous smile on my face. The abundance of wine may have helped with the smile.

An Irish Goodbye

At our annual closing dinner tonight – our largest ever with all 27 #wlucsr students in BUS 180/391 – one of the students sitting with me mentioned her tendencies for an Irish goodbye. For those unfamiliar, an Irish goodbye is simply slipping out from a large gathering with no fanfare and no formal goodbyes. That is, I suppose, what this is . . . Almost.

I depart for Lexington tomorrow, a day earlier than the students and my colleague Elizabeth. #wlucsr 2017, our sixth installment, comes to a close on Friday. The students have a celebratory day tomorrow, complete with all-you-can-eat pizza and an afternoon/evening at historic Tivoli. They have made their final presentations, submitted their final projects, and have little formal work remaining. A last blog post or journal entry might be about it. I’m slipping out a side door, however, in order to get back to campus for a board meeting followed by the usual end-of-year festivities. But what a month it has been!

We arrived four weeks ago this morning with eight BUS 391 students. Three had been here before as part of the first-year only BUS 180 class. They have put in an enormous effort on behalf of their “clients” during that time. The two projects were very different from each other, and you may have read of some of the challenges in this blog over the last four weeks.

Their final presentations of their research to the clients this week went well. Of the recommendations made to his firm, one client noted, “I feel quite convinced that it’s something that we should do . . . I trust the work that you’ve done.” The other project sponsor told his group, “Thank you so much. It was really great, and I have enjoyed it all the way,” and presented each with a lovely Royal Copenhagen coffee cup as a memento.

They are tired. They should be, as they have worked hard. Several have noted that Copenhagen feels a bit like home now. I know how they feel. It is a sort of home away from home for me too. It’s hygge.

Half way through the BUS 391 students’ stay here, we returned with 19 first-year students enrolled in the BUS 180 class. Elizabeth and I have marveled at various times about their level of engagement. They’ve asked amazingly insightful questions. They’ve invested not just in their own research projects, but in the work undertaken by classmates. They’ve engaged our corporate and government hosts and the Danish professors we have visited with in ways that have really impressed.

Year after year when we bring the BUS 180 students to Copenhagen, one of the real pleasures is responding to questions from those unfamiliar with the quality of our students who ask, “What sort of graduate program are they in?”

“No,” we smile, “They are undergraduates in their first year of study.” And so it came to pass once again in 2017.

We’ll start work in earnest on the 2018 version soon enough. Elizabeth and I are constantly debating changes to the class. Should we go to Stockholm? Are the cultural visits ideal? How can we muffle the sound of the Euro-teens rampaging through Danhostel? These are the weighty questions with which we will grapple.

A few thank-yous are in order before I depart . . . After all, I’m only Irish on my mom’s side.

To Anders, Susanne, Ian, Zoé, Carsten, Suzanne, Malene, and all my friends at DIS, you are such a valuable part of this program. In the face of your own immense challenges of the last two weeks, you have shone!

To Anne Mette, thanks for the inspiration for these classes many years ago. Thanks for the many introductions that you have made that have opened the doors for our students. We wouldn’t be doing this without you.

To Camilla, Camilla, Christoffer, Claus, and Claus (anyone else notice a pattern here?), thanks for your hospitality and time. Thanks for your willingness to share with our students the challenges of your jobs. Please thank the many others at Coloplast, Gladsaxe, Norden, Novo Nordisk, and Pandora that contributed.

To Andrew, Andrew, Ben, Cassidy, Charlie, Cole, Daniel, Ellee, Emily, Eliot, Emma, Erin, Ethan, Hermione, Jesse, Julia, Katherine, Katherine, Kathryn, Maggie, Matt, Parker, Ramonah, Sarah, Sloan, Tate, and Señor Sassafras, thanks for a great term. Just as each of the companies that we have studied have had to come to their own understanding of sustainability and social responsibility, so must each of you. I hope, though, whatever life holds in store for you, that you will find a way to move the needle on this front. If so, then we will all be better for your efforts!

Fireworks are going off at Tivoli, so it seems appropriate to bring this to an end.

Med venlig hilsen,

Rob

p.s. I still love fresh peas!