Andrew and I attended a dinner for expats at the local library here in Aalborg last week. It was a potluck dinner and over 100 people were there from different countries, each bringing a cuisine from their home countries (we made macaroni and cheese - I couldn't think of anything really American!).
It was a fun night, but the best part about it came yesterday when we found out that we'd made it into the feature on the local news. Check us out on Danish t.v. here. The clip isn't long, but it is almost entirely in Danish, so if you only want to see us, you can skip to 00:09 (saying that I'm from Chicago) and 00:15 (sitting with some friends, enjoying dinner - you can only see the back of Andrew's head and the side of my face, so you'll have to look carefully).
04 November 2011
14 October 2011
A Hard Day's Work
I worked my first (almost) full day of work yesterday in Denmark. As some of you may know, I've been volunteering my time at the local international school in Aalborg as a tutor. I work with some of the kids there one-on-one to improve their English skills for a few hours each week, and a few weeks ago, I was asked if I would like to be a substitute there, as well. I agreed, and my first day finally came yesterday.
I'd been nervous ever since they scheduled me to cover an actual class, but the nerves increased about an hundred-fold when I found out last week that I wouldn't be getting the lesson plans for my class until the morning of (when the school opened about twenty minutes before class started). Also, the school has two locations and while I do my tutoring at one, I would be subbing at the other one, but I had never been there before.
I woke up before seven (far earlier than when I normally get up) and set off from the apartment while the moon was still out! (We're losing daylight fast up here in Denmark - come winter the sun won't rise until almost nine!) Upon getting to the school, I found out that two extra classes had been added to my subbing schedule in the afternoon, but the lesson plans were there at least - thank God! I spent the morning subbing for a class of little kids (about six to eight year olds), and then headed over to the other location for an afternoon with a class of older ones (thirteen to sixteen year olds). Both classes were totally wild and didn't want to listen to a sub at all (they are on fall break next week, so that didn't help matters). I can really only say that I have nothing but respect for teachers, and hopefully it will be easier if they ask me to do it again!
I'd been nervous ever since they scheduled me to cover an actual class, but the nerves increased about an hundred-fold when I found out last week that I wouldn't be getting the lesson plans for my class until the morning of (when the school opened about twenty minutes before class started). Also, the school has two locations and while I do my tutoring at one, I would be subbing at the other one, but I had never been there before.
I woke up before seven (far earlier than when I normally get up) and set off from the apartment while the moon was still out! (We're losing daylight fast up here in Denmark - come winter the sun won't rise until almost nine!) Upon getting to the school, I found out that two extra classes had been added to my subbing schedule in the afternoon, but the lesson plans were there at least - thank God! I spent the morning subbing for a class of little kids (about six to eight year olds), and then headed over to the other location for an afternoon with a class of older ones (thirteen to sixteen year olds). Both classes were totally wild and didn't want to listen to a sub at all (they are on fall break next week, so that didn't help matters). I can really only say that I have nothing but respect for teachers, and hopefully it will be easier if they ask me to do it again!
02 October 2011
The Train to Skagen
Yesterday, Andrew and I woke up [relatively] early and caught the train to Skagen (pronounced Skain). It's a town on the northeastern tip of Denmark, and the beach there is where the North and Baltic Seas meet. It's a very popular tourist town in the summer, and according to one of Andrew's co-workers, it's where Danish celebrities like to go to be seen. I was there with my parents when they visited in August, but Andrew missed it and since we're having a bit of an Indian summer here right now (with some blazing highs in the seventies) we decided a day at the beach sounded great.
We arrived in Skagen and did some shopping and had lunch in town first, before hitting the road to the beach, which is a little bit outside of town. To be specific, it's three kilometers outside of town, but the walk was beautiful and relaxing and there were plenty of other bikers and walkers along the same route. We made it there in about thirty minutes and took a tractor/bus from the dunes down to the beachfront along with the many Danes who were taking advantage of the unseasonably warm day. The beach was beautiful and it really was the perfect day for a barefoot walk in the sand.
As always, more pictures of our day are on our flickr page.
We arrived in Skagen and did some shopping and had lunch in town first, before hitting the road to the beach, which is a little bit outside of town. To be specific, it's three kilometers outside of town, but the walk was beautiful and relaxing and there were plenty of other bikers and walkers along the same route. We made it there in about thirty minutes and took a tractor/bus from the dunes down to the beachfront along with the many Danes who were taking advantage of the unseasonably warm day. The beach was beautiful and it really was the perfect day for a barefoot walk in the sand.
Andrew and I both took the opportunity to take a stroll in the North and Baltic Seas, and here he is in each:
As always, more pictures of our day are on our flickr page.
16 September 2011
Andrew's new favorite food
This post is not about a trip or something exciting that Andrew and I did around Aalborg, but rather, something exciting I did in our apartment: today I made homemade ricotta. (It was exciting for me, and Andrew, who I think is going to force me to make it all the time so he has a never-ending supply.) I may have a small kitchen here and limited supplies, but my time, energy, and creativity are somewhat unbound. I found a recipe a few months ago and have been meaning to try it, and today was the day. Andrew couldn't say enough nice things about it, one of which was that it was the best thing he'd ever eaten. He likes everything I make, but that was pretty good to hear. And it WAS delicious... and so easy! All you need is milk, cream, a pinch of salt, and some lemon juice. Let me know if you want to try this and I'll send you the recipe - so much better than store-bought!
 |
| The easiest part: waiting for the whey to strain |
 |
| Pre-dinner snack: fresh ricotta on toast |
 |
| Dinner for two: cheese & basil pizza |
I have no delusions of turning this into a food blog, so next time, we're back to non-food-related business.
31 August 2011
Au revoir à mes parents
Andrew and I dropped my parents at the airport in Copenhagen on Sunday, so they're in Paris now (wearing scarves and berets and eating baguettes, I'm sure), but not before spending a wonderful weekend in Copenhagen. Friday morning we woke up early and hit the road to Hov, which is where the ferry to Samsø left from. We spent a few hours on Samsø, a beautiful little island that would probably make a wonderful place to have a summer home or a weekend getaway. We drove up to Nordby, the town where my mom's family originally came from, for lunch, and then down to the southern point of the island to catch our ferry off the island to head to Copenhagen.
 |
| Beach at Nordby |
 |
| Samsø windmill |
On Saturday, we toured Copenhagen by boat. The city has many canals and we hopped on a canal tour to see the big sights before spending the afternoon on the Strøget (the main shopping area in the city and the longest pedestrian shopping area in Europe). After shopping, we went to Tivoli and then back to our hotel for a lovely dinner. All in all, it was a great weekend and wonderful to have some visitors! More photos on our flickr page.
 |
| Andrew in front of the library fountain |
25 August 2011
The Bernski hits Aalborg
Mom and Dad arrived in Aalborg late Tuesday. Andrew and I were at the airport twice that night, once to pick up the rental car at 10:30pm (right before their flight was SUPPOSED to arrive) and again at 2:00am (when their flight ACTUALLY arrived). But, they made it and we've been having a good time showing them around town (and around northern Denmark).
On Wednesday, we spent the day touring the Aalborg old town, shopping, and making friends with the locals while Andrew was at work - Mom met a nice lady who owns a shop where I might take knitting lessons, and Dad made friends with the owner of the local Irish pub. We also went to an underground history museum that's right underneath the main shopping strip. Andrew and I cooked them dinner at our apartment and then we all went for a drive to find a river nearby where Dad was going to go fishing at the crack of dawn this morning. (He found out about the river from another new friend he met at the local fishing store - the kid offered to go fishing with him, and even gave him his phone number!) After finding his river, we all came home and went to bed, tired out after our busy first day.
Today, Mom and Dad woke up early to go fishing, but it was a bit too wet, and he didn't even get to use his new fishing gear. At around nine, I met them at their hotel and we took off for Skagen, a beachy tourist town at the very tip of Denmark, where the North and Baltic Seas meet. Very nice, but we didn't go in the water until we got to Tversted, where we had some ice cream (at the recommendation of another one of my father's new friends) and stepped into the North Sea. Here's Dad, first at Skagen and then in the North Sea at Tversted.
We continued on our way to Løkken, which we all agreed was the nicest place we stopped all day. Here, we met some more new friends (also the nicest, by far), had lunch, did some shopping, and then drove on the beach about 15 kilometers to the next town, Blokhus. According to our new friends, this is the only place in the world where you can drive on the beach for such a long distance - it was very cool and quite beautiful.
Tonight, Andrew and I took my parents to the first restaurant that we ever ate at in Aalborg for a nice dinner out, before coming home to pack for the weekend. We leave early tomorrow morning for a weekend in Copenhagen with my parents before they head off to Paris. Our route to the big city tomorrow includes a stop on the island of Samsø, where my mom's family came from (way back when), so expect many pictures to come. Until then!
On Wednesday, we spent the day touring the Aalborg old town, shopping, and making friends with the locals while Andrew was at work - Mom met a nice lady who owns a shop where I might take knitting lessons, and Dad made friends with the owner of the local Irish pub. We also went to an underground history museum that's right underneath the main shopping strip. Andrew and I cooked them dinner at our apartment and then we all went for a drive to find a river nearby where Dad was going to go fishing at the crack of dawn this morning. (He found out about the river from another new friend he met at the local fishing store - the kid offered to go fishing with him, and even gave him his phone number!) After finding his river, we all came home and went to bed, tired out after our busy first day.
Today, Mom and Dad woke up early to go fishing, but it was a bit too wet, and he didn't even get to use his new fishing gear. At around nine, I met them at their hotel and we took off for Skagen, a beachy tourist town at the very tip of Denmark, where the North and Baltic Seas meet. Very nice, but we didn't go in the water until we got to Tversted, where we had some ice cream (at the recommendation of another one of my father's new friends) and stepped into the North Sea. Here's Dad, first at Skagen and then in the North Sea at Tversted.
We continued on our way to Løkken, which we all agreed was the nicest place we stopped all day. Here, we met some more new friends (also the nicest, by far), had lunch, did some shopping, and then drove on the beach about 15 kilometers to the next town, Blokhus. According to our new friends, this is the only place in the world where you can drive on the beach for such a long distance - it was very cool and quite beautiful.
Tonight, Andrew and I took my parents to the first restaurant that we ever ate at in Aalborg for a nice dinner out, before coming home to pack for the weekend. We leave early tomorrow morning for a weekend in Copenhagen with my parents before they head off to Paris. Our route to the big city tomorrow includes a stop on the island of Samsø, where my mom's family came from (way back when), so expect many pictures to come. Until then!
07 August 2011
Out and About in Aalborg
Andrew and I have spent the past two weekends in Aalborg, exploring our new city and savoring what warm weather is left in the year. Already the temperatures are starting to drop from the sweltering summer highs (mid-seventies) to the sixties. Maybe that sounds nice to all of you suffering from the heat wave that's been hitting America all summer, but I would have liked at least one day this summer to have broken eighty!
Last weekend, Andrew found a lovely park for us to bike to on the other side of the Limfjord. It had a few historical buildings that were open to visitors, as well as a large garden with various plant varieties, including herbs and flowers and fruit trees to explore.
Today, we walked to the Kunsten modern art museum. One of the first things we encountered was a motorized couch that took off when Andrew sat on it. He wants to build one for our home to surprise guests when they come over:
The next room we entered was probably the best in the whole museum. It contained a smaller room lined entirely with mirrors (on the inside and out), which patrons are allowed to enter, one at a time, in their socks, for a period of about five minutes. (Andrew and I both went in twice.)
The room has only a swing inside and was both scary and beautiful.
In addition to their normal collection, they also had a special sculptural exhibit on wax, an exhibit exploring the themes ugly/beautiful, and a large sculpture garden outside that several children were enjoying in their underwear (they were playing in a large fountain designed by the same artist who created Andrew's moving couch). We are excited to go back with the yearly pass I got (which allows me one free guest) as they get new exhibits every few months.
(We aren't all high-brow... we also saw Bridesmaids in theaters yesterday but our pictures from that aren't as good!). Feel free to check out our flickr page for more pictures.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)