Part Two of my Arrival Day

Well, a lot has happened over the past few days and I don't really know where to start! I guess let me pick up where I left off: at the airport:
Sure enough, the familiar faces that appeared at the top of the stairs in the hotel belonged to Lars and Kasper (host Dad and brother), who had come to get me and take me to my new home! They were incredibly friendly right from the get-go and greeted me with big hugs and HUGE Danish smiles. They'd driven to get me at the airport (thank god! getting the suitcases home on the train would have been hard, especially since I was so tired). We chatted along the way home and I quickly found that both Lars and Kasper have really, really good English. They pointed out the various towns and roads along the way, though I was unable to retain basically any of the information they shared.

After about 25 minutes, we pulled into our neighborhood. The streets and each of the yards are lined with hedges, which I learned is very Danish. The houses are small, but not too small, and (as far as I can tell) are all single level homes. The neighborhood is really just  very pretty, and our house is my favorite :)  (btw... get used to seeing lots of emoticons... the Danes LOVE them!). I didn't take a picture yet, but will do so before the end of the week.

Once inside, Lars gave me the grand tour. Well, first I was greeted by Balou and Junior, father and son chocolate labs, who are actually adorable and amazingly sweet and well behaved. Balou plays the role of old grandpa and literally sits directly in front of the fire place in the living room sleeping while sitting up (or at least, closing his eyes as if he was sleeping). Junior bounds around the room begging for Balou (or anyone else)'s attention until you tell him, "Junior, sit" at which point he calms down and usually plops to the ground. A lot of the time you will find the two of them together sitting side by side, or with Junior resting his head on Balou's back! I promise to take a picture.

The house itself is cozy, very nicely decorated and extremely efficient. The is the small room right off the entry area that has the washer/dryer where we put shoes and coats. If you walked straight after entering the house, you'd be in the living room, which is perhaps my favorite room in the house (other than my room). It has a giant TV and a couch with many different sections. There is no real division between it and the dining room, but they serve as two distinct spaces. At one end of the living room there is the fireplace, which is always lit and which keeps the entire house toasty warm! It's so nice since I was prepared to be freezing. ;) The kitchen is also really nice and looks newly remodeled. There's a table for 4 in it so on nights when someone is not joining us for dinner, we eat in there.

Down the hall away from the main entrance is the rest of the house: the bathroom (with a shower), the toilet room (with just a toilet), Mira & Kasper's bedroom, Helle & Lar's bedroom, and my bedroom (I only found out upon arrival that Kasper had to give up his room for me to be here! I felt terrible, but apparently he and Mira didn't care). While I haven't taken pictures of the other rooms yet, I do have photos of my room. :-)

View from my bed

Walking into my room (note the sign made by Mira, the flowers, and the newly hung map of Europe to help me learn about my new home!)

View looking into my room from my door/desk

There are SO many things I want to tell and show you, but I am hoping to be able to do it slowly over the course of the semester. For now, I will keep moving forward with my day.

I unpacked into my new room and then took the most refreshing shower! I have to remember to keep the showers short because water (and electricity and gas) are VERY expensive in Denmark because of "green taxes." Add it to the list of things that Denmark does right! It makes this country incredibly sustainable. 

After showering, Lars and I took the dogs for a walk and I got to see the neighborhood.  There was a pretty little trail that led to the local football (soccer) field. The sun was setting (even though it was only just after 3pm), and the colors were really beautiful. 

Back at home I hung out with Kasper for a little while and shortly thereafter Mira (my host sister) and Helle (my host mom) arrived home from Mira's volleyball game. Helle absolutely loves to laugh and is always smiling. Mira is just the sweetest girl! She's 12 and is not very comfortable with speaking English. In fact, she just really only started studying English this year (she goes to a community school that uses a different approach to teaching). However, we're trying hard to find ways to communicate (google translate, using Kasper's help, and lots of pointing). We've made a deal that she will help me with my Danish and I will help her with her English. :)

Dinner was great and lasted nearly 2 hours. We talked about everything under the sun (including lots of politics and other "hot topics"). I have so much more to say on the subject of Danish culture and politics, but let's just say that I am in love with the Danish perspective on life, community, responsibility, and values. It makes a LOT more sense to me than the American perspective in many ways.

After dinner we hung out and talked some more. I eventually went back to my room and collapsed, happily, to sleep! I was overwhelmed by the graciousness of my hosts: a truly warm and cozy home, delicious food, and the promise of a semester experiencing another perspective and way of life.