Italia part uno

Oh, Italy my heart. Once again I am deeply in love with that country full of bounty, full of beauty, full of all things wonderful. Like last year, this trip was great and I would gladly do it all over again. I will share glimpses of it here; besides the obvious, there was also time for lots of laughs, reading, quiet time, game-playing, wine-drinking and cheese and ham eating. So here's the crème de la crème from the first couple of days:

The first morning in the yellow house, the sun shone wonderfully. We had breakfast outside and took in one of my favourite views in the world.

 A few days later, we drove to Loreto-Aprutino, where we walked the steep streets, checked in on the castle, had ice cream and drove through heavy rain showers.

Kathrine and Kristiane forcing their way up the streets.

I love the chaos in the architecture. It's not too neat and thought-out as in Scandinavia.

Loreto was lovely. I absolutely adore views like these.

I swear I took the exact same photo last year!

A classic.

A few days later, Klaudia joined us and we took the incredibly scenic drive up to Gran Sasso, Campo Imperatore. We stopped in on this little hut, bought arrosticini, bread with oil, fresh Abbruzzo Pecorino and a bottle of red. We ate it all beneath the mountains, and we were the only ones there.

Love this photo of the grilling girls!

Hello!

On our way up to the old ski resort, we drove through these mountains of snow.....

On our way back, we drove through Castel del Monte, my favourite draped-around-the-mountain-town.

Annoying that there was a crane there to ruin all the idyl.

When we came down from the mountains, we bought ice cream and saw this; the most Italian scene ever.

Friday's shenanigans

On Friday, we started the grill season on our balcony. Great food, great wine, great company. I like how you party in your late 20s; not too many people, but intense and super fun. I have bought an older Canon camera for party photos, and it turns out it was a good decision. The older generation means grainy photos, and I think it suits a party situation well. Hope you're having a great weekend!

AnCa was there, of course, and while we were dancing around to Spice Girls and drinking wannabe Moscow Mules, we took lots of selfies. Just like partying in 2011 in Berlin.

The winning dance moves.

Casual glimpses of a busy life

Life is pretty busy at the moment. I'm running around trying to squeeze in as much social life as possible in the hours I don't work each day, and so blogging kind of falls by the wayside. However, if you go to my Instagram account, it's much more updated. So, what have I been up to lately? A few glimpses here;

Spring has officially sprung and the nights are getting longer and lighter. It's so wonderful.

A few weeks ago, I met up with Chris after a particular hectic day at work. Luckily, she calmed me down over some food and a long talk.

 Every morning, I drop by Democratic Coffee on Krystalgade for a flat white and a chat with the boys there. The view to Rundetårn from the street only makes it better.

Last week, I had ice cream with Tine in Jægersborggade. It made me so happy when we passed these bottles further down the street.

Last Saturday's breakfast table was light and perfect.

Otherwise, this is pretty much my table all the time at work...

On Tuesday, we met at Klaudia's for our monthly food club night. She has a great view of Frederiksberg.

Yesterday, I saw two movies at the cinema! One was a pre-premiere of Danish 'Guldkysten', the second was Argentinean 'Jauja' with Viggo Mortensen and grand old lady (and my idol!) Ghita Nørby - who came by the cinema for a quick chat quite spontaneously...! I only had 25 minutes between films to run from one cinema to the next, and my head was spinning, but I took the scenic route and went down this lovely street.

Svinkløv

Last weekend, I went to north Jutland to see my grandparents and teach my grandmother how to use the iPad we'd given her for her 75th birthday the weekend before. It was great fun to teach her, and she got really good. Saturday night, we drove out to the west coast to have dinner at fancy hotel Svinkløv. The trip out there was just as great. My grandparents know every inch of the area and told me tales of the places and the people and the nature and everything. I love those trips. After the dinner, we walked along the coast, the sea was uncharacteristically calm, and the sundown was mesmerizing.

My cool grandmother working at the iPad.

When we arrived at Svinkløv, we bumped into a festive group of friends and they wanted to take a picture of us.

I want to live near the sea when I get older.

The beach looked almost outer-worldly as the sun went down.

I love this photo of my grandfather.

The boats had been drawn up on the beach, and they were just lying there as if waiting to touch the salty waters again.

Those two. They have been married for 55 years and are still as in love with each other as ever.

Neighbourhood

When Adam came to visit a few weeks ago, I took him to Neighbourhood for a pizza. I'd been there before a few months ago, and this time around was just as good. The pizzas are super thin and crusty, it's almost like eating 'knækbrød' (google it) with stuff on it. I had lumpfish roe and dild with sour cream. Adam had the veggie pizza.

We also had beers and cocktails. The cocktails were magnificent! I had a pumpkin sour and Adam had a cu-cress garden.

Look at that crust! Adam was mighty impressed with this place and it's definitely not the last time I'm back.

About reading

I have always loved to read, but I haven't always been the best at remembering to do so. Mostly, I've read during holidays where I have the time to disappear into a novel, but I've always thought I'd want to read more. So a few days ago, I suddenly thought about all the reading I've done lately, not even just on holidays. I've bought many books the last few weeks, and I've been looking so much forward to this easter break because I knew I'd read Hemingway. It makes me happy that I have sort of taught myself to read again - and that I can also read without always being so swept up in the story that I can't do anything else (literally, I can hardly sleep or eat!) until the book is finished. So, what have I been reading in recent time?

Joan Didion - The year of magical thinking
I picked it up in the airport when I went to Bath a few weeks ago, and I read the entire book before I arrived 6 hours later. It really hit something in me, the language was beautiful (despite reading the Danish translation) and I felt I'd gotten to know this delicate, inspiring person.

Naomi Wood - Mrs. Hemingway
I bought this in Bath and read it in a few days. Hemingway seems to have been a difficult man to love, but one you'd gladly love despite all his faults. I read a similar book (The Paris Wife by Paula McLain) a few years ago which also gave this glimpse into this man from the point of view of his wives. Fascinating.

Lena Dunham - Not that kind of girl
I read this a few months ago and thought it was hilarious in the way she depicts womanhood in our time, and I could recognize many things - and laugh about more!

Jens Andersen - Denne dag, et liv
I haven't finished it yet, this biography about Swedish children's author Astrid Lindgren. But I'm fascinated by all the details with which the author paints his subject with. I would have liked to meet Astrid Lindgren, and now I feel I am meeting her.

F. Scott Fitzgerald - Short stories
I bought a copy of his collected short stories a few months ago on a rainy day. I read a similar collection in Danish the summer before last, and loved them, and I wanted to read them in their original language. Now and then, I pick it up and read a story or two, and they are always great. Beautifully written, surprising and feisty!

Maria Gerhard - Der bor Hollywoodstjerner på vejen
Danish dj and writer Maria Gerhard wrote this book about her time with cancer and her love for her girlfriend. It's raw and piercing and honest, and I read it in just a few days. She is a cool lady.

Anna Funder - Stasiland
When my GDR-thing was in its peak, I read this unforgettable book about the aftermath of the GDR. It was haunting and just added to the notion that I can't believe it really happened. Wow!

Ernest Hemingway - A moveable feast
This is what I'm reading this easter. I found an edition with handwritten pages inside and photographs of the Hemingways and their Paris crowd, and it's marvelous. I thought I owed it to the man to read some of his own words after having read about him in the wife-books...