About homes

As some of you might have seen on Instagram a few weeks back, I've decided to move to Copenhagen. There are many reasons for this move, and so many thoughts have circled in my head for months. But the main points are that Berlin and I seem to have outgrown each other. I don't regret coming back to it this second time around, and I knew it might very well be a short comeback, but I no longer feel at home in the city. Things that seemed charming and quirky last time around - like unwelcoming Germans (some of them!) and their love for bureaucracy and rules - have been such a pain in the a** this time around. Plus, I don't know how I would be able to pay rent and health insurance and live, there are no jobs, and the constant uncertainty would kill me. I'm very sad to have 'thrown in the towel', because I thrive on adventure and living outside Denmark, it's such a big part of my identity, and I feel I have let down that side of me. On the other hand, Copenhagen has drawn me to it for a long time, and the once very complicated relationship between us seems to have worked itself out. I'm looking forward to spending more time with dearly missed friends and my family, and to re-connect with a town I haven't lived in for a long time. The adventures in the world will soon call me again, I think, because it seems like I'm destined to always be on the move. But for now, it'll be Copenhagen, and that feels deeply great.

Heaven land

My grandparents live in the north of Jutland and their little town has been a steady rock in a childhood of moving around constantly. I love visiting them, not only because their home is full of laughter, clever conversation and goodness, but also because the little town is full of personalities. People up there don't hide their weirdness and it's so nice to have it all out in the open. Whenever I visit, there are dozens of new stories to hear, and both my grandparents are great storytellers. Apart from sit in the kitchen drinking coffee and talking, we caught 'Monica Z' in a nearby cinema and also took a trip into Aalborg. Here are some visual glimpses;
PS the area they live in is called Himmerland - in Danish it sounds a little like 'heaven land', which isn't too far from my opinion of it...

My grandfather has recently started to do some cooking, and, being an architect, makes every dish look like a work of art. Thus, he made salmon with julienned cucumber in chili marinade one of the days. Yum!

I took a little selfie in the local supermarket that still smells of my childhood summers.

When we went into Aalborg, we went down to the harbour to have a look at the new Musikhuset. I was very very unimpressed with the architecture that seemed more skizofrenic than anything else.

But the view over Limfjorden wasn't too bad.

Bespectacled

Yes. I've got glasses now. My eyes have been longing for a little help for years, but I haven't gotten around to do something about until now. And despite only having -0,75, it's made a huge difference for me. The joy of being able to see everything completely clearly! And not having to squint all the time, endure the headaches and everything... So now I'm all about the glasses.

Sunny Sunday in Nørrebro

On Sunday, I met up with Tine in the sun. It was such great weather, so the entire population of Copenhagen was out soaking up the rays and thinking summer had hit. We chose a different way; after an hour on the grass in Nørrebroparken with shades on and coffee in hand, we crawled into the darkness to watch 'The Grand Budapest Hotel'. Oh joy! That universe...! I can highly recommend the film - and 'Royal Tenembaums', my favourite of Wes Anderson's films.

Superkilen was busy with kids running around and parents that looked slightly hungover (?).

Friends posing in front of a window.

Windows and windows. The view from Nørrebro Station.

Last week

So, I went to Jutland last week to finish my assignment at my mother's house. One day took the next, and suddenly I was in Aarhus, back at the journalism school, handing in the article. I spent the next few hours with my brother. He studies in Aarhus, where I also have so many great memories from the days at journalism school. I took him to some of my favourite places, and it was so good to spend some quality time with him.

Stilleben at my mother's house.

On Wednesday, my mom and I had brunch at Aroma (Fonnesbechsgade 14, Herning). It might be slim pickens in that town, but Aroma really adds something with a great brunch and good coffee made on beans from Coffee Collective.

After lunch at my old favourite Aarhus hangout Lynfabrikken (Vestergade 49, Aarhus), we went up on the roof to take in the rays of sun and the roof top view.

In the backyard of Vestergade 58, I made my brother pose in front of these crooked old houses.

We had afternoon coffee at Great Coffee (Klostergade 32H, Aarhus). Soooo good!

And then we walked by my other favourite coffee spot in Aarhus; La Cabra (Graven 20, Aarhus).

Still here!

I've been busy completing my assignment - handed it in yesterday and it felt great. I am on my way out the door again now, but I'll be back with more visual tales of my recent endeavors! Check out Instagram for more frequent updates. Take care!

Weekend heaven

I'm just about to hand in my assignment. I'm deep into the whole thing, so tearing out a whole 24 hours from the assignment bubble was risky - thankfully, I spent them well.

Saturday afternoon, my father, AE and I headed to Hillerød, where Sølve, the oldest younger brother, had an exhibition with his art collective, Nørrebro Kunsthus. He displayed some paintings he's done with UV-paint. Very cool!

They also had a 48 hour jam session going...

The artist himself, looking skeptical (a typical facial expression of his).

AE, the smallest one, is growing up so fast. He looked sharp in his new shirt.

Love this photo of the two!

Later, I took the train into Copenhagen to have dinner at AnCa's. We celebrated her birthday, and turning 26 of course meant diving into lots of good old 90s tunes. I guess that's mandatory when you spend the evening with mid-20-somethings...

The birthday girl looked lovely, as always.

The birthday party ended up at Kødbyen, the meatpacking district, where we danced well into the early hours of Sunday.

So, it was with a heavily hungover body, that I went to Nørrebro to have morning coffee with Iben, Mette and Chris, who graced us with a visit from Stockholm, where she lives these days. We slowed down, enjoyed the weather outside, and caught up on current events. It was so great. More of that!

Assignment life

I'm writing, that's why I'm spending so much time in Denmark these days. Most days look like the one yesterday, with slight alterations as my assignment progresses. But it's going well and I manage to squeeze in some fun stuff as well, like going to Elsinore to check out glasses, or taking a walk with Kristiane in the planned out nature near my father's house. I'm making somewhat surprising plans for the future as well, and trying it out before I unveil so much. The older I get, the more I surprise myself with how I feel about some things, or the decisions I make. Do you ever have that feeling?

Last Tuesday, I went to Copenhagen to have coffee with Thomas, and to have dinner with some of the ladies. The afternoon sun coloured the city in a beautiful soft early-spring light, and I like how the M for Metro adds a contrasted splash to the blue tones.

On Thursday, I went to Elsinore with Kristiane to have coffee at our old high school hang-out spot. It was a sunny day and Elsinore's coloured houses stood out wonderfully.

Every morning, I poach one or two eggs, churn up some avocado and toast some rye bread. I love how it tastes with almonds and lemon sprinkled over it.

Yesterday, I made popcorn as a working snack (actually, it kind of worked as lunch). The small joys when you're working working working......

Sunday

Today, I made my family Eggs Benedict. The others have been watching Formula 1 since the wee hours of the morning, and I got up and made breakfast (I'm not particularly a fan of F1, so I kept to the kitchen...). I'm spending the day writing, listening to MØ's new album (epicly good and definitely worth the long wait) and thinking big thoughts. Have a nice Sunday out there!
The photo is from my mom's birthday a few weeks ago where I also made Eggs Benedict - which explains the festive glass of champagne. 

Berlin

I've been in Denmark for 3 weeks now. I see photos from Berlin on Instagram so many times a day, even photos of those blossoming cherry trees that I was so nervous of missing out on when I left the city. But it doesn't touch me at all. I'm not missing Berlin one bit; I don't have that stomach flip when I see photos of places, I don't have that once so powerful longing to be there. I don't know what it is, and it's puzzling and un-dramatic at the same time. Maybe we've outgrown each other, Berlin and I. Maybe it's time for new adventures. I don't know. I'm utterly confused about what will happen after April when I'm done with school. I have no idea what so ever. It's kind of strange not having the slightest idea of what your life will look like in two months...