Farewell Aarhus!
I am writing this at a Starbucks in downtown hamburg, the first morning of my European adventure.
But before you jump to any conclusions that I'm not "eating where I am" (!!), I bought a traditional German bun from a German bakery to go with it. Helene this coffee is for you!! Cheers :)
It felt so incredibly surreal to leave on the bus yesterday morning for a foreign land other than Denmark, without any plans for return. I silently cried and cried and cried and cried for about half an hour all the way out of Aarhus. But it wasn't a despairing cry; rather complete thankfulness for this gift of exchange I had received from God, and a healthy sadness to have come to the end of unwrapping it.
But I'm so excited, (now) for the new gift ahead.
Since my laptop died a noble death on my bikeride about two months ago, my blogging from here on out will be from my iPad. As such, the format might be a bit off. But as long as you get to see the pictures and read the captions!
I had THE BEST last danish week with my Danish sister Helene Karkov. She's the one I moved in with when my contract ended at Skjøldhoj.
It started with birthday celebrations her birthday
(I decorated her apt ;))
Her friends came over at midnight to celebrate the beginning of her birthday with pancakes
On Sunday (23 juli) Helene's parents had come in from out of town, I flew south to let them have some private time.
We later went to the beach and had hygge with her friends and cooked bread and sausages
Nobody could believe I'd never cooked bread dough and hot dogs before on the fire.
I'd made damper?
No. Not it.
(I might also admit that Helene discouraged me from wearing makeup and straitening my hair for the whole week we were together!!)
Tuesday night was always international cluster night, so we made hot chocolate and brought my favourite danish dessert to the gardens: studentbrod.
I think it is traditionally a mix of all the leftover different cake mixes put together, and it has a slight bubblegum taste.
But it's chocolate too.
Weird.
You can buy the properly made ones from the bakery, or the cheap preservative filled ones from the store from $1. I loved both.
Anne and I talked faith, travel and other such glorious things, and prayed for everybody we knew that used to fellowship with us.
Anke is the sweetest most warm hearted Danish academic. She made our transition here into Denmark so smooth and secure and was like a "mother hen" to Bridget and I when we first arrived.
Later, I came home to Helene, who was baking of course, yet again!
Helene inspires me so much with her baking.
She loves to bake, but doesn't eat it along the way.
It never turns out perfectly or the way it's supposed to look, but 6/10 it tastes delicious.
Sometimes it completely flops, and she places it somewhere until she decides what to do with it.
I was like "Helene you can't just throw that flopped macaroon base out!"
So she put it in the freezer and broke it into snack size pieces for when friends popped by.
I'm trying to encourage her to open her own "alternate" bakery.
Nothing would look nor taste consistent with their last experience.
How cool.
Helene was also a great cook!! She got a new olive oil for her birthday, so made me salmon, potatoes and wild rice with it. It couldn't be more far from as boring as that sounds.
It was delicious.
I loved to hygge with Helene.
(I asked Helene this week "what do you find most surprising about me, living with me, that you didn't know before?" And she said
"Well, you definitely like to chat as soon as we wake up! You wake up so chirpy "good morning helene! how did you sleep?" And I feel like saying 'no! No English that early!"
Haha.
I told her that was very unlike me normally, so I must just really love waking up with her around.
I really did.
But when in Aarhus, one doesn't have a car to drive the suitcases to the post office.
And one like me is too stubborn to take the bus.
15 kilograms on my handlebars.
And 10 kilograms in my basket
Since I didn't have a photo of lea or Asja, when I was having coffee with them on Wednesday, I said I needed a photo.
Lea started to own it
I can loose track of time just hanging and talking with Asja.
We went for for sushi
Before gracing the fair bar for wine and free chocolate
The next day, Lea and Asja met Helene on Friday night, and we hygged till 2am :)
And we exchanged gifts.
On Saturday, Helene and I went downtown to shop, drink coffee and print off my itineraries. Ah! It felt real that I was leaving for the first time. I was careful to not think too much about it .. To remain as present as possible.
Saturday night, we had "bless this home" in Helene's apartment.
This is where anybody can post in the church social Facebook and open up their apartment to invite people to come and hygge in an acoustic night of worship and the sharing of encouragement and scriptures.
It was really cool. This went till 1am too.
Then we watched hitch!
:) "Any guy can sweep any woman off her feet. All he needs is the right broom." Ha!
Sunday was my last church service
And I met up with Anne downtown for one last joe and the juice, and icecream.
Side note - I don't like ice cream. Too icy, too cold.
This was liquorice flavoured creamy icecream, and white chocolate mousse.
I like ice cream in Denmark.
Anne and I went for a walk
(See how much of a natural poser I am)
And reminisced about the changes that had happened in the weather and in us since we arrived into Denmark
when it came to saying our goodbyes - I don't know I guess I had been trying to live in the present so much that It took me by surprise when Anne said " well, is it" as we unlocked our bikes - I forgot that this was why we were hanging out!
I didn't know what to say nor feel, so just cried :)
I came home and Helene and I went for a walk to help clear my head
Then Helene asked me what I would like for dinner.
I hadn't eaten my usual chicken salad in months, so I suggested we cook that!
Helene and I then had a lovely last supper.
Helene got me the cutest diary ( with a raccoon riding a bike!!) with her cooking recipes written in it.
I said goodbye to Helene yesterday morning before she went to work.
I plan stay in contact with my beautiful soul sister.
Asja came over the next morning (yesterday morning) to spend time with me and walk me to the bus stop.
We had one last hygge with coffee and biscuits.
What I'll really miss is that in Australia - if you like to hygge, your known as a Nanna.
In Denmark, hygge is very much part of Danish culture.
People love and prefer to gather in homes over hot chocolate, coffee, sweets and good conversation than necessarily having to go out.
It was surreal to reach the bus station..
I guess my head is really full right now of thoughts and my heart is so full of emotions so its difficult to express what's going on for me right now. Perhaps finding myself in Germany with a big European adventure is the perfect remedy for my sentimental disposition.
But I do thank God for orchastrating me to Denmark, for providing my every need in friendships and granting me the opportunity to study social work here for 5 months which has now sparked new dreams and desires within me.
I am so excited to see where God leads me next and what will become of those social work dreams and desires.
I will close this final Danish blog with a scripture which perfectly sums up my experience here in Denmark
In a desert land he found him,
in a barren and howling waste.
He shielded him and cared for him;
he guarded him as the apple of his eye,
like an eagle that stirs up its nest
and hovers over its young,
that spreads its wings to catch them
and carries them aloft.
The Lord alone led him;
no foreign god was with him.
He made him ride on the heights of the land
and fed him with the fruit of the fields.
He nourished him with honey from the rock,
and with oil from the flinty crag,
with curds and milk from herd and flock
and with fattened lambs and goats,
with choice rams of Bashan
and the finest kernels of wheat.
Deuteronomy 32.10-14
I found my old self in being around you - looking more natural, riding my bike everywhere, eating weird foods which were completely acceptable and hygging more than going out.
You have the kindest, happiest people in the world and I hope to always stay in contact.
So it's not goodbye, it's see you later.
I love you and you will always have a piece of my heart.
Comments
Post a Comment