My Birthday

February 19

With already one month in Copenhagen, my birthday came up very quickly. It was very quite birthday this year. The weekend before Florian treated me to a trip to Berlin to celebrate! Then, The MBSers in Copenhagen surprised me at midnight with a little celebration in our apartment. Thanks to my Shure earphones, I didn't hear a peep and was really caught off guard. I blew out my 27 candles on top of my favorite apple cake (Danish style)! No big celebration as we had an intense week of long days of finance. So I got to spend my blessed day in all day long class. However, my roomies took me out for a nice Mexican fiesta!!

I think my birthday was the largest wave of homesickness that I have had thus far on my MBA journey. Missing celebrating with my sister, our annual Florida trip to my parents to escape the grip of winter and the birthday month long dinners with close friends. However, my dear friends and family made sure not forget me on my special day. Thank you for all of your birthday wishes!

Some interesting related birthday tidbits/cultural differences that I've learned includes: it is bad luck to wish someone happy birthday before their birthday i.e. happy early birthday and in Germany (Europe??) the birthday person buys everyone drinks. Personally, I think a happy early birthday is better than someone forgetting entirely. Also, I think the birthday person should be treated not the other way around - its their day!!


Photos
1 - Me, Jalal, Rocio, Isabell and Sujay surprising me at midnight
2 - The ladies taking me out for a Mexican fiesta night
3 - Me on my birthday with the lovely flowers from the Mannheimers

Train Excursion

1/21

I took an overnight train from Copenhagen to Frankfurt for a couple days when we didn't have class. It was a very interesting journey...a 12 hour journey that is! Normally, from Copenhagen you have to switch trains in Hamburg and take the ferry (yes the entire train goes on the ferry) - but with the overnight trains they are direct and you don't have to switch at all.

This was definitely the longest train ride I have ever taken. However, it wasn't that bad. The price was cheaper than flying, and I had the time to make the journey. I left CPH around 7pm and arrived in Germany at promptly 7am. So for a few hours I worked on school work, slept and when I woke up we were there. Sounds too good to be true, right?

Well I was in a 6-person compartment, which I had all to myself - I traveled on a Monday night! However, we any more than 2-3, the compartment would be dreadfully cluttered. On the way back, also had the full compartment to ourselves....although the train was three hours late getting back to CPH. And sometimes the train just lingers at a station for 20-30 minutes and it makes you wonder "why the heck aren't we moving."

But overall very cool experience, and I would do it again. Would recommend off times and to only book with specials though.

Because at the end of the day it is nice to get to your destination in one hour versus 12!

Photos: all of my train compartment

Oslo

1/19-1/20

I took a short trip to Oslo with my roommate Isabell and two classmates Mi (from Mongolia) and Chris (from Shanghai) and met two other classmates there.

Oslo is about an hour flight from Copenhagen, and is the third largest city in Scandinavia (#1 CPH #2 Stockholm). On the way to Oslo once we reached Norway, we were taken back by the snow-covered vast wilderness - no human life, only nature. The airport is located about 50km/30 miles from the city centre.

Oslo is at the northernmost end of the Oslofjord and there are 40 islands within the city limits. A fjord/fiord is a long, narrow bay with steep sides. "A Fjord is formed when a glacier cuts a U-shaped valley through abrasion of the surrounding bedrock by the sediment it carries."


Fun facts:
-Norway is not a part of the European Union, because they are reluctant to give up its fishing and oil rights and be regulated by the EU.
-Oslo is at the same time the 3rd most expensive city also the 3rd richest city (2006)!


Views of Oslo from the plane window - all wilderness




At our hostel: Mi, me and Chris


The Royal Palace was built in the first half of the 19th century as the Norwegian residence of Norwegian and Swedish king Charles III and is now used as the official residence of the present Norwegian Monarch.


At the sea: Mi, Chis, Isabell and me


Out in Oslo: Svenja, Mi, Chris and me


Vigeland Sculpture Park is a part of Frogner Park, and is about 3 km northwest of the city centre. The park covers 80 acres and features sculptures created by Norwegian sculptor, Gustav Vigeland. The theme of the sculpture park is the circle of life and the happenings of life or "typical human pursuits" of daily life such as two couples in love or fighting, a group of boys playing and an old couple clinging to life together. The most vandalized statue is of the screaming baby - and he has been stolen a few times.








The Viking Ship Museum at Bygdøy is hosts grave finds from Tune, Gokstad, Oseberg and Borre. The museum has three ships that were excavted from the late 1800s and early 1900s. When you first enter, you immediately face the Oseberg Ship and the sheer size of the ship leaves you speechless.




Other sight that we saw on our bus tour:
The Holmenkollen ski jump, is the world's second oldest ski jump competition still in existence. It has hosted nine different nordic skiing and biathlon world championships, including the 1952 Winter Olympics The ski jump will serve as host to the 2011 FIS Nordic World Ski Championships after the ski jump gets rebuild according to safety standards. The views from this area are amazing, you can take in the beauty of the Olsofjord.

My overall impressions of Oslo:
-Very small and can see the sights in one day
-Charming
-Expensive
-Don't really go there to experience the city, it's all about nature and snow
-Booming nightlife, we ended up having to go to many bars to find a place that the 6 of us could fit

Around CPH

Here are some pics from around town:


Me in full biking form


Some classmates out and about in this cave-like bar


Me and my two roommates (Rocio and Isabell) at the train station


Jeff, our financial accounting professor, Rocio, myself and Isabell at our goodbye lunch for Jeff


Rocio and I at an Irish pub in the city center

Where I live - CPH

Around my new hood....

We live on Henrik Ibsens Vej - who according to WIKI

"Henrik Johan Ibsen was a major Norwegian playwright and is often referred to as the "father of modern drama." Ibsen is held to be the greatest of Norwegian authors and one of the most important playwrights of all time, celebrated as a national symbol by Norwegians."

Our building



View down the street


My room - pretty large, wooden floors and high ceilings!


My room

Nice kitchen

Tja Malmö

1/6

We headed to Malmo, Sweden - only about a 30 minute train ride from Copenhagen.

Malmo began in what was once Denmark, and during this time the Malmöhus Castle was built.
This was the first Scandinavian castle that I have seen, and at first I didn't even notice it was a castle.
The Malmohus castle has been turned into a museum - a random combination of a castle museum, natural history,
and an aquarium.

Malmo is  now the third largest city in Sweden.

Unfortunately, we went on a Sunday and not much was open - as is the story of Sunday life in Europe!

However, from what we were able to see of the city, Malmo is a quaint, Swedish town. We had lunch in the
city square and we ate outside - it was amazing, I have never eaten outside in the middle of January with my coat off!
Many places offered blankets and huge heaters so guest could sit outside and enjoy the "wonderful" winter
weather! 

Photos:
1 - Malmo sign
2 - Jam and I in front of one of the centers
3 - 5 Malmo caste
6 - Giant lamp in the middle of Lilla Torg
7 - Jam and I basking in the cold (under the heat lamps) at Lilla Torg at the Moosehead (really yummy)

Vilkommen København

1/4

Jam and Jim came up with me to Copenhagen for the weekend to get me settled...well and of course to do some sightseeing. Felt like I was in undergrad again!

We did a city bus tour and it was freezing!! I started wonder how I was going to survive the winter in Copenhagen and how I was going to bike to school in this weather. We learned all about King Christian IV who moved Copenhagen from a fishing village to a vibrant city marked on the map.

The city of Copenhagen is divided into several municipalities. The central and largest is Copenhagen municipality, the second largest is Frederiksberg municipality which is an enclave inside Copenhagen municipality - I live in Frederiksberg and that is where Copenhagen business school is located. Photos will come shortly.

My first impressions of the city are very good - Copenhagen is a very small city and has a population of 1.7 million. The city is very beautiful with lots of very historic structures and Nordic culture. The people are very friendly and speak amazing English - most don't even hesitate when you address them in English. They start to learn English in the second grade, have English channels on the TV and even show movies in the original language!

However, right now the city is gray and cold. It rains almost every day here, but a light gentle (COLD) rain. The days are bleak and short. Sunshine is a rarity. Must soak it up as much as possible when it shows itself. Oh yes, and it's VERY expensive here. Besides the dollar continually falling, food and drink is uber expensive - for example for a bunch of bananas it was 20DKK (danish krone) which is about 4 USD!!

On another note: You'll be happy to know that Starbucks hasn't taken over Copenhagen, I think there is only one and that is in the airport!!

Last fun fact: The Nordic region pays the world's highest taxes - Denmark following Sweden for the highest amount. The top-taxed Dane pays 68% of their hard-earned crowns (basic tax rate begins at 42%). Meanwhile, surveys show that Danes are the happiest people in the world and that Copenhagen is among the world's best cities to live in.


Photos:
1 - My roomate Isabell with her boyfriend Matthias and Jim at our first night's dinner - yummy Mexican food
2 - View of the harbor
3 - Jam and I in front of the Amalienborg Palace (home of the Danish royal family)
4 - The Little Mermaid statue in Copenhagen harbor
5 - Nyhavn's colorful buildings like the waterfront - would be great in the summertime
6 - Rodin's Thinker statue near the Tivoli Gardens

Ich bin ein Berliner

1/2-1/4

Berlin was soooo cold!!!

On the evening of 1/3, we saw Carmina Burana Beethoven 9 Symphonie at the Philharmonie Berlin from an orchestra from Prague. Carmina Burana is a collection of 1,000 poems and songs written in the early 13th century. Around the 1930s, German composer, Carl Orff, set the poems to new music - the most famous movement is "O Fortuna." Orff's composition has been performed by countless ensembles - which is what we heard. The venue reminded me of where the Chicago Symphony plays. They melody of the symphony combined with the booming voices of the singers was utterly enchanting.

We also did some sightseeing around the city - Sony Centre, the Brandenburg gate and the Reichstag (where the German Parliament sits, the Bundestag)!

Photos:
1 - Us at Florian's mom's place
2 - Jam and I in front of the Brandenburg Gate
3 - The Philharmonie orchestra
4 - Me in the Philharmonie
5 & 6 - Carmina Burana
7 - to commemorate where the Berlin wall once stood