It’s over. I’ve used up all my chances to see Copenhagen now that the DIS fall semester has ended. I finally understand why my friend Eliana was so sad after our week-long class trip to the Czech Republic ended. That one week was pretty incredible, so try multiplying that sadness by 17 and you’ll get how I’m feeling now that I’ve left Copenhagen.
After 17 weeks that flew by, I’m back in the United States but still dreaming of Europe. It’s utterly surreal to be home- I love seeing my family and my friends, but I have yet to accept the fact that I won’t be returning to Copenhagen in January. By the end of my first week in Copenhagen I had felt completely familiar with the people I lived with, the inner city, and life as an American in Denmark. All of my abroad friends agree- Copenhagen became our home.
Some of my best friends and I taking our last “classic Copenhagen” picture along Nyhavn- I miss them!
Although it was nice to come home to a full Thanksgiving meal that my mom made for me!
I’m especially glad that I only had one final on the first day of finals week. I was able to spend six days seeing the city and trying to imprint the streets and buildings that I had quickly taken for granted in my mind. I even got to see some new places- last Wednesday, my friend Kerry and I went to see the ruins under Christiansborg Palace. The Palace is an impressive structure in the middle of the city that I’ve passed by countless times, but I had never gone underground to see the remnants of the first castle that stood on that site in 1167. The castle belonged to Bishop Absalon, who founded Copenhagen. What remains are stone walls, outlines of rooms, and wells that are in a hollow under Christiansborg. Kerry and I were the only people visiting the ruins and it was very eerie, but actually seeing the history of the city in front of me made the ruins a long overdue visit.
Part of the wall from Absalon’s castle that’s still standing under Christiansborg.
The rest of my week consisted of a lot of late nights and afternoon shopping, but I did wake myself up early enough to go to the Resistance Museum last Friday. The Resistance Museum is a small museum honoring the Danish people that opposedthe Nazi occupation of Denmark in the 1940s. We had talked about some of that history in my European Memory & Identity class, but the museum taught me a lot more about how this turbulent time period affected Denmark. As a bonus, the museum is always free! After the museum closed at 3 p.m., I went outside and climbed up the rampart at Kastellet, an old military fortress. The sun was just setting and made for a great picture as I looked down on the buildings of Copenhagen.
Just to be melodramatic- the sunset of my time in Copenhagen :(
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I had expected to spend my last few days just hanging out with friends, but I didn’t take into account that many of my friends were taking last minute trips to places like Amsterdam and Dublin, studying for finals, or showing their parents around the city. I wound up having to cram a lot of very enjoyable friend time into my last two days. On Saturday, I met some of my best friends at Café Norden, a famous restaurant in Copenhagen, for brunch. We all ordered extensive, and expensive, brunch plates that were absolutely delicious and sat and talked for two hours. It was so wonderful to spend time with them, and I especially liked feeling like I was in Sex and the City!
My brunch plate- it was SO GOOD but sadly I couldn’t finish it all.
One of my best friends Eliana and I at brunch.
I had my last meal with a group of friends that night and said my first goodbyes to friends that were going home because they still had to pack before their flights the next day. I went out to a few bars and couldn’t accept that this would be my last night out in Copenhagen. I was glad I was able to take over the dance floor one last time!
Ilana and I at the last supper.
My friends Maggie, Amelia and I on our second-to-last night out in Copenhagen.
I woke up at 9 a.m. on Sunday to get dressed and finish packing up my room. My friend Emily showed up at my door at the perfect time to help me get my luggage downstairs and into a taxi to the airport. It was fitting that it finally snowed (lightly) as I was leaving. There were so many DIS students on my flight that I still didn’t feel like the program was ending. I spent the nine hour plane ride watching movies and passing out for short periods of time. I usually lose control of my emotions when it comes to goodbyes and start hysterically crying, so I was surprised that I was so calm for the entire plane ride. I really think I just haven’t wrapped my head around the fact that my study abroad experience is over.
Saying goodbye to my empty room- remember what it looked like after I moved in?
Studying abroad was one of the best decisions I have ever made. I’m so glad that it’s common at my college and that I didn’t have to apply through a complicated process or feel conflicted about not seeing friends at school. There are many factors that prevent people from studying off-campus, from athletics to finances to majors, but if you have the opportunity to go abroad- TAKE IT! I can guarantee that it will be some of the greatest, if not THE greatest, months of your life. I wish I could study abroad for another semester, but unfortunately there are too many classes I have to take back at Bowdoin. Even though I won’t be back in Copenhagen come January, I feel very, very confident that I will visit again in the future. Collegiettes, if you studied abroad already I hope you had as amazing a time as I did, and if you’re considering studying abroad or preparing to depart next semester: keep an open mind, calm your nerves, and get ready to LOVE wherever you go!
Copenhagen, I love you.