Volcanoes, sundried tomatoes and donkeys...

Santorini is a beautiful Greek island in the Agean Sea, a short plane ride from Athens.  It's small, quiet and beautiful.  

Ready for a tour?

The island was formed by a volcano - the biggest eruption in the past 10,000 years was here.  This is the view from the crater.

The homes in Santorini are built into the hillside.  Essentially, these people are cavemen. ;)

The water is amazingly blue and clear. 

Beautiful sundried tomatoes.  Okay, well, they're still drying...

What's commonly known as a "Greek Salad".  Fresh, delicious and perfect.

As is customary in many Greek restaurants: You can preview the grill and decide what you'd like.
"Calamari, please!"

Local transportation.

Danish word of the day: "Ta Da!"

What is that word you say when you're just going to finish up here and... ah, "ta da!"

Okay, well Americans don't quite have a word that would translate - but if there was an actual word for "ta da" it would be the same as when Danes say "sådan der".  Now you're wondering how in the world you spit that out (letters with bubbles on them aren't exactly part of American vernacular...).   In true Danish fashion you swallow half the letters, and it comes out "suhn-dia", or just "suh" if you're from the south of Fyn where you spit out only half the word.  




Scenes from life in Denmark: "ta da!" moments....

 Just got your new beer holder set up on your bike... "sådan der".
 

Just finished spreading leverpostej perfectly over your rye bread for lunch... "sådan der".

Naptime for the kid?  Just put them in the stroller and leave them outside to sleep - never mind if there's a foot of snow on the ground, just wrap them in a couple extra blankets..."sådan der".   

5 Things you won't find in Denmark

There are somethings I can't help but notice that are missing from life here....

• Chocolate Chips

Those delicous melty morsels that every mother throws into thier kids' favorite cookie.  Alas, you won't find it here. There's plenty of marzipan though. 

• Gas-Guzzlers

The streets here are filled with bikes and pedestrians, and public transport is efficient and readily-available.
And if you do have a car, you're more likely to buzz around in a little pop can rather than fork out the money for something bigger [what some Americans might refer to as a "real car"].  But when cars cost about twice as much, and gas is the price of gold that bicycle starts looking really sexy.

• Ziplock Bags

This one just breaks my heart. I'm a bit of a kitchen efficiency effianato, and living without ziplocks in the kitchen is a bit like asking me to play the guitar without the use of my thumbs.

"Let's go to the 'Bucks!"

• Starbucks.

It's true... I live without Starbucks. I've seen one in the airport, but that's about 3 hours away from where I live. Gasp!  Actually I'm not much of a fan usually, but when you're aching for something familiar, the evils of corporate America is a lot less important than my hazelnut cappicino and old friends!

• Refried Beans.

Ay chiwawa! Yes, I have finally found pinto beans here and have mastered a home-made version, but you can forget about buying them anywhere.  And forget about finding a Taco Time, Muchas Gracias or any Mexican restaurants for that matter.  Danes are putting away a lot more roasted potatoes, pickled fish and remoulade than anything from south of the border (and so am I!).

My Neighborhood

I will never get over how quaint and lovely the Danish countryside is.  Here's a little tour - photos taken last summer.

Sheep!
Okay, I live in a teeeeny, tiny village.  The running joke is "look, there's a person!" because it's a rare treat to actually cross paths with someone around here.  But sheep?  We've got those ;)

One of the houses "in town".  They're so darling! It's not unusual for them to fly the Danish flag like this - it's more like a pennant really.

The local grocery store.

My host family's horses: Evento and Sandra.

It's funny that this is now "normal" to me... cool though, isn't it?

The local church (in the background) and the restaurant (foreground). 

10 Things I was not expecting to find in Europe...

    1.  Houses that look like something from a fairytale. 

Svendborg, Denmark

   2.  Night Ravens. 

Americans have "neighborhood watch" which is when people look out for each others' homes and let each other know if they see unwelcome people lurking in the neighborhood.  Danes have Night Ravens: parents who volunteer to be out on the town on weekends to keep an eye on drunk kids and make sure they're safe.  And to give out candy and condoms.  Yes, I said condoms.

   3.  Baby boozers.

She's almost 2 years old... awh, how sweet...

My host mother and the baby.

   4.  Rednecks. 

Granted, I live out in the country about an hour from anything I would call a "city".  The man I live with is a true redneck, complete with eccentric things to say about "those people", grease under his fingernails, duct tape at the ready and the slogan "a man's gotta do what a man's gotta do..."

   5.  European 20-somethings who know more American pop-culture than I do.

But considering the source, I guess that's not saying a lot... 

   6.  Stores that close at 3:30pm on Saturday

And by "stores" I mean the entire town... and they are closed all day on Sundays.

(I'm so spoiled.)

   7.  American music everywhere.

Bruce Springtein, and Taylor Swift on the radio.  Danes picking American music for Kareoke like Nirvana Shania Twain and Kings of Leon.


   8.  Food carts driving on the beach.

Fresh fish anyone?



Zanvoort Beach, The Netherlands



   9.  People who think it's normal to eat potatoes. 

And eat them everyday.  Boiled, roasted, mashed, baked.. you name it, they eat it.  And you can even buy canned potatoes at the grocery store!  

  10.  Wrangler Jeans.

Yee-Haw?

Shop window in Amsterdam. Wranglers: 69 Euros.

Let's hear it for Handball.

Handball? What's that then?

Well, it's kind of a cross between basketball and indoor football, and it looks a bit like the kind of game that would evolve over a lunch hour at school.




Handball first appeared at the Olympics in 1936, has roots that go back to ancient Greece and is played in 159 countries around the world.





Rather than fein further interest in the sport, I offer only a gracious nod, and credits:
Text & Images from BBC SPORT


Oh, and Denmark played very well this year: they made it to the championships on Tuesday, and the game went in to overtime.  France won. 

Hygge Christmas

On a white Christmas, what can be more wonderful than a warm fire, friends around candle-lit table, delicious food and a glass of wine?

This is so "hygge".

In Denmark there's a word for this feeling.  Other times when I've experienced this feeling I've been known to say something dorky like "I'm in my happy place" to express the sentiment, but Danes have a word for it and they know what they're talking about.  Danish winters are cold, long and dark, but Danes have a way of gathering around the hearth and a lighting a warmth from inside themselves that chases away the cold (and it's not just because they light enough candles to put any fire marshal through the roof!).

Christmas here is exactly that: Hygge!

In many ways Christmases are the same here as back home: filled with friends, food, Christmas trees and family gatherings.  But there are a few things which are really different... such as families singing and dancing around the Christmas tree,  making home-made decorations from evergreen branches clipped from your own yard, and imbibing on æbleskiver.

Here are some stories from my hygge Christmas in Denmark...

Christmas starts early, and Danes pull out all the stops!

Danes aren't religious.  At all.  But at Christmas they suddenly believe in Jesus, Santa, gnomes and beer (no, correction: they believe in beer allll year!).  But this is the time they pull out their decorations and heapsof candles and many, many gnomes.  This is the biggest party I've ever seen!  Christmas is celebrated for 4 weeks, known as "advent".  The week before the first Sunday the entire house is decorated!  Every Danish house is home to a Martha Stuart (who would be more likely called "Mette Stenstrup")...

...and everyone makes their own decorations!

Each Sunday before Christmas a candle is lit in the advent wreath.... 

And in my family we spend many Sundays during the holiday season with candles lit, Ella Fitz singing Christmas songs, and indulging in gløgg and æbleskiver.  Gløgg is wine served warm with raisens and slivered almonds, and it's wonderful!!           

Æbleskiver are little tasty bites of heaven which could be rightly nicknamed "pancake balls".  They're served with jelly and powdered sugar....yummm!

PLEASE NOTE: I got an æbleskiver pan for Christmas, and I can't wait to bring this tradition home with me! :)

The day before Christmas it's time to put up the tree and decorate it.  In our house candles were only on the top branches to keep the little ones safe!

Viggo wanted to hang stars on the TOP branches :)

 

Christmas is celebrated on December 24th and Danes hold VERY tightly to tradition.  Each year the same traditions are followed, and it's not acceptable to deviate.  In this home my morning was spent with the family grandparents and friends all around, eating all sorts of delicious goodies (not unlike what we enjoy in America - except here everything was homemade...and without sugar!).  We drank beer and wine and coffee and talked and laughed the day away.  

In the afternoon it was time to brave the snow and go to church.  For many Danes this is the one time they darken the door of their local church, even though they still pay taxes to the church....

The Vicar

Christmas songs - in Danish!

After the singing and the service, it was time to head back home for the crowning moment: dinner!

Lars has perfected the sauce, and now it's time to cut the duck and put it on the table!

The kids can't sit still through dinner- and they tear into the presents!

Dinner is finished with more wine, lots of time for stories and for dessert: risengrød.  It's rice cooked with milk, sugar, and vanilla, then topped with cinnamon and butter .  One lucky person will find an almond in their risengrød... and win a gift!

We somehow finished all the risengrød without finding the almond... oops!

Treats from home

The night is finished with song and dance around the tree - and throughout the house! Then opening some gifts among the adults, another bottle of wine, more laughs, stories, and relaxing.  What a lovely, hugge day!