Happy Fourth of July

I woke up to a breakfast of hotdogs because I'm American and we eat American food on the Fourth of July. Or quite possibly because that was the only thing in my fridge. I've been sleeping for the past 13 hours and I skipped dinner last night, so I was slightly desperate.

Maja decided to have class outside in the park again. Instead of going to the park down the street we took a bus to Nørrebor, a multicultural area of Copenhagen. We walked through a park with all red flooring that stretched longer than two football fields. There was interesting artwork and structures that gave the park a different feel unlike your average green space. It seemed more modern and alternative, and it was nice to have a change of scenery.
The red park was at the bus stop and we soon walked over to a more traditionally green park area. After briefly meeting with Maja, we broke up into our respective groups to prepare for our presentations tomorrow.

My group decided to break the presentation into four respective parts. We would talk about traditional Turkish foods and customs, traditional Danish foods and customs, practical application of food culture, and an example of this in Turkey. I was assigned the practical application portion of the presentation which would be fairly simple.

Cooking contains social and academic learning components. When measuring out ingredients, you are practicing math skills of fractions and division. Cooking also promotes language development by talking about the ingredients and expanding vocabulary. A child can also gain self confidence by starting and competing tasks and making a dish for others who show appreciation and are enjoying the food. From a school and academic perspective, food can be used in art projects like macaroni noodle drawings or marshmallow sculptures. Creating food traditions in the classroom like Danish hygge or Turkish hospitality enables children to share their culture with others and they are able to develop a sense of belonging within the classroom culture. 

At the beginning of our presentation we decided to serve tea and cookies to enact the Turkish hospitality, and who doesn't enjoy a good snack during three hours of presentations? Our group finished planning fairly quickly and had nothing else to do for the rest of the class period, so we went to buy some tea and cookies.

After making our purchase and while we were waiting for the rest of our class, we went to the red park to sit on the swings. These weren't your average swings. They were red bench swings inside a big white metal circle. The swing we chose to sit on was very squeaky. You couldn't move an inch without screeching so loud that you almost needed earplugs. We still decided to swing for a few minutes until the noise was unbearable and we were forced to sit still.

Before leaving the park, Maja bought us all ice cream to enjoy in the park. Yesterday we painted boxes and today we are eating ice cream in the park, it is hard to believe this is actually class. I've learned so much the past two and a half weeks and I've had more fun than I could ever imagine. I wish more classes were like this.

After class Cami and I window shopped and went into a store that was very colorful with scarves, skirts, dresses, and tapestries that looked like they came right out of Turkey. It really made me miss Istanbul, but the high prices in this store was a reminder that we were in fact in Copenhagen. 

I gave a good and honest effort when attempting to write my reflection paper on my practicum experience, but I couldn't bring myself to do it. I kept getting sidetracked by checking my email, doing two loads of laundry, blogging, or watching a movie. When I finally came to my senses and sat down to write the dreaded paper, I was again sidetracked and went to let Cami into the building who was on her way. She tried to give me plenty of time to work on the paper, but it didn't matter how much time she gave me because it just wasn't going to happen for me tonight. It was due tomorrow, but I'm not wasting my last night in Copenhagen to write a paper. This is an example of procrastination at its finest. Cami's arrival gave me an excuse to continue putting off my paper, and I began getting ready to go out. I attempted to represent the red, white, and blue earlier today, but realized I had no clean clothes. I settled with a blue skirt with flowers and various colors, neither red or white. When going out tonight I had to make up for not being more festive earlier. Now that all my clothes are clean, I have no excuse not to represent, so I went all out. I wore a blue tank top with a shear red shirt and cowboy boots. I pledged loyalty to my country down to my blue underwear with white stars. I was patriotic down the the last fiber of my being.

Leaving the building we were with a large group of girls. We didn't have much of a plan or any idea where to go, but I knew I wasn't leaving Cami because she didn't live in the building or know most of the people we were with. Besides, Cami and I always bring the fun with us wherever we go. I'm not a fan of going out in large groups, especially in a forgiven country. More appropriately stated, I don't like drawing attention to the fact that I'm an obnoxious American. Cami, Lindsay, and I soon broke away from the group that was quickly growing as we ran into more and more people we recognized.

Although we separated from the group, a lot of them ended up meeting up with us at Billy Booze. The first night out in Copenhagen we went to Billy Booze and we haven't been back since that night. It was slightly sad to have the trip come full circle back to where we started. After a few minutes of bad music, awkward dancing, and a beer to get us started, we decided to break away from the group again and go to Happy Pig. The music still wasn't that great, but it was an upgrade from Billy Booze. On our way to Happy Pig we met some interesting men when stopping to ask for directions. They might have been on their way there or we might have convinced them to change courses, but either way we all ended up having beers listening to a live band at Happy Pig. There was a live band, but not many people dancing, so one of the guys we were with took me to the dance floor and started swinging me around. I seem to have two left feet, but he still seemed to know what he was doing and we had a ball! A few songs and many spins and turns later, more people started dancing and I moseyed back to our tables to grab a beer. Jonathan, another guy in the group, and I started talking and after the music started picking up again I dragged him to the dance floor. He also has two left feet, so we were two peas in a pod in terms of dancing capabilities. Despite our dancing flaws, we still seemed to have fun dancing together. 

After we were beginning to have enough of Happy Pig, Cami, Lindsay, and I followed these guys to another bar, Andy's Bar. Immediately when we got to Andy's Bar, Jonathan buys me a drink. I was confused at first because I didn't ask him to, but he said if he was going to be dancing anymore he would need another drink. Either I'm a really bad dancer or he's self conscious about his dancing. I'm hoping for the latter, but it could go both ways.

While Jonathan and I were busy talking, he randomly tells me that he doesn't like the guy Lindsay was talking to. I was surprised they new each other, and Jonathan told me he knew most of the guys in the bar because they were all in the army together. The conversation took a quick turn and he began telling me about his tours in Iraq. I didn't mind the change in conversation and was asking more questions because it was interesting to hear about his experiences. He didn't like this other guy because he got two people killed. If you ask me, this is a legitimate reason not to like someone. We soon moved to a more calm bar next door to talk. We had whiskey and coke and he explained the situation. I was inspired by Jonathan's courage and dedication to his country. I had never heard first hand stories like this and I appreciated Jonathan's willingness to open up. Here I am on the Fourth of July thinking I'm representing my country through the clothes I'm wearing. I'm not sure I would have the courage to be on the front line as Jonathan has and will be again in less than a week. It was a nice way to end this American holiday with a reminder of all the brave men and women who are fighting every day to protect our freedoms.

It was approaching 5am and Cami had gone home over an hour ago. Lindsay was about ready to leave as well, so Jonathan walked us to the train station. On the way, we passed Rosenburg Castle with the guards out front for the night shift. As we are walking past, Jonathan asks if we want to see them stand at attention. Lindsay kept walking, but I was intrigued. Jonathan starts talking to the guards in Danish and I'm giggling next to him not sure what is going on. I would imagine the guards enjoyed some company or at least someone to talk to for five minutes because they stood at attention for us. It was a silly thing to do at 5am, but it was certainly fun to watch. Jonathan later told me that if he showed his credentials they would have had to stand at attention regardless of whether they wanted to or not. We both agreed that trying to impress a girl by making guards stand at attention while drunkenly walking home at 5am might be an abuse of authority.

I finally got home and in bed at 5:30am. I needed to be at the airport tomorrow morning at 9:30am to pick up my mom which means I needed to be awake and out the door by 8:30am. Why do I keep doing this to myself?