And so ends my first week in sunny Europe. Todays a balmy 37 degrees or so the random thermometer on the road tells me as I walk by to try find some grass with a bit of shade. Its been stinking hot since I arrived last weekend but one cant complain with the sun given its no doubt cold and miserable back home. Don't worry though; the comparisons will only last a few weeks as the Danish summer is soon to welter away as the winter takes grip on the continent.
This whole writing thing is a bit of a novelty for me so I better get back on track & begin at the start. Arrived into Copenhagen after a rather pleasant 28hr flight over, believe it or not it was only a 1hr stopover in Hong Kong & then 3-4 hours in London Heathrow before we jetted down into Denmark. On first glimpse the place has certainly changed a lot since last time I was here, being the beginning of February she was snowy, cold and miserable; something to look forwards too for the coming months :)
Saturday was the first real introduction to Danish life with a trip down to Ofelia Beach (that’s what they call concrete with some sand on it) with a fellow NZer working with Maersk, Craig. It was the Germany vs. Argentina game & I must say it was great to be at a place where people actually showed passion for their teams. The Argies began the more noisy team with chants & songs echoing around the crowd.
Unfortunately for them though the game quickly went the way of Germany & with it the chants suddenly became a little more Germanic. It was a good day, sun was out, beers were flowing, we met up with a crowd of others (some Maersk, some not) and after the game headed into town. The one thing about Copenhagen (& Europe for that matter) is that it's perfectly acceptable to sit on the edge of the pavement & crack open a 6-pack. Right outside all the café’s along the canal side we joined the throngs of people & enjoyed some cold stubbies in the sun. Headed back to the 'beach' to watch Spain overthrow Paraguay & then continued into town to try and get over the jet-lag.
The first weeks work was rather uneventful. Turns out nows the perfect time in Denmark to go on holiday so the floor I'm on was about 20% full. I cant seem to get my head around just why everyone goes on holiday now though, this has to be the best time of the year weather wise in Denmark & yet people chose to get out of the country & head somewhere else. I can think of better times to do this, i.e. middle of winter when its cold & the days last about 4 hours! The office seems nice enough, the people are a bit cold though. What I mean by this is that its extremely hard to get a smile or even a look when you pass them in the halls, they're ever so the professional persona up here. I'm trying though, challenge number 2 from “the 4 hour work week” was to look everyone in the eye & its one thing I'll get those Danes to do eventually.
Well that's enough for week 1, it's now coming up only a few hours from the World Cup final & its about time I headed down to join the throngs on the waterfront! Victoria es españas, dominan los holandeses!
This whole writing thing is a bit of a novelty for me so I better get back on track & begin at the start. Arrived into Copenhagen after a rather pleasant 28hr flight over, believe it or not it was only a 1hr stopover in Hong Kong & then 3-4 hours in London Heathrow before we jetted down into Denmark. On first glimpse the place has certainly changed a lot since last time I was here, being the beginning of February she was snowy, cold and miserable; something to look forwards too for the coming months :)
Saturday was the first real introduction to Danish life with a trip down to Ofelia Beach (that’s what they call concrete with some sand on it) with a fellow NZer working with Maersk, Craig. It was the Germany vs. Argentina game & I must say it was great to be at a place where people actually showed passion for their teams. The Argies began the more noisy team with chants & songs echoing around the crowd.
Unfortunately for them though the game quickly went the way of Germany & with it the chants suddenly became a little more Germanic. It was a good day, sun was out, beers were flowing, we met up with a crowd of others (some Maersk, some not) and after the game headed into town. The one thing about Copenhagen (& Europe for that matter) is that it's perfectly acceptable to sit on the edge of the pavement & crack open a 6-pack. Right outside all the café’s along the canal side we joined the throngs of people & enjoyed some cold stubbies in the sun. Headed back to the 'beach' to watch Spain overthrow Paraguay & then continued into town to try and get over the jet-lag.The first weeks work was rather uneventful. Turns out nows the perfect time in Denmark to go on holiday so the floor I'm on was about 20% full. I cant seem to get my head around just why everyone goes on holiday now though, this has to be the best time of the year weather wise in Denmark & yet people chose to get out of the country & head somewhere else. I can think of better times to do this, i.e. middle of winter when its cold & the days last about 4 hours! The office seems nice enough, the people are a bit cold though. What I mean by this is that its extremely hard to get a smile or even a look when you pass them in the halls, they're ever so the professional persona up here. I'm trying though, challenge number 2 from “the 4 hour work week” was to look everyone in the eye & its one thing I'll get those Danes to do eventually.
Well that's enough for week 1, it's now coming up only a few hours from the World Cup final & its about time I headed down to join the throngs on the waterfront! Victoria es españas, dominan los holandeses!
Do a Haka!!...that will get you remembered early.
ReplyDeleteJust like Sao Paulo "Haka haka"
ReplyDeleteWell done Stuart, all your own work or did you get help from India? Looking forward to the next installment.
ReplyDelete