Part 3: Block Two (FCK! FCK! FCK!)

Denmark is notorious for bad weather during the winter months. The sun rises between 8:30-9:30 and is almost completely set by 4:30pm. Yes, it would be a bit of a mood-killer but when you are checking things off your “study abroad bucket list” almost every day, the weather conditions don’t matter.

The number one item on my list was to attend a European futbol match. The very first week of block two I did just that! 

I was raised on soccer. I began playing when I was three years old but had never been to a professional game. So you can imagine my excitement when my very first live viewing would be a European futbol match.

F.C. København (FCK) is the professional football club for Copenhagen. The very first game we attended mid-February was accompanied with a rain and wind storm. Our seats were the first row under the overhang so we occasionally got a bit wet, but, in my opinion, it added to the experience.

Parken Stadium, the futbol stadium that also houses national matches, is a world of its own. Even if you aren’t a futbol fan, attending a game at the stadium is something I recommend everyone does at least once during their stay in Copenhagen. Danish futbol fans were awarded “FIFA fans of the year” in 2021 and you can see why as their love for the game radiates throughout the stadium. 

It was also during this week that I began renting a bike! As I am sure many know, Copenhagen is notrious for its biking culture. I had assumed that I would want to begin renting a bike the moment I stepped onto Danish soil but with such bad weather the first month and a half, it took some time to work up to courage to begin biking. 

100% get a bike! Whether you are in Copenhagen for one block or all three, riding around is a great way to feel like a local plus it is great exercise. I biked from my dorm to the study center and back every day for a total of seven miles and I only wish that I started doing it sooner. 

As I wrote about in my previous post, CIEE takes students on two day trips during each block. For block two, the first one was to Odense.

About a two hour car drive outside of Copenhagen, Odense is the home city of author and playwright, Hans Christian Andersen. During this block, I was enrolled in a course named “Literature and Life of Hans Christian Andersen” so it was pretty cool to visualize all the places we had learned about. 

Did you know that he left Odense for Copenhagen when he was only 14 years old? He had a dream of performing at the Copenhagen Royal Theater so he packed his bags and took 4 days to arrive in Copenhagen. He lived on the streets for many years and continuously pressed to either become a performer or have one of his works performed on stage.

Clearly he did something right as now, in 2022, Andersen and his works are the third most translated works of literature of all time. The first being the Bible and second being William Shakespere.

We visited the museum for him and his works which was an experience like no other. We were given headsets that guided us through the building, telling stories from the beginning of his life to the very end. I’ve never experienced an exhibit quite like it and suggest looking up articles and youtube videos on it so you can get a little look of what it looks like.

After the museum, we were given a couple hours to explore the city on our own. Odense is actually the third biggest city in Denmark, behind Copenhagen and Aarhus, but it still felt super small. 

Along with full day trips, CIEE offers smaller events throughout- and just outside-  Copenhagen that you can sign up for at your convenience. One of the first ones I attended was a tour of the parliament building which is right in the heart of the city. 

Christiansborg Palace, a.k.a. The parliament building used to be the residence of King Christian lV. Due to the residence burning down twice, the castle was rebuilt more than once. Amalienborg, also located in the city center and the current residence of the royal family, was rebuilt at the time to be a temporary castle for the King and his family. When Christiansborg burnt down for a second time, the King was so fed up that they permanently moved in Amalienborg and the newly-built Christiansborg became the parliament building. 

The only personal travel I did during this block was a 36-hour stay in Oslo, Norway. I unconsciously went the whole trip without really using my phone so I only have one photo from our entire journey which just so happens to be of a Norwegian flag.

The following weekend was our second CIEE day trip but because we would’ve had to leave with the group at 5:45am, a small group of us decided to go a day earlier and spend some extra time there…or to just avoid getting up super early.

Four hours northwest of Copenhagen, on the peninsula of Jutland, is Aarhus, which is the second largest city in all of Denmark.

While there, we got a tour of a museum that was supposed to represent what Denmark, specifically Aarhus, used to look like. We also visited the museum of Aros, where 12 of us got stuck in a glass elevator for 15 minutes. With the crowd that gathered, you would think we were the exhibit the museum was showcasing.

The big selling point of the museum is the giant rainbow spiral on top of the building. From there,we worked our way back down as there were several odd exhibits on each floor. The one that sticks out the most to me now is one titled “Boy”. I won’t describe what it is for an element of surprise but it is… interesting. 

The following week a couple of us decided to visit “CopenHot”, a “Nordic Wellness” facility that houses hot tubes, saunas, and canal swims. As I am sure you know, Denmark is the origin point for the Vikings so if you want to discover some Nordic routes, definitely take a dive into the canal then race back to the hot tub to warm up. 

To close out block two, four of us spent our block change on a six hour train ride headed to the most northern part of Denmark. Skagen is famous for the beach where the North and Baltic Seas meet. We arrived late afternoon on Friday evening and had a cozy night in, watching Mamma Mia and eating popcorn.

We made our way north the next morning and walked the beach to find the meeting point of both seas. We were told it’s common to see seals on the coastline but I was still surprised when we stumbled across one. Our taxi driver told us we had to take the touristy stand-in-both-seas photo and the water was stunning.

On the last day of block two, just a day after returning back to Copenhagen from Skagen, we went to another futbol match- this time a national game! 

We attended the Denmark versus Serbia World Cup friendly and it was an indescrible event. Just like the FCK match, the stadium was electric. The friends that I went with (ones who don't typically enjoy soccer) say that that game was one of the highlights of study abroad. I can't recommend enough that you try and catch a game!

As I have mentioned before, Denmark has so much to offer and it is equally as fun to explore all the country has to offer as it is to travel to new countries and cities. Some places I recommend visiting during your stay are Odense, Aarhus, Roskilde, Elsinore, and, of course, Skagen. 

By this point block two had come to a close and the final block had finally arrived. Those last six weeks were by far my favorite so I am very excited to share my favorite memories and photos. But, hey, that’s for part four.