Week 1

Personal Experience


Leaving the house at 3.30am is never easy, especially having very little sleep the night before. The morning of the 28th January seemed like a blur and in a way I was glad to be up so early as leaving home for four months did not hit me until I arrived at Dublin City Airport. Waiting in departures seemed like forever! I had really no idea what living in Denmark was going to be like, and the thoughts about accommodation, shopping, transport, money and university started to swamp my mind. Fortunately I was travelling with five other Stranmillis students - three of which (Greg, Nicole and Claire) were going to be living and studying in the same place I was. Chatting to them put me at ease, and before I knew it we had landed in Copenhagen. Mie, a student at UCC (the university we are studying at) met us at the airport and took us to our accommodation in Ballerup - a town on the outskirts of the city. A plane journey, metro journey, train journey and 20 minute walk with very heavy suitcases later we arrived at our house for the next four months. Before I forget to mention, the snow here is crazy at the minute! Even the Danes are complaining of the cold temperatures and the amount of snow. Apparently this is the worst they have seen in nearly 20 years - great time to arrive I think as making a proper snowman is definately one of my highlights so far!


Kirsten, our landlady lives in the upper part of the house, and is renting out her basement to us. Complete with its own kitchen, bathroom and living room, the basement is very spacious. Greg and Claire have their own rooms, and as you can see below, Nicole and I share a double bed - which takes a bit of getting used to!


My first day in Copenhagen was quite surreal. I had lots to keep me busy like unpacking, exploring and shopping. Shopping here is quite expensive so Lidls has become our favourite place. Kirsten invited us upstairs to run through some details and she seems very nice and invited us to her church on Sunday. The accommodation is comfortable and I definately feel at home here already. My first impressions of Denmark have been very good. On Saturday we ventured into Copenhagen, and despite the cold we had a great time - there is lots to do and see and I am looking forward to what adventures we will be getting up to! Everything is very accessible where we live and I rarely feel isolated, however getting the trains and metros doea take a bit of getting used to - we spent around 5 hours at the train station over a period of just a few days due to the confusing zones and systems. Hopefully the time spent in such an exciting place will decrease as we get more acclimatised.

Cultural Development

I have already experienced a few Danish traditions and customs. The first being on our arrival at Kirsten's home. She showed us into her living room where we had Hygge. Hygge, translated to English, simply means cosy. It would be similar to afternoon tea at home, but with dimmed lights and candles on the table. For about an hour we shared stories and information over tea, bread and cheese and muffins - it was very much appreciated after being up so early!

Kirsten made us feel very welcome, and I think it is a reflection of the whole country - everyone seems very friendly and kind. At the same time however, Danes seem quite private people and the way in which Hygge is presented would emphasise this private and quiet personality. We also witnessed such characteristics when Greg and I visited Kirsten's church on Sunday morning. The country is mostly Protestant, and the service we witnessed would have been similar to that of an Anglican service. Even though it was in Danish, the priest was easy to follow and listening to the choir sing in Danish was really amazing and peaceful. Afterwards we were invited for tea and coffee with the congregation. After speaking to the priest, she informed us that Danish people are very private with their faith and that is why the church services are quite quiet compared to some denominations we would be used to at home. We also met the priest's secretary - Paula - who is from London and told us a lot about what happens in the two churches in the Parish.

That Sunday evening Kirsten invited us for dinner as our cooker made the electricity go off. You will be glad to hear we have since got a new cooker! She made Frikadeller (Danish meatballs) with potatoes and vegetables. The meal was really tasty and and it was lovely to hear about Kirsten's life and her children. Spending time with Kirsten made me very aware that even little things can be so different in another country - even the coffee pot looks strange!


We have also got time to visit the 97 year old Little Mermaid (Den lille havfrue in Danish) - a statue in Copenhagen to honor the children's author Hans Christian Andersen who created the fairytale 'The Little Mermaid' and made into a popular film by Disney. Despite being small in size, the statue is a major tourist attraction and a must see if visiting Denmark due to its history - including violent instances where it has been attacked with paint and even beheaded!

Professional Development

We attended our first class on Monday. The University - Blaagaard/KDAS UCC is the biggest teaching college in Denmark and is situated 20 minutes away from the city centre and is just newly built due to the amalgamation of two colleges. The building itself is very impressive and modern - equipped with a swimming pool and gym which I will definately be frequenting! There are 37 Erasmus students from all over Europe studying on the course and it is really interesting being in a classroom where French, Spanish, Flemish, German, Austrian and Swiss languages are all being spoken. One thing that frustrates me is the fact that we can only speak English. It makes me feel a little bad that I have no second language, as some of my classmates have learnt three or four languages!

We have had one Danish class which was only two hours long and very beneficial as my Danish is very poor! Even though everyone speaks English here, I feel quite ignorant when I cannot understand simple words and phrases!

One major difference from studying at Stranmillis is the length of time some of our classes are. We have already had one evening class (Globalisation and Professional Change) - which started at 4.30pm and ended at 9.30pm! Definately a shock to the system, but an interesting way of functioning as it gives those students who may have a job during the day or are mature students choosing a different profession the chance to study and earn a living. The aims of this class are to make us aware of cultural differences between countries and the affect this has on us as professionals in an ever changing world. It seems interesting and we have already been aware of our own personal backgrounds. This weekend we will be going on a retreat with the class so I hope that I will get to learn about education systems from various countries.

We have new classes starting weekly as our timetable changes each week - something else which is new to me, so I hope I don't get confused!