Hobnobbing

Saturday.  We bundled up and walked into Copenhagen on some errands.  We walked down Stroget again.  Saturdays are a very busy day to be there....it is like New York.  We were were specks in a sea of people.  It was exciting to go in and out of some of the little shops and just look.

We went into a large department store called ILUM.  It was 5 stories tall and elegant.  We wandered through the kitchenware department and the Christmas department.  It reminded me of being in ZCMI as a girl, when it was cold and snowy outside and everyone inside was still clad in heavy coats and hats...and crowding through the aisles.

I realize this doesn't look all that spectacular, but let me tell you that it was beautiful...from the first floor looking up several stories with Christmas lights sparkling...this is the area where the escalators were.  It doesn't begin to capture the excitement of the shopping day.

We went in the largest bookstore in the city and looked at an array of Danish books and games.  Of course I saw a thousand things I would have loved to get for our grandchildren...but shipping would make them far more expensive than they already are.  One find was "Den Lille Prins" which is one our very favorite books from before we were married.  Each of our wedding rings has an inscription from it.

Interspersed with newer buildings are much older structures but they seem to coexist very nicely.  We went in several stores and looked at Christmas decorations.

This is the Royal Copenhagen Store on Stroget.

Looking down a little byway, it appears to be a private courtyard with some very old buildings still standing and in use.  (My apologies to Kate!  We take most of our pictures with our phones but even with a serious camera, we are amateurs at best.)

We have our little foot high tree with small ornaments, and I have been lighting candles at night because it is so cozy.  I also have two little white ceramic houses that I think are adorable that bring the spirit of the season.  I think we'll get a poinsettia this week.

We worked on our budget....sooo tedious!  We read, and then we finished off our evening reading the first chapter of "Den Lille Prins" together (the three of us...SK, Google Translate and me).

All Things Danish

Day Number 6 of our Danish Class.  SK is a standout, with the teacher actually asking his opinion!  But the class is very interesting and SK is learning.  His pronunciation is getting a boost, and it was already good, and even in this short time he has found it useful.  So we are both gaining from it.  The mix of world-wide personalities is amazing.

We have been at the Center since Danish class ended.  We had a great activity this evening...bowling, pizza and then games here.  It is nearly midnight and there is still about 20 of over 50 left having a great time.  I am sure that it will be awhile before we go home.  The heart of the activity was missionary work ...each YSA was challenged to bring someone into the Church before the end of the year ...either a non-member or a less-active member.  We had several here who fit into those categories and I hope it will be a good start.

I had a sweet experience with one young man.  He was baptized 4 months ago and is so excited about the Gospel.  He is from the Ivory Coast.  He frequently goes out with the missionaries and visits with investigators.  The missionaries told him that when he is able to teach about the Plan of Salvation in Danish, they will provide the opportunity.

So last night he came an hour early so that SK could help him pronounce the words in Danish.  They worked together on and off.  He will do it I know.  The missionaries challenged him to read the Book of Mormon before the end of the year.  I told him I would read too.  So each time I see him, I ask which chapter he is on and we compare notes.

Last night as we were finishing up in the kitchen, he brought some dishes in and visited for a minute with me.  Then as he turned to leave, he said to me (entirely without guile and with the sweetest expression on his face), "Don't worry....when I learn Danish, I will help you."  Each time I have thought of that since, it has warmed me from my head to my toes.

p.s.  I made a Danish recipe for Ginger Snaps that Lia sent....I made them for Danes!  They loved them....what they could get.  SK ate one and then couldn't stay away from them.

En, To, Tre....Go!

Happy Thanksgiving to you all!

We started our day out by going to the center to get 6 pounds of pork roast in the slow cooker (slow cooker meaning a low heat in the oven).  We got cole slaw made, dessert mostly made, and then we headed for our Danish class.

The teacher looked genuinely flummoxed when we walked in.  "I thought you weren't coming today!" she said.  That confused me, so I told her that yes we were there today.

"But it's Thanksgiving today!" she answered.  I just nodded and said, "Yes it is...but we are here anyway."  The only other American was not there today...and he is the one who hasn't been back in 8 years.  It makes me wonder if he really was celebrating that great American holiday.

We played the Danish version of Bingo...as we once again practiced on numbers.  SK and I were a team and we so wanted to win that tiny little marzipan bar!!!  Well, it wasn't actually the bar we wanted...we just wanted to win.  But we lost...one more number and we would have been the victors.

I have been thinking of Thanksgiving there in the Sates and it warms my heart to think of all of you around your dinner tables and eating turkey and every kind of pie known to man.  I love Thanksgiving!

But I decided that I couldn't really make a Thanksgiving dinner on my own for 20 to 40 people, and so we had pulled pork sandwiches.  I put the pork on small "budget" brand dinner rolls.  Like a hot dog bun but much more substantial...and shorter.  I filled them up full so it looked like a good sandwich.

One amazing find in the American section of a grocery store here...Sweet Baby Ray's BBQ Sauce!  It was enormously expensive but we purchased it anyway...aah.  It is good.  We fed 26 and I made about 50 sandwiches which were eaten in no time.  Obviously several of the young women ate only one and several of the young men ate 3 and 4!

I made cole slaw....which SK said no one would like.  We instructed them to put it on their sandwich ... if they chose to.  No one put it on their sandwiches.  But everyone scooped it up and onto their plates, and it disappeared in no time....and they asked for more!  Next time I will make much more and serve it as a side dish instead of a relish!

We cooked up a large package of frozen vegetables that were already in the freezer from before we got here.  We served tortilla chips.  And we topped it all off with EASY Pumpkin Crumble Cake.  This is where Madsen's Law #1 and #2 come into play.  "Nothing is as simple(easy) as you think it will be,"   and "Everything Takes Longer Than it is Supposed to.)

I found a marvelous recipe for "Easy Pumpkin Crumble Cake."  Two items that it requires is a yellow cake mix and sweetened condensed milk. (Erin...there are two more for your list.)   I assumed both were readily available.  After deciding that they are NOT readily available, I made my own sweetened condensed milk, and considered making my own cake mix.  But we found a Danish cake mix at one of the many stores we went into.  It worked, but I thought it tasted a bit peculiar.  But the good news is that the YSAs seemed to love it served with whipped cream.  Hey what isn't improved when topped with whipped cream?

I have to tell you, that an hour before we were to serve the meal, I was quite anxious.  I was sure there wasn't enough.  I was sure the pork was going to be awful. (We couldn't read the labels about what kind of pork it was....but it was on sale, and it looked pretty good).  I thought the cole slaw was a bad idea, and I thought the meal looked kind of anemic.  And not even chocolate for dessert!  I stood at the sink in that little kitchen and prayed for a small miracle...or a big one depending on how you look at it.

I know the small miracle came.  Because there was enough and to spare, and everyone said they ate until they could eat no more.  There are some there who don't often have the luxury of sitting down to a hot meal with friends.  When my father was in college, he often went without food and remembered being hungry a lot.  It is so nice to be able to fix a meal for these young people.

So besides everything else today, I am grateful that the Lord sends small miracles my way...sometimes every day.  Not an indication of any special standing I have with Him, but proof of how much he loves those YSAs.

Videos

If you would like to see an excellent 3 minute video on Elder Ballard's challenge to the YSAs, go to this website:

http://www.lds.org/pages/rising-generation/eng?lang=eng&country=gb

at second mark 36 and at 2.26, you will see a beautiful young redhead who is one of our young women.

The theme song (below that) is about 4 minutes and it is very inspiring.....your teens would like it!

Giving Thanks

At this beautiful time of year that we pause to give thanks, I want to express how grateful we are to be serving the Lord in Denmark.  This is a dream come true for us.

We are so grateful for all of our dear family and friends...all of you.  Your support, prayers, well-wishes and encouragement are a great source of strength to us as we try to adjust to our responsibilities in a new land and culture.  Without you, it would be very difficult to serve, and ironically it is so hard to be away from you.

We are grateful for kind and caring parents who raised us with love.  We are so very thankful for dear brothers and sisters who grow more dear to us every passing year, and who continue to be a gentle and positive force in our lives.

We are thankful beyond measure for children who embrace the Gospel and who strive to live righteously. We are so very thankful for their wonderful eternal companions who have enriched our lives more than we can say.  And we adore our 13 1/2 grandchildren who are such a joy to us. Katherine, Brooke, Andrew, Lauren, Allison, Matthew, Kimball, Anna, Bethany, Andersen, Ben, David, Eliza and Thor (Did I get that right Lia?)...we love you.

Dear friends that have been a constant in our lives continue to be a great blessing to us and we are so thankful for them.

We are grateful for the blessings of the temple, and for our sweet friends from our temple service days.

We are grateful for the YSAs - for their strength and for their testimonies, for their dedication and their commitment to keep their covenants...for their kindness and their humor, for their gentleness and their excitement to share the Gospel.

We are so thankful to know and associate with YSAs who have their mission calls and are busily preparing to leave, as well as several who are preparing to submit their mission papers in the near future.

We are grateful for the beautiful building we have been meeting in with so many resources, and grateful that inspired people will be selecting a new site for us to move into for the YSAs.  We are sad to leave that place, but we know the new one will provide new kinds of opportunities to bring people to Christ.

We are thankful for the many kind tutors and volunteers who willingly gave up precious time to help us learn Danish, and for the wonderful people at the MTC who inspired us.

We are grateful for the other senior missionaries we have met since we first entered the MTC nearly 2 months ago, and for the friendships we have made with the very special ones here in the Danish mission.  We are very thankful to have four of those special ones right here next door as our neighbors!

We are grateful for the kind people we meet everywhere here in Copenhagen who nearly always seem willing to help these two befuddled Americans.

We are grateful for the beautiful surroundings here in Frederiksberg, and the winter weather that (thus far) has been magnificent.

We are grateful for gracious Church members who love missionaries and are so good to include us in their gatherings.  

We are so very thankful for the atoning sacrifice of Jesus Christ and for the gate he has opened for us.   We are grateful for the restored Gospel of Jesus Christ and for the gift it is to us.  We are thankful for Joseph Smith and every living prophet since.  

And we are grateful for this opportunity to serve.

Hanging out with Young People

Did I mention Family Home Evening last night?  I got carried away talking about driving around here, and didn't tell you the sweetest part of the day.  We had nearly 20 there and a young woman who has her mission call to South London, England gave the lesson about missionary work.  She told of her conversion.

She became close to another girl when she was five years old in Zimbabwe.  They were friends all through school, and she frequently spent Saturday night at her friend's home.  But the rule was:  If you stayed the night, you went to Church with them on Sunday.

They stayed close all through the years.  Fast forward 17 years.  The friend and her family moved to Utah, and this young woman went there to visit.  They took her to Temple Square.  Her heart was deeply touched by all she saw and heard.  Finally, she turned to her friend and said, "Why did you never give me a Book of Mormon?"  The friend reached into her purse and handed her a Book of Mormon inscribed with her testimony.

This young woman said that we never know what example may mean to someone....it may make a significant impact within just a few minutes, or it may take 17 or 18 years, but someone's example is so important.

With tears flowing, she told how much she loves the Lord for what He has done for her, and how grateful she is for the Gospel and the opportunity to share it with people.  I know she will be a very sweet and diligent missionary and will share the Gospel with a very special spirit.  Did I mention she is absolutely beautiful?

I look at all of these amazing young people and wonder if I was anywhere near that strong when I was that age.  They love the Lord and are all so eager to serve.

On another note, we had our 4th Danish class today...with three more students added.  Two more from Philipines and one from Egypt.  It is fascinating, and I am enjoying it very much, especially all of the personalities from everywhere.  I sit next to a lady from Greece.  She is so funny...very emotional and very vocal about how she is feeling.  Every now and then she throws up her hands and says, "I don't understand this!!!!!"  She walked out of class today because it just got a little intense for her.  She came back in a few minutes and did much better.

One young man from Peru is mounting a Friday-go-for-a-few-beers party after class.  I explained that we will be with the young adults from our Church and didn't get much farther.  I think he was fine with us not coming!

At one point the teacher asked us to ask everyone around us their age and then line up in the classroom according to age.  Slam Dunk.  We didn't have to ask....we just went to the end of the line!

Driving Me Crazy!

Actually, the truth is, if I were driving here, I would be crazy.  SK is driving when we have the car, and I am so grateful!  I have vowed that I will never drive a car here.  I can only pay close attention to 2 or 3 things at a time - max, and in Denmark that is not nearly enough.

Every street has parked cars wedged together like sardines and bicycle lanes on both sides that usually have a good number of cyclists traveling them.  And they drive like crazy people!  They bicycle very fast.  Sometimes at a stoplight, there may be 20 or more who are on their way somewhere.  Turning right is an adventure.  You have to inch over into their lane and you HAVE to make sure there is no one coming up on your right that you might kill.  I have seen more than a few bicyclists scold car drivers for what they feel is an infraction.

Not only that, but you have to watch for bicyclists coming from every other direction and then there are the pedestrians!  You think you have looked in every direction for cars and bicycles, and when you put your foot on the pedal, you nearly mow down an innocent person out for a stroll.

Most cars are quite small.  So you can't see very high.  As we come out of our parking lot, we really can't see cars coming from the right or left, and we REALLY can't see bicyclists coming at 60 miles an hour from either direction.  So we inch out onto the road and I just kind of close my eyes and pray.

Even though most cars are quite small, parking is also a great adventure.  Our little parking lot looks barely big enough to park about 8 cars, but there are at least 12 parked there regularly.  So we get into the car to leave and have to make a series of maneuvers to get out of our little parking spot without taking out any other little autos, or crunching our own bumpers etc.  Once again, I close my eyes and pray.

I can't tell you how many times he seems to be turning on a dime and I just know he is going to hit that other little car in front of us...I watch waiting for the cracking bending denting sounds and they never happen.  He has no idea how often I just close my eyes and hope a lot.  By the way, it is the same when Brother Hansen drives...wow!  How do they avoid so many collisions?

Today, at our Danish course, we got a perfect parking spot right in front of the school (highly unusual) and SK parallel parked with such finesse that I was left in awe!  It's a good thing he still likes to be at the wheel, because I will never drive in Copenhagen.

Feasting

We drove to Church today without incident.  We are getting better (it might have something to do with the fact that we have figured out the GPS system in the car, AND that Elder Hansen was in the front passenger seat - and he could find his way there blindfolded).  There were three of us in the back seat...we didn't have seatbelts on.  We were wedged in there so tightly we didn't need them!  Besides we couldn't have found them under our heavy coats etc.

Both meetings were very inspiring.  The talks in Sacrament meeting were a husband and a wife, and both went to the heart of the Gospel and their perspective.  Both are (ahem) on the older side...a little like SK and me, and have both lived very active and full lives.  I loved what they said, and how they have been strengthened throughout their lives by living close to the Spirit and relying on their testimonies of Jesus Christ.

The 6 other senior missionaries came for dinner....what fun!  We sat together at our little table (at times like these I do miss that round table!) and talked and ate.  I am understanding more and more what a lovely thing it is for people to get together over a meal.

Sacrament meeting at the Center was certainly the high point of a great day.  After the Sacrament, a young woman told her conversion story...which began with observing an LDS co-worker who seemed to emanate a special joy and light.   She investigated and joined the Church 3 years ago, and says it is the best thing she has ever done.  The second speaker was a young man who was on a mission in Chicago and has been home a year or so.  His testimony was powerful ... he loves the Gospel and the opportunity he has had to share it.

The third speaker was a man from the High Council...maybe in his 40's or so.  He shared some marvelous missionary experiences he has had.  One happened on the train on his way to work.  He was reading the Book of Mormon and felt that a man who was sitting nearby needed to have the book.  He just flat out asked him if he would like a copy and if he would like to speak with the missionaries about it.  The man said "Sure."  This High Council speaker said that he had taken his name and address and given them to the missionaries and just found out in the last few months that the man had been baptized as a result of that encounter (this was years ago) and is raising his family in the Church.

Today, although we had an enjoyable meal, the feasting was spiritual.

No, We are all Alike..... but Different

What a beautiful day here!  We wished we had taken the opportunity to go see the inside of Tivoli...the temperature has been holding steady in the low 40's but with a coat on, it is very pleasant.

I have just finished in the kitchen....cutting onions.  I am making more cream of chicken soup for dinner tomorrow.  We are having the senior missionaries in our area over for Hawaiian Haystacks.  They are easy when everyone brings something, and they were such a hit with the young crowd...why not try it on senior Americans?

We went to dinner tonight at a member's home from the branch.  It was the fabulous fairy tale prince and princess.  They fixed another feast and put it on with such ease.  They fixed tacos!  They put all the ingredients on the table and we rolled or stacked our own tacos, and they were very good.  The meat was excellent and the guacamole was delicious....everything was great.

Is it just me, or does it seem like all I write about is food?  

After dinner we sat around talking.  I enjoyed all of the other 8 guests plus the two hosts.  We had a lot in common and they were so interesting to visit with.  So many topics came and went and so many opinions were offered, and so many different personalities among us.  Besides us, our prince/host was the oldest there at 30.  There was a guest from Finland and one from Chile, one from Sweden and the rest were from Denmark....then of course us.  We visited for a couple of hours and then everyone kind of said it was time to leave.

It is interesting to find ourselves in a Danish class full of young people, a mission call to work with the young people and then be in a branch with many young people.  Do you think this might help us feel younger?

I Guess We are Different.

Day number 2 in our Danish class.  Today we each introduced ourselves and told where we are from and why we are here in Denmark.  There was a little opportunity to say the name of our church and give a little information.  For the most part, people are unimpressed, but you never know what might come of it. 

SK shined bright with his Danish today, and Daniel a kid from Australia sounds like he will be fluent in no time.  We went over numbers from 1 to 100....and, fortunately for me, I knew them already.  I'll bet you're wondering what I learned all that time we had a tutor from Provo!  Well....numbers is one thing.  I figure I have another week before they get into Danish I am unfamiliar with. 

I was a partner with a young woman from Ghana today.  She is a beautiful young woman and speaks English with a wonderful accent.  There are several here working as nannies.  I think they are brave to come to a new culture, new language and new climate!

Our teacher today was a 54-year-old man who has one daughter who moved out of his home recently to move in with her boyfriend while she is finishing up school.  The remarkable thing about his introduction to us was the matter-of-fact tone he took to announce the most recent change in his life.  It is very typical for people to live together here before marriage.  That makes it even more remarkable that our YSAs are so strong about holding to the standards they hold dear.

The teacher asked us to tell how old we are.  Well, there was Stan 70, me 64, then a woman from Greece 42.  Everyone else was under 30!....and several said they came here with a Danish boyfriend or girlfriend.  The power of love.  Imagine following someone to live in Denmark because you love him! (Well, there is actually a lot more to it than that.)

Dansk and Chili on a Chili Day

It is now in the thirties.  The temperatures have been in the 40's day and night for weeks, and before that the 50's.  I think it will be winter coat and gloves and boots weather now for some time.  People keep saying, "Just wait til it gets to 0 (Centigrade)  .  Burrrr, I'm waiting!

Today was our first day in Danish Class.  It lasted 3 hours.  There were 15 of us in there, and we looked like a mini United Nations meeting.  There were people there from the Philipines, Peru, Iberia, Italy, Australia, Ghana,India, Greece and a few I don't remember.  It was quite amazing and SK even learned something.  I think they will kick him out of class soon though, since he seems to be able to speak the language rather well.

The teacher was patient with the rest of us and was willing to repeat and repeat.  It must be quite a challenge to teach so many people of different backgrounds.  One other man was from the U.S.  and he told us he has lived here for 8 years.  Isn't that interesting?  Here he is in a beginning class with us.  I hope to find out why he is here.  He hasn't been back to the U.S. in the 8 years he has been in Denmark.  As you might have guessed, we were oldest by a few decades.  We were items of interest with our badges on.

The Italian speaks English, French, German and one or two other languages, so I guess she might as well add Danish!  The teacher taught us how to say "I am from...." and I speak the_____ language, and then we had to say it for the class, telling what languages we speak.  Everyone there spoke their native language plus English.  So I was quite the standout - speaking only English.  The teacher taught the class in English!  But she said pretty soon it would all be in Danish.

Learning how to make the sounds of Danish was interesting, and I was grateful I wasn't the worst!  The teacher said that we will probably never sound like Danes so don't be too hard on ourselves.

After class, we went immediately to the Center where we added the awesome Penzey's Chicken Soup Base....and joy of joys!  That was exactly what it needed!  I figured we made about 3 gallons.  I also made some Texas Sheet Cakes this morning.

There is a YSA get together this weekend in Stockholm.  Several of the stalwarts were going....7 hours by car, more by bus and a lot of money by plane.  Attendance was light tonight...possibly 25 or so.  When I realized our attendance was down, I began planning what to do with all that soup.  Pointless as it turned out, because they ate nearly every last bit of it!  They seemed to really enjoy it.  Very few put the chips IN the soup, preferring to eat them on the side, but the sour cream and cheese were popular toppings.  The cake too was a hit.  Phew!  We (with a whole lot of help) did it again...another moderate success.

But don't worry....we won't let it go to our heads...and don't look for us on "Chopped" anytime soon.

This is the largest pot I have ever used, much larger than it looks here.

Sometimes you feel like nuts...sometimes you don't!

Murphy's...uh...make that Madsen's Law

We fixed our White Chicken Chili today for dinner tomorrow at the center.  I soaked the beans last night and cooked them today and then combined all ingredients - except for chicken stock.  I haven't been able to find any bullion without MSG or other things, and that causes all kinds of problems like headaches.

We took everything over to the center to assemble it, and by around 5:30 it was all put together and looked and smelled just like it always has.  We have everything we need, thanks to Erin who sent us the White Chicken Chili packets a couple of weeks ago.  I have just been waiting with anticipation to make this because it is quite simple to make and it is sooo good!

Well....Madsen's Law came into play here.  "Nothing is as simple as you think it will be."

I tasted a spoonful, and it was just plain blah.  The expected addition of a dollop of sour cream, some cheddar cheese and tortilla chips would have done nothing to improve it.  My heart fell.  I had invested quite a bit of time at this point...cutting onions (what?...you really didn't think we would make a meal without cutting some vegetables did you?), cooking and cutting up the chicken and of course cooking the beans.

I tried to figure out where I had gone wrong.  I realized I hadn't put a speck of salt in it.  So I put a LOT of salt in and it started to taste better.  I decided that I would have to bite the bullet and put some of the dreaded MSG chicken bullion cubes in.  Instead I decided to just put the whole huge pot in the refrigerator and go home.

Second day in a row, we got a CARE package!!!!!

Melissa bought out Penzey's and then went into debt to mail the package to us.  But look at that!  Be still my beating heart.  The secret ingredient has appeared on my doorstep and the soup will be saved.


Thank you all for your great kindness and help.  Erin, Mary, Lia and Melissa....I hope those care packages don't put you all in the poor house.

Picture Day!!!!

What a fun day we have had today!  We walked over to Nyhavn...an iconic street by a canal.
On the way we went down Stroget, also a famous place in Copenhagen.  It means the walking street. There are no cars there, and shops o'plenty.  They are gearing up for Christmas....and the second installment of "Hunger Games."



You might guess that this is one shop that caught our eyes.  It is a famous cake shop.  We have been told by those who know to go in, sit down and order a piece of cake and hot chocolate.  We didn't do that today because we each gained 5 pounds just looking at the window display.



About one hundred dollars a cake!  Seriously.

A very small portion of the walking street.

You must know that Legos were invented in Denmark!  So here in this little Danish Lego store is a little Danish Toy Soldier made out of Legos...and SK impersonating said soldier (With the Mary Poppins).

Nyhavn (pronouced NewHoun)  Don't you just love these colorful buildings?

The real treat for today was going to the Knudsen's home for dinner with 10 other missionary couples.  I am counting the Temple President and Matron here.  Wow....it was amazing.  Have you ever felt loved for no reason at all?  This wonderful couple serve the young missionaries in the district once a month and the seniors once a month.  We gathered around the table and oohed and aahed every time they put a dish on.  They treated us like royalty.  We filled their beautiful apartment, and the warmth came from the joy of being together and being served a feast by a master chef.

Sister Swena is an angel, but that is actually a Danish  chandelier behind her.

You can't tell from the picture, but this pie was at least 14 inches in diameter, and DEEP.  Apple pie.  Aaaah.  It served all 15 of us and there was a third of a pie left.



I adore all the art in their apartment, but I particularly LOVE this little Nyhavn.  Someday you may see something on the walls of our home in Gilbert...I have the straight story on where to find something like it.



We got home to find a Care Package from dear Mary...Stan's sister.  We laughed right out loud from sheer delight when we opened it.  This is treasure indeed....these are serious peelers, and will make a huge difference in our meal preparations!

Rainy Days and Mondays II

Who ever wrote "Rainy Days and Mondays" must never have lived in Denmark, because in our vast experience here, Mondays ARE rainy days....but they don't get us down.  I love the rain and the mist here...even the very gray skies.  It just adds to the charm of the place.  It is possible that I may change my tune at some point.

From the bus stop looking down the street where the Danish Language School is.  The building on the right is completely round, and I don't know how old, but it is quite distinctive.

This stately old building is right across the street from the language school.  Every time we pass it, I have to pause and look.  It is an apartment building, and you can see that more people ride bikes than drive cars, which seems to be the case everywhere.  Bicycles are definitely the best mode of transport in the city - depending on the weather.

With great anticipation we caught the bus today for our first day of language school - Danish to be exact.  We were quite disappointed to be informed that it will not start until Thursday.  But who doesn't love being handed an extra 3 hours?  That meant getting some more things caught up on before leaving for the Center today, and it especially means that we will have the whole day tomorrow as a p-day.  I have been wanting to go to a park about a mile from here that is said to be gorgeous, even in the winter.  I'll let you know all about it if we make it there.

On the bus trip home, at one stop about 25 small children about age 4 or 5 got on with two women.  We watched as they just kept coming and going all the way to the back and filling in every available space.  The little ones were rosy-cheeked and wide-eyed.  They were wearing bulky coats, hats, gloves and scarves and smiling as they jostled each other aboard.  They were such a beautiful sight... Denmark's future.

Snapped from the bus window.  This is so typical and I love it.  There is a young father holding the hand of a small child who is completely bundled up.  I often see fathers holding their childrens' hands as they walk along the streets and it just warms my heart every time.....sometimes the child may be as old as 7 or 8, and they still hold hands.

At the Center, we popped 8 bags of microwave popcorn and added white chocolate.  It was a little pricey for Family Home Evening snacks, but we've been doing OK on the budget, so we went for it.  It made two huge bowls of popcorn.  It was mostly eaten, but I will not put that one down as a success.  I don't think anyone was particularly fond of it, maybe because it looked like regular popcorn and it wasn't!  Oh well.  I told myself several weeks ago that we are bound to have an occasional flop (this doesn't quite qualify as a flop - just a semi-dud), and I am OK with that.  I just hope it is only occasional.

The Truth Comes Out For Melissa and Lia

I love opening the blinds in the morning to give these little guys all the light possible.  These days the sun dawns late, and by 4 we have a semi-twilight.  By 4:30 it is getting dark and by 5 it is dark.

We had another adventure getting to Church today on the bus.  We set out walking to the place where we change buses, because we missed the first bus (I left my bus pass in the apartment - and had to go back for it).  We made a sweeping circle before ending up at the right place, but saw some great sights along the way.  If Sister Swena hadn't asked a kind stranger for directions, we might be wandering the streets of Copenhagen yet.  To be honest though, it was SK who led us astray.  I am beginning to think I have the better directional sense in this twosome!  You know what that means for you - Melissa and Lia....you got it from your Dad!  We left the apartment at 9, and walked into Church 3 minutes before it started at 10.

It is a wonderful little branch and I love the members there, but it is funny to look around and see that 10 of the 40 or so in attendance are wearing missionary badges.  In Sunday School today, the lesson was on "Every Member a Missionary" - and most of us were!

We got home without any bumbling, enjoying the sights from the bus window.

After dinner we walked a few blocks over to Tivoli where they have just turned on the Christmas lights.  We only stood outside, but before Christmas we will go inside and give you a peek.

On the way home we passed by many shops.  I loved the look of this little Christmas shop and want to go back on a week day, and then this little deli looked especially appetizing.  These open-faced sandwiches are very popular here, and sooooooo good.

There is a full moon tonight.....You will see it too in a few hours.  That is a sweet thought.  Good Night.

It Can't All Be Fun and Games

Today dawned with the promise of a walking tour through one of the more beautiful gardens here, even at this time of year.  But we found out this morning that a group of teens was coming from Sweden to do baptisms at the temple and wanted to stop at the Center for awhile.  So Stan suited up and took the bus over to open it and welcome the group.  He waited for three hours and no one showed up!
He came home and we had dinner and relaxed.  By then it was too late to do any site-seeing but it has been a day of preparation for me...laundry, cleaning, figuring finances for the Center and for us, making phone calls and ironing 10 white shirts.

We received an interesting letter which took some effort to translate into English.  Apparently I am not the only one who noticed we live below the level of the lake!  There is a move afoot to make a plan to prevent great damage to more buildings than ours if the lake should rise.  In the meantime, if the lower floor is flooded, we may just get our fishing poles out and fish from the loft!

It's been a good day.

The Madsen Mode of Transportation

Today was comparatively easy...I only made cookies!  - Melissa's chocolate chippers.  Stan went to get a haircut...quite expensive, but a nice haircut nevertheless.  At 2:00 we left for the Center.  This was not our day to have a car.  The weather was overcast but not raining and it was decent weather.  So we decided to walk.  The Center is about 2 1/4 miles from our apartment, and we don't exactly break any records by getting there in 45 minutes, but it is a good workout anyway.

This little walkway looks so inviting, but I was particularly intrigued by the tree dead center....it was far more magnificent than this photo can show.  I can hardly wait to see it in the Spring and Summer.

We had worked up an appetite and so Stan went out and got us a typical Danish lunch!

This is known as a salat pizza -or salad.  I thought it was great...SK not so much.

We worked on some paperwork there and then I left at 5:45 for the temple so that I could be with the YSAs on their session.  I love the Copenhagen Temple.  It is small, but inside it has some beautiful architectural features and marvelous murals on the walls (by Joseph Brickey I am told).  It is serene and inspiring.  It was completely dark as I walked there.

After the session I walked back to the Center where there were already about 15 YSAs gathered, many of whom had been to the temple to do baptisms.  Within an hour or so, there was a nice little group of 25 or so who ate treats and played games....Crud among other games.

I watched them play Crud ...they were whooping and a hollering and having a fantastic time.  I wondered if there was anywhere else in Copenhagen tonight where people their age were having as good a time with such good clean fun.

By the time everyone had gone home it was 12:30 a.m.  We packed up and walked the block and a half to the bus stop.  The sign said that the bus would come by in 11 minutes.  It was dark and cold so I suggested we just keep walking.  We walked to the intersection where we would change buses and it still hadn't come...so that was a good decision.  The bus stop for the second bus said that the next bus would be by in 24 minutes, so we set out on foot again.  We made it to our street in 30 minutes, and the bus never passed us.  So we are home now at 1:53 a.m.  With all the walking we did today, I am sure that we each have walked at least 5 miles.  I hope that makes up for all the cookies I ate!

What really surprised me was the number of people out at this time of night.  Of course we passed a number of bars that were full of people....but we passed many pedestrians  and a lot of bicyclists.