Well, I have been in Copenhagen for the last several days. I pretty much just got off the train in Bø, actually. Popped some laundry in (it smells great after being stuffed in my backpack for a week) and came to my blog! But I don't really know what to say. Copenhagen was way too awesome for me to cover here. It was quite the experience. I guess the only way to really illustrate this trip is thus:
Yeah...basically the best part was getting to see Emma again, after way too long, and hanging out and being as sarcastic as humanly possible. I missed her a lot...and that is NOT sarcasm...and we had SO MUCH FUN. Also not sarcasm.
We did a ton of stuff, but I will stick to one anecdote that stands out. For now. One highlight was "Culture Night" on Friday. This is a time when everything in Copenhagen which is usually closed is suddenly open to the public (not everything, but, you know, a lot). Lucky that I happened to come on the weekend when this was happening. Emma and I bought tickets...which came in the form of little pins that you wear on your coat...which then allow you to take public transportation for free wherever you need to go. We got a little brochure that told us all about the night's activities and what they would be, and we looked at it carefully to plan our night before we left. I can read Danish for the most part, just can't understand it...which is strange and frustrating and kind of interesting.
Anyway, one activity which became very important to us was "paint your own umbrella!" at the kunstindustrimuseet (Art and Industry Museum). Despite the fact that it said "for children and parents" in the brochure, we made it our first destination. Upon arriving, however, we were greeted with the reality that it was, in fact, only children under 10 painting the umbrellas. There was also a long line.
Undaunted, Emma sent me to play a silly American tourist (easy role, of course) and ask a museum worker whether it was only children who could paint the umbrellas. So I approached the nice-looking man, trying to look as cute and innocent as possible, and asked. He said, "OF COURSE not! EVERYONE can paint umbrellas! Just stand in line!" So we took his word for it and stood, heartily embarrassed, surrounded by hyper children. Never have I felt so 20-years-old in my life.
Anyway, as we stood there, speaking English to each other and commenting sarcastically on how embarrassed we were, Emma overheard the couple behind us talking about us (in Danish, obviously). They didn't realize that Emma could understand them; since she has a perfect American accent, they figured we were both silly tourists. They were saying things like "Too bad they don't know it's just for kids" and "they'll be sent away for sure." Emma could only ignore them for so long, then she proceeded to lay down the law. "We did ask, we got permission," she told them. Which I actually understood in Danish! Yay me (after being around Danish for a few days it got a little bit easier to understand...but definitely not a lot. I usually only could pick out a few words. OK. Sorry about the language-side-notes).
Well, the whole incident made us feel smug but also more embarrassed. But we'd come this far. We were determined to have the umbrellas. And, finally, it was our turn. We painted alongside the 10-year-olds, and it was glorious. But also still embarrassing.
Note: mostly young children and parents in the workshop area. Hmmm.
I made my umbrella into a tourist work of art. In case I wasn't already embarrassed enough.
Don't disturb an artist at work.
Ditto. Emma got all fancy and used a clothespin to make sweet patterns on hers.
That was just one episode in the Adventures of Kelsey and Emma in Copenhagen. But I seriously need to study. So, though I know this is extremely thrilling to read about, I must take a break and promise to post more later.
