Norway Study Tour

So we begin our study tour for class on a rather exciting note. Chris R. & Emily & Andrew were missing for a while (but showed up fashionably late to our relief). Our original flight got canceled so we had to take and earlier one (which made them being late even more). When we landed in Bergen, we were full of excitement, it seemed so beautiful flying in.
We make it to Bjerkness Center for Climate Research (where it was extremely hard to stay awake), and afterwards sat around for a long time waiting for our bus. It never came, so we had to carry all our stuff to our hotel. I nearly had a heart attack when I was told it was more than half a mile away. I nearly lost it when I realized it was all steep hills (that normally would be charming but not carrying an extremely heavy suitcase). So it was not fun at all walking to our hotel.
Soon after we make it to our hotel(and my arms were still in one piece from dragging my impossibly luggage), and head off to dinner with a representative from the Climate section of Bergen Kommune. I had the honor of sitting next to her (thanks to my tardiness and not having any seats by my friends), and chatting with her was definetely insightful.
She commented on how interesting she finds it that we (americans) think that the Scandinavians are so sustainable when they feel like they aren't exactly giving it their best. I find it funny how they accomplish more barely trying than we do trying real hard.
Key thing during dinner (beside sitting next to Kommune woman) was consuming fish soup. I HATE fish, stopped eating fish from the age of 4. It was so hard to turn it away because it just felt rude. sigh. there began my vegetarian "safe" status.
I lived life to the fullest in Bergen and tried to absorb everything in as much as possible. The outdoor market full of local farmers and craftsmen were real neat. Spent a ton of money of "stuff" but to me it was definitely well worth it!! In my defense, I did turn away this real cute purse made of seal fur (stupid conscious). Miraculously,"the city of rain" was sunny the entire 3 days that we were there (it rains 265 days out of the year).
In regards to architecture, I enjoyed all the wooden houses tucked into the mountains, seeing some of the floating new houses on the water, and in general how buildings aren't abrasive to nature. They definetely understand scale, density and building based on local situations (even the modern parts).
On that Sunday, we took a train to Oslo. The ride was absolutely breathtaking. Once we got to Oslo however, we had a HUGE let down. I think it would have been ok if we didn't go to Bergen before that. Its a industrial based city and we were put in the wrong section of town, so most of us went through some form of being distraught. We got to see some cool organizations, NGOs and companies (Mandag Morgen, Mitt Klima, and Telenor).
My favorite part of Oslo was going to the Munch Museum (Munch's one of my favorite artists), and the Nobel Peace Prize Museum. both consist of great architecture, interior and of course, content.
Besides the academic part, we did get to go to a huge field w/a big screen TV to watch soccer w/locals. Our first game was Sweden vs. Greece and it was AMAZING watching Sweden win. The Swedes are a very "spirited" bunch of Northern European, and seems to handle their alcohol in very jovial ways. And we came to the conclusion that only the Swedes can pull of all yellow outfits (and still manage to look good).
Last night in Oslo consisted of wandering around trying to find something cool open on a weeknight. We ended up at a Karaoke bar that my classmates went to prior to that night, and it ended up being a lot of fun. We did a number (we=most of the girls in my class), and had a captivated audience, haha. Perhaps we should try out for American Idol when we get back to the states...

Reflections on Week 2

I must say, I have become fully adjusted here and back into student mode (I am actually reading all the assignments now). This week in class we looked at energy companies from Denmark, Norway, Sweden & Finland and how they utilize local climatic situations to rely less on fossil fuels. Norway is pretty intriguing for having so much oil and at the same time, being heavily affected by global warming on its coast. Not sure how it works on the city level but I find it interesting that there is a future fund for future Norwegians from oil revenues since it is state owned. I guess what separates us (Americans, I cant really speak for the Bengalis) from the Scandinavia is that we are a self paving, each for his own sort of nation while this is a very tribe like culture.
My group studied a power company (Vattenfall) from Sweden that provides wind & hydro power in addition to coal. It would be interesting to see their plant and compare it Dong Energy's in Copenhagen. I found the interview with the CEO of Vattenfall especially intriguing. While he definetely has to make sure the company is economically stable, he has done a phenomenal job at progressing towards alternative energy. Sweden's location & accessibility its many lakes definetely makes it easier but what I like most is his ability to really be able to push towards progression while producing numbers. I'm sure working for Ericsson prior to switching over to this state owned company must have helped.
Now, as a I have a few minutes before meeting my class at the airport, I am looking at Bergen's Kommune (city's munipical government). Bergen is an interesting city, known as the "city of fjords." After a few days we will head to Oslo. I cant wait for the train ride between those two cities. I picture something lord of the ring-like. Minus all the walking. When I was in India eight years ago, I took a train with my uncles & cousins from West Bengal to Darjeeling-initially I was upset at not flying but once the natural scenery started I was entranced. My most memorable moment was four in the morning being woken up and feeling extremely cranky that subsided while looking at the sunrise. The colors & atmosphere was so majestic I still can't really describe, paint or recreate. I guess thats nature for you. Anyways, I guess I'm expecting Norway to be something similar of that sort but not the same.
What I am fearing is how expensive everything will be. Apparently Denmark is the cheapest of all the Scandinavian countries, which completely blows my mind as the cost of living is killing me here. Now I have to ration my food even more so!!
After Norway, bunch of us are headed down to Berlin, which I cannot wait for!! It'll be a great week and a half....

Malmo

After fun & games for the later part of this past week, I reverted back to my pied piper mode and organized a trip to Malmö, Sweden. Per usual it was poorly planned as I did not take into account that people in general are not as fluent in English as the people in Copenhagen generally are. In addition, I failed to take a map with me. Did not even bother to ask my friends to bring one with them since i figured whatever stop we got off on would have maps that we could just pick up. Well intended as these things were, they backfired and we ended up having an extremely entertaining experience and by end of the day, a well lived one worth writing about.
Downfall #1, we did not get it together to make the train we initially were going to take.
#2, did not tell Mercer (a classmate who was going to meet up with us at a later time) where to get off and where we were going to be.
#3, got off at the wrong stop altogether: took the first Malmo stop, which is nowhere close to the main city center. Needless to say, an interesting experience geting to the main center via taking a bus where the bus driver did not know any English and us not even quite knowing which stop to get off at downtown. Oh, did I mention, we did not even have a set plan as to where we wanted to go in the first place?
#4. totally forgot phone was going to roam at an international rate. So had to communicate via text message with Mercer and it was indeed an interesting process trying to locate her. Amazing how much we rely on technology and take it for granted overall.

Despite all the Mayhem that happens anytime I decide to take charge (or at least appear like I have it all together), it really did end up being a pleasant day. I did some research on Malmö for Professors Chan's history class last semester, so it was great seeing the space present day and how some of the city spaces evolved overtime. The Stortorget (big square) & Lilla Torg (little square) were definetely areas I wanted to see in person in addition to going through the amazing bridge that connects Malmö to København(Öresund bridge), the Turning Torso tower (Calatrava's creation) and the renaissance castle (Malmöhus Castle).

I must admit, the Malmöhus Castle was a pleasant surprise. Now a musuem, it houses all sorts of exhibits from history to art. The exhibit on the plague and prisoners (it was actually used as a prison at a point) were actually pretty great. The most impressive thing was instead of making the spaces & architectural details of the castle main focus (which they totally could've gotten away with), the exhibits themselves were primary focus with some brief notes at a corner of significant rooms. The architecture was used as part of the journey so the experience was very interactive. Best thing was, it was free today! YAYY for being so disorganized.


Afterwards, I went on a search for a towel as I want to go to the beach tomorrow and since everything is closed on Sunday (and I have no decent towel since the one DIS gave me is pretty crappy), I went on a mission to find a store that would sell towels. Did not realize how difficult this would be. Anyways, not sure how to justify this but I ended up spending almost 400 Swedish Kroners on a towel (i'm thinking over 50 bucks USD). It was 4:59pm, the shops close at 5pm, and it took SO long to locate a store to find a towel that by the time the cashier told me how much it was, the towel seemed like it was priceless after all that hard work. So this whole being unprepared and living for the moment deal that I'm trying to pull off is working only part of the time :-( Oh well, atleast I have a great story.

Back in Denmark in one piece....whew. The worst/best part is, most of the friends I made are spacey as I am. Needless to say, I see the next few weeks with them being nothing but entertaining for that reason alone!

Exploring Copenhagen

This Morning (well technically yesterday as its past midnight), I was FINALLY well rested and for the first time since I have been here, headed out into inner city with no real game plan. After realizing I left my student ID card behind, I just decided to go draw at the next opportune place I see. This decision led me to the city square, where I started sketching the building that holds the Danske Bank. Soon, I get approached by this Yugoslovian sitting nearby that wanted to show me his artwork. His small oil paintings were abstracts that I'm assuming were meant to capture the essence of the square that we were sitting in. However, I wouldn't really know as for the first time since I've been here, I felt a language barrier. His body language OR facial expression were simply not enough when trying to analyze a piece of art. Oh well....part of the experience, right?

Next, I met up with Emily to explore Norreborro (where she lives). A LOVELY area, I have to admit. The lakes there are gorgeous. The cemetery that we went to (where HC Anderson is buried) is pretty unique with its yellow graffiti wall & beautifuly landscaped graves. What I found intriguing is that cemeteries are a popular hangout. I saw people studying, eating lunch, sunbathing, etc.

We ended our adventure at Christiana at Christhavn (too bad the two Chrises didnt come with us, haha-bad joke). Now, I have NO idea how to explain this area. Christiana is this hippie town that declared themselves independent from rest of Copenhagen years ago, and until recently, has been known to sell drugs openly. Right now, only the soft stuff (hash) is sold here. Cameras are not allowed :-(
Everyone was high off their mind (the sober ones were tourists, haha). after the main square, path leading to the houses and lake is quite a nice surprise. the lake is simply gorgeous, and the houses are eclectic mixtures of modern, offbeat, and eccentric structures. The elements aren't quiet Scandinavian and I am sure being under the influence had a lot to do with some of the odd elements of several home.
This town I highly recommend for anyone visiting CPH. I have never seen anything like it in my 27 years in any part of the world. Not sure if it can be categorized as a certain type of town. Its MAYBE a hybrid of fairytale/folklore meets medieval wall town. Next time, I have to be sure to try their, uhm, "cuisine" and whatnot, Haha.

Immersion

Time is just flying by here and I can't believe its already day 3 of class.
Tuesday, three significant events (an elementary term for lack of a better word) took place: Trip to the Dong Energy power plant, Copenhagen Consensus at CBS (Copenhagen Business School), and playing the role of a Bicycle dealer. All three things are pretty much result of immersing both academically & socially into what I would call a Copenhagen experience

Dong Energy, Denmark's major energy provider, has a plant south of Copenhagen, where we went for a class field trip. It was interesting to learn the facts: it was clean, to the point, no bias sort of tour. They are known for using alternative energy, but their primary source is coal, mostly from Columbia and I THINK parts of Africa (should've paid better attention rather than stare at their solutions for vents). A smaller percentage is biomass (straws) and (..drumroll...) wind energy. It was disappointing learning how small the ratio of alternate energy is, but it makes sense. The country is in transitioning stage switching to green energy, and unlike Sweden, does not have options of hydopower. We got a tour of how all three sources are processed, and more interestingly, was informed how the byproduct is used for gymsum & concrete. I need to look into if American energy companies do that (I am guessing no, since to clean the byproduct of the flue requires shutting down and cleaning which means time consumed which means MONEY).
I really appreciated their "look, this is what it is, and we're just going to deal" instead of feeling like i'm being sold a product or made to convince that coal is good (referring to those outrageous ads i've seen in metro advertising coal).
Second thing about this plant is their architecture. Its an award winning design, and I can clearly see why its so popular. The pictures you see here clearly show a creative approach to a power plant and here are MY analysis to it:
1. orientation: windows places stratigically to maximize sun.
2. daylight: walls placed so that most workable area have some sort of daylighting, even where there are machineries.
3. work friendly environment: use of bright colors, modern applications of everything from door handle to placement of vents, creative use of hallways, carpet & ceiling as well as furniture show thoughtfulness in creating a friendly environment.

So those are just some thoughts from my field trip.

Next was a seminar at the Copenhagen Consensus conference held at the CBS campus. Basically, the consensus cover top issues that are considered to be top priorities in the field of economy. Chris R., Emily & I made it to the session on Global Warming, and I must say, it was interesting. there were 3 speakers in the panels that all had the same message: Global warming is real, we need to do something about it but its not going to be cheap. It was neat seeing the graphs covering how much profit & loss we would have based on what course of action as a whole we decide to take and the most beneficial, it seems like, is a mid way (this is where I got lost as I couldn't understand all the terminology). Either way, a neat perspective on green living outside of class & architecture.

Last but not least, next stop was meeting up with Syed to pick up his extra bike. In between the conference and going to his apartment, Chris and Emily discovered a roteserrie at Valby. This resulted on pigging out on the congested street corner during rush hour. I must admit, hanging out with them two is leading up to no good; our ventures always ends up being crazy.
So after finishing our yummy meal, we faced the challenge of finding bikes that would be appropriate for us...this soon turned into finding something appropriate for Chris as I refused to bike back to Amager all the way from Valby (cant take bicycles on the metro...how lame!!) and Emily couldnt find a bike that is right for her height.
Chris ended up taking the bike that I was supposed to get. However, as challenges love to follow us, our next road block was figuring out a way to break the lock for this bike as Syed did not have the key for it (how typical ;-)). They finally managed to break it with a tree trimmer out of all things! after Chris started riding it, I was honestly scared for him and afraid he would either fall and die or fall and get a concussion and not know who he is this morning. But all was fine. besides me falling off Syed's broken stool while drinking cherry wine, there was no falling....

Survival in Denmark 101

If I thought my bicycle experience was out of this world, well, then I obviously had no idea the rest in store for me in Copenhagen.
A brief synopsis of what happened in the last few days:
Friday: check in/orientation, where I am one of the two DIS students in my building. I was assigned to a Kollegium located in the island of Amager. All my neighbors are Danish (although I just met someone Finnish). What are the chances that Matt, the other American student in my Kollegium, goes to UMBC!!
We had lunch at a cemetery with our DIS guide (apparently thats a common place to hang out here), then struggled to figure out body soap from lotion. Interesting time.
At night we had a very "authentic", or as my next door neighbor would say, "rustic," experience. After wandering around aimlessly Friday night, we ran into a dive bar full of "interesting" locals who found Matt & I exotic. How amusing.

Saturday was a busy day getting to know people & the school, getting lost with my new friend/classmate Chris because we're both careless and somehow managed to forget our student IDs AND lose our maps. Application for more responsible friends now open!! :-)

Sunday has got to be the day of peak of excitement! DIS took us to Roskilde, where there is a Viking site. There, I managed to make name for myself by falling off a canoe when I was talked into trying it for the first time (thank you, Chris) and challenging the neighbor canoe to a race. My first thought was "this cannot be happening" followed by "did this just happen to me??"
By the time we swam ourselves out of the pond, we had a full audience! I was donated a scarf (to make a makeshift skirt) and a tank top by some girls in my program. I sure did not wake up in the morning thinking I would fall of a canoe!!
Besides that, I made bread on a stick over a fire like the vikings (took way too long: over half hour to make one piece of bread!! totally unacceptable), chopped wood and sunbathed.
Later on we went to a Viking Museum (designed by Erik Sorensen), which was neat despite all the weird look I was getting for my odd outfit.
Whether its entertaining locals with my American accent or providing amusement for my classmate, the key to survival seems to be just roll with the punches and make the best out of it. Perhaps that is the best thing about Danish attitude that I already unknowingly am picking up?

Day 1 in Copenhagen

I should have known that my first day in Copenhagen would be full of cultural shocks and surprises. After being well fed and taking a long nap, my friend Syed decided to force me to teach how to ride a bicycle through the street valby (pronounced VaalBoo). Found that quite exhilarating. Hung out with some neat international characters during making dinner @ their hostel. Its such a refreshing change, to hear accents from Australia, Belgium, England, Japan, Spain....you name it.

Anyways, culture shock isnt taking too long to hit me; noticing the price of gas that is way higher than U.S, fact that no general stores take american credit cards, and how nearly everyone uses public trasnports, especially bicycles.

Night got more interesting, after paying an insane amount for drinks (I really do need to look into liking beer more for survival if anything), I was told there were no buses or trains running to Valby, so I would have to hop on the back of someone's bicycle to get back. Must admit, scariest experience of my life. First attempt was on Jon's bicycle, where I was to sit on his seat while he would cycle me back for the next 20min or so. Crazy Brits, I tellya...
That, needless to say, did not work out too well considering what a spaz case I am. So then we switched with Syed's bicycle so I got to sit on his back grill/basket thing. A little less scary, but still so terrifying. I honestly saw my life flash by. My thoughts were, great, I'm going to die behind this crazy british stranger because at one point we'll fall off or a car will run us over.
Obviously, none of that happened. I eventually figured to let things take its course and just relax and I guess just give someone I barely know benefit of the doubt that he would get me home safely. We ended up having a pleasent chat about Manchester United and Cadbury factory (near where he 's from). SO, moral of the story is, it all works out and sometimes we just need to let go of our fears and just BE.
I must admit, when I got on that Aer Lingus plane, it never crossed my mind that not only would I would end up riding a bike (without helmet) that very day let alone being cycled home by someone I barely know. Funny thing is, this is just day #1....