CPH, I'm back!

It only took me 9 years to return and this time I came on business. Being back was thrilling and I immediately felt the heavenly-essence of the city I remembered so fondly. October 10-15, Monday to Saturday, was the length of my stay and I filled every minute of it. 

The work purpose of the trip was an offsite with my Northern Europe Channel team. I now work as a Partner Manager at Atlassian and my role is to develop our solution partners in the UK and Nordics. My team of six is primarily based in the Netherlands but we also have a colleague based in the UK, hence the reason to meet up somewhere outside of Amsterdam for our quarterly offsites. 

Hotel Kong Arthur

Colleagues in the lounge 

 I planned the 2.5 day offsite with the help of my colleague, Gen. Gen lived in Malmö, across from Copenhagen, for 5 years and knows the city well so she provided many recommendations. We stayed at Hotel Kong Arthur, Nørre Søgade 11, nearby the scenic lakes and close to Torvehallerne, the fine foods market (previously mentioned in "Tidbits from the past few days" and "Last Day of ISUP" ;)) To my delight, the duck confit sandwich at Ma Poule was still available! I'm glad they've stayed in business and stood the test of time in this popular market. After checking into our hotel on the first day, we made our way to Torvehallerne for lunch. My newest discovery was Glean veganske flødeboller, delicious chocolate dipped confections. Glean has a variety of flavors and over the course of the week, I tried black currant, passion fruit, raspberry, and mocha. They are so delicious and I am dreaming of when I can have another one. 

Ma Poule duck confit sandwich

flødebeller

Our offsite took place at Nomad Workspace, Blegdamsvej 6, a former court house 13 min walk from the hotel. Team Manager, Anna, sweetly continued our offsite tradition by getting us Hygge mugs from Design Letters. We started with a Love Bomb icebreaker where we drew self-interpretations and then wrote down what we appreciated about our colleagues. This was a fun way for us to feel connected and hear more specifically what we value about each other. Our other topics were a leadership update, priority matrix, and cloud acceleration plans. We ended the day around 15.00 so we could head out for the 100 Point Challenge, a fresh fun way to discover Copenhagen. We split into two groups and head out to complete our activities— photo challenge with a Polaroid camera, quiz and location questions. My team, Gen, Kirsten, and I won by correctly answering the most questions!

Sidste Dag i København

Saturday morning was a bit hectic. The farewell party was a lot of fun and I was still feeling the effects of the party in the morning.. However, I had to move out of my apartment by 12pm and make it to Line's apartment in Amager (otherside of town) to drop off my bags and then meet a Danish girl for lunch. I was without a place to stay in between moving out of my dorm and catching my flight to Vienna the next day. Luckily, Line was kind enough to let me spend the night at her and her boyfriend's place.

First, I had to say goodbye to my roommate Lucila. It was great having her as my roommate for the past six weeks because I always had someone I could count on. After packing my things, cleaning my area, and making one last sweep of the apartment, I headed to Amager on the metro and made it there by 1:30pm. Line and Jonas' apartment is very cute-- they had Spotify playing through the speakers (I learned some good Danish artists) and the decorations were tasteful.

After dropping my luggage off in Amager and chatting, I took the metro to meet Cille by the Round Tower. On my connecting flight from Newark to Copenhagen, I sat next to a woman named Annemette. I told her about myself and that I was studying at CBS for the summer. Later at the Copenhagen Airport, she offered me her daughter's number and said to call her if I wanted to be shown around. It took us six weeks to finally arrange a date to meet, but better late than never!

Cille and I met for lunch at Døp Pølsevogn - a popular organic hotdog stand. She is studying international business at CBS and works in Carlsberg Breweries marketing department. Following our delicious lunch, we walked to Mikkeller microbrewery in Vesterbro. We tasted three beers-- although we didn't know any technical terms to explain why, we agreed that the lightest beer tasted the best. After our visit to Mikkeller, we were ambushed by a flash of rain. Cille told me that flash showers are common of Danish summers. She, along with Line told me that this summer has been the best summer in Copenhagen that they've ever seen. Clear skies and mid 70's weather compared to a usual daily shower.

Mashed roots and a roasted hot dog

Cool underground cellar

The next morning, Line took the metro with me to the Copenhagen Airport and saw me off. The weekend was a very Danish ending to my time in Copenhagen-- exploring the city with a Dane, staying with a Dane-- love this country!

I am glad I spent my summer in Copenhagen. It was an experience that can only be described as incredible.

Last Day of ISUP

Six weeks flew by, and my summer in Copenhagen came to a bittersweet end. Here is a brief overview of my last week in Copenhagen:

7/29-7/31
These few days were spent studying for my final exams: Organizational Behavior on Thursday and Danish for Beginners on Friday. Zzz...

8/1
On Thursday I had my final exam for organizational behavior (BUS 387). The exam was at CBS's beach front testing facility at Amager Strand (a 35 minute bike ride from my dorm). My friend Brianna and I left our dorm at 7:30am to get there 30 minutes early for our 9am exam. I thought it was bizarre to have our exams so far away, especially since CBS was a 5 minute bike ride from my dorm. However, only the facility at Amager was equipped with enough computers to take the exam. The facility was very nice-- I think Cal Poly needs a beach front testing facility?

The four exam had sixty multiple choice questions, two short answer questions, and one case study analysis. For many Danish students, this was their first multiple choice exam. Multiple choice exams are pretty common in the US so I knew what to expect. Excluding some odd question structuring by my German professor, the exam was pretty straight forward and doable.

After my exam let out at 1pm, I got lunch with my Danish friend from class Line (pronounced like Lina). We went to Grød, which translates to 'Porridge,' a trendy grain-centered restaurant. Grød has a variety of porridges, risotto, and even Asian porridge (jook). We got a fresh summer greens and peas risotto. Line said it was the best risotto she ever had, and I thought it was pretty darn good. After eating our lunch, we moved to the center courtyard of Torvehallerne (marketplace), and to our surprise we found a full orchestra performing for the Copenhagen Opera Festival. The Copenhagen Opera Festival is similar to the Copenhagen Jazz Festival. It was a bit hard to talk over a soprano singer and a full orchestra but it was enjoyable to have :)

On my way home, I made a pitstop at Strangas dessert boutique to pick up some 'study fuel.' I got three macarons: passion fruit, salted caramel, and raspberry. They were good, but not the best I've ever had.

8/2
Friday was the last official day of the international summer university program. Most students left Copenhagen the next morning, but I stayed for an extra day to squeeze in some last minute activities. Several things were on my Friday agenda: return my bike, take my final oral exam for Danish, begin packing, and go to the goodbye party at night.

I woke up around 8:30am with the ambitious goal of teaching myself Danish in about six hours.. (I wasn't very productive the night before). After several hours of rehearsing Danish phrases (ie talking to myself in my room), I left the dorm to return my beloved bike. Having a bike was an essential part of my Copenhagen experience. Bikes are ingrained into the city culture and are the best way to get around! After getting my bike during the first week, I rarely ever took the metro again-- biking is cheaper, more convenient, and more fun. After returning my bike, I had two hours to make it back to CBS and study some more. While waiting for the bus, I asked a Danish lady if she could help me practice Danish by asking me some questions and vice versa. She gladly obliged and was helpful in correcting my mistakes. A Danish stereotype is that they are xenophobes (don't like foreign things) and are reserved. However, this has not been my experience. I have practiced Danish with a handful of random people and they have been pretty kind to me. Perhaps it's because I look trustworthy/harmless, either way, I think the Danish people are pretty friendly.

Once I reached school, I studied by myself some more and then asked the woman at the help desk if she would practice Danish with me. Soon, it was time to show how much Danish I learned in six weeks. The exam consisted of a 1.5 minute personal introduction (memorized), 3 minutes of me asking the instructor questions from a randomly chosen topic, and 7 minutes of them interrogating me. I was nervous before the exam but once I got in there I was eager to show them what I knew.

In Denmark, you receive the score for your oral exam right after you take it. There were two examiners-- my Danish professor, a really sweet guy, and a censor, whose expression resembled Squidward (but he was a nice guy). When I returned to the room for my review, I just wanted to hear 'tolv' (12 in Danish) which is the equivalent to an A in America. And yes.. I heard that magic number!! My professor said that my intro was strong, the interview portion had some errors but I showed recognition of them, and I struggled a little with the interrogation... but my enthusiasm for Danish was very apparent so I received a 12! This was a great way to finish my study at CBS.

After finishing my exam, I met up with my good friend Marlene for dinner at Torvehallerne (the best market!). To celebrate the ending of our summer in Copenhagen, we had a couple of beers (Tuborg and Carlsberg, of course) and sushi from sushilovers.dk. I had the San Francisco roll which was fresh and delicious. After our lovely last meal, we returned to the dorm to get ready for the farewell party.

The farewell party was a blast! It was held at Café Nexus, a bar that CBS hosts every Thursday throughout the school year. How crazy is that?! A university held party is something that would never happen in America. I said my farewells to all the international friends I made this summer and told them all to call me if they're ever in San Francisco or California!

Nexus during the school year. I had class on the second floor haha

One of the best things I gained from studying abroad is an international network of friends and colleagues. Having a familiar face in Mumbai or Paris is something that I am so excited about!

Tidbits from the past few days

On Wednesday (7/24) I climbed to the top of the Church of Our Saviour. The church is famous for it's gold spiral external staircase. Before we could make it to the outdoor staircase, we had to ascend the church interior. It was a hot day and space inside was cramped-- climbing through the indoor tower was like crawling through an attic for ten minutes. However, the stuffiness was short-lived and forgotten once I reached the spiral staircase. 

Panoramic view from the top 

fluffy friend

On Thursday (7/25) afternoon I studied at The Royal Library. The Royal Library is called the Black Diamond because when the water reflects on the black marble and glass walls, it sparkles like a diamond. This is the largest library out of all the Nordic countries-- it is connected to the old royal library, has a concert hall and an eight story atrium, houses numerous historical relics, and is a great place to study.

The Black Diamond Library

Atrium

On Thursday night I went to Pumpehuset, a famous Copenhagen concert venue. The summer university program organized a Danish music experience with a variety of performers. The event was enjoyable but I wasn't there for too long.

Danish rappers

After Pumpehuset, I went to Sam's Bar for some karaoke. While waiting for some other friends to arrive, I made some Danish friends -- Camilla, Casper, and unfortunately I don't remember the other woman's name lol. I was practicing my Danish with them (they said I have a really good accent!) and asked them about a couple old Danish songs I learned about in class: Smuk og Delig (Beautiful and Lovely) by Anne Linnet and Sexchikane (Sexual Harassment by Shu-Bi-Dua). I thought it was a bit odd when we were deciphering the lyrics of Sexchikane in Danish class, but apparently it was a popular song in the 70's and a lot of people today know it as well. Unfortunately, Smuk og Delig and Sexchikane, were not in the karaoke book but we had fun singing Allstar by Smashmouth instead.

Gettin down with the Danes

On Friday (7/26) I went on one last outing with Bunny and Bjarne. We went to Frederiksborg Slot, aka the Versailles of Scandinavia. Frederiksborg Slot was built as a royal residence for King Christian IV between 1602-1620 and used by the royal family until a fire destroyed most of the castle in 1859. Philanthropist, J.C. Jacobsen of the Carlsberg Brewery, stepped up to rebuild the castle after the fire and converted it into a national history museum.

Castle actors - King Frederik IV and his daughter

Fun fact: Since the 16th century, males of the Danish monarchy have been named Frederik and Christian in alternating order.  Currently, the crown prince Frederik and his wife have two sons, Prince Christian and Prince Frederik.

The Great Hall

Modern Art Gallery on the third floor

Danish rendition of Delacroix's 'Liberty Leading the People'

Baroque-style garden

Today, Saturday 7/27, I went to Torvehallerne, an indoor market in Nørreport similar to San Francisco's Ferry Building. At this food oasis, there are over 60 high quality vendors, ranging from Paleo meals and gourmet chocolate to fresh fish, cheese, and sushi. I loved Torvehallerne and will be returning sometime in my last week here!

Smørrebrød - Open face sandwich, Classic Danish Food 

Delicious duck confit sandwich from Ma Poule's 

Berlin, Deutschland

This weekend I went on a Berlin trip organized by the summer university program. Our bus left Copenhagen at 6:45am and we arrived at the East Side Gallery at 2:30pm. The East Side Gallery is 1.3 km long and is the longest surviving piece of the Berlin Wall. 118 artists from around the world were invited to paint on the eastern side of the wall after it was dismantled in 1990. Not all of the murals on display are originals-- in 2009, a $3 million restoration project allowed the original artists to reproduce their work-- many of which were badly damaged by graffiti and vandalism. 

Some Heads - Thierry Noir (France)

My God, Help Me to Survive This Deadly Love - Dmitri Vrubel (Russia)

Following our visit to the East Side Gallery, we checked into Hostel Meininger in the central Mitte district of Berlin. I shared a three bunkbed room with five other girls from my program. After dropping off our bags, we walked to Hofbräuhaus - the largest beer hall in Europe. Hofbräu is a chain of beer halls, the original is in Munich and there are franchises all around the world. We enjoyed traditional German food and of course, beer!

Prost!

Schnitzel - (actually originates from Austria)

1 litre

Met up with my friend Leo from high school-- he's studying in Berlin for the summer!

On Saturday morning, we took a walking tour around Berlin. The weekend weather was very hot (mid 80's) this weekend so it made for a sweaty walking tour. We started off at the Brandenburg Gate and then made our way to the Holocaust Memorial, Check-point Charlie, Reichstag Building, and ended the tour at the Berlin Cathedral on Museum Island.

Brandenburg Gate

Holocaust Memorial

Berliner Dome

After our walking tour, we were given a one-day metro pass to explore the city. Lea, Lizzy (both from U of Wisconsin), and I went to Alexanderplatz station and took the U-bahn to Stadmitte station to check out some shops. After picking up some souvenirs, we took the metro to Kreuzberg, an artsy neighborhood of Berlin (Leo said it was equivalent to San Francisco's Mission district). For the readers from SLO, I wanted to check out the neighborhood behind Kreuzberg café's namesake. Kreuzberg was not as busy as Mission Street but it had a similar hipster vibe.

Alexanderplatz metro station 

Me, Lizzy, and Lea on the metro 

Coledampf's & Companies - hip Kreuzberg café and houseware store

At around 4pm, Lea and Lizzy retired to our hostel to take a nap. As usual, I had a pretty good amount of energy so I took to exploring the city on the metro by myself. I wanted to check out the Victory Column that stood out on my map. A 15 minute walk from Tiergarten metro station brought me to the base of the column. Similar, to the Arc de Triomphe in Paris, the column stands at the center of a roundabout traffic circle and is accessible by underground passageways. For 2.5 euros, I climbed 285 steps to the top platform where I had a panoramic view of the city.

The Victory Column -  inspired by the 1864 Prussian victory over Denmark in the Danish-Prussian War

Fun light installation in the underground passage that mimics your movement

Glass mosaic at the base

View down Straße des 17 Juni

On Saturday night, I celebrated my 20th birthday at Matrix. The club is located in ten basement vaults of the Warschauer Straße railway station and houses nine bars and five dance floors. Being in my 20's is exciting.. I look forward to what adventures are in store!

TWENTY

On Sunday morning, we went to Sachsenhausen Memorial, a former Nazi concentration camp. Sachsenhausen was an all male camp, primarily used for housing political prisoners. Amongst the many terrible work details was the boot-testing track. Mostly pink triangle (homosexual) prisoners had to strap on heavy sacks and test the durability of boot soles over various surfaces. The average life span of a prisoner put on this detail was six days. Puma was one of the German companies that used Sachsenhausen's brutal labor services. Sachsenhausen provides a worthwhile learning experience and serves as a reminder about one of human history's worst atrocities.

Sachsenhausen was the last stop on our tour of Berlin before heading back to Copenhagen. One thing I had to try before I left Berlin was currywurst-- a German fast food dish consisting of fried pork sausage and curry ketchup. Cheap currywurst (< 3 euros) can be found all over Berlin but I didn't get around to trying it until a café near the memorial. The currywurst was underwhelming but still satisfying... sausage is always good and I am glad I got to try it.

Currywurst

Our bus made it back to Copenhagen around 9pm. I wish I had more time in Berlin and definitely want to go back. Although my first impression of Berlin did not blow me out of the water, once I explored a little bit more and went out at night ;) I grew to like the city more and more.

Ferry ride

Final exams are next week so I am in the library studying. I can't believe I only have two more weeks in Copenhagen-- time passes too quickly!

CBS library