My Last...

HOLIDAY WITH MY DANISH FAMILY 

Sankt Hans- A midsummer night's celebration 

24 June 2012 

I met up with Bodil at 3:30 so we could take the scenic route to her mother’s house for dinner.  Today we were celebrating Sankt Hans Aften, a festival of the summer solstice meant to protect against evil spirits believed to roam freely when the sun was turning southwards again.  Bodil said it would be a small group, although I still can’t get used to saying that twenty-one family members is a “small” group.  At the house, the men turned on the barbeque while the ladies sipped on wine.  This family (like all other Danes) drinks wine like water and I laughed every time my Danish grandma looked over and asked why my class was empty.  One tradition of Sankt Hans Aften is lighting beach bonfires all along the coastline so Bodil and I walked down the beach to see the excitement.  My favorite fire had been set up in the Dragør harbor and was surrounded by kayaks and boats.  It was a bittersweet moment to be sitting in the harbor with Bodil since this was the EXACT same spot I had visited with her the first time we met back in January—both our first and last memories in the Dragør harbor!  Back at the house, the group was busy singing Danish songs around the campfire with Jan Peter strumming the guitar.  They sang a few farewell songs for me including “I’m leaving on a jet plane, don’t know when I’ll be back again…..”  Sad but very appropriate!  I have worked so hard this semester on discovering what the Danish word “hygge” is all about.  Although “hygge” does not have a direct translation it is often described as coziness.  Sitting by the fire pit seemed like perfect “hygge” time: great friends, good conversation, warm fire, hot tea and not a worry in the world.  Unfortunately, the relaxing evening came to an end when Bodil, Hans and I hopped on our bike for the two-hour ride back to the City.  It was a tiring ride but it was nice to see Copenhagen all lit up as were made out way back home.  And as I peddled up to my house, the sun began to rise….my last sunrise in Copenhagen!    

For some reason, I never had the chance to blog about the summer canoe trip with my Danish family.  Here it goes- 22 people and 11 canoes for 4 days.  We would paddle during the day and then set up camp on the shore each evening.  Seventy kilometers later we reached our final destination!  I didn’t bring my camera since everything we had was going to be put in our canoe as we traveled down the river.  Didn’t want to risk losing or damaging my camera since I don’t have much luck with electronics!  The water was calm, the weather was dry and the scenery was beyond beautiful.  I have to add that although the weather was surprisingly dry, the temperatures dropped well into the negatives in the evening.  I canoed with a long sleeve shirt, two North Face jackets, two pairs of pants, layers of socks and a scarf.  Don’t know what I was thinking when I packed my swimsuit!  My canoeing partner Lila and I were the only two younger girls on the trip so the others enjoyed picking on us little ones.  Everyone was teasing us as we zigzagged through the river since we couldn’t quite figure out how to row straight.  I kept telling them we were trying to avoid the rocks in the water but they weren’t buying it!  And I can’t even tell you how many times we ended up backwards or stuck in the bushes after being hit by another canoe that was laughed hysterically as we struggled to get back on track.  Loved seeing familiar faces as well as meeting some new friends….Casper, Søren and Linda.  So many memories made on my last Danish family vacation!