Friday, January 30, 2009
Tired, but not out
Anahit was nearly out for the count after a challenging journey, but mustered enough strength to play a short game of fuzzball.
Photojournalism student dangers
When with photojournalism student you must always be ready to be photographed.
Shopping visual
The little doggie logo that spells cheaper groceries...although nothing is really cheap here.
Shopping, Danish style
No matter how far one travels some things just don't change ...
Added to the language challenges, the currency of Danish Krona (which is divisible by five) creates double-digit prices on all products such as 75,99 dkk for a slab of packaged beef. Yeah, $16 bucks approximately. I didn't realize this was an exercise in mathematics as much as it was in home economics. I knew I was going back to school, but this was a little more than I bargained for.
Thankfully my little adventure started because of sound advice and the accompaniment of a couple from Greenland, who live at my dorm skjoldhojkollegiet. I mean where do you go to get groceries that won't cost more than they should?
I've never met anyone from Greenland. That morning, intent on getting food since everything you eat is what you brought (I could barely bring what I had), I struck up the conversation with the Greenland couple, who were enjoying their oatmeal breakfast at a wooden table, better suited to be sitting at a ski resort in Collingwood, lit by the even light, diffused by another clouded sky. Through the usual pleasantries they learned I was from Canada and were very interested in expressing their knowledge that they are like "distant cousins" of the First Nations people of Canada. That their languages are similar and they share similar physical characteristics.
They told me on the .18 dkk bus ride (where everyone pays and boards at the back, which is only a Aarhus thing and everyone you ask has no idea of the origins, but just don't be shocked when a bus seems to pass you until it stops with the back door in front of you) over from the dorm that they came from a town of 17,000. According to them the entire country has 55,000 people. It's a contrast to the more than 5 million people in Denmark they said.
Back to the shopping...
I kept walking in circles, unknown which products would give me the best value -- taste or quality has little bearing since I'm officially poor...in other words a student without an income. As a friend told me once 'you can't go forward without taking a few steps back'. This is one big financial step back and a test to not fall into my old habits of just buying instead of shopping.
Everything, except for a few American products like toothpaste (brought it), was in Danish at the value priced Netto store, apparently known for its dog silhouette logo on every bright yellow shopping bag that no one seems to take, except for bagless North Americans.
Thankfully images and numbers are fairly universal so no worries with the butter, milk and eggs. By the way the eggs here don't come in the dozen or 18 quantities, but rather 15. I'll have to see how that is organized. Maybe I'm still bleary from the jet lag.
After it was all said and done I pretty much ended up with the stuff (eggs, 15 of them; bread, tomatoes, pasta, OJ, milk, corn flakes, albeit Danish, tangerines, bananas, sunflower oil and chili sauce) I would buy more than 3,000 miles away in Bracebridge, Ontario.
majsfranskrbr 9,95
morgengry 12,00
chilisauce 15,00
pasta zara skruer x2 4,95
appelsinjuice 10,95
groft salt m/jod 2,95
egelykke letmaelk 5,25
oko. bananer 10,00
kaergarden 17,00
solsikkeolie 12,95
clementiner 10,00
buraeg 17,95
hk tomater x2 3,95
Total cost: 141,80
Value of experience: priceless
Coke break
What do you buy to stay awake in a foreign country and don't want tea or coffee? Coke of course.
Thursday, January 29, 2009
End of days
To find yourself you really don't have to go far, but for me this trip is more than finding my inner voice, but to find the voice that will communicate my dream of becoming a respected photojournalist that tells stories that provoke and to cause change.
Ideal, yes. In some way this return to school couldn't be filled with more idealism. I hope in some way being surrounded by men and women ready to conquer the world that I can recapture that same attitude and passion I had when I started in journalism.
A friend of mind asked me my impression. Coming in at night when everything is in a cloak of black I could only see that there are lots of bikes, and people are very considerate, but not openly friendly in that fake kind of way. When pressed for answers (with bad Danish or poorly spoken English) everyone seemed open to helping.
Despite the overcast clouds, damp air that creates this pall of undeniable deep wet winter that seems to be hanging here the students are a contrast, being genuinely warm, cheery and welcoming. Particularly when the spirits (beer and other assorted fare) are raised in cheer.
It was appropriate that the 12 hour journey lasted more than 20 hours after a delay in Toronto due to a snowstorm, which forced me to miss my connecting flight to Copenhagen (Kobenhavn, pronounced "Co-Ben-houn"), and the chairs of Frankfurt airport became my temporary nap area. After the flight portion my final leg was supposed to be straightforward. Who knew in a long line of trains that there are specific ones intended for specific destinations. Fortunately my body and attitude remained strong despite living on snack bars, and airplane food, which consisted of bland and rubbery chicken with more than enough bread based food that I want to remember. With the little strength left I managed to wheel my 29 kg of luggage and the 11 kg or so of photo equipment through about 20 trains before I finally got to the correct one. The physical test wasn't over as I had to lift and put the 29 kg bag up and over my head on to the overhead storage shelf.
For consistency sake one more delay came my way in the form of a guy with bald head and a grey track suit. Think Danish "Good Fellas" and you have your guy. Funny enough this guy had come up to me earlier to ask me about my ethnicity and try his hand at a Chinese greeting. He apparently fell ill and was carried out of the train, probably due to intoxication of some sort. I was later told my greeter Mikkel it's just part of the traveling experience.
When Mikkel came he was a welcome sight. No more waiting or feeling completely ignorant of the situation. Now I knew the end was in sight.
At that point I was ready for a shower and a long slumber. However Mikkel's suggestion of a small gathering for exchange students couldn't be passed up so after I dropped off my luggage and a brief meeting with some of my dorm mates, who seemed to be fairly preoccupied playing some variation of a Warcraft game, I was off to a party. We passed by a blur of low lying buildings, no higher than a couple floors, all brown and non-descript illustrated the physical socialist uniform design of the living dwellings. When we stepped through the door to the common area of Mikkel's kitchen an eruption of cheers burst from a diverse mix of men and women, some blond, brunette, some tall, some average height, all drinking and smiling, welcoming me and the other international students.
Although I was told that Danes really don't drink to excess that it is a relative behaviour and cannot necessarily be measured against cultures where drinking is not as popular it's hard to deny the pleasure they get from the experience. And for me that was fine as I was only too happy to share in the revelry of the moment made possible by my new Danish friends.
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