A Sunday Walk by the Lake.

Claus' Mother, Mette, Me, Cousin Casper, Claus, Mikkel, Aunt Oni, Cousin Louisa, Cousin Joachim (& Laura the Dachshund)

Final(s) Week.

Monday: Critique Architecture Student Presentation, Russian Literature Exam
Tuesday: Final Project Presentation and Critique
Wednesday: Danish Architectural History Exam
Thursday: Danish Bank Holiday
Friday: Sustainable Design Exam



One of my models from our final studio design project.

1 Maj & Koldskål.

In Copenhagen, Labor Day is celebrated with concerts, beer and political speeches in Fælledparken. The whole scene has the atmosphere of a summer music festival. The crowd was impressive despite the patches of light rain and some friends and I sat on a blanket in the park for most of the afternoon.

With the warm weather, a new after-dinner treat has been appearing at our table. Koldskål is a sweet cold liquid made with buttermilk, eggs, sugar, vanilla, and lemon and is eaten with crispy biscuits. Delish!

Birthdays & Carlsberg.

Thursday was Claus' birthday and in keeping with Danish tradition, he woke up to his family waving Danish flags. My gift to him: homemade chocolate almond cookies. The weather was beautiful and the extended family came to our house to celebrate with another delicious meal prepared by Helle.

Earlier that day I went with some friends to the famous Carlsberg Brewery. It has been on my list of things to do before leaving Copenhagen and the time is winding down! The museum was interesting and included the largest collection of beer from around the world.


Kelsey & I on the Carlsberg elephants that guard the entrance to the grounds.

Frilandsmuseet.

The 86-acre Open Air Museum, north of Copenhagen, has more than 50 farms, mills and houses from the period 1650-1950. They were transported to the site from regions in Denmark, the Faeroe Islands, southern Sweden and northern Germany. The half-timber construction with yellow in-fill is a miller's home from the Danish island of Fyn.

Ash.

Eyjafjallajökull (translation: island-mountain glacier) covers an Icelandic volcano that erupted on March 20 and then again on April 14. I'm sure you've all heard about the extreme disruption that it's volcanic ash is causing in northern Europe. The event actually marks the largest grounding of airplanes since the second World War. There are many students here at my school in Copenhagen that have had to cancel travel plans, many visiting parents that are stranded here and friends of my host family that are stuck in other countries until the air clears.

Fun Fact: Copenhagen has the #1 metro system in the world!

A Weekend on Sustainable Samsø.

Friday evening after studio, about 30 students and our tour leader Mikael Koch, Chief Adviser on Sustainability, took a regional train to Kalundborg and then a ferry to this island where they produce more than enough wind energy to sustain themselves. Early Saturday morning, we hopped on bicycles and headed to The Energy Academy where we got a lecture on the history and future of Samsø. We then rode to the harbor where I ran into a couple that were natives of none other than Madison, Wisconsin. (!!!) They told me that they moved to Copenhagen when their children were ages 10 and 13 and then retired on the island.

We spent the afternoon on Jørgen Tranberg’s farm where we had some pretty unique experiences. Before our day was over, we had all climbed to the top of the 60 meter tall wind turbine that Jørgen had built on his property, half of us had witnessed the live birth of a calf and the other half had seen what is believed to be the oldest windmill in the country. Yep. After all of this, we biked a hilly 7 miles back to the hostel for the evening.



Sunday, we hiked the hills on the northern part of the island and ate our lunches in Nordby, one the most preserved villages in Denmark. Before venturing back to Copenhagen, we visited the Samsø Bryghus, a small local organic brewery.

The Queen's 70th Birthday.

Today Denmark’s Queen Margrethe II celebrates her birthday. She was born in Amalienborg Palace as the daughter of King Frederik IX and Queen Ingrid. In 1953, The Act of Succession gave women the right of succession to the Danish throne, but only secondarily. In 1972, Queen Margrethe II became the first Danish Sovereign under the new Act of Succession.



I took part in the tradition of going to the Queen’s castle at noon on her birthday and waiting for her to come out onto her balcony with the rest of the royal family to wave to the crowd. Then, she gets into a horse-drawn carriage with her husband and, in a parade, processes through the city. In the square nearest to my school, 18 karat gold apples are placed in the top tier of the fountain in honor of the Queen.

Spring has finally Sprung!

Copenhagen seems like an entirely new city after my return from Spain and Italy. The weather has made all the difference. The squares are filled with vendors and outdoor seating, people seem to be more social and the sun actually shines good and long!

Back in class at DIS, our studio professors welcomed us back from break with a 24-hour design charette where we had to design outdoor furniture for a particular site in Copenhagen. (construct a model, draw plans/sections/elevations/perspectives and show materiality) This is right in the middle of our long-term final project and its purpose was to get us right back into working mode, a.k.a. not sleeping. There were 8 teams of 3 and our group's design won!

Back in CPH.

David.

Andrea escorted me to the Accadamia Gallery where I snuck this illegal photo of Michelangelo’s statue of David. The hands of this 17-foot biblical man are huge! It was also easy to see that his left toes were subjected to some abuse in 1991 when a "deranged" man attacked the statue with a hammer he had hidden under his jacket. There are three replicas of this contemplating statue in various locations around Florence.

As Andrea and my honeymoon continues, I'm starting to notice the differences between the European city she calls home and mine. Florence has far more tourists than Copenhagen and, therefore, a lot more English is spoken. There is gelato on every corner, the men are much more aggressive than the Danes and there aren't nearly as many blondes as there are in my Scandinavian city. Tonight, we are meeting up with a few other girls from the Interior Design program in Minnesota to enjoy Apertivo. What is Aperitivo? In bars across Florence between the hours of 7 and 9 while you are having a pre-dinner drink you can enjoy a free food buffet of appetizers, pasta, salads and cold cuts. It will be nice to see more familiar faces!

Florence, Italy.

Easter Monday morning, Andrea and I took the train North through Italy to stunning Cinque Terre (the birthplace of pesto!) where we hiked the day away. The trails pass between five seaside villages through terraced hills. The pathways are narrow and often steep with a rock face on one side and a drop-off to the ocean on the other. Good thing I wore my Wisconsin baseball shirt on the trails - we ended up running into a couple from Minnesota! The weather was beautiful and we worked up a sweat before finally dining and jumping on the train back to Florence.



Love locks at the entrance of the Tunnel of Love. Lover's place their locks here and throw the keys into the sea.



I joined Andrea’s sketching class on a trip to Boboli Gardens, behind the Pitti Palace (former residence of the Medici family). The gardens offer panoramic views of the city and countryside, 16-18th century sculptures and vegetation watered by a conduit from the nearby Arno River.

España & the Canary Islands.

One morning Alyssa and I grabbed cappuccinos and croissants at a café near our hostel before meeting her friend Sara for a morning of shopping. Antonio Gaudi’s inspiring architecture can be found throughout Barcelona. His work, inspired by natural forms, is unlike any other and can be identified effortlessly. The Gaudi Museum was a beautiful representation of his work.


A delicious sushi and wok dinner with Sara's Spanish boyfriend Fran concluded our first few days in Barcelona. Erly the next morning, we traveled to Grand Canary Island in the south of Spain. The island is full of small resort villages nestled in the rocky, mountainous landscape. Sara, Alyssa and I spent the few days there on the beautiful beaches and near our hotel at the top of one of the coastal mountains. During the day, we packed sandwiches and soaked up the sun. At night, we joined the European tourists at the local pubs, enjoying the entertainment of DJs and live musicians. Back in Barcelona for Easter weekend we checked into a hostel in La Plaza Riel, visited the Picasso museum, Labyrinth Park, Razzmatazz dance club (with 5 levels, each with their own DJ) and Gaudi’s famous work-in-progress, the Sagrada Familia. We met for a lunch of seafood paella, before I was sent off to Italy for the next leg of my European journey.

Barcelona.

Barcelona has been a beautiful departure from overcast Copenhagen. The day we arrived, we spent the afternoon at the harbor, drank sangria and enjoyed the sun. The city's official language, Catalan (not Spanish), is a mixture of French and Spanish languages. Everyone speaks Spanish as well so I'm enjoying being able to use my Spanish education. Later that evening, we explored the area near Montjuic and watched the fountain light show.


La Rosa Negra provided a delicious late night dinner (typical of Spainards) and mojitos before dancing the night away near the beach.
Palm Sunday was spent in Antonio Gaudi's vast and beautiful Parque Güell that overlooks the city. Some of the most unique and impressive landscape architecture I have ever or will ever see!

these are a few of my favorite things...

Frederiksborg Castle.
the royal residence built for King Christian IV. largest Renaissance palace in Scandinavia. palace is located on three small islands in the middle of Palace Lake (Danish=Slotsø) and is adjoined by a large, baroque formal garden.



Louisiana Museum of Modern Art. (Denmark)
especially the beautiful yet playful children's wing, the views to Sweden and the architecture's use of daylighting.

Paris.

Alex & I arrived in Paris on a Saturday night and took a stroll down the Champs Elysees to the Arch De Triomphe. The city was bustling and we stopped to share a crepe and later some magnificent macaroons at Laduree on our way to the Eiffel Tower. We started off the next day with Musee d'Orsay before hiking up to beautiful Sacre Coeur. This cathedral on the hill full of artists and cafes ended up being our favorite part of our short trip. We ended the night with goat cheese, a baguette and a bottle of Bordeaux that we purchased from various shops on our way back down the hill. On our last day we saw Notre Dame and traveled the two blocks from our hotel to the gigantic Louvre. The architecture and the Mona Lisa were beautiful, but the museum was too crowded for comfort so our trip was short-lived. For our last French meal, we feasted on snails (delish!), wine, scallops, pasta and creme brule. Oui, oui! Early the next morning, we flew back to Copenhagen.

Day 6

Rotterdam, Netherlands.
Kunsthal (Koolhaus)
Netherlands Architecture Institute
In the afternoon, we listened to a lecture at Crimson Architectural Historians, went on
boat tour of the Rotterdam harbor, and had a final group dinner at Hotel Bazar with fabulous Mediterranean cuisine. 8:30pm began our 12 hour bus ride home to Copenhagen.

Day 5

Utrecht, Netherlands.
Van Nelle Factory, adaptive re-use
Utrecht University
Schröder Haus 1924-25 (Rietveld)
After exploring the university on our own, all of the students met at a café in Utrecht to have a drink, show our sketches from the day and vote on the best. Our group (1 of 11) won the sketchbook competition and we were each given an award-winning set of designer colored pencils. Woo-hoo!

Day 4

Amsterdam, Netherlands.
In the morning, we took a train from Rotterdam to Amsterdam where we toured a new housing development with the architects from BO6 Architects. We then walked through a charming new housing development on the harbor. Its too bad that the first thing people think about Amsterdam is legal marijuana because it really is a lovely city! Old Amsterdam was beautiful with its canal and cobblestone streets and historic row houses. I spent the afternoon and evening with some friends at the Anne Frank House, Rembrandt Museum and the Van Gogh Museum which is currently featuring a Gauguin exhibit.

Day 3

Neuss, Germany.
Rocket Station, industrial re-use

Langen Foundation Museum (Tadao Ando)

Insel Hombrich Landscape Museum (1 of 12 buildings)

We then headed to an art school in the Netherlands for a lecture on Dutch architecture. That night, we arrived in Rotterdam at our hotel near the Erasmus Bridge.

Day 2

First part of the day: Essen, Germany
Ruhr Valley industrial rehabilitation, Zollverein reclaimed coal-mining industry(Masterplan by OMA architects)
Zollverein School of Management and Design (Sanaa)


Ruhr Museum (Koolhaus)


Red Dot Design Museum (Foster)
Second part of the day: Cologne, Germany
Kölner Dome (1248-1880) This cathedral took 600 years to complete and the its size and amount of architectural detail is breathtaking. While there, I lit candle for Grandpa Bunny. That night we had an authentic German dinner of pork, potatoes and sauerkraut at Brauerei Schumacher in Dϋsseldorf. Yummm.

Germany & the Netherlands.

My 6-day study tour to northern Germany and the Netherlands was packed with culture, architecture and sketching. After many weeks with little sun in Copenhagen, we were able to see more of it on this tour with temperatures in the mid to upper 40s. Two of the Danish architecture professors and our bus driver, Sven, lead the group of 36 students.

Day 1
Early Sunday morning, we drove and took a ferry to Hamburg, Germany where we saw the plan for the city’s new harbor area development and got a guided tour. That night we traveled to our hotel in Dusseldorf.

Mission 2: Complete.

After many long nights that continued into the morning, getting used to the metric system, learning a new Adobe computer program and a blister, my project was complete. I presented my second assignment, a furniture exhibition design for Denmark's National Art Gallery today. Sunday morning I will be leaving for a week-long study tour to northern Germany and the Netherlands!

Studio Story Time.

Story #1: "& he went mad"
During our first studio project here, we were under a lot of pressure to complete the first project in only one week. So much pressure that one kid actually cracked! Just nights before our presentations, he started drawing all over the facade of his group's building model. Later that night, he was admitted into a psychiatric clinic, where he stayed for 3 days.
Story #2: "filthy"
For our second project, no one wanted to go to the art supply store to buy more material for their models (pricey) and someone discovered a dumpster full of cardboard in an alley near our studios. Sunday morning, Rachel went out to the dumpster to get some cardboard, but discovered that all of the big pieces were in the bottom. So she climbed right in there, crazy hair and all, to get to them. Meanwhile, an old Danish lady is taking a stroll through the alley and sees Rachel rummaging around in a dumpster. The lady began yelling at her in Danish and, not understanding, Rachel began apologizing in English. To this, the woman shakes her finger and shouts "You are filthy!"

Sustainable by Design site visit: The Green Lighthouse. A carbon neutral building.

Six weeks have already come and gone!

Nothing other than a whole lot of studio time has occurred in the past week and this week will probably follow that trend. Our second assignment, a furniture exhibit design in the Danish National Gallery (Statens Museum for Kunst), is due Wednesday night with two full days of presentations to follow. Last week began with a lovely Valentine's Day surprise: a dozen roses delivered to my house in Holte from Alex! My host family (& their little dog too) returned from their vacations early Sunday morning, bearing Swiss chocolate and exhausted from skiing all week.

"Week 7"

The 7th week of the year is vacation week for the Danes. Mette is going skiing in France with her classmates while Claus and Helle are traveling to Zurich for the week to visit Christian at his new flat.

Thursday night was the first night of Wine Club. We sampled a Riesling, Sauvignon Blanc, Bordeaux, Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Syrah while learning about the season and region of the grape, what food to pair it with and typical characteristics of each wine.

Slot vs. Slut

Today, my host mother learned a new word: slutty. Slot is the Danish word for castle so you can see how that concept would be confusing.

Suki, the family’s Japanese cleaning lady comes every Tuesday at 8:30am. At 8:00am, Laura (who was discovered to have Asian racism) is at the door barking her petite brains out. When Suki finally arrives, Laura proceeds to follow her around and bark at her. Tomorrow is Tuesday.

Western Denmark Study Tour.

The architecture students spent the weekend touring the rural cities of Western Denmark. We visited and sketched different places of architectural importance, experienced Denmark’s culture outside of Copenhagen and slept in hostels.

Day 1
Trapholt Museum of Art
Koldinghus Castle



Børnekulturhusset St.Nicolai (a preschool) Architect: Dorte Mandrup, Photo: Me in "the cloud", a glass ball pit located on the second level of the building. The glass pit is located over the arts and crafts room.


Nordkraft (previous electric facility, adaptive re-use project)

Day 2
Aalborg University (focus on virtual environment technology)
Utzon Center, Danish Architect: Jørn Utzon (famous for the design of the Sydney Opera House)


Day 3
Århus Krematorium Kapel
Hejmdal Cancer Center, Architect: Frank Gehry



Århus Radhus
ARoS Museum