Orientation, 100% Rain-Free Day, and DANISH SPIN CLASS.

So, quickly after finishing my last post I realized that I forgot to mention two aspects of life in Copenhagen which are proving to be two of the biggest challenges of my acclimation process:

1) It rains, on average, at least 8 times a day here. And I don't own a raincoat. And for some reason I thought it would be OK to leave my umbrella and rain boots in the US of A. In my limited experience at this point, the weather cycles through sunny and beautiful with various clouds, cloudy, cloudy and OMINOUS, drizzles, and TORRENTIAL DOWNPOUR. Life goes on; the Danes just keep on riding their bikes through the city with their easily accessible ponchos, jackets, or even umbrellas (do I have to learn to bike while holding an umbrella?), and soon Copenhagen is sunny and happy again. But, as the title of this entry dictates, THERE WAS NO RAIN TODAY. First entirely rain-free day since our arrival on Sunday!

2) IT'S SO EXPENSIVE! I'd heard Denmark is one of the (maybe even THE most) expensive countries in the world, but I didn't really see if affecting me as much as it does. I'm basically responsible for all my own meals, and even though I'm given a nice little stipend for a lot of it, it's still overwhelming to spend 350 kroner (about 60 USD) on some yogurt and some vegetables. I've done a fair amount of research, and I'm fairly sure the cheapest cup of REGULAR OLD COFFEE is 16 kroner, almost $3!! Good thing it's DARNED HIGH QUALITY :)

So, the past two days in Copenhagen have been spent meeting new friends and completing orientation activities! Yesterday we were put into groups of 6 and sent off into the city on a scavenger hunt. We got to see the palace where the QUEEN lives (including the guards with their goofy bearskin hats!)

I was too shy to actually take a picture WITH them.

The national Opera House that cost over FIVE HUNDRED MILLION DOLLARS to build (pictured directly above!), the parliament library (called the BLACK DIAMOND. It reminded me of Borders!) and some cool shopping and picnicking areas. There was also a water bus trip involved! We were walking for over three hours, and still didn't make it to all the stops! All the getting lost was probably good for us, and now I have a fun list of places to hit up in the future. Last night we played around in the city, and actually met some local Danes! Exciting! Today we met some of the DIS faculty, and they all seem wonderful! We met with our core class groups (mine is Communications and Mass Media) and each got our set of textbooks in our own giant IKEA bag. Lugging the IKEA bag back to my apartment was a real treat. After today's orientation sessions we hit up a store called TIGER! I think it's Denmark's version of the dollar store, and I've determined it's a real GEM of a place and will frequent it from here on out.

This evening, I had made plans with a girl from one of my orientation sessions to take a spin class at the gym we get to use for a discounted price! This gym is PHENOMENAL. It includes a juice and coffee bar, free wifi, massage tables, two floors of equipment, free classes, saunas, showers, lockers, AND...there's a DJ who comes in on the weekends. FANCY. And they scan your fingerprint before you can enter. VERY fancy, and a little creepy. The spin class was TOO COOL. The instructor gave the workout in Danish, and would every once in a while remember to give some instructions in English for us. It was HARD! And the music was LOUD, BOOMING techno!

Tonight, we had some apartment bonding time making dinner and watching the Danish sports channel together. Now, we're getting everything ready for the first day of classes tomorrow! EEK! Expect an update on that soon! :)

XOXOXOXOXOXXOXO.