Copenhagen

Time to return to Copenhagen, where I lived for 1st and 2nd grade from 1996 to 1998. Flying an airline other than Ryan Air was also great as I got food and drink on a flight for the first time since crossing the atlantic. The views of the Alps from the Plane were phenomenal, only making me feel better about pulling the trigger on the ski trip over a month ago.

My first flight from Florence to Zurich was delayed about 50 minutes so the hour layover turned into a mad dash to the next gate. Got there with time to spare, but it was still a major relief making the flight. I did substantial damage on Malcolm Gladwell's The Tipping Point and was starting to think I should have brought a second book.

When I got off the plane in Copenhagen the Memories Started to come back as I had spent so much time in the Airport. I needed to trade my Euros for Kroner, and after completing that transaction I bought a train ticket to Hellerup, on the train headed to Helsignør, the Setting of Hamlet.

As I got off at the Hellerup stop, I consciously had no idea where to go, yet I subconsciously knew the exact way home. Once I started down Sofievej I could not stop smiling as memories came flooding back, from learning to ride a bike, to endless games of street hockey. I finally came upon number 12

My old house, and to say I was overjoyed would be an understatement. First I had to check in with my old next door neighbors, the Frandsen's, where I would be staying. They were just as excited to see me as I was to return to my old hometown, and came to be the best hosts anyone could ask for. Rebecca and I went to to my house and hoped the owners were still there so that I could walk through it again, something I missed out on when I returned in 2003 as part of a trip to Sweden.

Here is a walk through of the house, starting from the front door, through to the first floor

and backyard. From there the upstairs

To my Room

Then On to Tracy's

Next door to the Bathroom

The Guest Room

and Parents old room.

After touring the House I walked around the neighborhood and checked out more of my old stomping grounds around Hellerup

The neighborhood grocery store

The best Ice cream in Copenhagen with a constant line when he is open

The Hellerup Yacht club

And the Play ground by the Yacht club, still exactly the same from 1998

That night I had a great duck dinner win the Frendsen's and then met up with the other kids from my program who were in copenhagen and we went out. Played some Foosball in a bar and the guys we played told me how popular foosball is all across denmark.

The Next day I headed downtown and walked down Stroget returning to my old favorite Toy store BR, and then even better the Lego Store

From there I headed up to the Top of Rundetårn The Round Tower, and enjoyed some views overlooking the city

After the tower I headed down to Ny Havn (New Harbor) and then took an hour long canal and harbor tour. Some of the highlights from that:

OPera House, HDR

Reflection of the Opera House, off of the Theatre

View down New Haven

Royal Theatre

WWII Era Submarine Factory turned upscale apartments

Royal Library

Another Tour Boat passing through

After the Boat Tour I headed to Christiania And had quite the experiance, getting attacked by a homeless person/hippie. Thanks to mom and dad for the cat like reflexes and I was able to throw up a block and avoid a blow to the face from a crazy woman. Technically I was out of the EU

That night I returned to Hellerup, and the next morning took a few more pictures of my house, and with my hosts before I flew back to florence

Back on the grind...

Spring Break Part 3: Madrid

After a great three days in Sevilla, where I decided if I was not studying in Florence I would want to be there, it was time to head to Madrid. A very fun train ride got us to Madrid around midnight where I was met by my friend Sam who is now living in Madrid. Jason and I headed to his apartment as we were staying the night there while the rest of our group was staying with our friend Allison. The next morning we woke up to some not so friendly weather, and Jason and I checked out the Prado Botanical Gardens, which looked rather bleak on a late winter overcast day. After that we headed to Allison's apartment to meet up with Paul Jackson and Julian. It was a relief getting there as all of us had exhausted the funds on our cell phones so it was like meeting someone in the ancient pre cell phone days. Julian Paul and Jason left to go buy Real Madrid tickets for the night, and Jackson and I caught up on some much needed sleep. Going to the Game that night was the highlight of Madrid.

It was my first time at a soccer game, and I was fortunate enough to see the richest team in the world play. Real Madrid was playing Malaga, the worst team in the Spanish La Liga, so a 7-0 blow out was to be expected. Ronaldo also had a hat trick.

After a rough nights sleep sharing a twin bed we decided to do some exploring of Madrid. It was pouring with rain and I have to thank Gore-tex for keeping me dry. As much as I hate to judge a city when poor sleep horrible weather and being the 3rd leg of a week and a half of traveling contribute so much, Madrid was not as fun as either Sevilla or Barcelona. On our walk we did come across this awesome market and enjoyed some lovely tacos there. Still feeling worn out I took it easy that night, in preparation for sleeping on a lovely hardwood floor. The next day we did some more Touristy things, seeing another Park and two of Madrid's most famous museums. The Retiro Park was cool, and I can only imagine how much more beautiful it would have been if I was there when all the flowers were in bloom. Either way I ran into Dora the Explorer

After the Park we Checked out the Reina Sofia, Mardid's Modern Art Museum.

While not the biggest fan of Modern Art I do enjoy Salvador Dali. I was fortuante enough to go to his meusuem outside of Barcelona when I was there with the family in 2008, so it was nice to see the majority of the rest of his works in the Reina Sofia.

Picasso's Masterpeice La Guernica was there as well so we had to get a view while listening to the constant yell of "No Foto!!" It was great to see a masterpiece of such immense scale, much more like Michelangelo's David or Last judgement, than Da Vinci's underwhelming Mona Lisa. With enough 20th century art under our belt we headed over to Museo Nacional Del Prado, Madrid's equivalent of the Louvre or Ufizi. We had some pizza dinner, and then came home for another early night. I finished reading Between a Rock and Hard Place, and was even more blown away than the film 127 Hours.

Getting my own bed for the fight time In Madrid was great and I got some sleep in Before our early flight the next Morning.

At the airport I contemplated paying 35 Euro to check my bag, solely so I didn't run the risk of getting to the gate, being forced to check it and then missing the plane. As I was 2/2 on the trip i figured I would risk it. The Ryan air attendants were more strict in Madrid than any other city I have flown out of, forcing almost everyone to place there bag in the size testing Box. I put my oversized backpack on the opposite shoulder as I showed my pass port and boarding pass, while my heart was racing as if I was stealing second base in a high school game. I was lucky again and sitting down in my seat I was finally able to relax... Back to pisa and then the train to Florence after a great Spring break that was slightly tainted by the snow, rain and hail we encountered in Madrid combined with poor sleeping conditions. Still Allison made her best effort and was a great host. The fact that my camera died also put a damper on the trip and I have to give photo credit to Jackson and Paul for the Madrid pictures, as well as a few from Sevilla. Back to the semi real world of life at the Villa....