God is so good!

A few days ago I was grabbing a piece of gum on my way out to the door for class and noticed that I had already eaten half of the gum I had brought. I reluctantly popped it in my mouth with the realization that I just can't live without gum; I've got to find somewhere cheap to get some more gum, but cheap anything here is impossible to find.

For weeks now I have been craving something to drink besides water. But Denmark does not sell instant anything. No Crystal Light. No Lipton Iced Tea powder. With soda costing about $3 or $4 for a 20 oz bottle, and every other drink costing even more, I had no choice but to suck it up and just keep drinking water.

Tonight I got home from class at 6 pm. I was pretty hungry, but was waiting to eat with my friends so I still had about an hour to kill. I looked around my room with disappointment. I had no snacks that could tide me over, and I wasn't about to make myself a sandwich. The meat and cheese here are just too expensive to snack on.

A couple of weeks ago I was talking to Matt about how I felt spiritually stranded here in Copenhagen. Faith is not popular, and very few people attend church, leaving me with very small odds of actually finding a church I liked or even someone to go to church with.

Yesterday I was realizing just how much I miss my family. Ben and Grace were playing Careers, and I would have given almost anything to be there right next to them joining in the game.

On Saturday I got home from a three day trip through Denmark and realized I had next to nothing in my fridge. I woke up Sunday morning with an upset stomach and couldn't get out of bed until about three in the afternoon, after all the grocery stores had closed.

But through it all, God has been more than good. He has been amazing. Right next to me through everything, all the challenges I never even thought I would face while abroad.

Aunt Car sent me a package that I got today. It was filled with gum and water flavorings. I don't know how she knew that those were two things that I desperately needed. I have to credit it all to God. And thank you so much, Aunt Car, for thinking of me. I enjoyed my first pink lemonade this afternoon :)

My mom sent me a package too that I got today. It was filled with crackers and nuts and gummies and banana chips and all kinds of fun snacks. And coffee. And flip flops. And things that I didn't ever tell her that I missed. I almost cried. thanks, Mom, for showing me how loved and missed I am. Thanks, God, for delivering it on the exact day that I needed it.

About a week ago I was sitting next to a guy in my Human Health and disease class and noticed a Bible in his backpack. I askd him why he was carrying it around, and he said that he was doing his devotionals this morning in the city. he told me about the college group at DIS on Tuesday nights. I went that Tuesday. It might have been small, but I was so so happy to be there. God taught me tons that night. And I was surrounded by fellow believers for the first time since I stepped into this country. Now I am leading the Bible study tomorrow!

Then today I was grocery shopping and ran into a girl I met during our study tour. She told me that she had overheard me on the bus talking about my brother being a youth pastor (thanks ben!!) and asked if I was a Christian. We ended up talking for another half of an hour about our faiths and how they are influenced being in Denmark.

Two nights ago I was walking to the train statio and was stopped by a Danish man on a bike (don't worry, he didn't have on a short-sleeved, button-up white shirt and the Mormon Bible under his arm). He gave me a tract in Danish and I told him that I didn't speak Danish. But we ended up talking for a while about his church, I told him I was a Christian, and he gave me the address of his pentecostal church and told me to come sometime, even if the service was all in Danish. It gave me hope that Christianity is more alive in Denmark than I first realized. Perhaps there are more Christians out there than I thought.

I got to talk to my family yesterday. And I loved every minute of it. And I even got a card in the mail from my mom all about the happenings in the Palm household, complete with an awesome drawing of me giving Ben a huge hug (as always). It was the taste of home I had been craving, and a reminder of just how much my family loves and misses me.

And while I was laying sick in bed on Sunday, my friend went out and bought me a huge bottle of Sprite. I stirred out most of the bubbles, in true mom-style, and drank the whole bottle, which helped me get back on my feet. I just couldn't have made it out of my bed without my friend's support.

God is good. He always has been and he always will be. And it is so easy to see him moving here in my life in denmark, once I paused and began to look. I am so blessed. So I just wanted to send out a thank you. Thank you to God for never letting me out of His sight. Thank you to Aunt Car for knowing exactly what I needed. Thank you to Mom and family for sending me the greatest package anyone could ever dream of. Thank you to Dad, Ben, Ruth, Becky, Laura, Marty, Marty, and my best friend ever Grace for constantly having enough time to hear all about my adventures in Denmark. And thank you to everyone who has sent me an email or facebook message telling me that they are keeping track of me and loving me. I love you all.

the place i called home

I went on a weekend trip this Thursday to Saturday. We explored different cities in Denmark, went to some hospitals, ate some good food, and stood with our feet in two different seas at the same time. Don't worry, I will write more later about all that we did and post pictures, but for now, I have to say one thing while it is on my mind.

It took about 7 hours to get home yesterday. Bus ride then ferry then bus ride again. And I know that I was only gone for a few days, but when I stepped off that bus last night, I knew I was home. For the first time in these three weeks in Denmark, I actually felt like Copenhagen, not California, was my home. Now granted, with each footstep and each new experience here, I miss my family. I always will, because I want them to be next to me experiencing what I am experiencing and feeling what I feel. But I couldn't shake the feeling that I had finally, finally settled down. I wasn't travelling anymore to a foreign country to study abroad. This place, with my moldy shower curtain, smelly kitchen that will never be clean, ghetto room and broken washing machines, has inched its way into my heart. I am proud now to call it home.

I'm so excited to go to Sweden!

Rewind back to last last Sunday. We are touring Kronberg castle. We look out the window across the channel and see.... Sweden! Now I know we are already in a foreign country. We are miles from home, and have absolutely loved getting to explore this crazy country. But still the idea of getting to go to another country propelled us to make plans right then to visit Sweden. Why not? It's a 30 minute train ride from Copenhagen, and relatively cheap. And all we could say, for the rest of the time wandering around that gigantic castle, was, "I'm so excited to go to Sweden!"

With all that excitement I figured, Sweden just can't live up to what I have pictured in my head. It's a Scandinavian country, and I assume that they all look alike. But Sweden went above and beyond. It was gorgeous and just a blast to explore! We went to a little city named Malmo, found a park we wandered in for an hour, walked down the main shopping street, had the greatest espresso macchiato in the world, then went out to a fantastic dinner before heading back home. Really, the next time you are in Copenhagen, hop on a train and travel to Sweden. It is more than worth it!

dancin down the cobblestones

Today was a good day. Imagine the smile on Gene Kelly's face as he dances down a rainy street singing his famous song. Dancing around like an idiot and not caring what others thought. That was me today. I woke up to birds chirping through the window of my room at my visiting family's house. I ran back to my kollegium ("ran" being a figurative term, it actually took more like 30 minutes) to drop off my clothes from the day before, grabbed my ipod, and left for the day.
Now imagine me walking down one of the many shopping streets in Copenhagen on my way to class. It's Friday. I'm going to Sweden tomorrow. I have two classes that I love today. I'm in Copenhagen. With my ipod playing songs from hairspray, I had to hold myself back from frolicking down the cobblestone streets that I love. But no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't hold back a smile. A goofy, pointless, "I love life and there's nothing you can do about it" smile.
I confess that I waited until later that night to frolick down the streets. I'm not as brave as others. But I did frolick. And dance. And sing. And smile so big that I'm sure people thought I had just found the love of my life.
Today was a good day. I can give you possible reasons, small explanations for my giddiness, but they cannot suffice. I was simply happy to be alive. And sometimes that is all it takes.

oh IKEA

I know, I know. How lame is it to travel half way around the world to go to a store that's all over the US? But I couldn't help it. I have an empty room. One cup to my name. No smelly-good candles. No tupperware or ziploc bags. No bath mat. No laundry bag. It was time for a trip to IKEA.

Now try to imagine IKEA in the land where it was born. I know I wasn't in Sweden, but Scandinavia is pretty darn close. I couldn't help but get excited. Six of us went all together, wandering around the three floors of wonder, getting yelled at in Danish because we couldn't read the signs, picking out the cheapest versions of what we needed and laughing until it hurt at Charlie and his huge matress. Then picking up a Danish hot dog, which is so different and so much better than in the US, wolfing it down, and getting prepared to lug everything back onto the crowded bus, back onto the train, and finally back to our respective rooms. What a day.

I can hear the bells

The rarely-seen Copenhagen sun poked its head out today, leading me to think that I was still in sunny California. I was waiting near a bus plaza this morning for a bus to take me to Kronberg (Hamlet's Castle) when I realized, in my relaxed state, that I could very possibly be in San Jose right now. But then I heard the bells. They rang and rang, reminding me with each toll that I was in Europe. In Denmark. The place I have been dreaming of for almost an entire year. And I just couldn't help but smile.

It has been a crazy few days. Friday night a Dane, Louise, taught me how tomake traditional Danish cake, since they only sell one kind of ridiculously-expensive, gross cake mix. Yes, family, Hannah helped make food. And it was to die for. And yes, Grace, I got to use one of our two Danish phrases we learned on our way to PA (no, not I love you).

Then the next day, as in Saturday, I finally met my visiting family, aka the family that takes care of me and makes sure I don't starve while I am here. Now I knew that Danes were always on time, but I had no idea how exacty they schedule their time. If a Dane says, oh dinner is around seven, its not around seven. It is at seven. 7:01, you are late. And everyone who knows me knows that I rarely show up as early as 7:01. But listen to my schedule with my family for the day, and yes, it was just as amazing as it sounds:

1. arrive in Viby Sjaelland at 15:46, get picked up by Karin, the mom

2. Have juice on the terrace with Karin and their 19 year old daughter Maja

3. walk out to their fields (yes, they live on a farm) and have a picnic with coffee (the first cup i have had in Denmark! it costs about $7 in Copenhagen for black coffee!), bread, butter, and cakes

4. Make dinner with Maja and their 16 year old son Peter (we made something like really yummy Danish meatloaf with plumb sauce)

5. While dinner is cooking, sit down to appetizers of shrimp-stuffed avocadoes with amazing dipping sauce (yes i ate and enjoyed the shrimp!)

6. eat dinner, clean up, and sit down to watch a movie with Danish cookies for dessert (laura, this pic is for you)

7. go to bed

8. wake up to a huge breakfast and a packed lunch of smoresbrod and liverpaste for my trip to kronberg castle

9. repeat on thursday night

As for Kronberg castle, the famous place where Hamlet declares that something is rotten in the state of Denmark, well, you'll just have to keep imagining it. All I'll say was, it was amazing.

and the danes...

So I met a Danish girl in my kitchen a few nights ago and we ended up talking for about 45 minutes. She was adorable! So we planned a grocery shopping trip later on this week so she could show me and a few of my friends where to shop for cheap. But when she knocked on my door this afternoon, it was ouring rain. I may love the rain, but it does not agree with a ten minute walk to the store and another 10 minute walk back with groceries in tow. So instead we settled for pizza. A good compromise, I thought. haha. She took me to one of her favorite places and taught me how to read what was on the menu and how to order, then we sat down and talked another 45 minutes until our food was ready. So much fun! We brought the food back to our kitchen and sat down to eat... and just like in the US, pizza brings people running. The kitchen was soon full of Danes and my other American friends exchanging impressions we have with each others' countries. The best line of the night, though, was definitely Medda's, who, in a perfect Southern accent, said, "Hi! My name is Mary Sue! I look like Britney Spears, ain't I pretty?" I guess they think everyone in the South USA is a redneck/hick. We tried to tell them that it's not true, but just couldn't get the words out through all the laughter. We ended up spending the rest of the night together, one of the funnest nights i have ever had!