fake scandinavia

i found a ticket to copenhagen for $50, and couldn't pass it up. when i told my friends about my plans for a two-night trip to the danish capital, one of them said, "that's not even real scandinavia, it's part of europe." well, while that guy was sitting around on his couch watching reruns of scrubs, i scored my next passport stamp, enjoying a lovely solo weekend in denmark.

i did the usual touristy stuff -- museums, old buildings, famous art, shopping, and eating local foods whilst enjoying local beer. the architecture is lovely. the living-Ikea sense of style is refreshing. the city is safe, welcoming (everyone speaks english!), and boasts the longest pedestrian shopping area in europe (there are three H&M shops in the town center alone). and i even like Carlsberg. nothing really remarkable happened, which was nice. and like my solo jaunt to london, i really enjoyed the freedom of being able to do whatever i wanted, wherever i wanted, and for however long i wanted.

i got to read my first non-school book since january, taking time to sit in a cafe, read, and watch people stroll by. i had a nice chat with gus, from sweden, over a danish microbrew. and i spent one evening listening to live jazz with the 50+ crowd of copenhagen. one guy thought i was so "young and cute, like his granddaughter" that he bought me a drink. what could be a safer than an evening hanging out in a bar where everyone orders metamucil with their entree?

i think travelling alone or having dinner alone or even going to the cinema alone takes a certain amount of confidence in your ability to enjoy your own company. do you like yourself enough to spend a whole weekend on the road with you? do you know what interests you? are you good company? will you annoy yourself? do you talk too much? well, i hope not that last one, or you might scare the locals. anyway, i can safely say that i would rank "myself" among the top ten people that i prefer to travel with.

i won't publish the entire top 25 list here, because i don't want to hurt the feelings of people that fall in the category of "i would rather be alone than with you on vacation." sorry, _____. maybe next time you'll let me pick the restaurant. if there is a next time.