Jackie's Year Abroad 2014/15 #ExchangeOnFleek

Follow this bodacious blog about my year abroad in the land of the Danes. As well as my travels all around Europe

[jackiesyearabroad]

Today is the 20th of August 2015 and on this day, last year, I was on my way to Denmark for the adventure of a life time.

My body was full of a concoction of emotions and thoughts. ‘Will people like me?’ ‘Will I have friends?’ ‘What if I hate it?’ etc. I was lucky enough to have had my beautiful sister with me, to help me settle in (aka force me to leave the house and make friends). We traveled to Copenhagen with 2 seriously heavy bags full of clothes and shoes and stayed in a fabulous hotel. 

Arriving in Denmark was a crazy experience, it was like no other country that I had ever been to, the people were so beautiful and well dressed and it was busy but not as busy as the other capital cities that I had ever been to. 

While I was fearful about moving to a new country, I was also excited for a fresh start and a chance to make new friends. I was kinda tired of the same old thing at my home university. I had so many expectations (good and bad) but I embraced it and I MADE IT WHAT I WANTED IT TO BE (Remember its truly what you make it) and as a result I had a great time. 

I’m so sorry that this has been a short and not-very-good post, I had to have minor surgery on my left had so I had to type with one hand and I’m also on some antibiotics and pain killers (which are not doing anything for the pain (help me Jesus))

I love you guys, thank you for reading my tumblog! You’re all amazing. 

If you’re about to start your adventure abroad, have fun and remember that its truly what you make it! Oh and good luck kiddies. 

** The picture that I have posted for this post is a screenshot of my facebook status on this day! It’s a picture of my sister and I, along with a little good bye status**

[jackiesyearabroad]

3 TIPS FOR DEALING WITH HOME SICKNESS

This is an inevitable part of being away from home. No matter how detached you might feel from everyone back there there will be something that you’ll miss about being home, be it the food, the smells, your cat, your family, friends etc. Homesickness seriously sucks and it can really dampen one’s mood and ruin your experience. Here are some tips for dealing with it. 

1. CALL YOUR FRIENDS/FAMILY ETC

If you miss someone, tell them. Sometimes a good cure for homesickness is calling your friends and family and telling them that you miss them. Try to have a laugh about that new video that’s gone viral or that funny instagram post. It will help you out and assure you that they haven’t forgotten you. 

**WARNING** when they tell you about everything that’s going on in their lives, don’t dwell on the fact that you aren’t there. Share something that you’ve done as a response but not in a competitive way but just to show them that and remind yourself that you’re doing okay 

2. KEEP YOURSELF BUSY

I used to find that the time I was most homesick was when I was sitting down doing nothing. You’re on exchange. Get up and discover that new city that you’re living in. Join a sports team. Go for a run or a cycle, anything to keep your minding wondering aimlessly. 

3. RECREATE WHAT YOU MISS FROM HOME

This one seems a little weird. How do you recreate what you miss. Let me explain. I live in South London and so everywhere you turn there is a fried chicken shop BUT in Denmark there is nothing. They didn’t even have KFC. I think I died a little when I found that out. So what did I do when I missed that fried chicken? I made my own, it wasn’t as good but it didn’t kill me. But you get the gist of what I’m saying. I ended up keeping myself busy and having a laugh with my friends and family about the failed attempt.

Okay there you have it. 3 tips for dealing with homesickness. They aren’t perfect but they helped me and maybe they’ll help you too. 

Keep your heads up guys. 

xxxx

[jackiesyearabroad]

DANISH THANKSGIVING

I know what you’re all probably thinking, ‘Danes don’t celebrate that’ or ‘You’re not even American’

Yes, I know but all my friends were American and they were super homesick and sad to have been missing it. 

So the event was made on FB and we were told that we could invite all our friends but everyone had to contribute something. My roomie and I decided to make Mac and Cheese, which she put breadcrumbs on and ruined. In true Danish style, we cycled to our friends’ house with the food at the back of our bikes. It was a struggle. The mac and cheese was slightly squashed but luckily the rest of the food was pretty amazing. Sadly I just wasn’t that hungry that day. I regret not eating. I’m still thinking about that food. 

I was happy that I got to share this experience with my American, Danish and other friends. 

[jackiesyearabroad]

Highlight: 10 October 2014

As part of my study abroad highlight series, I’m gonna go back and remember some of the best memories I have of my time in Denmark.

On this day, my beautiful Aussie friend and I, Jules, went to what was the closest thing to a law ball. The most fun part was actually getting ready. Doing our make up, finding outfits, shoes and accessories etc. I’m such a girly girl so I love all of that stuff.

I got my roommate (not the evil one) to do my hair for me and I did my make up and everything else. The whole night itself wasn’t all that exciting. The theme was Monte Carlo and so they attempted to do some kind of casino theme, which wasn’t a total fail but wasn’t so great. 

I did enjoy it and I loved getting ready. Apparently there was food there but sadly, I did not get to enjoy it. Haha. 

[jackiesyearabroad]

Kapsejlads That is the biggest and most looked forward to event in Aarhus. It's the boat race. We literally prepped and looked forward to this for months. This is how the day went: I woke up at 4am and showered. I had to be fresh for the day. Met up with my girls and we went down for the event. What made me laugh the most about that morning was the fact that so many people had not been to their 9am classes but had made the effort to go wake up at like 5 for this. It was worth it though, I'm not going to lie, it was fun. I was slightly disturbed to find out that there was a naked run, I was lucky enough to have missed it otherwise I would've been sick. Another fun aspect of this was the sumo wrestlers thing. It was so much fun and I think we all know who won... Team GB obviously. It was so funny, there is a video and we ran into each other and fell over, couldn't get up. It was the cutest thing ever.

[jackiesyearabroad]

10 THINGS NO ONE TELLS YOU ABOUT STUDYING ABROAD

When I told people that I was going to study abroad in Denmark, I had mixed reactions. Some people were super excited for me, some were scared for me (being a black girl going to a predominantly white country) and some thought I was crazy. I didn’t really know what to expect, I had spoken to people about what it was like living in a foreign country with no friends, family, familiarity. But nothing really prepared me for what was to come. DON’T FRET FRIENDS! HAVE NO FEAR, JACKIE IS HERE. I’m gonna spill the beans and give you guys an insight on what it’s really like to study abroad, from evil roommates to food, money and travelling etc.

Shout out to my friends (who also studied abroad) for helping my compile this fantastic list yo’! 

1. SORT OUT ALL YOUR PAPERWORK ASAP - If there is one thing that I could tell someone, it’s this. It will honestly make your life much easier. Being from a EU country going to another EU country I had so much Erasmus related paperwork to sort out before I got to the DK and being the freak I am, I made sure to sort it out as soon as I got it. Because of that, I was able to get all my student finance, Erasmus payments on time and I was balllin’ (not really - that money went towards my rent)

2. MANAGE YOUR MONEY WISELY - Another thing that I learnt while studying abroad was that, if you do not manage your money wisely, you will suffer. Denmark is a very expensive country and every time I went to the store and paid with my UK card, it came out way more expensive because of the exchange rate. I also used my money for stupid things which meant that at the end of the first semester, I had to make some calls to my brother for some money. I would suggest a monthly budget and being super strict with that budget. IT will help you in the long run. 

3. OPEN A BANK ACCOUNT IN YOUR HOST COUNTRY - this, in my opinion is essential. Opening an account in your host country will help you save money because it means you won’t have to pay international card charges. Opening a Danish bank account helped me so much because when I was going back to Denmark after Christmas, I left my bank card at WH Smith in Stansted (aka StruggleSted) Airport which means I had no access to money. Luckily I had my Danish account & card which meant that my mother could transfer all my money to that account and that saved my life.

4. GO TO INTRODUCTION EVENTS AT YOUR UNIVERSITY - Actively participate in these events because that is how you will make your friends. 

5. IF THERE IS ANOTHER PERSON FROM YOUR HOME UNIVERSITY BE FRIENDS WITH THEM - When I went to Denmark there was another guy from my home university who I didn’t speak to, I didn’t even know him, but when we got to this foreign country where we didn’t know anyone, we became friends and it turns out he is a really cool guy. 

6. KEEP IN TOUCH WITH YOUR FRIENDS FROM HOME - I know that the idea of moving abroad and having this new amazing life is so exciting but one thing that I would like to emphasise is the importance of staying in touch with the homies back home. They will be the ones who you will need when you have an argument with your evil roommate, or when you have problems and they probably need you more than you would even imagine. 

7. IF YOU HAVE A RELIGION FIND A CHURCH OR SOMETHING IN THE AREA - just because you’ve gone abroad that doesn’t mean you have to skip out on your time with God. I had the amazing honour of finding a beautiful English speaking church in Denmark and they were so sweet and became like a second family, who fed me, loved me and of course prayed for me. I also made some amazing friends there who I love so dearly. 

8. TRAVEL, TRAVEL, TRAVEL - If you’re like me and the marks you got on your exams didn’t count towards your degree, I would suggest you travel as much as you can. I decided to travel quite a bit because I thought to myself when would I have (i) all this money (ii) all this time (iii) this convenience to travel. I managed to find super cool people to travel with. We went to Greece, France, Germany, Portugal, Holland. It was amazing. Travelling also means exploring your host country, I was able to visit Copenhagen, some of the cool places in Aarhus, such as the Old Town (Den Gamle By) and the Deer Park

9. EVIL ROOMMATES, CAT FIGHTS AND BACK BITING - In first semester I had the funniest, craziest girl as my room mate - she also had some flaws (hey no one is perfect) - Politics was the only thing we argued about, we went to church, the gym, the store together, we were basically besties. I loved her but she was only there for a semester. In second semester, I got a new room mate who I clicked with instantly but we ended up not getting along too well, which really sucked (awkward moments are the worst guys...) BUUUUT what I’m trying to tell you is that on exchange you never know who you’re going to get as your room mate, if they’re cool - great and if not - well don’t let it ruin exchange for you. Go out, find some new friends (I did and I ended up travelling around Europe with them)

10. ITS HONESTLY WHAT YOU MAKE IT - A girl I know from Sweden came to study in England for her whole degree, she was really wise. When I told her I was scared about going abroad, she told me that ‘it’s honestly what you make it.’ That is the exact mindset I had when I moved to Denmark. I had the best time ever, because I made it the best time ever. Even though half the time I was broke (from all the travelling and events I attended) I still had fun because that’s what I made it. Denmark was for me, the best year (or 9 months to be exact) of my life. Despite the awkwardness with my room mate and missing my friends, family, church etc, I made it the best year of my life and you can too… (if you just believe… I’m joking… but seriously)

THERE YOU HAVE IT. To those of you thinking of going abroad do it, don’t worry about money or fears, everything will sort itself out and to those who are going, I envy you so much and don’t be scared. Have fun, be yourself and remember, it’s honestly what you make it. 

PEACE, POSITIVITY AND PIZZA

[jackiesyearabroad]

One of the highlights of my time in Denmark has to be the Aarlborg Carnival. This is not a carnival like that of Notting Hill, it’s more like a parade celebrating the city. This was a last minute spontaneous adventure to the city of Aalborg (obviously) for their annual carnival. It was my girl’s birthday and we needed something exciting and memorable to do. We were kind of nervous because a) we didn’t know how to get there b) we had no money and c) we had no costumes. 

Luckily some of our friends, like Rick - the fab officer in the middle, told us that they were going to the carnival as well, so we decided to tag along with them. In regards to the costumes, we were initially going to go as an angel and devil but I thought that was a little tacky, not to mention expensive (hello 300dkk for a costume is not worth it). We found these traffic cones which were super cheap and super cute and we loved them. 

The carnival was insanely fun. Despite the fact that the Lindsay lost her GoPro for like 15 minutes which resulted in tears from the both of us, it was a pretty sick day. There was an amazing Caribbean drum band that played among many other talented musicians and DJs. Definitely a day to remember. 

One thing that was fairly concerning, there always has to be one, is the fact that the theme of the carnival was ‘Taboo.’ People came decked out in the most offensive outfits, some people dressed as terrorists and some people even went in black face, which I found confusing and offensive, like is it a taboo to be black. Lindsay and I obviously went up to the guy and asked him what was up, we told him that blackface is never okay, even if its a joke. We didn’t really wanna lecture him and ruin the day but I really felt like I had to say something for future reference. He did apologise and said that he had no idea that it was racist (yeah ok…) It didn’t really dampen my mood because I had an amazing set of people with me. 

If you’re in the Aalborg area in May, I definitely recommend you go, have fun and don’t forget to be a bit respectful with your costume choices. 

[jackiesyearabroad]

The first picture is a picture of me and my girl, Lindsay, in Berlin during our 2 week Eurotrip. Even though we look cute and whatever, the struggle was so real. We had just arrived in Berlin and slept for what felt like a billion hours after we missed our flight from Paris to Hamburg. 

The second picture is an accurate representation of what happened on the 2nd of April 2015 in Paris, France. It was the day of my 21st birthday, we were in a struggle apartment in Paris and my girls went out and bought me a cake, fanta and Harry Potter in French. For some reason, I thought that our flight was at 4pm rather than 2pm. I thought 2pm was the last time we could check in. The girls were rushing me and telling me to get ready cos it was 11am and we needed to go!!!! 

Some how we managed to get on the train and I had planned our journey so that we would get a cab from the train station to the airport, little did I know, that there were no taxis that went that way. We ended up getting on the slowest tram known to man which stopped for 15mins in one spot. We’re all feeling super stressed but laughing because what else can you do? I decide to drink my birthday fanta when the tram is still and then it makes a sudden movement which caused for me to spill my fanta on Shanelle who then shouted ‘ARE YOU SERIOUS?’

We really couldn’t help but laugh at the situation but deep inside I was mourning the loss of that fanta. We finally got to the airport and the gate for our flight is closed. I fell to the floor and cried. How was I going to tell my mother that I had missed my flight. We were all sticky and annoyed but somehow still laughing. 

We left the airport and found out that the flight that we were meant to be on had been delayed and they still wouldn’t let us board. DAMN YOU EASYJET! We needed to find a way to either Hamburg or Berlin. Some way, some how we found a bus that went directly from Paris to Berlin. IT was a 5 billion hour journey. We finally made it to Berlin but by then we were so tired and drained that all we wanted to do was sleep and shower. 

[jackiesyearabroad]

Lisbon!

It had an amazing urban art scene, a beautiful beach and just a great atmosphere.

Lisbon was our first stop, well technically it was our second as we had caught our flight from Hamburg. But anyway, this was a great city. We arrived in the afternoon. The hostel we stayed in was nice, it had the dodgiest wifi and the nastiest, smallest bathroom. 

I remember buying food and other utilities from the shop and leaving them in the kitchen of the hostel. I went to get them because they had my razors in there only to find that they had been taken. I was so confused, angry and upset - all at the same time. We were going to go to the beach and I was gonna look like Chewbacca. I asked all the boys in the hostel if they had unused razors and then a man came up to me and said that he had found a pack of lady razors, thought that they had been left by a guest who had checked out, so HE TOOK THEM. Who does that? He gave them back to me and I was slightly weirded out and disgusted but they were unused. 

Another fond memory I have of Lisbon is walking into a little jewelry shop and spending what felt like hours talking to the owner who had lived in Denmark for a long time. He was the sweetest old man and he was so impressed at how good my Danish was. My Danish is terrible, by the way, I sound Swedish and I only know basic phrases and food ha! Sad! 

But overall, Lisbon is a great city, with great vibes, food and people! 

Be sure to visit.

[jackiesyearabroad]

PARIS 

Paris Je t’aime

It had long been a dream of mine to visit Paris and celebrate my birthday there. I finally got to do that and with 2 of the most amazing people. 

Paris was a ball of fun. We arrived in Paris after our time in Lisbon and it was raining. It really dampened my mood. But I had to be positive, I MEAN HELLO WE WERE IN PARIS! 

When we got to our apartment, we were shocked, disgusted and scared. It looked nothing like the pictures and there was a chainsaw at the door, a really long dark corridor and it was just cold, dirty and damp with 2 mattresses on the floor and a mountain of blankets and the worst part of it all is that THERE WAS NO WIFI.

I literally fell on the bed and slept and I’m pretty sure I cried in my sleep. We were so scared we barricaded the door and I slept with a knife near by. That first night we bought food from a Chinese restaurant near by and talked till we fell asleep. 

We visited the Eiffel Tower which was just magical, I have no idea why it is so. I have never understood it but there is just something about standing in front of this massive tower and looking up at it. I cannot explain it, you just have to see it for yourself my friends. 

Then we visited the Louvre, which I managed to get in for free (EU perks). This was another great thing about Paris. We just had to see the Mona Lisa. Our first attempt was anything but successful. We were kicked, punched, slapped out of the way but we left and saw some of the other beautiful art there. Now let me give you tip about seeing the Mona Lisa and appreciating it’s beauty. Wait until the closing time, well 20 minutes before, if you go back to her you will see that there is no one there and you’ll be able to take a great pic and appreciate her. 

In Paris I fell in love with macarons. They. Are. Delish. They tasted so good. We got them from La Duree and they were just so glorious and delightful. We bought 8 for about 12 euros which is pretty reasonable, they were birthday Macarons. My girls also got me a cake as well and I will forever be grateful to them for that. 

Paris, for me, was my favourite leg of the trip. I got to live my dream of celebrating my bday there and even though we missed our flight to Hamburg I will forever love this place. 

You have to visit.

[jackiesyearabroad]

Some pics from Den Gamle By (The Old Town)

[jackiesyearabroad]

DEN GAMLE BY 

I finally went to the Old Town in Aarhus and it was so cute!

I had my very first visitor from back home and the old town was surprisingly good. Inside the actual museum there was loads to see here, a clothes museum, a music poster one, and an exhibition called Aarhus Rocks, (I have some more pictures that you can view in the next post).

Having a friend visit me was like having a taste of home. So many people will promise to visit you when you go abroad but truth be told, they won’t. Even though we kicked each other on the bed I really appreciated having my friend travel all this way for a weekend with me. 

It’s just unfortunate that it was raining buckets and that we couldn’t visit Bambi at the deer park but we did have a good time. 

Thanks for visiting Wit, I love you for it

[jackiesyearabroad]

Catch Up 2: 

When: September 2014

Where: The beach and The deer park

Around this time I had finally made friends. YAAAASSS! And so we decided to go to the deer park and the beach. Initially I was like no to the deer park because Jackie and Animals do not see eye to eye. No No No!

I eventually decided to go because… “I was in no position to pass up friends” #meangirls and my fears became a reality, some dusty deer started chasing me. Did it think I was a piece of chocolate or something. I mean the look that it had in it’s eyes. You would think it actually loved me.. Well, it probably did. . 

Not gonna lie. The little animals were kinda cute. I give them a 3/10. And a special shout out to the albino deer which was just doing it’s thing, repping all the albino deers out there. 

Oh yeah, the beach was great. Didn’t go too close to the water because well, that weave was Peruvian and ain’t nobody got time to have salt water in that #ratchet

[jackiesyearabroad]

Catch Up 1: Copenhanging in Copenhagen

We arrived in Copenhagen on the 20th of August 2014 and we had a blast. It was brilliant. Copenhagen itself isn’t like any other European city that I’ve been to. It’s neither slow nor fast.

When we arrived, we made sure to try the Danish Pastries, I mean that is what they’re known for here, right? They were amazing. I’m not really into pastries but these were on point.

We stayed at the beautiful Tivoli hotel. The service was brilliant and the hotel itself was just gorgeous and luxurious. I would definitely recommend it. I initially wanted to stay in a hostel as I’m a student and am on a budget, but my divalicious sister, who was kind enough to help me settle in, refused such. I’m happy we stayed at the Tivoli hotel.

We also went on a boat tour around Copenhagen and it was alright. It started to rain so that did ruin it a bit for us. However, we did also do our own touristy things we went to the ‘Church of Our Saviour” where we climbed up the stairs to see the whole of Copenhagen. It was seriously worth the climb. I’m terrified of heights but it was a great experience.

This is such a long post. But anyway, Copenhagen was great. You should visit.

[jackiesyearabroad]

Catch Up Posts

So since I've been on my exchange since August and I've only just started blogging now, I'm gonna do some catch up posts from August to now. I know what you're all thinking, "YAAAAAS JACKIE'S LIFE IS SO INTERESTING" but this is gonna be a gradual thing since I do have a life (lol not really) I'm just gonna try my best and update all 6 of you who read this tumblr

[jackiesyearabroad]

Pre-Arrival Worries

Hey peeps who actually read my tumblr,

Okay so I had written this massive post about how my year abroad is going so far and my crappy laptop kinda died on me… yeah… annoying.

Its probably for the best as it was a long post but I was basically talking about how I was initially really afraid of what was to come and that was only because of people back home who were like, “what if you’re racially abused?” etc. I kinda FREAKED and I am an over-thinker… that’s actually an understatement. So I began googling all this stuff about racism in Denmark and became so afraid because I was reading so many different things. One person was like “its great, they’re really tolerant.” Others were like “they’re so racist.” I didn’t wanna go anymore.

I actually spoke to a former friend (awks) who is black and Swedish and she was like look, your year abroad is gonna be what you make it. You’re cute, you’re fun they’ll love you! After that I was “You know what? Just have fun.”

Just to update you guys. I’m actually having a great time. Everyone here is so friendly and nice.

I’m gonna keep updating you guys from an honest perspective

[jackiesyearabroad]

Welcome to Le Blog

Hey friends,

So I’ve started this blog so that I can share my exchange experience with you. I wanted to start a blog about this but I couldn’t be bothered #LAZY! But I have a new roommate and she has the most banging blog ever! So I’ve been inspired… #ShoutouttoAnita!

I am studying in Denmark and I have actually been here since August! I will update all you 5 people who read my blog about how that has been. I’m studying Law and so far I am having a great time. I wanna use this time to travel. I’ve only been to Greece so far because I am cheap and have no money! so yeah… that’s it.