Hej Merritt.

I am now entering the ninth month of my exchange in Denmark. I am very busy these days. On April 16, it was Queen Margrethe’s birthday. In Denmark, when the queen has a birthday, many of the people in Copenhagen (including tourists and school classes) go to Amalienborg Castle and wave their Danish flags in the courtyard at noon. She comes out with her family onto the balcony and she waves to the crowd.

I was accompanied by about 30 of my exchange student friends as we stood with our Danish flags in her courtyard to wave. When she stepped out, the crowd started to wave and shout and whistle. The atmosphere was just spectacular! She stood waving for a long time along with her children and grandchildren. I felt so lucky to be there in front of the queen, and lucky to have the opportunity to share her day with her.

After she went back inside, a few of my good friends and I decided that because it was such a beautiful day, we would go for a walk. We walked along the sea towards the Little Mermaid statue. There we sat, with big ice cream cones, and talked about how excited we are getting for our Euro Tour, how sad we are to be leaving Denmark, and what comes next in our lives.

It was a bright and sunny day and I had ice cream in my hand, the sea on one side of me, and my friends on the other. I tried to soak in that moment. It’s days like those that I cannot imagine having to depart from.

All of my readers are aware that I have had so many opportunities to travel to nearby countries and cities during this amazing adventure over this past year. I have visited Austria, London, Sweden, Scotland, and recently, France.

I was in Nice, Southern France, very close to the city of Monaco. Staying along the French Riviera was amazing! I was invited on this trip by one of my fellow rotary members along with her granddaughter Nanna, with whom I have been sharing my experiences and knowledge of being an exchange student, as she will be going to New Brunswick as an exchange student this summer. My expectations were that of a normal and cozy city apartment. I had yet to know that she lived at the very top of a building, attached to a glass sunroom where you can overlook the entire city of Nice and the ocean. The view was breathtaking. I could have stayed up there for days. We had our meals up there as well as tea in the evenings.

Every day after breakfast we would walk down to the markets in the main street by the ocean. They were selling many fruits, olives, and flowers. We walked along the beach, shopped, ate amazing food and went for a hike up to a waterfall. (Nanna said, “Only a real Canadian would go to a big city, and love the fake waterfall most….” It was beautiful though, and surrounded by a jungle-like hill.)

From the waterfall, you could see the ocean and beach very clearly. It was so nice, especially after being away from nature for so long. The trip went by quickly and before I knew it, we were back on a plane to Denmark. I loved every minute of it and I am so grateful that I have made so many friends in Denmark. It has lead to the most amazing and memorable times of my life so far.

Nanna is very excited to come to Canada and I am so proud of how far she has already come to get herself ready for her experience. Little does she know that she will have the most unforgettable and incredible journey of her life.

On the weekend, I spent time with my friends, host families, and our family dog. We saw Iron Man 3 in the cinema. It was a fantastic movie and a hygge (cozy) evening!

The next day we went into Copenhagen and did a little shopping at the markets and into Stroget. In the afternoon I met another friend of mine, Megan.

Megan is an au pair here in Denmark, from Scotland. We ended up having a nice dinner together and talking all night. The next day we went to Bakken, the oldest amusement park in Europe. That was fun, but scary! The wooden rollercoaster was the worst! I could see it wobbling… so no, I did not go on it. I did try a few of the small rides though, and I played some of the games to try to win chocolate. I didn’t win, but it was still a fun and bright, sunny day!

The weather here is clearing up. I have six weeks left, I cannot believe it. I will make every second count.

Our Euro Tour is coming up shortly – just 20 days away. We will be going to Hamburg, Berlin, Prague, Vienna, Verona, San Remo, Monaco, Lido Di Jesolo, Avignon, Paris, Brussels, and Amsterdam before heading back to Copenhagen. The tour is 18 days long and I get to share it with all of my amazing exchange friends. Talk about an experience of a lifetime!

Vi ses snart Canada!

Knus fra Emily