Annelise's Adventures on Earth: January 2005

Another sporty Jaguar.

An old racing Jaguar.

An old classic Jaguar.

The Jaguar exhibition in Øksnehallen in Copenhagen. Martin and I were in to see it this Sunday. Those cars are quite beautiful, but very expensive! There was even a James Bond-bad-guy car there, but my battery died.

Martin using his new warm-glove ice scrapper that I got him for Christmas! It came in handy on this cool, crisp Copenhagen morning.

Martin's little kitchen in his one room apartment in Emdrup. It actually works quite well...but that oven doesn't work. It's quite cozy. :)

My farewell dinner with my family the night before I left for Denmark, Jan. 4, 2005. Kami, Paul, me, Dad, Chad, and Carley. Mom is taking the picture.

Back in Denmark

I have almost been back in Denmark now for three weeks. It was a very long trip home with the flight to Los Angeles from Seattle, where I had to wait in a long line to get my boarding pass at the British Airways counter in L.A., then the long lines in the security. The flight to London wasn't so bad, but the guy I was sitting next to was sniffling and blowing his nose the whole way, I knew I was going to get sick, too. When the flight neared London, the plane had to circle a couple times before landing, which took more than a half hour, which meant I was one of the last ones to make it to my connecting flight to Copenhagen, which was at least nice and short. But because of the caos at the other airports, my luggage did not arrive with me in Copenhagen, so I had to leave the airport without them. Fortunately, after many years of travel, I have learned to keep my toiletries, extra undies and pajamas in my carry on just in case this kind of thing happens.

It was nice to get back to Denmark. My friend Martin met me at the airport and then we stayed with his family for a couple days before he moved into an apartment in Emdrup, north of downtown Copenhagen. We had a nice weekend together in Cph, where we braved the hurricane weather and spent the day in downtown Copenhagen while the rest of the country was cozy in their homes watching the reports of the extreme wind storm attacking the country, especially in northern Jylland. The wind blowing so hard on my face was hard with the chest cold I had developed, likely acquired from the guy next to me to London, dammit. I was feeling miserable and my jetlag wasn't helping the situation.

The weekend ended too quick and I had to get back to Aalborg for exams. I won't talk about the first one, because that didn't go so well, but the second one was better. It's nice that exams are over, and I headed back to Copenhagen right away to see Martin again. That weekend went by too quickly as well, because I had to get back to Aalborg to figure out the specifics on what I am going to be doing this next semester in regards to an internship or other options, and then I have to turn in my immigration papers before my visa expires on the first.

Now, I am just about to right a letter to the Danish immigration office and beg them to give me a permanent visa, so that I can work and live in Denmark. The rule is that you have to live here seven years before that happens, but I am going to try anyway. I have only 2 years, but isn't that enough?

It's been snowing a bit today, but now it has stopped. I want it to snow so it covers all the grass and the ground is totally white! I love the way that looks! I am also planning on going to Norway next month to stay with family and hopefully get some skiing in! It will most likely be cross country, but I don't care! I look forward to playing in the snow!

Ok, now I'm going to write my letter to the immigration...and I better do it in Danish. I hope it turns out well!

Over n' out.

Leaving on a jet plane

My time at home in the states has now come to an end. It has gone surprisingly fast, although it seemed like there were a lot of slow times. It was nice to be home to celebrate the holidays with the family, but I am really looking forward to going back to Denmark and seeing friends and a special someone.

Again, like before every trip I go on, I am stressed. My bags are always packed to their seams with things I have acquired while at home and during the holidays. Let's hope that Alaska Airlines will be kind to me and let my heavy bags come aboard without an extra fee. Please, please, please!

Happy 2005 to everyone and I look forward to seeing friends from the USA again soon, and my friends in Denmark even sooner! (Speaking of "sooner"....too bad for the University of Oklahoma Sooners who didn't win the Orange Bowl, but good for the Pac-10 that USC won, even though I can't stand the Trojans.)

Over 'n Out!

Coming in for landing at Paine Field. That is our shopping neighborhood below!

A sunny view of some of the many small islands in the San Juans.

A view over the San Juan Islands.

The front of our plane.

Here is Heather, Christian and myself in front of a monument in Friday Harbor. We walked down from the small airport and had lunch at a local pub then walked down to the waterfront and enjoyed the view of the crisp blue water, and beautiful trees along the islands. If you were to drive to Friday Harbor, it would take almost two hours by car to get to Anacortes and then an hour ferry ride to this island. With a plane, we are there under an hour!

The marina in Friday Harbor on San Juan Island.

A view of Mt. Baker to the east with the Puget Sound below.

Heather sitting in the back with her headset on and ready to communicate! We had fun listening to the other pilots in the air talking with air traffic control.

I finally got a chance to fly up in a little Cessna plane today, the 3rd of January. My friend Christian (right) has his license and rented a plane for a few hours on this beautiful day! He and his friend Doug (taking picture) met at Boeing Field in Seattle and then flew up to Paine Field in Everett (really close to where I live) and picked my friend Heather (left) and I up for a flight to the San Juan Islands! It was both our first time in such a little plane and we were excited, and of course scared at the same time. I sat in the front passenger seat with Pilot Christian, and Heather and Doug were smooshed in back.

I met up with some friends I know through the Danish foundation at Ray's Boathouse seafood restaurant at Shilshole Bay in Seattle. There is Mary, Jens, me, Erik, Deanna, Jørgen, Kitty, and Christian.

Me and Husky Band friends, Jonell and Yumi, met for tea time at the famous Krispy Kremes donuts in Seattle. We had fun catching up and sharing pictures before I leave again in a couple days.

My mom was working on the finishing touches of my graduation quilt when my sister's cat, Arnold, came and made himself comfortable on my quilt on Mom's lap. Isn't he cute for a cat? And I'm not even a cat person!

It is tradition in my family to play a round of golf on New Year's Eve. My mom, Aunt Maren and I played the par 3 course at Willows Run. Here, you can notice the artistic abilities of my aunt with her golf cart through the dewy fairway. I enjoyed the round, because I got to wear my new Adidas golf shoes again! They are so cool!

Here I am after my brisk walk through the woods. It was a lovely, crisp and clear day!

I went out to Tiger Mountain outside Issaquah and tried to capture a similar picture like Martin had, but it just doesn't have that same beauty and perfection in photography as his. This forest definately captures the Northwest's beauty, though.

The sunset over the Pacific Ocean at Cannon Beach, Oregon. (Dec. 29th).

A view of the famous Haystack Rock off of Cannon Beach on the Oregon Coast.

Rocks at Oswald Beach. I love the way they look like seals in the sand.

Oswald Beach north of Manzanita. We hiked down to this beach from the highway. It was so beautiful and the coastal air quite warm. There were also a lot of surfers out that day!

A view of Neakoni from the beach in Manzanita.

Looking up a street in Manzanita.

Cheddar cheese being cut and packaged in the cheese factory.

Me and a Tillamook dairy cow at the Tillamook cheese factory! Mooo!!

The Tillamook cheese factory in Tillamook, Oregon. They make the best cheddar cheese in the world! I love it and I wish they would import it to Denmark! It's great!

I couldn't help take a picture of the white-shit-splattered roof top of a coastal building. And how lucky could I get to actually get a seagull to be in the act of shitting! It's the 2nd bird from the left! Cool, huh?!

We call them "Elephant Rock", but there is probably another name for these beautiful freestanding rocks off the coast of Rockaway Beach in Oregon.

My mom and I on the beach at Rockaway Beach, south of Manzanita. (Dec. 28th)

And here is a daylight picture of myself and the view of the Manzanita coast and the Nehalem River delta beyond that. (Dec. 29th)

Hear I am at the view point on Neakoni, which looks over the coast down towards Manzanita on the Oregon Coast. It is my first view of the coast, and a very dark one. It was also quite breazy, yet warm! (Dec. 27th)