Happy Birthday To Me

So I celebrated my birthday in style this weekend, starting on Friday when CarrieLynn and I went out with Ates and Odul to a club called Gimle to catch a performance by Danish electronic band When Saints Go Machine. I'd never heard of the band before last week, but I have to say that they were fantastic, and they put on one hell of a show. The music was excellent, and sort of had a bit of a 1980s feel to it, sort of a cross between White Lies and Haircut 100. At any rate, it was a great show, and everyone seemed to have fun, so the evening was a total success.

Then on Saturday, CarrieLynn and I spent the day walking around Roskilde, eventually making our way to the mall where we pigged out on delicious sushi. After that, we wandered back toward Paradis for ice cream, and then back to our apartment to watch a double feature of Plastic Bag and Crazy Heart. Both movies are quite excellent, and if you haven't seen them, I highly recommend you check them out as soon as possible.

Then today, we went in to Copenhagen to see Solomon Kane, which was pretty good overall, but could have been better. It's a solid genre effort anchored by a really good lead performance from James Purefoy. I would have preferred the film makers eschewed the standard origin story, and rather just have them drop us right into the world of Solomon Kane and fill us in on his back story as we go along. As it is, this is still a decent enough vehicle for the character, and I would recommend it for fans of both horror and fantasy. After that, we walked down the street to have dinner at the Hard Rock Cafe, and then strolled around the city for a little while before catching the train home.

Overall, it was a lovely weekend, and a wonderful birthday. Never in my wildest dreams did I think I would actually get to celebrate my birthday in another country, but I am so glad I got the opportunity to do just that. I'll try to update this post with some pictures later on in the week, but until next time, thanks again for reading!

Christiania, You Have My Heart. Now Give it Back!

Just popping in for a quick update. A couple weeks back, I visited Christiania, which is a very interesting place. It's this free society/hippie commune located in the heart of Copenhagen, and kind of a fascinating case study in communal living. I don't think I would ever want to live there, but it is a pretty cool place to visit. There's a laid back vibe that I really like, and I admire what they're trying to do. If my American friends are interested in learning more about the place, they can check out this hour-long documentary that was released in the early 1990s, and presents a rather compelling look at the history of Christiania.

Other than that, we have a busy weekend planned, with several of CarrieLynn's friends coming over for supper on Saturday, and then going out to see Kick-Ass and eat kebabs with Ates and Odul. I'll try to hop online on Sunday and give you all an update as to how things went. Until then, I hope you enjoy the doc.

I...Live...AGAIN!

So I've sort of been neglecting the blog as of late, and to those who actually follow it, I truly apologize. I figured I'd better pop in and write a quick update of all the things that have been going on since the last entry.

Let's see...a couple weeks back, CarrieLynn and I had our first traditional date in Copenhagen. We went to the National Museum and saw all sorts of great stuff, including Viking antiquities and some Greek historical artifacts. It was very fascinating and exciting, and best of all it was free (Yay Socialism!). After that we walked around the city for a while, stopping off at this little hole-in-the-wall Sushi joint where we had some rather delicious California rolls (CarrieLynn had Philadelphia rolls, and she said they were quite good, as well). Then we headed over to the Danish Film Institute where we saw a beautifully restored 35 mm print of Sergio Leone's Once Upon a Time in the West, which is one of my all time favorite movies. Finally getting to see it on the big screen was an incredible experience for me, made better by the fact that CarrieLynn enjoyed it as well (it was her first time seeing it). All in all, it was a lovely day, and I'm glad we were able to do it.

We've been spending a lot of time with our friends, Ates and Odul, which is very nice. We started out by getting them started on Starfarers of Catan, which they seem to really love, but then last week we went into Copenhagen with them to see Vahalla Rising. Everybody really enjoyed the movie, and then we went out for lunch (I had a pretty tasty chicken taco; you know, I never thought I'd be eating Mexican food in Denmark, but here I am) and spent the rest of the day just strolling around the city. Copenhagen is a truly beautiful place, and it's quickly become one of my favorite cities in the world. Love it.

Ates and Odul also joined us for an Easter dinner, though none of us are really what you could call religious people. We just thought it would be a good excuse for a get together where we could spend time with good people, and pig out on lots of delicious food. CarrieLynn made a delicious ham slathered in a tasty honey mustard glaze (and for her first time cooking ham, she knocked it out of the park), while Ates and Odul brought over Turkish lasagna and potato salad. It was my first experience with Turkish food, and I have to say that I hope it is not my last, as it was quite delicious. After eating way too much (not to mention getting a bit tipsy), we watched an episode of Anthony Bourdain's show in which he visits Turkey and samples the local cuisine. That was followed up by some drunken Wii Fit, and then we called it a night.

All in all, I've been having a lot of fun over here, despite the fact that I'm still struggling with the language. It's not proved to be too much of a barrier, though, and has not prevented me from having a lovely time. That's about it, really, and I can't think of any more really significant events that I need to touch on at the moment. I'll try to update the blog on a more regular basis from now, and keep everyone updated on my travels. Bye for now!