Winter is coming!

It is that time of year where festivities begin along with the cold weather. The bright sun which isn’t warm, the cold breeze hitting your face and hands, so you always want to put your hands in your pocket, stay in the warmth indoors sipping hot chocolate enjoying the views outdoors, right? Oh, how I have missed those things in Denmark. It’s nor because the winter here is warm, it’s rather the opposite.

Denmark, along with the Nordic countries are much closer to the north pole than the US. Here, you can really see what happens when you are on the far end of the sun. Also, Denmark is a very open country in terms of land. It is surrounded by ocean and the land is flat. So, the cold wind gets all over the country and is very windy.  

PICTURE FROM THE CRUISE

This is not the biggest effect of being on the north. The biggest effect is not being able to see the sun. Because Denmark is open to the ocean and close to the north pole, the days are short and seeing the sun is a rare sight. I didn’t get to see the sun for 3 weeks after which the sun appeared for about 2 hours and it was gone. This is what 4 pm in Copenhagen looks like.

 The darkness doesn’t however hinder the festivities which is an amazing thing about Denmark. No matter how cold it gets or if the sun appears or not, people still enjoy outdoors activities. There is a term called ‘Hygge’ which is hard to describe but it basically means enjoying food with your friends and family in a well-lit place. You could think about this as Christmas with the difference being it doesn’t come just once a year. Hygge is something people celebrate and do not need a reason for it. The festivities are year around and so is the cold breeze.

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The safety and security of Drexel students is a priority for the University. As part of the efforts to support Drexel students that are studying abroad during the COVID-19 pandemic, the Office of Global Engagement has conducted a rigorous review of programming and provided additional support to participating students with customized pre-departure orientations and regular check-ins during the required self-isolation period and the term.