summer?...kinda

The people in Michigan might think they've got weird weather, but It's not even close to as weird and random as it is over here in Denmark. I dont want to talk to much about somthing as boring as weather, but I thought I should let you know that within the past couple of weeks we've finally had some nice hot summer days!!!....and some winter/fall/spring days too, but at least "summer" is in the mix now :) I've finally gotten some color, and we've had days and nights with open windows. And people are wearing shorts! The first hot day of the year was one of our last days of school. I went to the beach with some friends right after class and went swimming!



It wasn't nearly as cold has it was in April! haha. But they hadn't re-built the dock yet and and there was smelly sea-weed stuff that haddn't been taken away yet that went out to about 20m. So I had to crawl/ walk/ swing my way out there.

Last weekend really got me in the summer mood too. We had a family BBQ out in my host dad's sister garden and it was nice and hot that day :) We spent the whole day grilling and playing yard games and drinking coffe with cake (very danish) It might have been the last time I see some of the family too, which is kinda weird to think about. I don't have pictures of that day...

The last school day has now come and gone (over a week ago) and I'm free! Don't be too jelouse. If you can remember, I started about 3 weeks before you guys over in the US. And I still have all my exams to take, and 8 hours of language school every week. But still, it's very weird that it's all over. Im not comming back to that school again next year and I'll never have another school hour with my class. We don't even all come to exams at the same time! It krept up, which is kinda nice becuase I have vacation now, but kinda sad too. I few days ago I had a meeting at the school with the principal and my counselor, and the 2 other exchange students who went to the school. Just kinda a goodbye thing, and we each got some papers documenting that we went there and what classes we had and stuff. So,..thats over with!

This is inside Solrød Gymnasium ("Sun Red High School", haha) my school....that I no longer go to :/

Since Tuesday I've been working in day care, just for something to do haha. It's at the same school as my 10klasse was and the same school Simon goes to now. All the kids I'm working with are 5 or 6 and it's been a pretty interesting excperience. I kinda forgot that I haven't been around kids that ago since..well....I was that age!!! I don't know any little kids and I havn't gone to school with them since 5th grade. haha. (we never saw them in 10 klasse) I don't even see little kids. they're always at home, with their parents, or in school. So it was so weird to me the first day. Seeing the things the find funny or exciting, like stiking their head in and out from around a corner for 5 minutes. haha. It's fun to just watch them with each other too. I would have loved to go to kindergarden/grade school in Denmark. They have so much more freedom! I remember when I used to have resess and the teachers and lunch mom's would ALWAYS be yelling after kids telling them to stop. Here, you don't really stop them unless they're about to kill each other. I was a little confussed at the start. But it seems like we're just there to help them if they get hurt or yell at them if they're hurting someone else. It's their choice if they want to jump off the top of the playground. If they get hurt, we help them out and they learn not to do it again. haha. They have sooo much fun. There are a lot of kids there, and not that many adults but it doesn't seem like it's not enough adults. The kids seem to take care of themsleves more than they generally do in the US, or from what I've seen at least. If the 5 year old spills something at lunch, 4 of them get up, grab paper towel and help clean it up. They're soo much fun to watch!! They other day me and one other adult took about 10 over to another place for lunch (there are over 100 of them all together!) It was just a little walk from the school and they got to go over by a little pond to eat. When they were done eating we set them free and watched them help each other up onto the roof of some shed type thing.haha. Then one of them started chasing a couple of ducks and all the other kids joined in. They ran pretty far away...but then they came back!... FREEDOM is the key. haha

Simons last school day was a week after mine (on thursday) He graduated from 9klasse which is a big deal here becuase in Denamrk you go to the same school all the way up till you're 15-16 (9 klasse is like 10th grade) Some kids top going to school there (kinda like stopping after high school) you could still get a job and stuff. But most kids go on to something else. Simons going to Oregon next year as and exchange student, then to Gymnasium for 3 years like Anne and Anders. Anyway, on the last school day they drees up in weird costumes and run around the school throwing candy. Then they go to the park and drink A LOT and hit eachother with all kinds of weird smelly food.

This is Simon after comming home from his last school day. hah

Anne had her last school day too and she's done with Gymnasium now! But there hasn't been too much celebrating yet, A little bit, but they're not done with exams until the end of June, right when I'm leaving. Thats when all the big party stuff and traditions happen. I'll write about that when It comes.

I've still got 1 day left with all the little kids on Monday and we're going on a feild trip! that'll be fun. (I actually don't know where yet) Also, my first exam is on Tuesday, but it's not a big deal beacuse it's just a written math exam. The ones I'm really nervous for are the oral exams. but once again, I'll talk about those when they come. I'm keeping pretty bussy and the plans just keep rolling in :)....It's scary how "home" I feel here. I didn't think it was possible after just 10 months to feel like I'm home in a completley differn't country. I know I've said I feel home here before but I feel almost like I must have been lying then, when I compair it to how I feel now. I almost want it to stop getting better. It makes it to hard to think about leaving. Thinking about comming home makes me soooooooo happy, but thats completely differn't then thinking about leaving. ...but when I think about this whole "problem" I have, I realise what I nice delema it is to be in; To have two places were you feel at home,.. to have amazing experiences and people you love and in multiple places across the world. It's pretty nice. And life must go on at some point. I'm gonna enjoy what I have here for as long as I have it.

10 months down, and 1 to go.

P.S

My favorit Coca-Cola ad in the WORLD!!! haha. I've seen it in a lot of places here. Now that I've been away for such a long time this seems soooo American to me and makes me laugh every time I see it.

Thats all for now :)