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This weekend I had the pleasure of going back to my home country, Denmark. The occasion was my aunt’s 60th birthday party, and my parents flew to Copenhagen to help celebrate. I flew out of Amsterdam on Friday afternoon, and my dad picked me up. We were sleeping at the beautiful country house of a part of my family that I had never met before, the family of my mom's cousin. They have four daughters (who were not home), nine horses, three dogs and two cats. The dogs are Great Danes (literally – you know, the breed!) and they are enormous. I think they weigh about 125 pounds. Before we left the house the next day, Karsten showed me his two amazing collectors cars. One 1952 Rolls Royce and one 1958 Jaguar XK150 R convertible. Both in immaculate showroom condition. I didn’t dare to ask how much they were worth. We took a drive through the country roads north of Copenhagen with the top down – what a car.
Anyways, this day was actually about the big birthday party, with about 24 people in attendance. This was a very efficient way to get to see everyone, all in one go. After seven mind-numbing hours of speaking Danish, I was finally thinking in the damn language. By this time, everyone had gone home except my cousin Lena, her boyfriend Rasmus, my other cousin Tina, and her boyfriend Even. As it turns out, Rasmus owns four bars throughout Denmark, and we all five headed out on the town. This was the first time I’ve ever spent time with my cousins in an adult setting, outside of family events – so great. I can now sort of imagine what its like to have a brother or sister of similar age. Friend, but also more than that. Strange for me as an only child, and I really enjoyed the night.
Sunday was also about a family lunch, this time on my father’s side. While it was only ten people this time, the food was incredible. A classic Danish lunch with pickled herring, rye bread, breaded and fried fish, and pate. This weekend I’ve had enough rich and fatty foods so that I can avoid cooking until at least the next weekend.
On Monday we took a boat cruise tour around the harbour. Check out the photos to see how much new building they are doing in Copenhagen. So many modern buildings and new construction that I can hardly believe it. Almost none of it was there in 2002 when I last visited.
Tuesday was my last day in Denmark, and we used it to check out the best gallery/museum in the country. Louisiana (as its called) was showing a retrospective of both Paul Gaugin and Roberto Giacometti. The former was a big influence on the latter, and to see them together was a treat. Giacometti’s thin sculpted figures are immediately recognizable, yet there was so much more to his career. I recommend a trip to Copenhagen to see this show. ;) The pictures show that the building and grounds of Louisiana are worth the trip alone!
The sad moment finally came when I was dropped off at the airport by my parents. They are off on Thursday to Rome, where they will rent a car and spend two weeks visiting friends and driving up to Paris. They haven’t done a trip like this in decades, and they deserve it.
