Name: Marissa Buffo
Home University: Indiana University
Summer Session 1 Course: Human Trafficking in a Global Context
Summer Session 2 Course: Emerging Markets
Hej from Denmark! My name is Marissa and I am a junior at Indiana University-Bloomington studying finance and supply chain management. I chose Copenhagen and DIS for my study abroad experience because of the exposure to music, history, and culture. Who wouldn’t want to come to the happiest country in the world to explore and take classes? I was also blown away by all of the opportunities DIS offers to take the learning experience beyond the classroom and into Denmark and Europe. For session 1, I am taking Human Trafficking in a Global Context, which caught my attention because it related to my minor in law and public policy, and is very different from any class I have taken at IU. Only 3 days into the class, and my eyes have been opened to the vast impact trafficking has on society/the economy and how people become trapped by traffickers. We have looked at the different ways the U.S., EU, and individual European countries have tried to prevent trafficking and assist victims of trafficking, which has been an interesting discussion on where we are lacking and what can be improved.
Adjusting to life in Copenhagen has been easier than I thought and I’m lucky to live in such a great kollegium (Danish student living) with so many awesome people. Kasper, my Social & Residential Advisor (SRA), has planned a lot of events to get to know the people in the kollegium and other DIS students. The outing to the grocery store was especially helpful because all of the labels are in Danish (beware: the yogurt and milk containers look exactly the same!).
For Kasper’s birthday dinner, Marko taught us how tomake Danish egg cake which we ate with rye bread.The Hvidore Hospitals Kollegium is about 5 miles outside of Copenhagen, so at night a lot of people get together and hang out in the kollegium café to talk, play pool, and listen to music.
There is so much to see in the city and of course the best way to explore is through a competition. On our first day, we went on DIScover København, where DIS sent us on a scavenger hunt to find Nyhavn, Christiansborg, Amalienborg, and Rosenborg (I’m still working on pronunciations). All four locations were beautiful and we learned a little bit about Danish history from DIS faculty throughout the day, but my favorite moments were getting lost in the street and really experiencing Danish life. It’s difficult to put in words what makes Copenhagen so perfect, but I’m doing my best to figure it out and bring hygge into my life while I’m here.
What I am looking forward to in the coming weeks: museums, Distortion, Tivoli, and field studies with my class!