The crazy thing about studying abroad is how fast it goes by. I have been living in Scandinavia for five months now, and the past three weeks in Copenhagen felt especially short. With such a short experience like this, it’s important to take the time to reflect upon all of the amazing people I met and things I did as well as how I have grown personally.
Coming into the Summer Sessions as a previous DIS student, I was already more comfortable with being thrown into new situations than I would have been without my semester in Stockholm. It was great to see how I could manage to get around my new city of Copenhagen without worrying, and feeling more confident in my abilities than before. However, it also felt nice to have a clean slate: Copenhagen was like my new canvas where I could have a fresh start and feel lost (but in a good way) all over again.
Even though I have become more independent and confident, it’s always nice to have a support system around you; in Stockholm that was my host family and here it was my amazing friends and roommate. We were all in this new experience together, and even though I was able to share some of my travel expertise, I learned so many new things from them as well – like how to cook some healthy meals rather than cooking pasta every night!
Copenhagen has treated me so well, from swimming at Islands Brygge and Amager Strandpark to renting GoBoats in the canals, eating countless street hot dogs, and exploring museums and towers. I will forever be grateful to have been able to spend three weeks studying in Copenhagen, and I can definitely understand why Denmark consistently ranks as one of the happiest countries in the world!
And while I will never forget my time in Denmark, I very much look forward to spending my final three weeks with DIS back in Stockholm, where my heart truly lies (cheesy but true). I can’t wait to see Stockholm in the summer, as everyone always said it’s the best time to be there, and I’m especially excited to spend more time with my host family, even though I won’t be living there full time anymore and to experience the Swedish holiday of Midsummer with them!
I look forward to sharing more of my experiences in Sweden, but in the meantime – thank you for the memories, Copenhagen, and I’m sure I will be back in the future!