Copenhagen!

WOW Do I need to give you all an update! So far behind here..

Most of you probably don’t know, but last weekend I was in Copenhagen Denmark!! The REASON you don’t know is because it was a complete and total SURPRISE!!
Yes that is right, my most amazing and wonderful boyfriend planned us a surprise trip to Copenhagen for the weekend!

At first he played it off as a visit to a city in Germany called Mainz to meet up one of his friends… he said we would stay for, “at the MOST three days”.. so I should “pack heavy just in case”… then he repeatedly mentioned how COLD it was going to be…
OK not going to lie, I became a little suspicious.. but still was unaware of what awaited.



As we road on the cozy and comfortable Deutsche Bahn ICE train to ‘Mainz’ … first we changed trains at the Mainz main station because he lived a bit outside of the city. Then we found ourselves in Frankfurt AT THE AIRPORT where he was supposedly going to pick us up. Hhhmmm…..

Before I knew it Matze brought us up to the self-check in machine, pulled out the tickets and our passports and then I realized! :p COPENHAGEN HERE WE COME!!!
After our short one hour flight, we landed at the airport and took a short train ride to the city. Within walking distance to the train station was our hotel. LET ME TELL YOU IT IS COOLLLDDD in Copenhagen! Well the temp was about 32 but it was pretty windy as well!

Our hotel was gorgeous! But of course nice and small, on the fourth floor with no elevator, real door keys, and lots of little hallways (seems like this is pretty common in Europe anyway). We were lucky to have our own bathroom. But you have to look at the pictures! In our tiny bathroom we had a toilet and shower, but the funny thing was where they were located. If you sat on the toilet, your head was in the shower… basically the shower drain was 12 inches from the base of the toilet. And there was only a small curtain…. Okay how to explain…. Uhm, if you want, you can take a crap and a shower at the same time! Actually this could be a good invention for men all over the world!!! LOL!

Anyway enough about crapping… we bought a ‘Copenhagen card’ with access to most museums, public transportation, discounts on food, and entrance to other events and venues. It was great  The city offers many museums and activities. We went to the National Museum to learn about the history of Denmark and also got to visit a local Danish design museum. Really cool was the modern art museum.. you will see some pictures. We even got to see an interpretive dance! My first one! Then we painted our own original piece of artwork (see pics).

Denmark puts on a Christmas market… little different than the German ones, but same idea. You get to eat delicious food, do some shopping, look at ice sculptures, and stroll around in the snow with someone special ;)

Did you know the word Smörgåsbord is a Danish word? Its actually one of their most famous types of food! The word comes from the meaning ‘open-faced sandwich table’. Basically its like a bunch of different vegetables, meats and cheeses on different breads. So I suppose it goes in line with the English meaning of the word, being a synonym for ‘array’. COOL!

The Danish language is quite beautiful. Matze thought it was funny because he could understand A LITTLE bit.. but not as much as he can understand in Dutch! Dutch, Swedish, German, Danish, and Norwegian are all Germanic languages… Oh yeah, and so is English. Matze was excited because he finally felt like he knew what German sounded like to foreigners. Have you ever wondered what English sounded like to someone who had never heard it before? I HAVE!

We did a little bit of shopping, oh I got some new boots because mine were soaking wet. Unfortunately they don’t seem to clear the streets in Copenhagen, so you are constantly stomping around in slush through the city streets, or slipping around on ice in the less busy areas of the city.

I’m glad in Copenhagen there were more museums to visit. In Zurich, it was all about the shopping!

In Copenhagen we got to visit a palace- it was beautiful… I LOVED IT! I really felt like I was a queen in a past life and I was back in my home :p We even saw the crown jewels.. OOOO MMMMM GGGGG!! We saw the King and Queens thrones, beautiful rooms full of precious and valuable things like china, figurines, religious artifacts, diamonds, trinkets made of gold *sigh*…

At least Matze had given me a beautiful ring on our first night there… Took my mind off of breaking into the fortress and stealing all the jewels.

For some reason in Copenhagen there were a lot of families with young babies. In addition, there seemed to be a lot of Muslims at the airport… Dunno what the deal with that was. All in all Copenhagen was very diverse, and obviously many travelers were there, so I cant really tell you how ‘real’ Danish people are.

But there was a nice vibe from the city, dunno if that was because I had already heard it was supposedly one of the, ‘happiest countries on earth’ …
Well, Im not sure if I could live there (Denmark) and deal with the cold, snow, and extremely small number of inhabitants (only 5.5 million).

Anyway- Those are my thoughts on Denmark… Enjoy the pics and share any thoughts!

BTW- this is a slideshow so if you press the stop button you can look at the pics at your own pace. Otherwise they go a bit fast :p

Thanks for reading!

Zürich und Freiburg

A few days ago Matze and I took a train to Freiburg Germany. It was a nice, short, comfortable train ride and when we arrived, Matze’s brother was there to pick us up. Shortly after a nice stroll to his apartment we walked into the city. The inner core of the old city was built in the 12th century and you could definitely tell. It was marvelous to peer up and look at the tall towers which used to guard the city people around that time. There were many beautiful old buildings and in my opinion, the church of Freiburg was the most beautiful one I have ever seen. We were lucky to be there on a Saturday, because surrounding the church was a nice little German weinachtsmarkt. Weinachtsmarkts are popular all over Germany. The word means Christmas market in English, but UNFORTUNATELY in America we don’t have them. At the Christmas markets they serve hot ‘gluhwein’, candied nuts, currywurst and MANY other delicious snacks and foods.

After the market, we took a hike up Freiburg’s centrally located hill. The city actually wraps around the hill like a ribbon. Once we were at the very top, there was a spiral staircase to climb for an EVEN better view. At the top of the staircase there is only enough room for one person to stand. Your view is completely unobstructed and you get a perfect view of the old city below. You can see the city core and where the larger part of town was built around it. In the distance you can see the mountains as well as France. Before I got down I enjoyed a small moment of sticking my arms out and screaming “I am the QUEEN OF THE WOOOORLLLDDDD”. It felt great.

After our nice day in Freiburg we had some tasty German beer and watched some football, ah ehm, I mean soccer. Later we headed into the city where we witnessed a German demonstration against … well I guess you might say the ‘corporate machine’ … or something of the like. The whole protest was surrounded by many police officers who formed a circle around it. Thank goodness it consisted mainly of drunken dancing university students, and I fit right in. No one got too crazy or caused any problems. After a bit of clubbing and talking at a local new age dance club, we headed back home. It was funny to see the protest had moved to right in front of Matze’s brother’s front door.

The next morning we got up early and back on the train to Switzerland. After a couple of minor train transfer troubles, we arrived in Zuirch! The city was breathtaking. We visited some very old churches (not as pretty as Freiburg’s) and enjoyed a self-guided walking tour. One of the best parts was a visit to the Lindenhof Park. Lindenhof was an intimate park located on a small hill with a view over the city of Zurich. By the time we got there night was just falling over the city. We watched in awe and gazed at the town below. We saw long smoke stacks from tiny homes drifting into the fresh cold air, people strolling around the canal and harbor, Christmas lights and decorations dotting the town, and beautifully lit churches and official city buildings. It was a very surreal moment.

The next day we did some shopping! Everything in Zurich is rather expensive. Fortunately we didn’t go too crazy. Some things we were able to enjoy included some delicious Swiss fondue for dinner and yummy assorted chocolates on our shopping trip. Matze got some slippers and I got a new pair of gloves. The coffee in Zurich is ACTUALLY espresso…., which I have indeed developed a taste for. OOoohh I’m so EUROPEAN!

Today I’m in the library doing research on internships and working on my marketing plan paper for Baker College. Later on we are meeting a large group of English speaking people at the ‘wasserturm’ (water tower). The Mannheim weinachtsmarkt is opening today and we all want to enjoy some gluhwein! On Friday we might go to the one in Heidelberg. Saturday we leave for Mainz Germany for a short trip to see a friend.

Oh yeah- about the interview. I didn’t get it. Unfortunately the hiring manager wanted someone with advanced knowledge of upper-level HR management, including theories and best practices. Although I didn’t fit THAT bill, I must have made an impression because he got me an interview with one of his colleagues; still waiting to hear back from that person. I also met a girl who is a marketing intern AT SAP! She gave me contact information and will hopefully continue to help me out.

Please enjoy the pictures. Sorry I've been having problems with labeling then. I will try again soon.Click here to see pics.

Thanks for reading and until next time!

Zurueck in Schland!

So, back in Germany! Its been a great week so far although I have to say my interview went rather poorly. SAP is looking for an EXPERT in the HR field and Im not sure I'm exactly that girl. Although I graduated with a MINOR in HR with my BACHELOR degree from BAKER COLLEGE 3 YEARS ago with NO WORKING EXPERIENCE in the field.. who knows what will happen!

Tomorrow we're heading out on a 9:30 train to Freiburg! We'll spend the day there with Matze's brother. See some museums, shopping, eating... then perhaps a small party. The next day we head to Switzerland! I'm so exited. This is my first time actually researching and creating a schedule for our trip. I have our whole 1.5 days planned out!

Mom get ready for some delicious Swiss chocolate! I know how you love your chocolate :)

OK time for bed! What a busy day and more to follow!

Jen

Demo Derby

Nasville state fair opened up today and were in for some fried candy bars, cows, and hillbillies. Fun stuff! We're watchin the demolition derby! Be home soon after a quick stop in Chicago.
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ATL

------Original Message------
From: jengiannosa@hotmail.com
To: jengiannosa@hotmail.com
ReplyTo: jengiannosa@hotmail.com
Subject: ATL
Sent: Sep 8, 2010 10:54 AM

Bye Florida!

We didn't want to leave LOL! The nice hot weather, the white sandy beaches.. Ahh... What a tragedy! On the other hand, we're excited to see. Atlanta! Yesterday I sent out 5 requests and we got 3 acceptances! WOW, I am totally a couch surfing pro man.

We will be in ATL for a couple days... We decided we are going to the aquarium for sure.. Its one of the largest aquariums in the world and should be pretty awesome!
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Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

Ultimate Adventure

I'm on a boat...I'm on a boat... I'm on a boat Mother F*#er!!!

Yesterday was truly lovely but at the same time.... HHOOTTTT!!!! We were completely drenched in sweat after riding bikes thru the city.

The night before we had to sleep in the car which was horrible because of the temperature. On the other hand it was a little easier after the amount of beer we had consumed during and after the drag queen show :D

Back to yesterday- we booked an awesome adventure on the water package. Last evening we had a sunset sailboat ride which was breathtaking. We JUST left the dock this morning on our way to the coral reef. First we'll do some snorkeling then parasailing followed by jetskiing water trampolining and kayaking. All u can drink beer and wine... All u can eat food.. WOW.

We're sooooo excited!!!!

Today we leave when we get back to shore on our way to Tampa... Hope mom got a hold of the fam so we have somewhere to stay!!
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