door

I photographed this charming door in a neighborhood where I was house hunting.

I was afraid the paper notices would ruin the shot, but they actually added context.

I mean this is someone's front door, and there aren't any footsteps in the snow, so I easily imagined hiding out inside this cozy house until spring.

homeowner

My offer on the dream flat was accepted!!! A mason confirmed that the cracks in the foundation were normal for a 1907 building and of not any structural concern, and the seller has agreed to fix all of the other issues in the inspection report, leave some of the fixtures and furnishings I liked, tile the laundry room floor, replace the cellar door to the outside, and build me a little storage space for my bike!

That's not really my new home, I'm just goofing outside the hotel in Copenhagen last week. That's my camera bag.

So now, comes the tricky part. In order to buy the place, I need permission from the Danish government. I don't have a Danish bank account, and I can't get one until I have a tax number, which I can't get until I have a work permit, which I can't get without a final contract, which has taken forever and a day.

I'm leaving Denmark tomorrow and I'm meeting with a mortgage broker this afternoon. My Danish contract starts May 1, which is also the scheduled closing date on the apartment. I'm drowning in details and logistics and it seems like like it's going to take a miracle to get all of this lined up from halfway around the world.

I didn't post photos of the dining room last time, so here you go...

The doorway to the living room has original pocket doors.

It's perfect!!!

Did I mention how much I love the countertops?
And it has underfloor heating!!!

I'm trying to stay calm and keep my eye on the prize. And what a prize it is! Aside from not having a clawfoot bathtub, this place is pretty much exactly how I pictured my Danish home!

river people

Sculptures are the norm in the city where I'm staying and house hunting, but fortunately, they're usually less eerie than this installation in the river.

I heard someone talking about being out for a late night walk and seeing these figures emerging from the river as he crossed over the pedestrian bridge.

I checked it out for myself the next morning, and I'm really glad I wasn't the one who first saw them late at night while out alone in the dark.

They were removed almost as quickly as they appeared, and we can only speculate as to whether that's because it was a limited time installation, or because people complained that they were scaring small children...

copenhagen

I'm in Copenhagen for an event this weekend, so I took an early train in, hoping to photograph some of the city.

Unfortunately, I arrived in the middle of a snowstorm. I made the best of it, but my camera was getting wet and my lenses were fogging up, so I didn't cover nearly as much area as I would've liked.

Most of the photos are disappointing, but a few, like this one, captured the day perfectly. Copenhagen is a beautiful city, everyone rides bikes, and I can't wait to come back!

a storybook house

I had high hopes for this house. It was built in 1915 and is situated on the edge of a forest...

It was located on a winding road in the Danish countryside, surrounded by beautiful rural landscapes, complete with a babbling brook and adorable little cottages. The setting looked like a Hansel and Gretel theme park.

The breakfast nook was straight out of a home magazine. The door lead to a mudroom and laundry area.

These French doors opened from the dining room to a large "L" shaped living room with French doors to a terrace and fenced in yard. The fireplace could be accessed from both rooms.

Surprisingly, I didn't love this house. There was a huge bathroom with a tub upstairs, but the four bedrooms were oddly shaped and on the small side, given the scale of the first floor rooms. There were obvious cracks in the ceiling and walls, and I was scared of the basement and attic, which is an issue since I'm going to be living alone with my fat orange cat.

Europeans generally don't use window screens and since this house borders a forest, I predict a high probability of getting a bat in the house at some point. I'm scared to death of bats. I'd rather hold a snake than look at a bat, so I do not want to entertain the possibility of not being able find it once I see it, and having to wonder whether it flew back out or if it's hanging upside down somewhere in this gigantic house. I also know myself well enough to predict that even without any supporting evidence, I'd probably manage to convince myself for most of the summer that there's a bat or two hanging out somewhere in the house.

If I were handy, or could spend a lot of money on renovation and restoration work, and was not afraid of basements, attics, and bats, this might have been the perfect house for me. But I'm not handy, and once I've paid Danish income tax, I'll be broke, and I am very afraid of basements, attics, and bats, so this is definitely not the house for me.

However, it's not yet "game over" on the perfect apartment. On my way back from seeing this house, I stopped by the apartment and spoke with the owner who says he's repairing most of the issues in the inspection report. A native Danish speaker says that most of the issues in the report are minor, but there are definitely cracks in the foundation. I'm going to try and contact the inspector this week to find out if the cracks are significant and what he thinks it would take to fix them. I really, really, really want that apartment, and now, everything else is just falls short :(

disappointment

It's in the city. It has a parking space, a storage shed, and a secret garden. It has a non-scary basement, high ceilings, beautiful woodwork, and a woodburning stove. It felt like home as soon as I walked in, but Google translator tells me there are some issues with the inspection report...

I love, love, love this kitchen! The counter on the left is heavy butcher block and the counter straight ahead is made of a beautiful heavy, rustic, almost slate material. It's got a wall oven, plenty of storage, and underfloor heating!

The bathroom is modern, yet classic. I love the exposed brick, the giant sink, and the huge shower area. It has plenty of storage, underfloor heating and a heated towel rack! I don't even mind that it doesn't have a bathtub.

I could paint this room Raspberry Truffle and be very happy here! It's a huge space and the windows and high ceilings make it feel even more so. The doorway at the end has original pocket doors and leads to a nice dining room with large windows and a french door. The wood-burning stove takes the heating cost down to almost nothing and it was quite cosy even on a frigid February day.

The yard is completely secluded from the street, the house, and neighbors. It already has raised garden beds, and with fairy lights in a country where the summer sun doesn't set until late at night, it would be a beautiful space for entertaining and relaxing.

I was ready to make an offer, but once I started translating the inspection report, I decided to hold off. There might an area with water damage and there may be some electrical issues. It seems that roof is not in great shape, but this property is at the bottom of my price range and I have a friend who can hook me up with a cheap roof guy.

I had a Danish speaking friend look at the report, but I really need a native speaker to interpret it because it's hard to understand the nuances of the language. I don't know if these are major issues or minor issues, but the house was built in 1907, and it's near the sea, so I don't expect it to be in perfect condition. I'd just like it to hold it's value and not fall apart from under me.

It really felt like home...

more house hunting

My crystal ball tells me you're going to get very tired of this topic ;)

Last night, I looked at this stunningly modern flat; fabulous visual design, but not very practical or comfortable...

In the "plus" column, it had a gas cooktop, which is pretty much unheard of in Denmark, and it had a fancy built-in cappuccino machine. But, it had very little storage and counter space, and the gas stove was powered by propane tanks, which is more of a hassle than I'm willing to deal with.

I loved the bathtub, and not many places have them, but the showerhead is above that chair, and that means I'd need to dry the floor everytime I shower, and that's not something I'm willing to deal with in this price range.

I loved the terrace, but I was not psyched about sharing a yard with the downstairs neighbor who was the one who renovated and currently owns my prospective flat. I'd prefer to buy from someone who will let go and move on.

There were other issues, too. The ceilings felt very low, and there weren't any closets. It's common here to not have closets, but the rooms were too small to comfortably accommodate freestanding wardrobes. The apartment doesn't have a parking space, and it's a bit out of the town center with a not so pretty view, all of which do not bode well for its resale potential.

I really see myself in a vintage property with high ceilings, beautiful woodwork, and large windows, but this place was so striking that I just had to check it out.

Tonight, I'm going to try and borrow a car so I can see a 1915 storybook house bordering a forest preserve 7 km outside of town. It looks like everything I could dream of in a house... but I would need a car in order to live there.

house hunting

Rents in Denmark are about the cost of a monthly mortgage. The deposit required to rent a place is very close to the cost of a down payment and chances are slim to none that I'd get any of it back. As a renter, I'd have to pay to have the place repainted when I move out, and I've learned that Danish landlords are notorious for finding ways to hold on to whatever might left of the deposit after that.

Since I almost own my current house outright, I wasn't thrilled about going back to renting anyway, so I've decided to avoid the rental nightmare, and buy a house or a flat.

House hunting in Denmark is nothing like house hunting in the US. When I bought my last house, we signed with an agent, we discussed our criteria, then she drove us around to see places that might be a good match. When none of those were a good match, she called us with other places as they came on the market, and eventually, we found our dream house.

In Denmark, agents can only show houses listed by their company, and I need to call the listing agent for each house I'd like to see. Then I need to find it on a map, and walk, beg a ride, or take a bus to see it.

Since they don't have buyer agents here, I need to check various websites everyday to see if anything new has been listed. This is a goodtime! Not really. All of the websites are in Danish so when I find something that looks decent, I have to copy/paste the description to Google translator then try to figure out what it's trying to say. The other day I had a translation that said something about skunks. I don't think they were really talking about skunks, but who knows?

I spent most of last Saturday trekking around town looking at places that looked promising online, but fell short of expectations.

The first house I looked at was built in 1930 and had every ounce of charm one could hope for. Unfortunately, the ground around it had started to sink and the house was visibly leaning to one side.

It's really a shame because I adored the kitchen, and it had a greenhouse, a deep soaking tub, and a beautiful upstairs terrace off the master bedroom.

The next house was atop the steepest hill in Denmark. The hill is so steep that the sidewalk was made of concrete steps, and it's illegal to ride a bike down it.

This house was built in 1920. It was in a lovely area and had a fabulous yard and stunning views of the harbor. The downstairs was beautifully renovated, but the upstairs was in disrepair to the point that the bathroom wasn't in working order. It would've been nice if the agent told me that up front, but such is house hunting in Denmark.

I also looked at a flat in a coveted location near the "walking street" that is car-free and lined with restaurants, shops, and cafes.

I loved the woodwork and the large windows, but the agent embellished the size of the place, and I just will not be happy in 89 square meters of space. Especially when the shower is off the bedroom and the other half of the bathroom is in the hallway. *sigh*.

It's a bit unsettling to not be able to read inspection reports, etc. But I have a few good friends who speak decent enough Danish that I can get the gist of things. Still, it's a leap of faith to be house hunting alone and making important financial decisions based on things I can't read for myself.

I'm seeing another place tonight...

riding the bus

I have a love/hate relationship with the bus.

I hate walking (running) to and from the bus stop with a backpack in negative temperatures, hoping to make it in time without having an asthma attack. Today, I hated that I missed the early bus by 6 minutes because my meeting went 10 minutes over, and I don't think things will improve on Tuesday when I have to take the 6:35 to make an 8:00 meeting. That's not to mention the 337.50 DKK (about $62) I forked over for a 10 transfer pass earlier this week.

Despite all of this, I don't really mind the bus ride itself. I can usually have my own row, and it's quite cozy since I learned to sit on the right side of the bus to avoid the draft when the back door opens. Sometimes, I even wish I could stay on the bus, but I suspect this is strictly a cold weather phenomenon...

A snowy morning on my walk from the bus stop to the office.

These Doc Martens Mary Jane's are for walking. I change into my nice shoes at work. Boots would be a bit more practical, but being an impractical girl with 2 cars, my boots have 4-inch heels.

I walk way down to where you can sort of see a sign up on the left. The sidewalk ends there and I walk another 1/8 mile while trying not to get hit by a semi.

The bus stop to go home is at the sign, they do not plow it! The other day, I thought the bus was at 16:42, but it was at 16:47. Luckily my French friends saw me shivering ankle deep in the snow and rescued me. It's cool to know that I have friends here :)

food snobbery

Here it is... this is the post where I confess that I've moved to Europe and realized the horror of American food. It's more cliche than I'm comfortable with, and I haven't officially moved, but it's not any less true.

I had the food situation in Denmark all wrong. Granted, many of the restaurants aren't very good, but the food I've been enjoying in people's homes is amazing!

It started with a delicious pumpkin soup, made with fresh pumpkin because canned pumpkin is unheard of here. Then there was a delicious veggie soup that unfortunately doesn't have a recipe, but may very well be the best soup in the world, making the recipe situation all the more tragic. Then there was the Thai veggie soup, lentil loaf, beetroot soup, pasta with creamy pesto, bread with herb infused olive oil, homemade crepes with nutella and raspberries, and French cheeses (served at room temperature; hard cheeses on their own, soft cheeses on baguette).

The more I eat, and the more I read labels, the more I realize that Denmark's "regular" grocery stores are kind of like Whole Foods, but with fewer obscure ingredients, soy-based and processed foods, and organics.

This low-end yogurt from Aldi cost 15.95 DKK (about $3). The ingredients list simply reads, milk, cultures, sugar, and 8% strawberries.

Try finding generic yogurt in the US that doesn't contain HFCS, artificial colors, artifical flavors, and gelatin! Heck, try finding one that contains 8% fruit! It's probably impossible.

It's so nice to not have to shop vigilantly to avoid HFCS because it simply doesn't exist here, and for the most part, neither does lowfat or nonfat. Cooking with whole, minimally processed ingredients makes a huge difference, and my hosts all tell me to always cook with love...