almost home

Is this really happening? The real estate agent just called to tell me I can pick up my keys tomorrow!!!

I was expecting to get them on Friday, but finances are in order and there's no reason to wait!

Opie and I will be home soon :)

german shopping

In Denmark, we pay 25% VAT (value added tax) on everything we buy. German VAT is only 19%. So with the German border less than 2 hours away by car, it's quite common for people to drive over the border to shop. The Germans have hospitably built a huge shopping center just for this purpose!

Yesterday, I was able to borrow a car, so I grabbed a couple of friends and headed to Flensburg. I have power inverters for my high ticket appliances like my food processor, blender, hand mixer, etc., so I was hoping to pick up a toaster, vacuum cleaner, electric kettle, lamps, and a deep fryer for falafel, but one of the above mentioned friends is moving back to the US, and he's offered to sell me some of his small electrics on the super cheap.

So, I bought the deep fryer and spent most of the afternoon wandering around the most American store I've yet to encounter on this side of the pond. In Denmark, our choices are limited to a few varieties of each thing, we just do not have a whole aisle dedicated to condiments, another dedicated to cereal, etc. But this German store was huge, like bigger than Costco with tons of variety!

Here's a photo of yesterday's combined haul...

Boys will be boys, so is it any surprise that we ended up with 10 cases of beer, Dr. Pepper, and a bottle of Jack Daniel's?

I was ecstatic to find ricotta! It's difficult to find in Denmark, comes in tiny 250 g containers, and costs a small fortune. In Germany, it still comes in 25o g containers (about 8 oz.), but at least they're only 1.25 Euro (about $1.50) apiece. One of the first meals I'm going to make in my new kitchen is manicotti, Caesar salad, and garlic bread!

I also found dill pickles, which do not exist in Denmark. The closest thing we have here are cornichons. How times change, I remember once running around town trying in vain to find cornichons for a particular recipe and ultimately substituting dill pickles. The jar is huge, 2400 grams (about 5 lbs.), and I'm not sure how I'm going to fit it into my tiny Euro refrigerator, but if there's a will, there's a way!

And finally, 5 kilos of brown rice!!! I have 40 lbs of brown rice coming in my shipping container, but there's no telling when that's going to show up and since I'll have my kitchen as of next Friday, I need my brown rice! Brown rice is difficult to find in Denmark, and when I do find it, it's very expensive, think wild rice in the US :(

All in all, the Germans didn't disappoint, but I sure wish they had tempeh. It's impossible to find tempeh here, and that makes me sad :(

danish banking

Today, I received all of my Danish banking documents! I thought this was very cool, until I realized I can't read them :(

As a business traveler in Denmark, I've been spoiled by everything being in Danish and English. However, day to day life is a whole other experience. I realize now how much I've taken literacy for granted and this is a completely humbling experience.

I don't even know which of those is my credit card and which is my debit card! I also have no idea how to access online banking because that little calculator-like thing is a PIN code generator, but all of the menus are in Danish.

I'm learning bits of Danish here and there, mostly by reading and guessing, but I still can't speak a word of it and I feel silly every time I try. I can pretty safely navigate a restaurant menu, and I know that a "bilvask" is a car wash... it's the practical things that count ;)

Once I'm juggling a few less chainsaws, I'm going to sign up for Danish classes, but I just cannot take on another thing before I'm somewhat settled. So until further notice, I'll learn my Danish by walking around the grocery stores, and by randomly asking my Danish speaking friends what "insert butchered word here" means.

And in case you were wondering, my work laptop OS is half in English and half in Danish, with a Danish keyboard. The other day, I had to call the help desk and read them a Danish error message. I really need to get on those lessons...

moving money

I am a planner and a saver. Had I not hit "reset" on my life, we'd right now be about three months away from owning the Connecticut house free and clear. Yep, that's right, no mortgage, tons of equity, complete freedom! That is in part why I'm in the position to buy my fabulous new home in Denmark!

Last week, I wrote about the hurdle with my contract. I solved that one and I'm scheduled to close next Tuesday, but again, the universe may have other plans.

You see, I have an ING Direct account full of money. Money that's just sitting there, collecting interest, waiting to finance my new life. Or so I thought.

I finally got my Danish finances set up and went to transfer money from ING to here and what do you know??? ING doesn't use SWIFT Codes, and banks here don't use 9 digit routing numbers. Awesome! After waiting eons for ING's customer service line to open, a very unhelpful call center employee told me that I'd need to route the money through my bricks & morter bank in the US. That's it. That's all the advice he had.

So I called my US bank and they cheerfully told me that they don't do international transfers online, but if I come into the local branch, they'd be more than happy to help me do a wire transfer. Unfortunately, they will not pay for a round trip ticket to Connecticut.

Fortunately, there are companies like XE Trade that specialize in international transfers. Unfortunately, the war on terror, drugs, money laundering, and the like have made quite an ordeal of opening an account. The first name and photos on my driver's license and passport match, but the last names don't, so they needed a copy of my divorce decree. They also need to see a current bank statement, which is on a ship in the middle of the Atlantic and not due to arrive for another 4 weeks. They also need to see something "official" like a bill or a bank statement that shows my Danish address, and they can't quite grasp the fact that the reason I'm in this hellish process is because I need to get ahold of my money so that I can get a Danish address!!!

I do not have time to deal with this!!! I will get it sorted out, but I cannot believe that in 2010 with all of the available technology, it is this freaking difficult to transfer money between countries.

From where I'm sitting right now I feel like I may as well be broke :(

walking street

In the town where I live, most of the shops are found on this walking street. Bikes are allowed, but cars are not.

The street has everything from green grocers and grocery stores to housewares, H&M, jewelry stores, cafes, chocolate shops, pizza places, kebab houses, and soft ice bars. The upper levels of the buildings are mainly apartments.

I love how the shops set their merchandise outside! I was walking home from the bus one afternoon and found the most adorable pair of ballet flats outside one of the shops. I immediately fell in love, and probably wouldn't have seen them had they not been outside.

A major difference between life in Denmark and life in the US is the shopping culture. On weekdays, most shops are closed by 6 PM. On Saturdays, most close by 2 PM. And on Sundays and holidays they don't open at all. Even the main grocery store closes at 8 PM and only opens on the first Sunday of the month until 5 PM. There are a few grocery stores scattered about the city that have later hours, but learning those will take some time.

crisis averted

Phew! My company gave me the letter I needed to get a loan for the dream flat! Everything will be in order in the next couple of weeks and I should be able to move in on June 7 :)

It's a 3 day weekend in Denmark, no housework means I should have plenty of time to get out with my camera. I look forward to posting photos of the beautiful Danish spring!

it never ends

On a technicality, I may be back to square one on a place to live. Because my employment contract has a clause that allows my company to terminate the contract within the first 3 months of employment, the bank will not give me a loan until August 1.

I've been working for the same company for nearly 4 years. Is it at all likely that they're going move me all the way over here, then terminate my contract? Probably not, but the only way around this issue is to get a letter from my company saying that they won't terminate the contract during the probation period. Seems like it shouldn't be an issue, but Legal may have another opinion.

So, let's just say I can't get the letter. Worst case scenario is the seller is sick of my American shenanigans, makes me pay the 1% breach of contract penalty, and decides to sell to someone else. Best case scenario is another 2 1/2 months of living like a gypsy with my belongings stashed all over town. I can't even begin to entertain the nightmare of putting my shipping container in storage for all this time.

Sometimes, I just have to wonder if it's a sign...

at home in denmark

It took me 27 hours to get to Denmark!!! I was delayed out of Boston, missed my connection in Frankfurt and had to wait 9 hours for the next one, which was also delayed. Thankfully, I was able to hang out in the Star Alliance Gold Lounge. But, the wifi service wouldn't take my credit cards, so no internet for me! After about 2 hours, I'd read all of the English newspapers, and I had to entertain myself for the next 7+ hours with people watching and German TV (no subtitles!). That got old fast!

Lufthansa staff weren't the friendliest people I've ever encountered, so during my Frankfurt detainment, I had no idea where Opie was, and no one was in a hurry to help me find him. So much for Gold status and a Premium Class ticket! Unless it's an emergency, I will never fly Lufthansa again.

When I finally arrived in Denmark, an empty cat carrier with my name on it came through the oversized baggage claim. I immediately thought the worst, but a nice woman calmed me down and soon reunited me with my orange angel who was sitting calmly in his carrier, no doubt freaked out by his transatlantic trek. I still have no idea why there was a second carrier. I suspect they temporarily moved him because the layover was so long, but I don't have a theory as to why they shipped the extra carrier from Frankfurt.

When Passport Control asked how long I was staying, it felt strange to say, "I live here." But I do, and now we're here waiting to move into our new place, and for our stuff to make it over on the slow boat from New Jersey.

The hardest parts are over. Let the adventure begin...

off i go

Yesterday was moving day. A small army of men spent most of the day packing all of my worldly possessions and loading them into this 20' shipping container...

It should arrive on the other side of the Atlantic in 5 weeks or so.

Coincidentally, I got word today that the Danish Justice Department has granted permission for me to buy my flat! All that's left now is the mortgage, and that should be easy, peasy!

I'm filled with anticipation, excitement, and sadness for this next phase of my life. I've cried an ocean these past few days, but there's no turning back now.

I have a one way ticket tonight, so off I go...

tri-color pasta salad

I need a break from the move chaos, so let's talk about one of my favorite topics... food!

The weather is warming up and it's time to dust off the recipe for this pasta salad. It doesn't contain mayo, so it's a great side for picnics, it's also a nice warm weather lunch, though it doesn't win points for being low cal or low fat :(

1 lb. rainbow pasta, cooked & drained
1 tomato, seeded & diced
2 - 3 scallions, sliced
1/4 - 1/2 cup minced cucumber
salt
olive oil
vinaigrette

Drizzle the cooked pasta with olive oil and toss to avoid sticking. Chill. Add the tomato, scallions and cucumber to the cooled pasta, mix, sprinkle with salt and chill.

Right before serving toss it with vinaigrette, use bottled, or make your own...

Dressing
2/3 cup vegetable oil
1 1/2 T sugar
2 T minced shallots
dash onion powder
1/4 t garlic powder
1/8 t coarse black pepper
1/8 t oregano
1/3 cup red wine vinegar
1 T dijon mustard
1 t lemon juice
1/4 t parsley
1/8 t salt
1/8 t basil

Use a blender to blend on high until thick and creamy. Chill.

bringing opie

My travel agent booked my ticket and arranged passage for Opie last week, but yesterday I found out that the propeller plane from Copenhagen to Southern Jutland does not allow pets. Why did it take a week to figure this out?

My alternatives she told me were a bus, train, or rental car. With 2 suitcases, a 20 lb. cat and a backpack, I didn't see how public transportation was an option and after flying all night, driving didn't seem safe.

I asked for some time to weigh my options. And I thought, "why not fly through Frankfurt, which has jet service to Southern Jutland?" Why didn't my travel agent think of that?

Opie will travel in cargo through Frankfurt and I won't be able to see him until we clear customs in Denmark nearly 12 hours after our first flight takes off :(

counting down

A week from right now, I'll be enroute to Denmark. I should probably say, "enroute home" because Denmark is home now.

In a last minute snafu, Danish customs informed me that Opie's vet certificate needs to be signed by a USDA vet; there's only one in all of New England, but I will have it in time! My baby is far too big for SAS and far too heavy for Lufthansa to travel with me in the airplane cabin, so he will need to travel in cargo :( I tried every angle to avoid this, I even looked into sailing from New York to London, but none of the cruise lines allow cats.

Making the final preparations to leave the place I've lived for thirty-something years is weird. But I miss Denmark. Sitting in traffic surrounded by ugliness this morning made me really miss the Danish countryside and my Dollar Store outing confirmed that I will not miss the abundance of cheap crap that's so readily available here.

But in spite of knowing that I'm moving to a place that suits me much better than where I've been, there are parts of this adventure that are excruciatingly difficult and I hope for the strength to keep it together throughout this next week. Once this part is over, noone will ever be able to convice me that I can't do anything I set my mind to.

I'll leave you with one of my favorite things about my new city, the green grocers that have such delicious produce and lovely displays of plants and flowers at affordable prices (by DK standards).

I think I will try to splurge once a week on something beautiful and something delicious, Gerber Daisies (my favorite!) are everywhere, and not much beats getting off the bus a stop early, going to the bakery, and eating cake in the sun next to the canal.

I consider myself very lucky to be able to experience this lifestyle for the next 3 years and I'm looking forward to finally being settled and getting back to sharing my recipes and life abroad with you.

I know my blog has taken a different turn lately, and I appreciate your sticking with me. I promise to get back to cooking and sharing soon. Five months is far too long to live like a nomad, and I'm ready for the next chapter to start.

vintage sofa

I've been dreaming of this sofa forever...

It's velvet. It's in pristine condition. It's at least 50 years old. And I scored it for 575 DKK (about $100)!

It's staying in a friend's studio until I move to my flat, but I visit it often :)