To Denmark - Happiness here and afar

I realize very well that there is nothing that can replace our actual experience in Denmark.   This blog has probably been much more meaningful to me because I have memories.   Shared memories is something I have talked about on several days.   We can have great memories of a place or time, and we can have terrible memories.   The truth lies for most of us probably somewhere in between.   There are always good things about a place and there are always bad things.   I have found that the key to happiness is to decide what you look for, what you want to cultivate.   Denmark is not utopia and there are lot of things I do not like about Denmark. In fact, it has taken me many years to deal with some things that drove me as far away as possible.   But I cannot run from who I am. I am part Danish and part Scottish.   I am a Viking and a Highlander, two cool-blooded and hot-headed people.   And that makes sense, considering our shared...

Our last major excursion included a visit to Kronborg Castle in Helsing ø r. While this castle by itself is very impressive and honesty a feat to visit, I thought it was so fitting to the topic of this class.   It is at Kronborg that Shakespeare’s Hamlet takes place.   And in this famous play, Marcellus, a guard and member of the lower class, states the most obvious about the future of a country when its leadership is corrupt and dishonest: “Something is rotten in the state of Denmark”. Social Honesty and Trust is a core value in Denmark.   I cannot stress this enough. We place our trust in our leadership but mind you, we also watch them very carefully.   If a leader shows signs of “getting too big for their britches”, meaning they believe they are more important, better, and can misuse their position of authority, Danes will act. That applies to political leaders, our beloved royal family, and leaders in business and social organizations. Nobody is exempt. ...

Today we would have made a visit to S ø mod’s Bolscher, an old fashion, traditional hard candy factory in the center of Copenhagen.   This store holds a very special place in my heart, but I want you to focus on the generations old tradition and craftmanship of making candy.   This family owned store was founded in 1891 and has for five generations continued to use its traditional manufacturing process, making hard candy by hand using only natural ingredients. The business has survived two world wars and the relentless competition from industrialization that can produce more for less. It has been visited by people from all over the world and is the official supplier to the Danish Royal Court (this is a very special appointment bestowed on a handful of Danish companies). As you walk in, you will see an old fashion candy store where you can purchase more flavors and shapes of candy than you can imagine.   And in the back, through the old windows, you see family m...

Strategic superiority and engineering innovation –   How strength, agility, and speed are key to mobility. I hope you have a chance to visit Denmark in the future and I hope you go and visit the Viking Museum in Roskilde.   The Viking Museum is a “national museum for ship, seafaring and boat building culture in ancient and medieval times”.   However, one of the most famous exhibits is their Viking ships which includes the longest Viking warship ever found, measuring in at a staggering 36 meters (about 40 yards, or 118 feet, or length of three full size school buses). The Viking Museum was built in 1969 after five Viking ships were excavated in the Roskilde fjord. People in the area knew for centuries that a large ship was at bottom of the fjord.   Did they not know, however, that there were five large ships and that they dated back to the Viking age.   In 1996, nine more ships were found right around the existing museum.   By now, the Roskilde Viking...

Today’s events included a “hygge walking tour” along streets such as K ø bmagergade and Landem ӕ rket. Interesting to note is that the names K ø bmagergade and Landem ӕ rket mean (roughly translated) “Merchantsstreet” and “Landmark”, and that could not be more fitting for my topic today.   These medieval streets were among the original streets when Copenhagen was founded.   In fact, Landem ӕ rket was the border between the city and the undeveloped areas on the other side of the city’s ramparts. In fact, these streets existed already during the early Middle Ages, long before Kings’ Garden and Adelgade (where our hostel is located) were built. I remember these streets very well and have fond memories of them. They are picturesque and date back to the 1300s (maybe even earlier). Then it occurred to me that the joy I remember is not from a building or a picturesque street.   It is from the memories I have growing up and going into the “city” with my grandmother...

It is 15 June 1219. The Danes are fighting in Estonia. King Valdemar Sejr (Valdemar the Victorious) is on a crusade and has gained victory over the northern region in this area. However, the Estonians attacked the Danish army and Valdemar once again has to defend his territory. It is a rough battle and the Danes are exhausted.   They have experienced victories and losses for days and are now on the defense.   At the very moment all seems lost, a flag appears in the heavens and gently falls toward the earth.   King Valdemar grabs the flag, sees it as a sign from above and shows it to his troops.   Reenergized by the sign from above, the Danes fight back and are victorious. This battle really did take place, but I think you would be hard pressed finding a Dane that genuinely believes our flag fell from the skies as a divine promise of victory.   However, don’t make fun of the story. It is a powerful story that has been passed on from generation to g...

I woke up this morning thinking what it would have been like to wake up in Copenhagen.   I closed my eyes and remembered the sounds and smells I was so familiar with. I could hear the traffic slowly waking up, the sounds of busses and people talking, sea gulls flying over, and … oh, the smell of fresh bread. I have so far in all my travels never experienced anything like Danish bread and pastries. I also remembered a song my mom and I always sung together, all the way up to her last weeks (she passed last year).   It is by a Danish folk artist and, true to Danish value of simplicity, he sung about the simple things in life. In this song, he describes the happiness he finds in sitting in a simple little rowboat, floating on the water and just loving that moment. He mastered summarizing the connection between simplicity and happiness, and the choice we have to focus on what we have instead of what we do not have: (Sorry for the rough translation but I wanted to preserve...

Today’s itinerary would have included a bike ride through Copenhagen, going past places of cultural significance to Danes. While these are naturally also popular tourist attractions, it warrants looking beyond the “social media opportunity” and understanding the value (happiness) these places hold for us. One of the stops was the Little Mermaid along the shore of “Langelinie”, the old port area of the harbor by Nyhavn.   She sits on a rock on a place once known as Mermaid Bank, looking at the sun over the horizon. This small statue was given to the city of Copenhagen in 1913 by Carl Jacobsen, the founder of the famous Carlsberg Beer and is inspired by the fairy tale “The Little Mermaid” by the Danish author H.C. Andersen.   While this fairy tale is honestly fairly sad and dark, there are so many lessons that relate to Danish values and happiness. The two I want to point out are: Nothing in life is served to you on a silver platter. If you want something, you ...