ALL the Pictures

Here's a link to all my pictures during the time I studied abroad, including DTU, some European cities, and the UK.

http://1drv.ms/1vJNu5P

Some select/favorite pictures:

Campus Village (DTU)

Video Game area in the library (DTU)

Open Area in the library (DTU)

Last Container (All desserts) Dinner - DTU)

Bellevue Beach (Lyngby, Denmark)

The Little Mermaid (Copenhagen, Denmark)

The LEGO Store (Copenhagen, Denmark)

Looks like Amsterdam (Copenhagen, Denmark)

Kronburg Castle (Helsingor, Denmark)

The Little Merman (Helsingor, Denmark)

Nyhavn (Copenhagen, Denmark)

The ferry from Denmark to Germany

Gamla Stan (Stockholm, Sweden)

Sunset (Stockholm, Sweden)

Stockholm, Sweden

Trevi Fountain (Rome, Italy)

Roman Forum/Palatine Hill (Rome, Italy)

The Colosseum (Rome, Italy)

il Duomo (Florence, Italy)

Piazzale Michelangelo - My favorite view (Florence, Italy)

Pisa Baptistry, Cathedral, and Leaning Tower (Pisa, Italy)

Riomaggiore (Cinque Terre, Italy)

Manarola (Cinque Terre, Italy)

Venice, Italy

Venice, Italy

Venice, Italy

Rathus Glockenspiel (Munich, Germany)

BMW Welt (Munich, Germany)

Tünnes and Schäl (Cologne, Germany)

Cologne Cathedral (Cologne, Germany)

Hamburg, Germany

Hamburg, Germany

Berlin, Germany

Prague Astronomical Clock (Prague, Czech Republic)

Prague Castle at Night (Prague, Czech Republic)

Tower Bridge (London, UK)

Buckingham Palace (London, UK)

London, UK

Cambridge, UK

Random Observations and Tips

Here are a few random observations that I remember, looking back on my time in Copenhagen (and the rest of Europe). Some of these are REALLY random, but I'm just saying what I noticed.

- People don't chew gum a lot. A nice side benefit of this is that there isn't any gum stuck on tables.
- Similar to the US, many people don't look at notes, but just look at the PowerPoint slides later. This is partially because of the European way of structuring a course.
- Although the quality (and cost) of living is high, there were surprisingly few Apple products in use. Back at UIUC, a large portion of smartphones and laptops are iPhones and Macbooks. It could be because of high import costs.
- Majors and concentrations seem to be different here. I met someone doing a Masters in HVAC (heating, ventilation, and air conditioning), and he did his thesis on air flow in medieval churches. How cool is that?!
- A4 paper. The typical letter size of 8.5"x11" is not a thing in Europe. It gets to be a little annoying when your folders only fit letter.
- Buildings are very low in Copenhagen. Most aren't allowed to go past 3 stories because of an old mandate saying that the church should be the tallest building in the city.
- There are many refugees from Middle Eastern countries in Denmark.
- Revolving doors in Europe move automatically. It's one of those small things.
- More people walk on escalators than just stand. If you're going to stand, stay on the right, and leave the left open.
- The only places you'll really see graffiti is along the train tracks. Other than that, everything is very clean.
- SO MANY SMOKERS
- UIUC was surprisingly known.
- Driving is the same as the US. The driver is on the left side of the car, and the car on the right side of the road. The main difference is probably being that the cars are manual (stick shift) instead of automatic. For some reason, I always thought all of Europe was like London and that the US was just doing its own thing.
- Toasters are one sided. It's more of a grill shape.
- They take their shoes off inside their house, which is obviously the superior way of doing things.
- Gasoline is close to $8 per gallon. You think that gas is expensive in the US? Imagine paying more than twice what we pay now. Granted, people use more public transportation there, so that accounts for part of the difference.
- You don't exit buses through the front entrance. People only exit through the back.
- A great thing I noticed about lines in many stores and offices in Denmark: there are none. Everyone takes a number, and wait for it to be called while you do your own thing. It's nothing new, but the US can definitely use this.
- Professors are called by their first name. In one sense, people are very informal there. Just because someone holds a doctorate in something and they teach you doesn't necessarily mean you have to be extra formal with them.
- Fast food there is relatively upscale as compared to fast food in America. The places are cleaner, prices are higher...
- ...Portions are so much smaller in Europe. Or, it's just that portion sizes are massive in the US. Take your pick. For example, the "large" fries at Burger King in Europe is in between the small and medium in the US.
- Denmark is filled with 7-11s. They sort of died out in the US, but they're going strong in Denmark. Major transportation hubs will have multiple inside and nearby.
- Street stoplights go not only from green to yellow to red, but also from red to yellow to green.
- Government is organized an centralized.
- Work hours seem minimal and the pay (and taxes) are high. No wonder Danes are the happiest people on Earth!
- Germany is filled with Turkish food places. There are kebab shops everywhere!

Tips:

- DTU is really great for studying environmental engineering and wind energy. Fun fact: There's an off short wind farm in the Oresund, between Denmark and Sweden!
- The Elektrovej bus stop is right by Campus Village. It's perfect for going to Lyngby Station, from where you can take the S-tog (train) into Copenhagen.
- Bring actual shoes. I only brought my (thin) Pumas with me. It's not fun walking a lot with those.
- You can buy clip cards for cash in 7-11s (but I don't think they exist anymore...).
- Danes are really good at foosball. Like, it's practically a hobby/pasttime for them. Unless you're really confident, don't play for money against them.
- IMPORTANT: if you buy power plug adapters (which you'll probably have to), don't buy square shaped ones. All outlets that I saw in Europe are circular, so the square ones will have a hard time working.
- Grades and transcripts get processed by DTU in August/September.

Miscellaneous

- Denmark actually does have vegetarian food. Being vegetarian in a country where meat is pretty central to the locals' diet was naturally a concern for me. However, if you look in the right places (like the DTU canteen where there's a vegetarian meal option every day), you'll be good to go. Worst comes to worst, just buy some pizza!

Why I chose DTU

Everyone asks why I chose a place like Denmark, and more specifically Denmark Technical University. Without a doubt you will be asked countless times if you study abroad, both during and after your journey. Here are my three reasons and some ramblings.

First was location. When you choose where you want to study abroad, it's easy to pick some  typical European country like France or Spain like most people choose. I'm not denying those are great places, but don't think the other lesser known ones aren't as fun or have less to offer.

Denmark is actually very strategically placed in terms of other European countries if you want to be a tourist. Because of its location between central Europe and the Scandinavian countries, its a great gateway to see potentially all of Europe. That could also allow for travel to the Baltic region.

The second main reason was language. Danish is a really difficult language to learn in my opinion. Luckily, they speak a ton of English. According to Wikipedia, there is an 87℅ English literacy rate in Denmark. Granted that's for the entire country, which likely includes many people who don't have a full grasp on the language. But the Danish people in the greater Copenhagen area have a very strong understanding of English. This is especially apparent with students, since that's who you will interact with most of the time.

Since I was only there for a semester I chose not to learn the Danish language because I wouldn't learn enough in a few months to really be useful. Plus, in my humble and objective opinion, learning a language that only 6 million people know isn't worth it with only a few months to learn it. If you're there for a year, definitely learn it by taking the free course offered. On a side note, I didn't get my CPR number until March, so I couldn't sign up for the free class anyway.

The last big reason was the course offering. DTU offered a few unique classes that UIUC didn't have. For me, that was Cryptology 1, Data Compression, and Introduction to Nanotechnology. UIUC had no such classes. On a side note, I'm kind of surprised our strong CS department didn't have a cryptology and data compression class.

Those were just my top reasons. Everyone has their own reasons for studying abroad in their country of choice. As always, if you have questions about how to choose or if Denmark is right for you, don't hesitate to ask!

Transportation

While you're in Denmark, you'll have 2 basic options for getting around: biking, and/or public transportation.

Pretty much everyone that I knew got a bike for their time in Denmark. There are always people buying and selling them on local websites, so you won't have much trouble finding one. I personally didn't get one because all of my classes were very close to Campus Village where I was living, so I never had to walk far. For everything else, there was public buses and trains.
- If you're going to bike, you don't have to worry about safety on the road too much, besides common sense.
- Make sure to buy a good lock.
- You'll have to do some maintenance, but there are some resources in and around DTU for that.
- Make sure to follow all the rules (like getting the proper lights, following bike lanes, etc) while biking. The fines are massive, and the police are strict on biking. And people will get mad at you.

Public transportation throughout Europe is amazing. To be completely honest, I'm a suburbs kid so I barely rode public transportation prior to college. I got some exposure to public buses at UIUC, but those were also pretty good because UIUC is not in a big city like Chicago. Regardless, I think I can safely say public transportation is much better in Europe than in the US. You'll probably be disappointed by the US's buses and trains when you come back.

Unfortunately, public transportation is crazy expensive in comparison to biking, so I did wish I had a bike for when I wanted to get groceries or a quick trip into the center of Lyngby. Danish buses and trains are, however, very punctual. They almost always arrive within a minute of their scheduled time based on my experience.

Most European cities have the same setup for their public transportation using a zone based system. The metropolitan area is broken up into radial zones coming out from the center of the city. The price of the ticket, regardless of if you're using a bus or a train, is based on how many zones you travel.

Make sure to get a zone map and price table when you're at the train station, and ask your international buddy for help.

One interesting thing I noticed about European buses, suburban trains, and intercity trains is that everything is very integrated at a city, country, and continent scale. For example, when going from Copenhagen to Hamburg, Germany by train, Deutsche Bahn and DSB (Danish trains) work together on the same train to provite service. I'll talk more about European trains in a separate post.

Taxis are basically just too expensive to really consider; don't even bother. 

Regrets

I definitely have a few regrets during my time in Denmark. If it's within your power to do so, don't make the same mistakes I did. A lot of these are places that ESN goes to during their annual trips, so make sure to take advantage of it if you can.

1. Visiting Legoland. I don't know about you, but I loved LEGOs as a kid. LEGOs were first created in Denmark, so the largest Legoland, naturally, is in Denmark. It's a little more of an amusement park than a place for LEGO enthusiasts, but it's fun to be a kid again, every once in a while. ESN does a trip here.

2. Seeing the white chalk cliffs of Mons Klint. Nothing more to say here besides it's a beautiful place in Denmark. ESN also goes here. If you can't go with ESN, get a group of people and rent a car for the day.

3. Seeing more of Denmark. For some reasons, that I cannot for the life of me figure out, I chose to see more of Europe than I did Denmark. ESN also does a trip during a weekend around some of Denmark's largest cities other than Copenhagen, and it's a lot of fun. The Danish country side is beautiful, and I regret not seeing it.

4. On the same note, not experiencing Copenhagen more. I went to Copenhagen multiple times, but I was an idiot and visited it more from a tourist's perspective. I didn't go to many events that went on in the city, but I definitely should have. Wherever you go to study abroad, actually experience the city as if you're a resident there.
- As a side note, I did go to Copenhagen when EuroVision was going on, and it was great to be in the middle of the cosmopolitan atmosphere there. People from all over Europe were there representing their countries with flags, cheering on their country's representative.
- However, I still regret not going to the actual event. It was by chance that EuroVision was happening in Copenhagen that year, at the exact time that I was there. It would have been a lot of fun to be in that hall watching the performances.

5. I think the last big thing I regret is not going to Arsfest, which is DTU's annual ball/party at the end of the year. It's a TON of fun (based on all my friends' pictures). Even getting the tickets ends up being a huge event (DTUers call it a "line party") where people stay in line all night and have a good time.

Leaving with regrets isn't the best way of doing things, so do youre best to take advantage of all the different events that go on and places nearby. It makes your study abroad experience so much more rewarding. 

48 Hours in Stockholm

This should have been posted a month ago, but better late than never. I went to Stockholm with a friend I met here from March 21 to 23rd. Here's what we covered in just over 48 hours, and some tips!

Friday - March 21

We took a 5 hour Swedish SJ "high speed" train there. It only went 110 mph (compared to 180mph for Italo), but it did have outlets and free wifi, which is nice for getting a little work done. I used a rail pass, so all I had to do is get the mandatory seat reservations. There were many small lakes along the way to Stockholm from Copenhagen, but we were going too fast for my point-and-shoot to get good quality shots.

One major disappointment for me was that I didn't get a stamp on my passport. This was seriously lame. In hindsight, I should have known that once you're in Europe, you pretty much won't get stamped, especially for train travel, but it was still something I wish I got. I kept some currency as memory instead.

We got there around 2pm.  There was a free walking tour of Gamla Stan at 4pm, so we just grabbed lunch (there's a lot more fast food in Stockholm as compared to Copenhagen), checked in to the hotel to drop our bags off, and went to the meeting point.

We also bought a Stockholm Card at Stockholm Central Station. This allows unlimited use of public transportation, and free entry to around 80 museums and attractions in Stockholm. For the 48 hour version, it's 650 SEK (about $100). I definitely felt it was worth it, but only if you get the 48 hours version or higher, and you plan your time well. On our trip, we only did a little better than breaking even. The 24 hour version if 500 SEK, and I don't see any way that it's worth it.

We ended up having a little bit of time on our hands, so we figured we'd visit the Nobel Museum in Gamla Stan. Stockholm is actually where the Nobel Prizes (except Peace Prize - that happens in Oslo, Norway) are chosen and awarded every year. As you visit various places in Stockholm, you'll find this is a motif throughout the city. The museum is dedicated to the history of Alfred Nobel (the founder of the award), the award and process, and the previous winners. You may or may not enjoy this museum. Even though there's a lot of science and technology in it, I didn't enjoy it that much. Don't visit it unless you have an hour to kill and already have the Stockholm Card, because otherwise it's not really worth it.

But I digress. One of the most important parts of Stockholm to visit is Gamla Stan, or Old Town. This is the original Stockholm, before it expanded into what it is today over the course of hundreds of years. After the Nobel Museum, we walked to the meeting point of the walking tours (big staircase of Sergel's Torv - the main city square). We did quite a bit of walking, but our tour guide was great, and she gave us quite a good overview of the history of Stockholm. Gamla Stan also has quite a few other major buildings and landmarks, so you'll find yourself coming back to this area quite a bit.

We called it a day at this point, so we headed back to the hotel. We found a good Indian restaurant nearby, so I got my Indian food fix after a long time.

Saturday - March 22

We started the day with the 10am free walking tour of the main city. This one ended up lasting 2 hours, and had a lot more walking since it covered the entire city, not just the original small city. Again, the tour guide (a different one) was great, definitely knew her stuff. We covered places like the main square, main shopping street, some parks/gardens, and a bunch of random statues.

Next up was the Royal Palace. They have a big gaurd changing ceremony around noon or 1PM every day, and it was pretty cool to see for the first 15 minutes.  If you really want to see what's going on, get there around around 20 minutes early to get a good spot.

The Cathedral is right next door, so we squeezed this in before going to the palace. It was pretty nice overall.

The main palace was pretty cool. It was actually only built in the 1800s, so it's not as old as other palaces. You'll also learn that most of the Swedish Royal Family is actually of French descent, if I remember correctly. This place had a guided tour in multiple languages. It's worth around 1.5 hours of your time. Cameras weren't allowed though, which was a bummer.

Definitely one of the highlights of the trip was the Vasa Museum. It's a museum dedicated to a massive ship that didn't even go a few kilometers before it sank. The original ship was recovered and rebuilt. The museum has done a great job maintaining its ginormous size and all of the history associated with the ship. I only wish I had planned the time better, since I only got an hour in the museum. You could spend an entire day in here if you wanted to.

The Icebar is a pretty cool place (pun half intended) to visit once. It's basically just a bar, but it's made entirely of ice, from the counter to the glasses. It's pricey - 185 SEK for one person - and you have to book a 40 minute time slot in advance. It includes one drink, so it's not a complete ripoff. It's a mini version of the Ice Hotel in northern Sweden. If you can't go to that, I think the Icebar is a good substitute. I ended up going alone, though it wasn't the plan. It was pretty awkward just being one guy taking selfies in there. If you go, go with someone.

Sunday - March 23

If I remember correctly, we only had a handful of places left to see. City Hall was one of them. It wasn't that great overall, but a few of the rooms were pretty cool. This is where the Nobel Banquet is, so there's a few cool facts regarding that. This also is best visited with a guided tour, which starts every few hours in English and

I believe the last place we saw was Skansen, Stockholm's "open-air" museum. I personally thought it was pretty lame. For my fellow Napervillians, it's basically Naper Settlement but on a steep hill. It does, however, give good views of Stockholm.

It was time for our train back. Nothing special here, just the same views as before.

Conclusion

Pretty every place we went had free admission with the Stockholm Card. The Card's website is really detailed, so make sure to look in advance as to what you want to visit, and their admission prices.

Random Observations and Tips

There were A LOT more beggars than in Copenhagen
I thought it was more English friendly. There were more signs in both Swedish and English than many other places
H&M headquarters is located here. Get some shopping in!
Overall, it felt a little more expensive than Copenhagen.
Make sure to do walking tours, tip around 30-50 SEK.
You can trade DKK for SEK at a good rate in copenhagen central
In general, guided tours are good for info, not for time limits though. Sometimes you want to be able to speed through certain places.
There are quite a few boat tours in Stockholm. Most of them are probably good, but they're usually not available until April, so we didn't get to go on one.

Phone Home

DTU will give you a SIM card for a local mobile carrier, but for the most part, I don't think you'll need it. Here's why:

- I made a post about T-Mobile that's worth a read if you are also on T-Mobile. Having free international data roaming is simply the best.
- A lot of students are on Facebook, Google Hangouts, etc, so that's usually how I kept in touch with them on a daily basis. Another good tool here is WhatsApp.
- For calling home, I used a lot of Google Voice/Hangouts. It has free VoIP calling, and the Internet in Denmark is pretty good. You'll have no problem with getting a good quality voice call to the US.
- Viber is also a good tool, along with Skype.

Where it's nice to have a local number:

- Keeping in touch with other students outside of class
- You might need a phone number to give to Danish authorities for the CPR number and residence permit. If you ever have to contact them, you'll need a Danish number.

In short, I'd say just have a Danish number with a prepaid Lebara package and pay as you go on that. Otherwise just use the dozens of Internet based options you have.