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Danish Candy Posted by Bjørn A. Bojesen on Nov 21, 2017
Er du en slikmund? (Do you have a sweet tooth?) In Denmark, the nearest slikbutik (candy shop) is never far away. In supermarkedet, købmanden, kiosken, biografen (the supermarket, the grocer’s shop, the kiosk, the cinema) – everywhere folk (people) happily buy slik (candy, sweets) to bring along or enjoy at the movies. Whether you’re fighting…
Happy Anniversaries and Stuff Posted by Bjørn A. Bojesen on Oct 31, 2017
Life is full of anledninger (opportunities, occasions) to fejre (celebrate) – and also sometimes to sørge [serw-eh] (mourn). Here’s a small guide to help you choose some kind words for your Danish friends’ great life events. Let’s start with the sad part: When somebody has lost a loved one, a decent way of showing your…
5 Senses in Danish Posted by Bjørn A. Bojesen on Oct 24, 2017
In order to learn Danish you need to keep both ører (ears) and øjne (eyes) open. To get the full cultural oplevelse (experience), however, you have to engage alle dine fem sanser (all your five senses). Høresans (sense of hearing) or hørelse [hur-l-seh]. Hører du hvad jeg siger? [hur do va yi seeor] (Do you…
How to Survive Denmark’s Dark Days Posted by Bjørn A. Bojesen on Oct 14, 2017
How many årstider (seasons) has Denmark got? Two, says an article I read: the Golden Summer and the Great Murk. On the one hand, you’ve got the nice hot time of the year with plenty of festivaler (festivals), garden parties and family trips to stranden (the beach). On the other hand, you’ve got the long, dark…
Top 6 Danish Monsters Posted by Bjørn A. Bojesen on Sep 29, 2017
There really are two Denmarks: There’s the urban country most tourists see, with street art and vegan restaurants. Then there’s an ancient land of moser (bogs), dybe skove (deep woods) and øde strande (empty shores). Trolde (trolls), nisser and hekse (witches) you’ve already met. Now say hello to these 6 creatures from Danish traditional folklore…
Asking about Origins Posted by Bjørn A. Bojesen on Sep 24, 2017
Hvor kommer du/I fra? (Where do you/you guys come from?) Some people don’t like this question, but as a tourist it’s hard to avoid the natives’ curiosity. 🙂 When asked in a friendly way, it can be a genuine icebreaker… Let’s look at origins. The easiest way to reply is, of course, by means of…
Let’s Look at Stars Posted by Bjørn A. Bojesen on Aug 31, 2017
Kan du lide at kigge stjerner? (Do you like watching stars?) Om sommeren er der lyse nætter i Danmark, men snart begynder den mørke tid… (In summer there are Bright Nights in Denmark, but soon the dark period will begin…) Here’s some star-spangled Danish for chatting about stjernehimlen (the starry sky). Use it with caution…