As new international students flew in from all over the world to Copenhagen at the start of the semester, University Post collected their stories. At the University introduction meeting we sent out a short 'one-question' questionnaire. Here are the results for this semester - see our earlier coverage in New students judge the Danes in prejudice test.
See a photo gallery of this year's orientation meeting here.
We asked the students to state the strangest experience they have had in Copenhagen since their arrival. Often repeated replies include the Danish good style, good looks, constant cycling and weird language pronunciation (or rather, non-pronunciation of letters). The fascination of the coin machines at the check-out counters in supermarkets, the metro with no driver and the babies left in prams on the street. The horror of Copenhagen's expensive prices is balanced by the equally common admiration for the drinking culture and the friendly spirit.
We received hundreds of replies. Through a tough selection we chose the craziest ten. Our apologies to those whose replies are not mentioned in this list! Count down to the strangest experience and become estranged yourself!
10. The go-to store
‘The huge amount of 7-11’ [the 7-11 chain of stores, ed.] – Aaron
9. Sound of silence
‘Silence on the trains’ – Kevin
8. Waiting for green
‘All people wait for the green, even when there is no traffic’ – Lisanne
7. Nighthawks
‘The difference between the morning people and the night people. Danes like to party.’ - Lorena
6. Interior design
‘Shower in the middle of the bathroom’ – Jenny
Our note: Read our article about this peculiar Copenhagen phenomenon in our article 'Forced to shower in tiny toilet' here.
5. The ‘polar bears’
’They think 23 degrees Celcius is warm and then they go to the beach and swim.’ – Eva
Our note: Read our photo story of swimming in ice cold Copenhagen waters here 'International students lack Viking mentality ' here.
4. A new kind of baby
‘So many designer babies’ – Sophie [Could mean: Babies in designer clothes, ed.]
3. The sum up
‘Danes are tall, blonde, tattooed and wake up awfully early. Although they might seem grumpy, they are quite helpful and speak very good English.' – Anne-Sophie
2. The scoring technique
‘A guy in Nørrebro with a fake injury in his head made by a make-up artist just to attract girls’ – Lorenzo
Our note: Yes, the Danish man works in mysterious ways. Read this debate entry for a personal account Comment: Danish men don't know how to court a woman.
1. The landlady
‘My landlady wanted to put sex with her in our contract... Crazy' – Pavel
Our note: Pavel is not the only one who has had some...uhh...weird experiences with landlords and landladies, see for example
'Landlord: No gays or bisexuals' and 'Renting the room turned into something awkward'
What do you think – did we miss any strange situations?
Write in the comment field below your strangest experience in Copenhagen ... or your surprise at the mentioned above.
Want to discover more strange customs? Read the results of a test on an earlier group of newcomers: 41 reasons why Danes are so strange
And another test: 119 great stupid questions.
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Gallery: Gallery: Orientation meeting for new students 2012
Comments
Is there any chance we could
Is there any chance we could access these stories in their full form? I'd be interested to read about other students experiences. As a student in Europe I may resonate with these experiences. I'm actually ready pay for an essay writing about student challenges in the modern world of today. Some support from would really help.
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