engang hjem, altid hjem.

As my "Months in Denmark Ratio" approaches 7:4 (as in four months left!) and my return is coming closer to realization, I'm beginning to think about all the things I will miss about Denmark :'( - that post will come but it's not something I want to think too much about just yet!
but at the same time, there's really no place like home and there are many things I am looking forward to returning to! I thought while I'm in the position to appreciate, I would write a list of all those things I miss about Canada.

1. THE ONES I LOVE. I honestly don't know how people survived youth exchange before the invention of Skype.  And even then, nothing beats a hug.

2. Mountains! Big landscape.  Denmark's highest natural point is 170m above sea level, and the hill I live on in Canada is 244m high. The largest lake in Denmark is 40km2, and Okanagan Lake is 351km2.

3. Driving my car, mostly for the fun of actually driving, because otherwise I'm all over public transport ;) Also if I was a Danish teen I would have already been on roadtrips with my friends to Sweden and Germany by now, but the Danes just don't do it that way and I think one in my class has a car because it's so expensive! And not as necessary.

4.  Taking a bath! I haven't had a bath in 7 months.. And it's just so nice on cold days and when you are sick or stressed, ahhh. Even if it's 40 degrees when I come home, I plan on havin me a nice bath.

5. Starbucks! They don't have Starbucks in Denmark, or Sweden either, EXCEPT in the Copenhagen Airport where the lattes are going for $10 and they don't even taste the same.

6. While we're at it, Tim Hortons. Good ol' Canadian Timmie's. Soup, sandwiches and IceCaps at prices unheard of in Denmark.

7. Cinnzeo and the free samples.

8. Baking Soda. They just don't bake with baking soda in Denmark, if you looked hard enough you could find something called Natron, but overall NONE of the North American recipes I have attempted to make have quite turned out.

9. A tobacco free environment, cause smoking just ain't so cool in Canada. It's like a social thing for the Danes, an excuse to stand around and talk and consequently probably 75% of my class smokes.

10. Being able to participate in class discussions. Now that I can understand more Danish and follow the discussion in class it is even more frustrating that I can't casually throw my opinion in there. I am so excited for University!

11. Hockey! And it's not like I was hockey-crazy at home either, but sometimes you just want to throw on the game while you're doing your homework and whatnot, but it's never on here! Sometimes important games are aired live at around 3am but I'm not THAT dedicated.

12. Being able to practice my french by reading the back of the cereal box. I miss my bilingual country! However now I can practice my Danish by reading the box, and also Swedish, Norwegian and Finnish.

14. Poutine, mmmm.

15. It being acceptable to wear Lululemon pants when you're not working out. You know sometimes you're just having one of those days and you would much prefer to be wearing Lycra? That's just not allowed in Denmark.

16. Costco. Everything you're looking for - supersized, but mostly just browsing the books, waiting in a really long line, and who could forget, samples.

17. Soy Milk, of course Denmark has soy milk, I just don't drink it as much..

18. Clean Streets, no grafitti. I think overall Canada is relatively very clean? At least what I've seen. Copenhagen, while I love it, has a much dirtier vibe to me, and while I can appreciated the beautiful works of streetart, it's the little tags everywhere that bother me. And the strong smell of urine at Nørreport Station.

19. Moxie's White Chocolate Brownie!

20. George Strombolopolous. He just feels very Canadian...And the CBC.

21. THE REAL CANADIAN SUPER STORE, Joe Clothing.

22. The Coquihalla Highway. Now that I think about it, I am very fond of that drive! It is just so engrained into my life and it's a beautiful showcase of the Canadian landscape. I would even tell tourists to BC to make that drive, just forthehalibut!

23. Toilets with water in them. Toilets in Denmark have about 10cm of water in them.

24. Not thoroughly rinsing my dishes. It may just be the two host families I've stayed with, but they have to wash and scrub clean all their dishes before putting them in the dishwasher. I mean, isn't that what dishwashers are for? They could save all that water that is waster and put it in the toilets, just sayin'.

25. People saying sorry and excuse me all the time. Some may argue Canadians say sorry too much, but I think it's cute in that awkward, apologetic way.

26. Good sushi for cheap. I've had good sushi in Denmark, but it costs like $25-$30, whereas in Canada I could grab a Dynamite Roll for like $7!

27. Cookie Dough and Marble Slab Ice Cream.

I don't miss free drink refills, but I'd just like to mention that they would NEVER happen in Denmark.

28. Late opening hours! It was kind of a shock when I got here that everything closed so early and it definitely threw a kink in my plans several times. Most grocery stores close at 8, things close at around 2 on Saturday, and the world shuts down Sunday.

29. Wrapzone. If you can't tell I'm a little hungry..

30. Oprah's FINAL SEASON! This better come out in full on DVD because it's been a hard year without my girl.

31. Saying Hi on the street. You know how when you are walking and you pass someone so you smile and say "Hello"? That's weird here, instead you just look ahead/down/away..


For starters..