Everyday is like Sunday: Morrissey

I'm not a massive fan of Morrissey and prefer him with The Smiths.

But I love this song, and it kinda reminds me of North Jutland :-)

Our personalities don't match

I went for a job interview yesterday as a personal carer to a woman in Aalborg. She was interested in me because I speak English, and she claims to be a translator (it transpired it is more a hobby).

Anyway, I got an email from her just now saying:

I do not think our personalities match on a level that is needed in this kind of close work-relation, so unfortunately I will not be offering you a job.

Oh well, back to the drawing board on the job front.

They're very direct, though, these Danes, aren't they? I would have preferred something more like this:

There were so many applicants and I felt one in particular really matched what I was looking for. But thank you for your interest. I'll keep your name on file for possibilities in the future.

But I suppose she was only being honest (hehe)

Jøden - The Jew

Since I moved to Denmark, I have been struck at how bad the music is here. In particular, the Danish rap scene seems to be infested solely by white boys, dressed up as failed pimps. I think they might have seen a 1970s blaxploitationfilm, and based their manner and attire on that. They just get it so wrong, don't they?

One rapper in particular interests me. His name is Jøden, which translates perfectly to The Jew. I wasn't interested in his music, which is crap (like all Danish rap), but more why he had adopted that particular name, which I find quite annoying and probably racist. I would feel the same if a musical act called himself The Christian, The Muslim, The Hindu or The Buddhist. It's just not something that sounds right to my ears, even if the act follows the particular faith that he labels himself as.

But in Jøden's case, he isn't actually Jewish at all. He's a catholic boy (in itself a minority in Denmark) and was born Michael Mühlebach Christiansen, in Skandeborg, Jutland. It just happens that when he was a youngster, he had a haircut similar to those given to Jews in concentration camps by Nazis in the second world war. Hence, he got given the nickname, Jøden. Obviously later on in life, he decided it would be a good idea to call his rap act that. He has clearly always been culturally insensitive, or at least keen on controversial names, since he is also member of a Danish rap crew called Pimp-A-Lot (LOL!).

Am I too politically correct on this? Or has the last 15 months being in a culturally insensitive country dulled my senses to the degree that I even question myself for disapproving that an act with a name like this could rise to prominence in the Danish arts? I don't think a white, catholic boy could call himself The Jew in the UK or the US and get away with it. I don't think people would buy his CDs or go to his concerts. At least they wouldn't unless they viewed him to be a Screwdriver act, which Jøden is not. Plus, the media would be onto him straight away. Jewish groups would also have something to say on the matter.

But what can you expect from a country like Denmark which thinks sensitivity to other cultures is a weakness? You can buy licorice here that is shaped into little racist faces. I have lost count of the number of Jutlanders that have explained that the similarity between the word Jyde (Jutlander) and Jøde (Jew) is funny because not only do they sound the same (both similar to You'the in English) Jutlanders and Jews are stingy with money (this was once explained in my Danish class, by my teacher!).

Oh well, like has been pointed out before, if I don't like I should leave the country.


Blah, blah, blah

Gå hjem

There is a web forum called Foreigners in Denmark, where, unsurprisingly, foreigners living in Denmark can congregate and chat about their experiences in this land. I was surprised, therefore, to read that a group of people that are deemed 'complainers' are routinely told to 'go home' if they don't find Denmark to be their idea of Utopia. It's not just Danish members saying this, it is fellow foreigners, some of which don't even live in Denmark, or didn't live in Denmark when they made their comments.

I'm all for debate, which is why I find it hard to stomach that this kind of behaviour is deemed acceptable. It seems, moreover, that it is a concerted effort to remove liberals from the board, since most of the invitations to leave Denmark, are made after an individual has made a point against racist attitudes in Denmark or against Danish nationalism.

The Danish countryside

Hmmm. I moved to this 'hyggeligt land' from another cosy country, one that is a little bit more varied in its nature. So it puzzles me that many Danes seem to gasp at how fantastic it must be living 'på landet', or in Danish countryside. For a start, no matter where in Denmark you are, you're near a town, village and some extremely wide roads that you could drive a couple of lorries down.

But what I really dislike about the Danish countryside is its lack of variation. For the most part, it's grass. It's not even a natural grass, it's a cultivated grass that cows snack on. Moreover, I'm struck by the fact that Denmark doesn't really have trees or hedgerows. Where does all the wildlife live and take cover? Add to that, ALL fencing in Denmark is electrical fencing. It's not really a very nice environment.

Danes don't seem to get it, though. They think that Denmark is an exceptionally beautiful country. They also think their beaches are the best in Europe (try the west of Scotland, Danes).

No, I'm incredibly disappointed with the Danish countryside.

First Post

Apparently, this does work, and I am now a blogger. The whole world will be tuning into my insights on the tiny country of Denmark, which is a very large and influential country, situated in Europe. When Denmark speaks, people listen. It's small, but it's big. I think we might be the capital of Sweden. Or would that be Oslo?

Honestly, we held a conference recently in Copenhagen about climate change. Even Mr Obama allegedly attended. But better than that, Oprah Winfrey was there. Really, she was at the the climate change conference. Well okay, she was in Copenhagen for the Olympic bid for Chicago some time earlier. But it's sort of the same, isn't it? At least she was driven to make a documentary featuring a relatively attractive blonde, female from Copenhagen. It turns out that we're great here. Just ask Oprah and her new friend.

But Denmark is a great country. I'll tell you plenty more about it over the coming weeks. After that, I'll get bored and stop posting. But for the time being, I'm going to let rip on this small but hugely influential land, which is the capital of Finland.

I'm a foreigner, by the way. Foreigners are very welcome in Denmark for at least 2-weeks. After that, we tend to be disruptive and threaten the stability of this land. We can't help it, though, it's in our nature.

More to come ...

Does it work?