Nogle fanger den lige med det samme. Hos andre går der lidt tid. Den danske hygge kan være svær at forklare for vores internationale studerende – den skal opleves!
Hver semester giver DIS et tilskud til “Hygge Dinners” i værtsfamiliernes lokale netværksgrupper. Her opfordrer vi værter til at lægge hus til en uformel middag for en gruppe studerende fra netværket. Ofte er der tale om 4-8 personer, som værtsfamiliens studerende selv vælger, men Catherine (Caty) og hendes veninde Sarah valgte at gå all-in og invitere 16 til middag! Hør hvordan det gik i Caty’s blogindlæg herunder.
Caty studerer til daglig på Bowdoin College i Maine. I foråret 2018 læser hun Positive Psychology på DIS og bor hos en værtsfamilie i Tåstrup.
›› Hør mere om, hvordan man bliver værtsfamilie hos DIS
Thanks to my host parents and their well-constructed kitchen, we were able to fit two long tables in our dining area to fit everyone. That definitely is a key component of a successful hygge dinner: everyone together.
This past weekend has been filled with friends and (host) family, and I couldn’t be more pleased! Despite feeling under the weather for the second half of this week, I was able to fend off the sickness enough to co-host a hygge dinner on Friday night and attend a Vocal Line concert on Saturday!
Hygge Dinner
Every semester, DIS hands out grocery store gift cards to each homestay network for them to create hygge dinners for the students in their area. Hygge, a Danish concept, is the idea of spending cozy time with your closest friends or family inside with cold weather outside. Very fitting, given that it snowed today! The weather can definitely be referred to as “cold,” so the dinner was the perfect opportunity.
My friend Sarah and I decided to work together to host a 16-person (!!) dinner for our network! PHEW! Everyone from our network was invited, and fortunately, almost everyone was able to make it. From the grocery shopping to the ice cream for dessert, the entire afternoon/evening was filled to the brim! This was the first time I had ever cooked a meal (pesto-and-mozzarella-stuffed chicken with penne pasta and green beans) for a group that large, so it definitely was a challenge!
We were able to plan out cooking times to a tee, so everything went swimmingly. Thanks to my host parents and their well-constructed kitchen, we were able to fit two long tables in our dining area to fit everyone. That definitely is a key component of a successful hygge dinner: everyone together. Check out the photos below for some hyggelig moments!
Vocal Line
On Saturday night, my host mom took me to see a well-known Danish a cappella choir, Vocal Line. The group itself is made up of 30 singers: 12 sopranos, 10 altos, 6 tenors, and 4 basses. The group has also performed with a few famous acts, such as Bonnie McFarlane and the Rolling Stones! The performance was in an old German church in Christianshavn, a neighborhood in Copenhagen. From the moment I stepped into the church and noticed floor-to-ceiling windows and “theater boxes” lining the walls, I knew we were in for a good concert!
They performed close to 10 songs, all of which included AMAZING chords and skin-tingling dynamics. I was so impressed by their cohesiveness and sound as a group, I have already added their albums to my Spotify account! Check out their video to see what I’m talking about! You can be sure I’m going to try to see them again.
Both of these activities this weekend really made me feel more at home here, and I loved being able to spend quality time with both my friends and my host mom. I’m hooked on hygge, and I can’t wait to find more throughout this semester!
Hej hej,
Caty
Fra Catys blog:
Hooked on hygge
DIS søger værtsfamilier
Kunne du også tænke dig at vise internationale studerende, hvad dansk hygge er? Så tilmeld dig som værtsfamilie fra næste semester.