Danish wedding traditions

H and I spent some time in Copenhagen, Denmark over Easter weekend. It was, understandably, a rather quiet visit. While there, I met with a new professional contact, UE. We got on well enough that U was kind enough to invite H and me to the reception for his impending wedding in Århus, Denmark. Danish wedding traditions being what they are, we're extremely excited. For example:

Adding to the interest of mealtime are the kissing traditions. Whenever the groom leaves the room, all the men in the room rush over and queue up to kiss the bride. Whenever the bride leaves the room, all the women rush over to kiss the groom. The use of tongue is discouraged.

The wedding we're attending will be between two men, so we're not exactly sure how to manage this particular tradition. H says that this means she can kiss anyone she wants, but that seems backwards. It seems clear that I'll be the one able to kiss anyone I want. In any case, we feel confident that we can manage if we just do as the Århusians are doing.

The wedding will be next Saturday, but I'll be heading over to Århus early. I've managed to finagle myself a spot as a guest interviewer for the incoming class at the KaosPilot school. Details are a bit sketchy at this point, but I intend to enjoy myself pretty much no matter what. Once I've finished, I'll post reflections and commentary over at my professional blog. Don't miss it!

Red Hat Challenge complete!

Well, we've finally finished with the Red Hat Challenge. We had a great time doing it, but we're also glad that it's over, as it had been absorbing a great deal of our time and mental energy over the past several days. Our apologies for the dearth of posts recently. We'll now be spending some time filling in all the blanks we've accumulated over the past few weeks.

In the meantime, H would like to me to broadcast a message from from her to all you loyal readers out there--coming right at you from Copenhagen, Denmark:

Whom do I superlove? That's right! It's you!

UPDATE (11 April 2007): We've been promised that we'll have the Red Hat Challenge results by the end of the week (13 April 2007). Believe us--when we know, you'll know!

Nice shades!

Hey, H! How many dollars did you pay for those sunnies?

How hip can you get for the mere price of one movie rental?

Damn! That lady can shop!

Classy or sassy?

Seen in a Copenhagen bar:

I'll bet you 5 kroner that this Carlsberg is probably the best beer in town.

Well, I don't really have an opinion about whether Carlsberg is or isn't the best beer. But someone--and I mean someone who has money to spend--clearly isn't 100% certain on the quality of Carlsberg. I mean, in the US, every frickin' thing is "the world's best" or "Number 1" or "Unbeaten in its class" or whatever. The Danes, by contrast, are so... unassuming. (Click to enlarge...)

Jens, Ulf, Niels, and I have been talking, and we're pretty close to 70% sure that København doesn't yet have any beer superior to Carlsberg.

To be honest, I have no idea which beer is in the glass. It's the other thing in the glass which motivated me to snap this photo. Look more closely:

Honey, please stop blowing bubbles in your beer. There are enough in there already.

Who drinks beer with a straw? I mean, is this a bar or a soda fountain? We really liked this bar, so we'd like to think that it isn't the fault of the owner--it's just that the Danes prefer slurping to sipping when it comes to beer. On the other hand, it may simply be that this guy is really fond of straws. Another mystery left unsolved in Denmark.

Stopping to smell the flowers

J takes a moment to appreciate the ironwork outside the European Environment Agency's offices, located in Copenhagen, Denmark.

I shall deesteell zee odeur und makes a nuw fragrahnce--und zees fragrahnce shall be called "La Nature en Fer!"

Goings on in Denmark

Blogging may be a bit light for the next few days, as H and I will be traveling first to København (Copenhagen), Denmark and then to Malmö, Sweden. We're scheduled to depart early Thursday 5 April 2007 and we plan to return late Tuesday 10 April 2007. If we have time and internet access, we'll try to post a little bit, but no promises--we're not likely to have too much time, anyway. Reports on the Danish and Southern Swedes for sure when we return!