Despite moving to Tel Aviv and "settling down" in one place, I still have a few trips left in me.
So when my dear friends Q and C decided to get married I took a few extra days before the wedding and spent them in Copenhagen, before going to celebrate their nuptials, Scandi-style.I arrived in Copenhagen and was promptly picked up by L, my friend J's boyfriend, who took us to Torvehallerne, an open-air market similar to Sarona in Tel Aviv, or Borough Market in London. We drank wine, had fish skin tacos made by a former chef at Noma, and then went on to forage for dinner ingredients.
Here's some food porn for you:
You're welcome.
After dropping off way to much in the way of fish salads, meat, and cheese, L took me to his friend's boat. That's right, within two hours of arriving in Copenhagen, I was given a city tour by speed boat.
Poor me.
We took the boat across town to pick up J from near the airport. Passersby stood there awestruck, as J handed her bags to us before jumping into the boat. In their defense, she looked like a total badass rockstar. I imagine their inner monologues to go something like this:
Dane 1: (in Danish accent) Hey, who is that? Is she famous? Where's my phone? I should take a pic.
Dane 2: (also in Danish accent) What is that crazy girl doing with a suitcase by the dock. I hope she doesn't fall in. Oh who are those people picking her up...mmm they're cute...I hope she falls in.
or something like that...
My days in Denmark went by quickly, as J and I ate (mostly shrimp and herring) and drank (mostly beer and aquavit) our way through town. We discovered that Copenhagen has the greatest bike share program in the world. The electric bikes come with a built-in touch screen device so you can navigate to any location, and know where the nearest docking station is. The bikes were basically smarter than me. And if I sound like an ad for the Copenhagen tourism board, that's because I am...or should be. It's a fantastically beautiful city. And yes, spending time there with friends who are locals probably biases me...but I will definitely go back. Especially to Tivoli...I can't help loving a city with rollercoasters smack in the middle of town.
And here's the perfect segue to Stockholm (and yes, I did go back to Grona Lund and ride the coasters again.)
Friday morning J and I flew to Stockholm for a whirlwind wedding weekend. When your oldest friend marries an incredible woman and then a gospel choir sings All You Need is Love, a girl tends to get weepy...and while standing by the groom at the alter all I could do to stop myself from crying my eyes out was look up at the domed ceiling, which was inscribed in something Swedish, only worked for so long. Because later, between shots of schnapps on a beautiful island near Stockholm, and moving speeches, I was a blubbery mess. Luckily, I wasn't the only one.
C&Q are probably the nicest, most generous people I know.
They're so nice, they didn't want gifts. And what do you get for people who literally want nothing?
When I was in the Philippines, it occurred to me that I was in the unique position to give them something special. I decided that for the rest of the trip, I would interview people I found kind or interesting and create a video for them. I shot mountains, sunsets, children laughing, boat rides, bike rides, surfers, monks, potheads, villagers, and urbanites, all asking them two things:
1. what makes you happy?
2. what makes for a happy relationship?
What I got was a strange mix (some of which I didn't bother including) of answers ranging from cooking, sports, listening, to fucking and weed. I still think i can edit the thing better, but time was against me, and as Q hugged me (while we were both crying uncontrollably) I realized sharing wisdom and beauty is so much better than anything I could buy and making my friend happy (and weepy) was the best gift. Forgive me for the cheesiness. emotions.
Must not cry....
Anyway, I will be back soon with Tel Aviv tales.
in the meantime...here are some Stockholm highlights:
