Dear readers,
Haj (that's hello in Danish) !!!
One week till COPE and I could not be more EXCITED !!!! + a million more exclamation points ••• To be honest, the nerves have not hit yet. I've felt nothing other than excitement. To be even more honest, the fact that I'll be boarding a flight on August 17th for four months still seems seriously surreal. Maybe it'll hit the moment I step foot on my flight at JFK.
I want to introduce this blog by explaining what exactly I'm doing here in Copenhagen, what led me here, and why I decided to keep a blog along the way.
So, why DIS?
Several close friends and role models of mine study abroad with DIS in the past. To name just a couple, Colleen went to Providence College and studied Psychology, amongst other things, in 2016; Colleen lived in a Kollegium; Carly goes to Furman University (roll dins!) and studied International Business, also amongst other things, in 2017; Carly lived with a host family whom she fell in love with. Now, it's 2018, and I'll be taking off in a week for Cope myself!!!!! Not only was it the fact that every person in my life who has experienced DIS has had nothing but incredible things to say about their time with the biggest smile on their faces and passion in their throats, but I also could not find anything about the program that I did not love. From finding a list of 15+ elective courses that gave me eager beaver butterflies in my belly, to the structure and organization of the semester schedule, to the incredible opportunity to visit successful public relations firms in London and generate new perspectives and a better understanding for the realm of Strategic Communication to the location of the school providing opportunities for real cultural immersion, to SO MUCH MORE. The thing that really sold me was the opportunity to learn directly from professionals working in the field which they are teaching. I love to collaborate and just could not pass up the opportunity to get real world experience learning from doing hands-on work and having face-to-face interactions with cross-cultural professionals.
Here's what my schedule is going to look like and I could not be more excited !!! Look how cool they all are:
1. Strategic Communication (this is my core course with study tours to London and Western Denmark)
So, why Copenhagen?
I have always wanted to explore my roots, and being 50% Scandinavian, I felt like Copenhagen would feel like home. I also have been told Danish people are "amongst the happiest and friendliest in the world." Why wouldn't that be an incentive to spend 4 months living with them? Not to mention, I am fascinated as to how this happiness in manifested, specially because I also hear all about the grey weather in Copenhagen. Seems paradoxical, so to me, the Danes seem pretty resilient.
So, why blog?
I love to collaborate. My biggest passion in life is connecting others and making this big world we live in a little bit smaller, one introduction at a time. I also love to meet new people. One thing I am MOST excited to do in Copenhagen is interact with Danes. Meeting Danish people -- more than just a hello how do you do -- is the way in which I plan to fully immerse myself in the culture. My goal is to manifest this theory by employing mindset similar to Brandon Stanton (the brain behind Humans of New York). That being said, I love to SHARE, as well. So, my mission for this blog is:
"To share stories from my experience in Copenhagen and beyond which in some way impacted my life. Whether it be a casual conversation that filled me with warmth, an anecdote that challenged a belief of mine or opened my eyes to a new perspective, an adventure led to the advent of a new curiosity, or influenced my life in some way; I want to impact others by thoughtfully articulating cross cultural experiences that impact me. Above all, I want to communicate. I want to foster further conversation. I want to make connections. I want to narrate life's awesomeness."
So, why blog?
