I'm in the land of the Danes.. so much to write.. but words elude me again... stray thoughts everywhere..
Where do I begin? Do I begin with telling you about the sweetest people that I've met in the world? (or this nostalgia that I am experiencing right now as 'King of Leons' croons away on the radio?) Or about their awe-inspiringly disciplined way of living it up? Or, the sincerity and dedication with which the Danes approach work? Or the passion with which they pursue everything - education.. career...a hobby.. governmental affairs.. staying informed about the world beyond their own little world?
Or, about "Law of Jante" that's been ingrained in their sociological outlook ever since Aksel Sandemose penned his novel 'A fugitive crosses his tracks' , which makes them endearingly humble and warm in spite of their over-accomplished, over-achieved lives?
Or do I wow you a little by talking about their Milan-like fashion sense?
Or should I amuse a lot with the two stories that I've gathered from chatting up with those two couples I met on a suburban train?
What amazes you most about the youth here is that when you go beyond the blonde stereo-type and take a dive deeper, you realize that almost everyone of them is highly educated, well-cultured, and living with some sort of goal they are going after with unbridled zest underneath that calm-cool-collected demeanor.
There were these two extremely smart and beautiful young ladies, Mari and Karenlise, I bumped into in the street below my apartment on my very first day here while looking for direction to the supermarket. They did not look anything more than 24-25..but one of them was already a Psychologist and the other a doctor (Psychiatrist). I got chatted up as if they had known me since school. I learned one of them (the 'Psychologist') was not very happy with her current profile. She was made to work with criminals, in the 'behavioral' branch of Psychology, while she would have ideally liked to work in the 'cognitive' branch. The 'doc', on the other hand, seemed blissfully happy with her work. They took me to their apartment and handed me an adapter which I was desperately looking for to revive the dying battery of my mobile phone.
The lovey-dovey couple on the train cozied up very affectionately on the seat right opposite me. They whispered; they kissed; they gazed; and they conversed a lot of words in Danish. (The guy was definitely hopelessly, affectionately 'in love'..and his object of affection just soaked in that devotion.) All the way I kept trying hard to focus on the book I was on when I finally had to call on them upon realizing I was on the wrong train but to the right destination. Confused? Well..that was something extremely 'cute' I did!! Long story. I rather skip that bit for now. But back to the 'luvvy-duvvy' couple... : they were an unusual combination of 'valor' and 'confection'. The guy had the looks of a sharp, etched-out, modern Roman soldier with blazing green-blue eyes and the girl, a fluffy barbie doll with pierced puppy nose; and a tattoo written in Hindi right across her inner arm that read "Pitaaji ki ladki", which, translated in English meant 'daddy's girl'. My amusement was plain but the intrigue was undeniable. I was later told her doting father looked that up on the internet and got it painted on her arm. Quite cool for a 'daddy' I thought.
And the other couple - a rocker and his 'actor' girlfriend. The guy looked more Irish, even though Danish, and spoke with clear American accent, while the girl looked like an artsy-fartsy, intellectual, bespectacled, legally blonde who spoke English with a dash of Dane influence. She's only 20 (and 5'10!!) and on her way pursuing a 4 year degree in theaters to give her passion that 'schooled' edge. The guitarist, besides his gigs on the weekends, also works as a Project Manager with a web-media company and shortly to be interviewed by Microsoft. He spoke a lot -with every part of his body engaged, that typical American flamboyance. We three got absorbed in a long, interesting conversation that covered pretty much everything; right from the many cultural accentuations that exist in the first world countries to the myth about the Danes being possibly the tallest of all. From theaters to gigs. From lunatic clients (once my 26 years old Danish-Irish-Americanish fellow passenger rocker friend got accused of 'stealing a couch' by a client whom he had called up to work out a business plan with. No connection right? Yes, I was as amused as you are and so were the bemused couple.) to philosophies of life. One thing that stood out for me all through the conversation was that, even though we were individuals from two different continents with drastic socioeconomic, cultural differences running through our veins, we were all same on the inside, in essence we all felt the same and could relate at a very deep level. For one, we struck the same chords while talking about living with dreams in your eyes wide open...about not letting that fire within go dim, the fire that drives you on towards your desire, however big or small, to do something apart from the everyday, ordinary routine.
I didn't quite foreknow it was going to be this simple being in a foreign land, literally half way across the world, away from home, all by myself for the very first time in all of life.
Although it's been predominantly work all the way, I did manage to steal a few long walks and a visit to one of the snazzy clubs between work and sleep and an evening out with my Danish-American-Jamaican-Indian colleagues. Okay. That's a lot of information trying to get fit into a single description, but you get the drift!
Everywhere I go people welcome me with the warmest smile. They fall short of nothing but warming my Indian heart and winning me over. Everyone is more than just formally-sweet and willing to help whenever I need direction to some place or lose my way back home- I even had a couple last night head one kilometer backward with me just to walk me up to my apartment. Both were Lawyers.
I should go now. It's past 2 in the afternoon, I must catch up on that MIS report I left incomplete yesterday.
....and catch the 'Jazz Fest' in the evening, a few meters down the street, that's been going on for the last two weeks.. Looking forward to it!
