Image by FC Nordsjælland

One year after playing in Ireland, I was invited back across the Atlantic to play in Denmark for the club FC Nordsjælland (pronounced nor-sah-land), located in the suburbs of Copenhagen, about 30 minutes outside of the city. I stayed for two weeks in the city along with my mom and aunt in my first European style hotel, constructed more like a flat with a small bedroom and even smaller living room. Outside of the hotel room came a difficult adjustment for me. In the beginning of August in Washington DC, it is normally around 90 degrees and sunshine all day. While having learned it was a milder Danish summer than most, the temperature average during my stay was in the mid 50s, even dropping as low as 34 during a game one day. Another challenging nature aspect I had to adjust to was the sunrise. Never before had I visited a place where the sun was coming up at 4:45/5 in the morning, signaling the beginning of the day to the construction crew next door. Combine this with the jet lag I combated the first week, and you have a cranky teenager who was trying to work off of two maybe three hours of sleep.

While in Denmark, I did get to visit and see some interesting places. I waited in line for 1:30 to see Snoop Dogg perform at the famous Tivoli Gardens one night. I also got to eat at a Southern style restaurant with a Danish twist that served some of the best fried chicken and biscuits I’ve had, to my surprise I will admit. Not to mention, eating at Danish restaurants gave me a lesson on their society. There is no need to tip a waiter in Denmark, because a 25% tip+tax is already included in your bill. While this number may seem outrageous, it offsets the fact that the government provides public services like health care free of charge and offers a year long paid maternity leave! One of my favorite parts of this trip was visiting the museum known as Louisiana in Humelbæk, Denmark located north of the capital. The museum has exhibits showcasing beautiful African art among many places, as well as giving a stunning view of Sweden across the body of water separating the two countries.

Image by Visit Louisiana

Lastly, there was the soccer part of the trip, the main reason I was there if you could tell. I was blessed to be given the opportunity to train for a week with the group and play in three games in their preseason tournament against some of the best teams in Denmark, ultimately finishing in 3rd place. Off the field, the language was a barrier. I tried to learn Danish, and for a little could do small words like bathroom, girls, mom, and ball. Otherwise though, I was reliant on a select few players’ broken English to explain drills and activities to me so that I was not completely lost. Thankfully, the guys were great and made the trip much the worthwhile.