Western Denmark: Day 1

           Last week I was given the opportunity to see more of what Denmark has to offer in the form of a short study tour to the cities of Odense, Århus, and Skanderborg.  Besides being exposed to the various types of prominent media in Denmark, the weekend was beneficial in another way.  It began with me only knowing one other person on the trip (who was from Tulane, as well), and ended with me getting to know literally everyone in my Trends in Media class.  We bonded over group work, amazing food, and even paintball.  (Oh yes, Lindsey has participated in paintball.  Dangerous and exciting, right?  But more on that later...)

            It all began last Wednesday, when I decided (in order avoid an extremely early morning) that it would be a good idea to stay the night with my Tulane friend, Maura, at her apartment.  Although it seemed like a good plan, we did not account for the fact that the mass transportation bus drivers (who we rely heavily upon daily) would decide to go on STRIKE Thursday morning.  Unfortunately, the only other way we could get to our meeting spot for the trip was by taxi.  Now, I am not a novice when it comes to using a taxi service.  I have taken taxis in Chicago and in New Orleans for many years.  However, this experience was different…note to self and others:  when in Denmark, avoid taxis as transportation at all costs!  Why?  1) Like everything in Copenhagen, taxis are super expensive, and 2) Most taxi drivers are extremely unpleasant.  Despite the inconvenience, we handled the minor set-back and arrived on time.  We began our journey to stop number 1: Odense.

            Our day in Odense started at Brandt’s Media Museum, where we had the opportunity to create our own mock media broadcast.  We each had a certain job assignment for the production.  My responsibility was to write the world news story and run the sound during the taping.  You can watch our broadcast through this link: http://brandts.dk/page.asp?objectid=331&zcs=3.  Click on DIS 3. Feb 2011 (on the right side of the page) to view my group’s finished product.

            After our tour of Brandt’s, we headed over to TV2, which is a publically owned television station.  The station began production in 1988, and is considered one of the biggest news broadcasters in Denmark.  We were given a tour of the building, which was interesting for many reasons, but also because originally it had been used to house livestock.  During our time at TV2, an intern talked to us about her duties and all the different pieces she has worked on during her time at the station.

            Finally it was dinnertime!  I was slightly disappointed when our professor, Jonas, and our Communication and Media intern, Caroline, told us that we would be having burgers.  I thought…all this way for a hamburger?  But believe it or not, it was absolutely the best burger I’ve ever had.  It even had guacamole, which is my fav!