I Love Canada Post

Hey,

After a few weeks *cough 5!!!* of waiting for the arrival of my Christmas package from mom and dad, it has finally arrived.  Thanks to Canada post, my Christmas package that was supposed to come a week before Christmas, arrived 5 weeks after Christmas day.  But enough complaining I am just happy I have my hands on it and I am so excited! It was like Christmas day all over again!

The photos below are just photos that i took of some of the gifts I got. It is the closest thing Mom and Dad will see of me opening up this years Christmas gifts. PS. The last one is to show what I treated myself on for Christmas. A new vinyl record of one of my favourite bands.

I have one more week of school starting on Monday, and then on Saturday at 4:00am we are getting in the car and heading off to Oslo, Norway to visit family friends.  From there we continue on to Sweden where we will be skiing for a week.  I will hopefully have many photos and fun stories to share with you all.

Love,

Dillon

dillonrahkola@hotmail.com

Happy Holidays From Denmark!

Hey everybody,

It has been a while!  I have been extremely busy around the holidays with Christmas parties and New Years as well so it has been a crazy last few weeks.  

Christmas was different for sure! It was an odd feeling not having family and friends with me but it is a big part of exchange.  Learning  about the culture and experiencing Christmas in a different country is a great thing!  I will never have another Danish Christmas like this so I made sure I appreciated every second of it.  

Some of the Danish Christmas traditions that interesting is that; We opened presents on Christmas Eve.  We decorate the tree only a few days before Christmas.  Before we open presents we hold hands around the tree and sing Danish Christmas carols.

Jule Frokost (Christmas Lunch) are very important.  You have them with your class from school and your family, both your host mom and dads.  They have the same food (Danish Christmas food) at every Jule Frokost and the drinks are the same as well.  Schnapps and beer.  So all in all a great time.

New years is was also a great night! People in the part of Denmark that I live in do certain things every new year.  They are known for going door to door, dropping in on anyone who has their lights on, or hosting a party.  It is a fun way to get to know people that you might not of known before in your neighborhood.  

Fireworks are only legal to light off with out a permit on New Years, so when New Years eve creeps up on the people of Denmark, they don't let the opportunity go to waste.  

I celebrated New Years in the streets of Copenhagen with thousands of Danes and some exchange students!  Fireworks were going off through out the night, been blasted off in the middle of the street, and out of peoples hands.  It was absolutely amazing!

Last minute surprise was thrown at me yesterday.  I got invited to go skiing in Sweden on Saturday!  Its a day trip and I can not wait!!!  It will be so great, and I will make sure I will take many photos.

Vi ses,

Dillon Rahkola

dillonrahkola@hotmail.com 

Also, I would like to say goodbye and safe travel home for all my oldies. I love you all and will always remember the good times we have shared together.

Euro Tour Information!

Hey super exciting news,

Yesterday the information for Euro Tour was released, including buses, dates, stops, and itinerary!  Here is the itinerary for you to see what I will be doing on the 18 day trip of a life time.

1st day: 

Departure early in the morning by our own bus from Denmark. The destination on the first day is Berlin, the world famous city where life is exiting, and where you can still experience both East and West Europe. 

2nd day: 

We shall spend the day in Berlin, seeing some of the famous sights, among others Brandenburger Tor, Kurfürstendam, Unter den Linden, Dedächtnisskirche, and what is left of the Berlin Wall. 

3rd day: 

After breakfast we will continue to Prague in The Czech Republic. On our  way there will be sightseeing at the concentration camp Theresienstadt. 

4th day: 

"The Golden City" Prague stands on 7 hills on the river Moldau. We shall go sightseeing to the old castle and the Royal Palace, Hradchin, the Teyn Church, St Veits Cathedral and "The Golden Street" Zlata Ulica. 

5th day: 

After breakfast the tour will continue through beautiful landscapes, and the border of Austria will be crossed before we arrive at the glorious capital Vienna, in which we shall stay overnight. Sightseeing in the afternoon. 

6th day: 

Among other things in Vienna we shall see the beautiful Schönbrunn Palace. There will also be time for you to be on your own and to experience the special atmosphere, listening to Viennese music. 

7th day: 

After breakfast we shall continue through small picturesque towns in southern Austria. The tour from Vienna will take us through a typical beautiful Austrian landscape. We will arrive at Lido di Jesolo in the evening. 

8th day: 

Lido di Jesolo is a beach area of paradisiacal beauty at the Adriatic cost of Italy. We will spend the day bathing and basking in the sun. Next morning we will make a trip to Venice. 

9th day: 

Venice, town of gondolas, is one of the absolute climaxes on the journey. We will go sightseeing in Venice, visit the Marcus Square, the Doge Palace and the Bridge of the Sighs. After the sightseeing we will go back to Lido di Jesolo, where we will have supper and stay over-night. 

10th day: 

Early in the morning we shall leave Lido di Jesolo and make a pause in Verona where you will have the opportunity of seeing the Arena and Juliet’s balcony, before we continue to the Riviera of Italy, where we shall arrive for a late dinner.

11th day: 

After breakfast we shall drive along the beautiful scenery of the Riviera. There will be time to stop over for a visit in the principality of Monaco, where we shall se the Royal Palace. After a colourful tour along the French Riviera we will arrive Avignon, the famous residence of the Popes in the 14th century. Overnight in Avignon. 

12th day: 

We shall spend the day in this very special atmosphere of Southern France. 

13th , 14th and 15th day: 

Our goal is Paris, the city of cities with its big boulevards and small bistros – the city of thousands pleasures. We shall stay in Paris for two days, and the time  will mainly be spent on sight- seeing. It  will be possible to see Louvre, the Triumphal Arch, the old as well the new one, The Eiffel Tower, the Notre Dame, the Sacre Coer, the Concorde Square, the Latin Quarter and the Centre Pompidou. 

16th day: 

We leave Paris and will arrive in Brussels in the beginning of the afternoon for sightseeing to the Grand-Place, Manneken Pis and Centre de la Bande Dessinée. 

17th day: 

After breakfast we arrive in Holland and will drive to Amsterdam for sightseeing and a canal trip. The last night on the tour will be in Arnhem. 

18th day: 

After breakfast we will drive from Arnhem via Hamburg and back to Denmark. Everybody is tired, but it is a pleasant fatigue after a tour through both ancient and modern Europe. 

I can't wait for this trip. It is really a great way to me to end off my amazing year. 

Oh and I shaved my beard.

Dillon

dillonrahkola@hotmail.com

Jul i Tivoli :)

Hey,

So it officially feels like Christmas in Denmark now.  We (my host family and I) made the trip down to Copenhagen to visit a very old theme park called Tivoli.  The theme park during Christmas is very beautiful.  Lights on all the rides, trees, and when it gets dark at 4pm you have a lot of time to soak in the beautiful lights during the night.

We got up and were out the door by 8 and we were in Copenhagen by 11, ready to start our day.  We met up with other exchange students and I also randomly ran into people I knew.  Denmark is a pretty small country.

I went on all the rides I could with Frida, Frederik, and Nicole and it was lovely too see Caitlin and Elyse again.  I had the best time, and it was a great way to spend time with my host family.  Then we left for the long drive home where everyone fell asleep fairly quickly

Vi Ses,

Dillon

dillonrahkola@hotmail.com