Circus, Earth Hour, prediction...

On Saturday - 28 th of March - Anja and me visited the Danish National Circus - Circus Dannebrog. Both of us hadn't seen circus with animals since our childhood. I also had a personal reason: I used to work in circus - The Great Moscow State Circus in England- so I was just simply curious what's the differences and similarities between the two circus. At the beginning of the show there was a short movie about the history of Danneborg Circus and the way to put up the tent was also presented. But the main difference is there are animals in the show: horses, dogs and elephants.
The funny thing is the big top - tent - of this circus is really similar to the circus I used to work. You can see here!
The main attraction was the elephant act: they were kneeing, turned around, stood on their heads,...etc. It was also very nice to see the jumping and swinging dogs. One of them could count as well. The trainer wrote a number onto a small blackboard and the dog barked that much times, what number was on the board.
The act with horses was really beautiful. I was really nervous when a man stayed on the back of the horse and jumped through a lit hoop and he arrived to the back of the horse again.
The show was very different, what I had seen before...You can see some pictures of the show below! : )

After the circus there was a party our dormitory, which was organised by Lilla. By the time most of the people had arrived, the time was nearly 20.30, so we prepared to the Earth Hour by liting candles and tealights and switched off all of the lights, electricity our dormitory. It was really cosy, indeed.
Then we had a small 'seance': Noémi brought her gypsy card with her and she started to predict for those, who asked for it.



It was very exciting and little bit scary in the same time: sitting in the dark and hear your past, present and close future. I was always little bit sceptic about prediction, but what she said, almost everything was right!
I really enjoyed that afternoon and evening! : )

We'll rock you - samba - spacecowboy...

On the 18th and on 24th of March we had lessons in Aabenraa. We studied Drama and movement by the guidance of Linda&Flemming.
We didn't know each other - I mean the teachers us -, so we sarted with icebreaker games:

• sitting in circle and tell our names
• sitting in circle and tell the name of the person, who sit next to us
• playing the rythm of the lyric of 'We'll rock you...' and repeat the names
• playing 'shark game': somebody stand in the middle of the circle, who is the shark. The 'shark' is pointing to somebody and that person has to look somebody. This person can save the first one life, if he/she fast enough to say the first person name, otherwise he/she could catch by the shark. And then he/she becomes a shark, and everything starts again...

It was really impressive for me, when we were diveded to two groups, both of the groups got a piece of paper with a word on it. Our group had the word: zooropa. We had to create a 'statue' , which is connect somehow to the word. We thought zooropa is the combination of zoo and Europe. So we tried to find animals which could symbolise our country. So Lilla&me were a horse together, because this animal belongs to the Hungarian history so many ways.

We had another exciting game: we had to stand in circle and play as if we carried a very heavy thing and we had to pass it to to next person. We also did it in another way, when we had to give a really light thing for the other person. The interesting was that each persons imagined different things, for instance: feather, spider, something breakable...etc.

Then the best part of the day was when we created a samba music together! First we were diveded to groups and learnt our rythm to play at different sort of instruments and after that we just joined together!

(Unfortunately I don't know the origin of this lyric. I really like it, because once in my life I heard an amateurish orchestra, who played this lyric and that was amazing!)

We also learnt a rythm game with colourful cups and some songs as well.

On the other lesson we repeated some songs what we already learnt before and the rythm game as well.
Then we learnt a Danish dance, it was really funny - I think -, and during our dance Linda playing a piece of music at accordion and she sung as well.

After dancing everyone got a mask; there were different kind of objects on the floor and we had to pick up one. Then we had to improvise as if we would born just now. The starting position was the 'embrio-pose'. Flemming put on a piece of music and we had to be 'born', discover ourselves and each other by movements.
It was really exciting, because we couldn't use our mimicries, our face and we had to express ourselves with our body and with the objects. I felt myself as if I would be in another world.

Then we were divided to two groups and we had to rehearse a playwith the same piece of music. We could choose the theme, so we decided to play a classical drama - 'Romeo and Julia'. It was funny to dress up as 'spacecowboys' and wear masks as well. The accessories were also comic; for instance dusting stick, glass-cleaner stick - both of them as swords - , polystyrene head...etc.
(Poor Shakespeare... : ))
We just rived the most important scenes off the play, but we still managed to create a whole in a quite modern way.

Both of the groups had to present the plays and after that we discussed our experiences, which were quite different: some of us found it hard to not use our face, express ourselves without mimicry. For myself it was easier, because I'm not that 'playing type', so I could 'hide' behind the mask and I could concentrate to the task, without felt myself unconfortable.
Flemming said, when we wear a mask it is like 'switch the monitor off' and just concentrate what is inside...

All in all I really enjoyed both of the lessons. It was also nice to walk along in Aabenraa and take photoes - as usual.
I call this place "the city of cats", because I saw five cats within one day. I hadn't seen any cats in Denmark before and I miss(ed) them very much ... : )

Visit to the North part of Jutland

On Saturday the 14th we - Anja, Karsten, Noémi, Máté and me - had a trip together around in the North part of Jutland.
This map shows the route, what we had taken.


The first place, which we visited was Fyrkat, which famous for vikings. This area used to populated by them and the archaeologist excavated several houses there and these were rebuilt little bit further. We couldn't see the rebuilt village, because it was closed, but we saw a viking castle!

Then we stopped at Voergad-castle, which goes back renaissance time and it is situated between the town of Asaa and Saeby. I was so suprised because it was like the castle stands in the middle of nothing for me. It was just surrended by woods and fields and - the next surprise - some beautiful peacocks. First we just saw one male, he just ran away after that he became braver and three others joined to him: two females and one male. We just walked around the courtyard of the castle. It was an amazing view the way the lake circled the castle and all ot the scenery - trees, the castle - reflected on the surface of the water. We passed the 'first' bridge - we were welcomed by statues of lions - , then we just arrived to the beautiful gate. We passed it and then we got to the back of the castle. The 'second' bridge led us into a wood, where we found a couple of streams and lots of snowdrops.
Unfortunately we had to leave...

The next stop was Rabjerg Mile, which is a moving dune. Dunes are special formation, which are found only this part of Europe. It was like the mixture of desert and the surface of the moon. I felt myself really free there as I strode in the virgin sand...

Then we passed the town of Skagen, because we didn't have time to look around. We went straight up to Grenen, where the two seas - North-Sea and Baltic-Sea - meet...When we got to the seaside we saw a couple of bunkers, which were built by Germans during the II. Word War. Then we started to walk to the edge of the land...there was an outstanding view, what we had seen.
After we stopped outside of Skagen to see the solitary church - Den Tilsandede Kirke - , which was burried by a standstorm the end of XVIII. century. Nowadays only the tower of the church sticking out used as a navigation mark. The rest of the church - the nave - was demolished at the beginning of the XIX. century. The remain of the churh is surrounded by a wood with lots of pines.

The way back we stopped in Lonstrup, which is a little village and it's protected by breakwaters. Earlier this village was always in danger, because the wild sea ate a little peace of the ground in every year. There was a remain of a house, which is the memento of the cruel times...

Finally we finished our trip in Aalborg. It was really dark, when we arrived and it was raining as well, so we decided to have a warm dinner, instead of look around. It was hard to find a restaurant, and we ended up a sort of SOHO of Aalborg, where just only restaurants, buffets, pubs, coffe shops are.
Originally we wanted to eat something real Danish dish, but we couldn't afford that, so we had a big portion of Kebab with fries and salad instead...
We took almost 800 km that day, so I just couldn't wait to get my bed! And I dreamed with vikings, dunes, seas...ZzZzZzZzZzZ.... : )

PS.: This was my best trip here: colourful, unique, exciting, outstanding.... : )

Through Europe by gastronomy

On Monday we had a lessson with Eva, who first intoduced the way of healthy nutrition in Denmark by a nutrition compass.

We learnt it is suggested to have:

• 600 gm vegetable/fruit per day
• 300 gm fish per week
• potatoe, rice, pasta, whole-grain bread are also recommended every day

Some rules:

• go easy with sugar, candy, cakes, soft drink
• to eat to much fat, especially dairy products (saturate fat!) is not recommended
• keep normal weight
• drink water when you're thirsty
• at least 30 min. phisical activity per day

I don't think we could keep this rules during our cooking...:)

Because everybody cooked something typical from his/her country, and all of them were really heavy. Let's see the dishes:
Belgium: caramelised apple by Anja


Czhech Republic: Bramborové placky - sort of potatoe cake by Mihca&Vacek and Eliska

Denmark: slices of bread with different kind of topings and frikadeller (fried meat balls)

Hungary: Gulyás leves with csipetke + Mákos guba (+ vanília szósz)- Gulas sup with csipetke (special Hungarian dough, specially made for this sup) + Poppy-seed cake (+ vanilla sauce) byNoémi&Máté, Lilla and me


Poland: Pierogi - Polish dumplings + Polish cheese cake by Gosia, Mariska and Marlene







Spain:Spanish omelet by Carlos

Turkey: Bulgur pilavi - sort of rice meal by Canan&Zep

(The Hungarian part of the video is: Noémi: I'm cooking Gulas sup and poppy-seed cake. These are typical Hungarian dishes. I'm preparing the vanilla sauce, now. Máté: We made up the menu expertly with my collegues: we have already prepared Hungarian 'csipetke' from origin Hungarian egg, Hungarian carrot and Hungarian potetoe. Hungarian sup with origin Hungarian ingredients...:) )



We had to hurry, because we had just only two ours to be ready and we had to clean everything as well within that time. Noémi made preparation with the beef - most important ingredient of Gulas sup - , because normally it takes hours to be cooked. So we already had a stew base. Máté, Lilla peeled the vegetables, Noémi put everything into the saucepen, looked after the sup and started to cook the vanilla sauce as well, and me prepared 'csipetke'. Then Noémi and Máté mad e the poppy-seed cake. During that Lilla and me started to clean up and took photoes and vidios...: )

Some of us who had more time, set the table and Gosia and Marisia folded napkins. When we were ready to eat, first we had to intoduce what we prepared and the ingredients as well.

And then we had a nice lunch together. First we had the Gulas sup - this was the starter -, which is gone within few minutes; after we continued with potatoe cakes, dumplings, omelet, slices of breads, fikadeller, Bulgur...etc. Finally we finished with deserts: cheese cake, poppy-seed cake and caramelised apple. My favourite was the Polish dumplings!:)

I could say it was a really nice to cook and eat together; it was really cosy feeling...
Thank you for the nice dishes for everyone! I'm sure we didn't have to cook dinner that day! : )