DANISH DAYDREAM

 
- Liane Weintraub, Editor-in-Chief

The other day, my friend Paula, who's been visiting Malibu from Holland, where she lives, was whisked off on a road-trip by a friend who wanted her to see something truly unique in southern California - he took her to a quaint little spot just north of Santa Barbara called Solvang.
When they got back (it's a pretty long day trip, by the way, at almost 2 hours each way from Malibu!), she was still reeling from surprise and amusement. You see, Paula had no idea of what she was in for, which was a visit to a place that seems frozen in another era and on another continent.  If you're not prepared in advance, Solvang, a small, traditional Danish village in the middle of Socal, could really throw you for a loop. The houses are all charming, thatched cottages and the villagers mostly wear traditional Danish costumes (complete with aprons, head-scarves and clogs!) of yester-year. It's a trip!

I visited Solvang a few years ago, but somehow I forgot about it - it almost seems too surreal to be possible - so when I heard Paula gushing about her adventure, I suddenly felt overwhelmed with nostalgia. I'm not pining for Solvang, so much as for Denmark, the wonderful country whose traditions it preserves.

My family lived in Copenhagen, Denmark for four years when I was a child, and it's effect on me and my brother was profound. Imagine spending the first 8 years of your life as a city kid in the middle of Manhattan's hustle and bustle. Life in NYC is complicated for little kids. There is almost no spontaneity, as everything from playdates to a simple excursion in Central Park has to be planned well in advance. There are no back-yards to run out to, and kids can't just walk to their friends' house to play (unless they happen to live on the same floor of your apartment building). There are dangers lurking everywhere in the City, so kids rarely spend any time alone or unsupervised, which creates a sense of claustrophobia after a while.

And so, when my family picked up to move to Denmark, it was a real culture shock for us. Gone were all the things we were used to, but once we settled in and made some friends, it was a revelation. We attended the International School, so our friends were from all over the world - a far cry from the homogeneous classrooms we were used to in NY!  In Denmark, my brother & I had the freedom to go places on our own. (Of course, there are plenty of places & situations, even in Copenhagen, that require parental supervision.  But generally, it's a lot safer for kids.). For the first time, we went to school alone on the train; we walked or rode bikes to the local pastry shop (yummy!)J we played for hours outside without adults breathing down our necks.

I know that with probably didn't have to travel as far as Europe to have these "typical" childhood experiences. This is the childhood that most "regular" kids experience in small towns across America, but for us, this was as different as it gets from the norm we knew, and it was - and always will be - quintessentially Danish!

Coming back to attend high school in NY was as startling for us as returning to LA from Solvang was for Paula!  We experienced culture-shock all over again, in reverse!  This time, getting acclimated back into city life was the struggle. We were older now, so our parents didn't have to take us everywhere we went in NY, but we had to learn about "Street Smarts," and how to conduct ourselves in a big, potentially-menacing city.

Sure, we eventually got back into the swing of it & today I still consider myself a New Yorker, even though I've lived in Malibu for more than 15 years. Copenhagen is a distant memory, but it will always be in my heart. In fact, I think I'll make a pilgrimage up to Solvang (I'll invite my brother!) during this holiday season so the charming Danish Christmas decorations we know so well (long strings of miniature red-and-white Danish flags!) and delicious foods (fresh-made waffle cones with ice cream and "flode baller!") can take us back to our unique childhood days of new-found freedom.