Before we moved to Denmark, my husband told me many times about how mentally exhausting moving to a new country was. I believed him, but the level of exhaustion is tough to wrap your head around until you've done it yourself.
I'm a bit of an introvert as it is, but I find these moments of quiet much more important now. These moments when I can shut the curtain and not be reminded that I'm almost completely illiterate at the moment.
We were discussing the difference between visiting another country as a tourist, and moving to one. Part of what makes it so tiring is that, as a resident, you actually need to remember where things are and how to get places. You're constantly having to learn new things, whether it's a conscious thing or not, just so that you won't have to think about it next time.
So, what I've been trying to say is... I've been sleeping a lot.
That's not to say that we haven't managed to get out to see the city more. We've met up with friends of my husband's, and some mutual friends.
And we had an early glimpse of the frustration of Sunday store hours here. We went to hunt down a light for the bathroom, and some Brasso for the brass fixtures. A store at the local mall was supposed to have it, so we checked the website. The website said that the mall was open, so off we went.
Oh, the mall was open, sure. It's just that none of the stores were open. And most of the lights were off.
Luckily, we were not the only ones confused by this. There were plenty of people wandering around with the same confused look on their faces that we had.
Some day, we'll be able to clean our brass. And that will be a good day.
Ooh, I remember the napping. It's exhausting being foreign!
ReplyDeleteI have found Brasso in Brugsen and Føtex, so I think you can probably get it from most big supermarkets.
Remember that shops are usually closed here on Sundays. Some (like supermarkets) open on the first Sundays of the month. If they don't advertise that they will open on Sundays then they won't.
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