The events started at the village church in Å»urrieq where most of Ann’s family lives.

The church is a typical Maltese church sitting in the center of the village and as the front door faces West it is always lit by the most golden light when the sun is starting to set. The ceremony started at 18.30 so as we walked up the roadwe got to see the church in all it’s grandeur.

We went inside and the ceremony started. It was in Maltese so I’m not really sure all that went on. My liturgical knowledge is not really up to scratch but there were some different talks by the priest. Some of the aunts of the bride and groom went to the podium and read some bible verses. And in between there was music being played. Initially I thought it was just recorded music as I could not see the musicians but it turned out there were a singer and a keyboard player behind one of the columns. The songs were more modern that what we are used to hear played by organs in Danish churches.

Running around during the service was a cameraman with a huge light, a photographer and two light assistants with long booms. The photographer looked like a secret service agent in his black suit and an ear peice directing the cameraman and two assistants around. With the church ceremony lasting about an hour and a half I had plenty of time to look at all these guys running around trying to get the perfect shots.

Afterwards we went outside to greet the newlywed as they exited the church and we threw confetti at them while they made their way to the veteran car that would take them to the venue. Here’s the sweet couple.

And then we headed to the venue of the reception. In church most of the family had been present but at the reception more friends and family showed up so we were in the neighbourhood of 300 people there I think.

The reception was held at Ir-Razzett L-Abjad which is an old farm house beautifully converted into a venue hall with a big outdoor garden. It was a huge place with people flocking around either the indoor or outdoor bar.

I had already met a most of Ann’s uncles and aunts on this side of the family on previous trips but here I got to meet all the cousins as well as we came across them at the party.

Unlike Danish parties they don’t go around shaking hands or giving hugs. Instead you find a place to stand or sit while the waiters make the rounds with hors d’oeuvres and other foods. I didn’t take picture of the food and forgot all the different options but there was a lot (maybe it was something like this). A band was playing some background music but there wasn’t really anybody dancing and the food kept coming.

I was quite hungry when the food started to arrive and didn’t realize that it would keep coming all through the night so I indulged a lot in the first couple of items and was struggling as we were halfway through the list. Anyways there was a lot(!) of food and as always in Malta it was really tasty.

The evening ended with the cutting of the cake (more food!) and coffee. An open bar and good food in a steady stream is the perfect combination to keep a Maltese happy so I think everyone had a good night.

Check flickr for the rest of my pictures from the evening.

For me the wedding season continues later this summer with two weddings in Germany. I’m looking forward to seeing friends and joining more happy celebrations.

A couple of weekends ago Ann and I went on a short trip to Denmark to make a round to friends and family. Apart from the old folk we went on baby patrol and visited a cousin of mine who just had a little Astrid and a couple of high school friends who had Frederik. We also went up to visit my sister who is expecting a family expansion in June.

With my sister, Mogens and Magnus we went for a drive in the beautiful forests south of Ã…rhus. We got to see the lovely early summer of Denmark when the beech trees are the brightest green and the birds are chirping and building nests.

We went to The Deer Park and came across a heard of deers that were more than happy to taste our apples. I don’t think I’ve seen anywhere else where deer is so tame that they will eat from your hands. But here they were and we had a flock of deers interested in us.

On the way back to London our flight was slightly delayed and as I was trying to find a chair in the departure hall I stumbled into a blogger. I have been reading Tina – omme i London since I decided to move to London so it was great finally meeting her. She brings her camera everywhere and following her blog was a great way for me to experience London before moving here. She does a great job of showing the lovely colorful side of the city. I love meeting bloggers that I’m reading and it was great putting a face and a voice to Tina

On the eve of the 22nd Ann and I made our way to Gatwick airport. We had a flight to Malta the next morning at 7.15 AM and didn’t want to count on public transport getting us out there in the morning as London was having severe traffic issues due to snow and ice. Lucky for us the the flight was almost and time and we made it to Malta without any problems.

While England and the rest of northern Europe was struggling/celebrating snow and ice we ended up in Malta’s warmest Christmas in more than 20 years with temperatures up to 24 degrees – nice!

On December 24th, while Ann was busy, I walked around the village she is from taking pictures of the Christmas decorated houses.

The last photo is a hand-painted picture on the back entrance to a bar that really have an aura of Christmas. As I walked by Christmas music was blasting out in the streets. Check out the front and side photos.

In the evening of the 24th we went to the village’s Christmas Procession where kids dressed as angels and shepherds walk the baby Jesus through the streets as they sing carols.

In the evening we went out with Ann’s siblings and partners to a nice restaurant on Vittoriosa Waterfront.

After that it was on to the university church where we went for midnight mass. The church was packed with people sitting outside watching the service on a big screen. We got a seat inside and watched the Maltese service which started with this kid retelling the Christmas story. Very cute.

Well I’m used to celebrating Christmas on the eve of the 24th but here it’s different so we had to let the gifts stay under the crib for another night before we could release the excitement.

The next morning we got stockings, opened gifts, played games, Wii and watched films.

An extra bonus is that Ann’s mum has orange trees in her garden so we could all start the day with a glass of fresh juice – delicious.

Merry Christmas!

I started out in Odder where I spend a day with Magnus, my nephew. First I went with him to preschool (it’s called 0th grade and the kids are 6-7 years old) and had a good time with Magnus and his classmates. During his school day we had morning singing (or whatever it is called) followed by roll call, and me telling his class a bit about what i do and about some of my travels. I didn’t really know how to approach kids at this age but they had a map of the world and Europe that we used to talk about different places and how they were different than Denmark. They seemed interested and had their own stories of trips they had made so the time went quick. Then it was time for a library visit with a fairytale reading by the librarian, followed by the class showing off what letters in the alphabet they had learned.
After school Magnus and I went home to play for the rest of the day untill Majbrit and Mogens got home. Here is a video of a slide with a “bomb” we tried to make from his bed to the living room – can you ever get too old to play with Lego?

It was really great to spend some time in Odder with family and catch up with the little guy – who is not that little any more.

Friday Ann arrived and stayed for the weekend. For once she wasn’t visiting in the winter time so I was happy to see that the weather was fairly good to us.

Saturday we packed a lunch and took off to the southwestern corner of the kingdom. First stop was the sight of where the Golden Horns were found. Apart from two stones marking the locations of the finds there wasn’t anything to see here. Apart from the tiny, cute house pictured above right next to it. The gold horns are two very unique finds in Denmark and their history is quite remarkable.

We continued to the village of Møgeltønder (pictured above) where Schackenborg Castle is situated. Schakenborg is the home of Prince Joachim, the younger of the queen’s two sons. He just had to his first child (Prince NN ) with his second wife (his third in total – officially) so there were crowned storks in the garden to mark the expansion of the royal family.

We stopped at Hojer Mill to have our lunch and went to the coast to see dike and the vastness of the marsh landscape out west by the Wadden Sea.

At night we went to Ribe to walk around with the watchman as he told about the oldest city of Denmark.

Sunday we went to the area around Tørning and had a barbecue there with my folks.

[Picture of BBQ from dads camera - coming soon]

Ann was flying home on Monday so we spend the day making our way slowly towards the airport. We stopped in Jelling to see the rune stones and mounts marking the christening of the Danes and the burial place of Harald Bluetooth. Before Ann took off we had dinner at my aunt’s and uncles farm which is just next to the airport.

My cousin Anders graduated high school on Tuesday so there was a big party in his parents garden and the weather was perfect. Congrats to him!

Now I’m back in rainy Prague. Hopefully it doesnt stay that way because Mikkel, my thesis buddy is visiting me.

At the end of December Kathleen invited a bunch of Prague friends over for a Christmas party with food, gifts and ugly hats. That kicked off my Christmas spirit and we had a great evening with lots of laughter and good times. Here is Antone, Sascha and Julie with big smiles:

The day after there was a flash mob event on Old Town Square in the center of Prague. The idea was that everybody should show up with a pillow hidden. At exactly 18.55 someone would whistle and a pillow fight should start.
I was at the square a few minutes before it started standing next to some tourists that didnt know what was about to happen. And then the pillow fight started. Several hundred people brought out their pillow and started whacking each other. Soon the air was full of white feathers and it looked as if it had started to snow with the fluffiest snow. Below is a video I shot 30 seconds after the started.

This is what the square looked like afterwards.

December flew by and I went home to my parents in Toftlund. Ann flew to Denmark and spent almost two weeks with me over Christmas and New Years. Needless to say I enjoyed it immensely to share our Danish traditions with her.

Christmas in Denmark is celebrated on Christmas Eve with a nice dinner, rice pudding game for dessert, dancing around the Christmas tree and opening gifts. This year we were my parents, my sister Majbrit, her boyfriend Mogens, my nephew Magnus, Ann and me.

On Christmas Day we didnt have any plans but to work some of all the good food off we took a trip to The Dear Park by Haderslev. Afterwards we went to meet my grand parents in Styding and some of the family that lived close by. Here is Ann and I in front of the view over the lake.

A few days later we had a dinner with my high school class mates. Every year we try to gather the class and this year we were 8 (with Ann).

For New Years we made a little trip where we first went a day to Aalborg where I used to study. We stayed over night with Peter my old neighbor and his family and had a great time with them. It was a year since I visited them last so I hadnt met the cute Oscar before.

The next day we went for brunch with Tomas, a buddy from university and then met some of the girls I worked with in ESN for a coffee.

Then we headed back south and ended in Skjoldelev where we celebrated New Years with my good friend Christian and his wife Louise. The live by the village square so we could see all the fireworks just outside. A really cozy night.

My parents gave me an early birthday gift and threw a party for me inviting the extended family. So January the 3rd we had the house full of people many of them I hadnt seen in a long time so it was really nice to see them before I took off again.

On the last day we had coffee with the neighbors and then it started to snow. We took a walk in the first snow of this trip and went to feed the ducks in a nearby pond. It was hilarious to see ducks try to walk on the ice

The next day Ann went back to London and I went back to Prague.

This was probably the best Christmas Ive had as an adult thanks to all the friends and family and, of course, Ann.

After I went home from London, we moved into a new apartment in Zizkov. Nice new apartment, closer to town and an interesting neighbourhood. I will have to make a full post later about Zizkov the neigbourhood. Zizkov is a lot of things but one thing you cant get away from is the ugly, yet fascinating TV tower from doom that is visible from everywhere in Prague.

Soon after I moved in Mulle, a friend from bording school who I ran into on Facebook earlier this year, came to Prague. Him and a friend had decided to drive down here for a weekend to party. I decided to go back to Denmark with them. It had been quite a while and my grandfarther is not doing so well.

Back in Denmark I covered a good amount of ground. Went to see my grand parents who are in good spirit but old bodies.

With my dad I went to the German border where hundreds of thousands of starlings gather for a couple of weeks to feast before their long migration to North Africa. At dusk they all gather and make wonderful patterns before they settle in for the night.See more of my dads pictures.

The phenomenon is called Black Sun and there is a couple of nice videos on youtube.

After that I went up to visit Majbrit, Magnus and Mogens – sis and family in Odder, visited my mother who was on vacation, and hung out in Ã…rhus with Christian, Rasmus and my cousin Rikke.

From Ã…rhus I took the train to Berlin. I had never been there before so decided to make a day stop over to see the place. Cool city I must say – will return some day

Soon after Ann came to Prague Its nice having her closer this year – although it is hard to classify London as close. She stayed for four days where we went to IAESTE Day 2008 at the universities where we did a presentation on what we have gained from IAESTE. We also went out with my uncle Geert and Elin and her daughters Elisabeth and Majbrit and their husbands who was on vacation in Prague.

Ok that was it for now. I hope it wont be another month before the next post

First video is from a boat trip I did with my parents, sister, Mogens and Magnus. Its by Fårup Lake where our parents invited us for dinner and afterwards we went for a trip on the lake.

Second video is from my parents neighbours party. The parents of my old friend Johannes was celebrating their birthdays with a tent party in the garden. Here its the daughter Agnethe, wife Lotte og husband Johannes doing an a cappella version of Stand By Me.

Check out Agnethes own songs on MySpace or Johannes music-comedy group.

December flew away with a job in Denmark were I held a seminar on how to do interaction design. After that gig I travelled across the country meeting with Rasmus in Randers, Rikke and Lene in århus, sister and family in Odder, met with Femi and partied with the boys in Copenhagen and ended up cruising Lund/Malmø with the Swedes.

Fast forwarding I spend Christmas in Toftlund and New Years Eve in Aalborg with old university buddies. I stayed in Aalborg for a couple of weeks and worked on a project with the good guys of CommunicateIT. I then headed to my parents place.

All the while I had been checking records, looking at dmi.dk for long term weather forecasts because Ann was coming to Denmark at the end of January – and as a Maltese she had never seen snow fall. Chances of snow in Denmark are however not that big, we get it occasionally during the winter but its not that common. To give you an impression the last 100 years Denmark has been covered by snow 7 times on Christmas Day. End of January came and it looked like all we would be getting was the first storm of the year.

Ok, so finally Ann came to Denmark and we had a great week seeing place, meeting people and enjoying each others company. We started out in Copenhagen (without a camera) were we walked around a little bit and then went to see Mozarts Lucio Silla at the Royal Theatre.

Neither of us had seen an opera before so it was an interesting experience but it didnt really blow us away. The next day we walked a bit more and saw Nyhavn, the Royal Palace and The Marble Church.

We drove back home to Jylland just in time before they closed the two main bridges in Denmark due to the storm. Back in the sticks we went out to a farm close by were we got to greet some of the newborns.

The next day we headed to the oldest town in Denmark, Ribe were we saw the old cathedral and went up the tower nearly to be blown off. Ribe is a cozy little town but the weather was really bad with rain and wind so we didnt make it that far in our layers upon layers of warm cloths.

The whole family joined together for the weekend on the island of Fanø (a bit less than 1/5 the size of Malta). We spend the weekend in a summer house, well heated by the the wood stove having it hyggeligt.

The storm had past the west coast and lo and behold it its wake came this

Enough snow for a proper snow fight and enough to build a small snow man.

All in all a nice cosy family weekend and I really enjoyed showing Ann my family and vice versa. The day after I followed Ann to Bremen were her flight was from and I continued on to Prague.

Its nice to be back home in Prague although it is still really cold here. In little more than a month Im going to Malta again for some rays of Ann and rays of sun

First I got to visit Dennis (my canoe-buddy from this summer) and Jenny in Braunschweig. Very good people and I have to come back some day to explore more of this city.

After that I hit århus were Christian and I took a ride on his bike and caught up on everything thats been going on since last time we spoke. The day after we continued to Haderslev were Søren and Helene treated us with dinner and another night of catching up.

Finally I spend a couple of days with my sister, nephew and parents in Toftlund. Tuesday I had Magnus for the day which was so much lot of fun.

As I said it was really good to get back to Denmark – everything is so neat, cozy and familiar. But I also realized that I dont need to live in Denmark right now. A good dose now and then and then Im good for a while.

My parents were in Prague 34 years ago on sort of a honeymoon in the dark days of communism, coal burning, side street money exchange and disrepair. What met them today was a very different sight. They were very thrilled about what the city had become. Almost all of the central city has been repaired and today its an amazing trip to walk through the city both at day and at night.

They asked me if I never get tired of living out of a suitcase and that got me thinking. First off Prague is my home now, so I dont consider it living in a suitcase. It didnt take long before I felt very comfortable here. I also realized that I dont need that much to be comfortable. As long as I have a place I can call mine with a bed and another place to sit with my computer I can manage.
We are sticking around in Prague for another 8 months and then its time to move again. Where to is still up in the air

Joanna one of the AIESEC girls from Ann Arbor was in Prague for autumn break as well so we went out and had lunch with her. Great catching up on old days.