At DIS, we awesomely don't have classes on Wednesday. Instead, these days are devoted to learning about a particular aspect of our classes. For example, my HC Andersen class looked at different representations of his life and works through film. Later in the semester, we're going on a walking tour around Copenhagen to see where he lived and worked and to a performance of Thumbelina at Tivoli (the amusement park in the middle of the city).
This Wednesday, I happened to have two field studies on the same day.. and both in Christiania. For anyone who has never heard of Christiania, it was undoubtedly one of the most fascinating places I've ever been.
a little history..
In 1971, several people (inspired by the hippie movement in the US) took over an abandoned military area and proclaimed it a free land, where they would, according to the mission statement, "create a self-governing society whereby each and every individual holds themselves responsible over the wellbeing of the entire community." Every resident pays 1900 kroner a month to live there and they don't pay taxes to the Danish government. This is one of the reasons Christiania is so controversial among the Danes; they don't pay taxes, yet they use the healthcare and education system.
Another reason Christiania is so controversial...
welcome to the green light district, or "pusher street."
If you can't read the sign, it says: "Dear friends, there are three rules in the Green Light District. Have fun. Don't run-it causes panic. No photos- buying and selling hash is still illegal."
The fact of its illegality hasn't stopped vendors from openly selling marijuana and hash on the streets. There are frequent police raids in this area (hence the no running rule.. running implies that you're running away from the police).
the other rules that govern the free state of Chrsitiania:
no weapons, no hard drugs, no violence, no private cars (Christiania is also famous for its custom-made bicycles), no bikers colours, no bulletproof clothing (to my understanding, these 2 rules came about after the expulsion of a gang that attempted to seek refuge in Chrsitiania), no sale of fireworks, no use of thunderflashes (dynamite?), no stolen goods.
Christiania is also a very artistic community. this was one of my favorites from an art exhibit we went to.
Everyone builds and repairs their own houses.
a playground!
from an oven museum.. apparently these two ovens were used in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1?! I'll have to watch for these ovens a little more closely next time.
Here's an awesome (somewhat biased) documentary about Christiania:
It's a little long, but I hugely recommend watching this.
Some exciting news: I finally figured out exactly what I'm doing for the two week travel break!
For the first week, I'll be in the Czech Republic, just north of Prague and staying in a castle on the side of a cliff (no big deal, though). It's an adventure trip through DIS and a wonderful opportunity that I wouldn't have gotten on my own. We head into Prague for a day and then I fly out to Athens, where I'll spend about a day or two. Then I'll wander around the islands for a bit.. 4 or 5 days, maybe. From Athens, we'll fly into Venice for a whole day, and then back to Copenhagen. SO excited!
hej hej!
No comments:
Post a Comment