Ted and Courtney's Copenhagen Chronicles

As I type this, I'm currently sitting in a pub in Durham, UK. 

Why is this relevant? Because the last time I met up with Ted and Courtney abroad--prior to their recent Copenhagen visit--was in the UK. Specifically, it was in Oxford, Fall 2005. They were in London working; I was in Oxford to give a paper at a philosophy and psychology conference. The two of them graciously took the train up to spend the day with me prior to my conference. After a happy reunion, we quickly found our way to my favorite pub in Oxford--and only emerged many, many, many hours later, parting ways at the bus station. Good times. End of story.

Oh, yeah: except for the part where I stumbled back to my room, fell into a semicomatose state for twelve hours, and missed my talk the next morning. Totally Ted and Courtney's fault. But I digress.

Anyhoo, fast forward to Copenhagen, Fall 2009. The Balakers have now come and gone, leaving a trail of laughter and empty wine bottles in their wake. It was, indeed, a jam-packed visit: a trip to Tivoli, where we watched our opera singer friend perform (and receive a very prestigious award!); a visit to my ever-exciting place of work to see precisely where all the philosophical magic happens; multiple forays to some of our favorite local bars and restaurants; much ambling about town, with an occasional bout of strolling and meandering thrown in for good measure; catching the Sunday morning service at the International Church of Copenhagen to see my father preach, followed up with a trip to Charlottenlund beach and a BBQ at the church house.

Of course, a visit from the Balakers isn't a mere occurrence. Rather, it's an event--a happening, if you will. Accordingly, the Balakers cannot be contained within a single picture set. Feast upon the pictorial narratives found here and here.

American football expat style!

ARE YOU READY FOR SOME FOOTBALL?!?!?!

Thanks to my awesome sister who sent us the ESPN info, we can now watch American college football on our laptop!!!

As much as I love living in Denmark, I do miss football. Autumn just doesn't feel right without football. And, now we have it! Our Saturday nights are now booked... and with the time difference, well, we may be a bit late for church Sunday morning. That is okay, God is a football fan too :)

And, here is a little picture for our Texas family... Hook 'em! (Just ignore the other hand...)

Props to Marsha and Si

Hello Everyone! This is Robyn taking the opportunity to give a shout-out to Marsha and Silas…

Just 4 short weeks ago, Marsha and Silas took on the daunting task of pastor and family for the International Church of Copenhagen. Silas is serving as the interim pastor for several months. They moved into the Church House, which serves as both Church office and pastoral residence 4 weeks ago and Silas began preaching and leading Bible Study. As you can imagine, there were a number of ‘hiccups,’ challenges, and problems with the transfer, but Marsha and Silas came through with flying colors. In fact, they are doing an incredible job. It is hard to start a new job, especially when you are replacing a beloved pastor; it is hard to move, especially when you are moving thousands of miles; it is hard to live in a foreign country, especially when you don’t speak the language. It is especially difficult to do all three at once! So, props to Marsha and Silas for an amazing 4 weeks! I am confident the next four will be just a bit easier.

Oh, and the picture was taken at the beach... we live just a short walk to the beach and we were making the most of the beautiful weather.

The Company Cavalcade Continues...

A mere three hours after we said "Farvel!" to Ron and Michael, we bid a hearty "Hej!" to our dear friends, Ted and Courtney. 

Ted and Courtney had been in Stockholm the previous week. Ted was attending a conference, and Courtney--taking some rare time off from her day job of being a Big Player in the world of Hollywood cinema--busied herself being fabulous. Word of their arrival quickly spread throughout Scandinavia. Needless to say, we were excited to welcome them to our city! We'd last seen them back in May, when we attended Matt and Ashley's fantastic wedding in Beverley Hills, California (Matt is Ted's younger brother).

Their visit was marked by much hilarity and fun. More to come soon.

 

Beer, God, and Goodbye

Last Thursday, we bid Ron and Michael a fond "farvel!".

Our visiting celebrities--both of whom currently perform with the Twelve Irish Tenors and are capable of affecting a remarkably convincing Irish accent, particularly when mocking the Irish--returned home to the US after a whirlwind trip through Iceland, Copenhagen, and the UK. Their stay gave us an excuse to do lots of touristy things that we wouldn't otherwise do. And simply walking around the city with them, ingesting the sights and sounds of this lovely time of year, reaffirmed what a beautiful place Copenhagen truly is. 

Their next-to-last day focused on beer: specifically, a trip to the Carlsberg Brewery, along with Robyn and my parents (I couldn't go, alas). Pics here. 

The morning of their departure, we awoke (somewhat) early and made a dash for one of our nearby favorite pastry joints. We then strolled over to Vor Frelsers Kirke ("Our Savior's Church"), a beautiful baroque church in the Christianhavn district that was initially built in the 1680s. Its defining feature is its famous twisted "chocolate spire"--and yes, you can actually walk along a narrow, creaky external staircase all the way to the top. The ascent is not for those prone to vertigo and/or pants-wetting. But the spire offers perhaps the most breathtaking view in town, as these pics confirm.

Bowels still fluttering from our harrowing climb, we quickly returned to our flat so that the Ron and Michael could catch their flight. I've yet to hear otherwise, so I'm assuming they found their way home.

It was a great visit! 

Tillykke med fødselsdagen, Mor!

More pics from mom's birthday BBQ here (thanks to Ron for taking most of the photos).

Edit: photo link now working.

Ron and Michael Take Denmark

Robyn's brother, Ron, and his friend Michael have joined us in Copenhagen for a few days. Things got off to a rousing start last night with a trip to check out some electronic music action from the Strøm Festival, followed up with a few pints at a nearby pub. 

It's a bit rainy and cool today--in Copenhagen?!? Go figure!--but we have a number of things planned. More on that later. For now, you can see a few pics from last night's adventures here.

Silas and Marsha: From Carlsbad to Copenhagen

A couple of weeks ago--nearly fourty-five years to the day of his ordination--my father retired from the ministry. He'd been Head Pastor at Beautiful Savior Lutheran Church in Carlsbad, CA, for twenty-one years. Prior to that, he'd served parishes in Michigan, Arizona, and Texas.

So what is Silas doing in retirement? Puttering around the house, hunting for loose nails and tiles to grout? Working on his lawn care technique? Erm, not exactly. He's moved to Copenhagen (with my mother, of course) to serve as Interim Pastor at the International Church of Copenhagen. We recently said goodbye to our beloved Pastor, Chad Rimmer, and his family as they moved on to a new phase of their life in Scotland. My father's retirement coincided perfectly with Pastor Rimmer's departure--so here he is, filling in until ICC's new Pastor arrives some time in October.

After a moving goodbye service and celebration in Carlsbad (which Robyn and I could not attend, alas), some hectic planning and packing, and a nine hour flight to Copenhagen via Washington, my parents arrived in Denmark and have settled into the church house (though they did stay with us in our flat the first week of their arrival).

It's great to have them here. More Kruegers in Denmark. Who woulda thunk it? View some pics from their arrival and first week here.

Happy Birthday!

Happy (belated) birthday, Robyn!