Survival Tip #2643

Never do connecting flights through Italy.








Why?
Well i tried to get home for christmas and my voyage wasn't what you'd call fun.
Why?
Because i had a 12 hour wait between my first 2 flights and just 40mins between my last one.
Why?
Because they were through Malpensa, Linate and Rome, and all flying Alitalia.
So?
So they lost my luggage.
And?
They closed the snack bars early leaving me without food or drink until next day.
And?
All flights were delayed.
And?
The cops came and tried to throw me out for sleeping on the airport benches with the other street bums.
And?
They cancelled a flight only to put it back on the list a few hours before the flight.
And?
They sent everyone to the wrong gate.
And?
They believe they can service a queue of 400 passengers with only one passport check booth.
And?
Every other person gives you different and conflicting information.
And?
I got to the Linate gate without even presenting a passport or ticket.
And?
The milan lower-class are UGLY.
And?
The flight hostess dresses like she's on a catwalk but then serves you a dry sandwich packed last month.
And?
Milanese proudly take their pet poodles for a walk by the airport. One decided to leave a cute little turd just behind me. Nexta time ia see a poodle, it sleepa with the fishes.
And?
Well screw Italy in general . And madonna those poodles are everywhere. I kick anything which looks like a fluffy slipper with legs next time.

The Zen of Interior Design

I'm not particularly gifted when it comes to building things like furniture or electricity. Or maybe i am... but i don't have the patience. Unfortunately, sometimes you just have to roll up those sleeves and do things yourself.

Since my room is completely bare save the white walls and wooden floors, it was time to do some interior design and transform the empty chamber into something more homelike. Starting off with some sanding and varnishing, i got the doors to look half decent and a dark glossy brown colour. Next was the electricity: I had to conjur up some extension cables and multiplugs to feed the entire room out of one single power outlet, as well as pass a network cable around the room without it getting in the way using lots of CableEater. Finally for some construction: The showcase, desk and deskchair all arrived in little boxes so i had to screw and fix everything together over a couple of days. The end result is fantastic even if i do say so myself. The widescreen TV looks real good in the showcase, and i now have ample space to start my collection of superiour 1L beer bottles.

All that remains now are some curtains, a plant here and there, and some funky lighting. I'll post some pics once these arrive and throw a housewarming party to cut the ribbon for the official opening of the room.

The pros of DIY:
- Satisfaction
- Reduced cost
- Getting high for cheap on wood varnish.

The cons of DIY:
- You always end up with extra screws, nuts and bolts in your hand, which you can't throw away.
- You break off the lamp and tear a hole in the wall.
- After wiring the room, you realize the longest wire is too short.
- When you get to step 6, you suddenly realize you had to insert part M way back in step 1, and the only way to do this now is to unscrew everything you've done.
- All your furniture wobbles.
- You learn how heat expands double-sided tape causing it to become useless.

First drive in Denmark!

Run for cover... there's a madman on the streets and he's got R0ADk1LL written allover his bumper!

Yup i rented a junked out van (aka deathmachine) for the day so i could carry my stuff over to the new place. It was quite an interesting experience since in Denmark they drive on the other side of the road, which also means all your vehicle's controls have been flipped. Driving in itself wasnt so bad, but i occasionally gripped the door handle when trying to change gear. And i got totally lost and ended up somewhere in the city. And i almost ran over a few old ladies crossing the street when i raced through a few red lights. 40mins and a few illegal U-turns later, i somehow found my way home. Luckily, Ulrich took over and carried on with the rest of the voyage after piling all the stuff in the back <-- Thats him bouncing on the bed in the back.

We drove down to Hvidovre and unloaded everything into the lift except the bed which didnt fit, so we had to use the stairs up til the 7th floor, and in the dark since the lights werent working. It was my most extensive workout this year.

Moving House

Like life isnt busy enough, this month i also had to move into my new apartment in a town just west of Copenhagen. The room is part of a big Kollegium which means i have my own room, entrance, and bathroom, but the kitchen is shared between a number of other rooms. The Kollegium is very well located just 2mins walk from the Rødovre train station (just get the B/B+ S-Train to Høje Taastrup). The building itself is very big with over 300 rooms, and also houses a laundry, billiards room, gym, solarium, party room, bar, bike workshop and private carpark.

My new address is:

Rebæk Søpark 5,
Vaerelse 746,
2650 Hvidovre.

And new room phone is:

(+45) 77661746