ALEX PRIEST / THE EAGLE Old Town "Gamla Stan" in Stockholm, Sweden

BRUSSELS – Although I am studying abroad in Denmark, I never planned to stay in Copenhagen the whole semester. In fact, I’m taking full advantage of my travel break to see as much of Europe as I can.

To preface: I’ve found over the past several weeks I needed a change in scenery. Copenhagen is a wonderful city, the Danes are wonderful people and there are plenty of wonderful sights I have yet to see in Copenhagen. But after two months of work (harder work than expected from a study abroad program), dreary weather and miserable Mexican food, I needed to get out for a bit.

Luckily our program timed a two-week travel break for the first two weeks of November, likely in anticipation of our restlessness in Denmark. So now, midway through that break, where have I been? I spent the first few days in Stockholm, Sweden. Then I took an overnight ferry to Helsinki, Finland, followed by a 26-hour ferry ride to Rostock, Germany. I rode the rails to Amsterdam, the Netherlands to meet a friend and together we traveled from there to Brussels, Belgium. As I write this, I’m sitting in the Brussels train station preparing to leave for Paris, France where we’ll be until Friday night – when we fly out to spend the final weekend of the break in Dublin, Ireland,.

It’s been an absolute blast comparing and contrasting cultures in Europe. The Danish culture, I’ve found, is pretty closed – immigration is a big issue in the country and although everyone speaks English, they aren’t necessarily enthusiastic about having to speak it to foreigners like myself. The lack of diversity in food varieties available (ethnic foods are pretty limited to falafel and pizza, unfortunately) and the feel of the city is more laid-back, easy-going and worry-free.

Take Brussels, for example. The similarities between Brussels and Copenhagen are limited to their somewhat closed nature and European location. Also, like Copenhagen, businesses are rarely open 24/7 and on Armistice Day, November 11th, businesses were actually closed. English is spoken less widely, as it’s already a bilingual country (French and German, mostly). Once the headquarters for the European Union, the city is more business-like and has a “big city” feel. Food varieties are a little more diverse and, as a result of literally being a bigger city, more widely available.

Paris will no doubt be quite a contrast to Copenhagen, because it is immense. I’m eager to explore it!

Anyway, more updates to come as my travels (and abroad experiences) continue. Continue to read my updates on my Twitter and see my photos on my Flickr page.