Another Touristy Day in Denmark (6)

To continue on with the completion of the to-do list, today I first went to the Louisiana, a famous modern art museum in Humblebæk (north of Copenhagen) with Emma and a couple of her friends. Although I will admit that I sometimes lack a full appreciation for the art museums, since I don't know too much about art history or related fields, I REALLY enjoyed this museum

The museum itself was BEAUTIFUL. Unlike say, the Tate Modern in London, which is a massive eyesore filled with wonderful works of art, the Lousiana was, in typical Danish fashion, small and understated, yet classically and tastefully gorgeous. The main entrance to the museum is located in what appears to be a big, old house. The 

window to the outside :)

front of the building is covered in ivy, and there was a stone walkway leading inside- it could not have been more picturesque. The exhibits were housed in the wings of the museum, which were designed to be in harmony with the landscape outside. Between the rooms (and in some, too!), the hallway had floor to ceiling windows, allowing you to have views of the beautiful nature and gardens, as well as the Øresund Sound. The museum also had an entire outdoor sculpture garden, and plenty of places to sit and eat lunch while looking out towards the sea (and Sweden, had it not been so darn cloudy).

Asger Jorn

The exhibits were really cool  too. We started by seeing these great, super colorful paintings on canvas by a Danish painter, Asger Jorn. They made me want to get bright colored paints and canvas and create some work of art, but for some reason I think it probably wouldn't be as good. Then, we went to a HUGE exhibit of Pablo Picasso that's been at Lousiana since Februrary- very cool. He definitely was a talented guy, and I learned a lot about his political stances and life as well. We saw a really heavy exhibit of amazing pencil drawings depicting different parts of war, and then, on a lighter note, we saw an exhibit that was an amazing combination of new technology and art by David Hockney (who is 73 years old, interesting contrast to the usual stereotypes about old people and technology). It was called "Me Draw on Ipad", and was a collection of hundreds of INCREDIBLE "paintings', all done on an Ipad, or before that, an Iphone- so, so cool. Google it :)

we were amazed

We then had lunch outside and then went to explore the other wing

SO COOL!

 of the museum (even though much of it was closed getting the new exhibit ready), where there was one of the coolest exhibits ever. Basically, it was a small room with a door to go in and out; only 2 or so people went in at a time. The room had mirrors covering all four walls and the ceiling, and you stood on a platform extending into the middle of the room, surrounded by water. The room was completely dark, with the exception of spherical lights hanging down from the ceiling on strings of different lengths, and these lights would change colors. Because of the mirrors and darkness, it seemed like there were millions of lights all around us. Overall, I really enjoyed the Lousiana, and I can now check that off the official "1000 Places to See Before You Die" list, since it is on it.

After the museum, instead of heading back to Copenhagen with everyone, I decided to hop on the regional train a couple more stops to go to Helsingør, a beautiful town on the water where the Kronborg Castle (known as Elsinore in Shakespeare's "Hamlet"). The castle was really beautiful (from the outside, at least), with high grassy hills and fortifications around it that used to protect the castle, since it's in a very strategic position right on the Ørested Sound, at its narrowest point- I could see Sweden! I walked along the water where there were people fishing, and a class of kids running around, wandered around Helsingør a little more, and then headed back home. Another great, touristy, Danish day :)

On a slightly different note, today is (was?) my LAST Thursday in Denmark (until the next time I return...)- that is weird to me. Thinking about packing my life up and going home is weird to me. Denmark feels like home. I'm excited to return to the States, but I am very apprehensive at the same time, thinking about leaving here and saying goodbye to my host family and my host country. I am ambivalent. But, like it or not, I leave in 6 days. So, to my friends in America, see you soon!