Since moving with her family early in 2008 to Copenhagen, Denmark, American citizen Rachelle has felt the gamut of emotional, social, and cultural challenges that expat life can bring. But she also continues to experience the positive aspects of living in Denmark: the healthy way of living, new friendships with both locals and fellow expats, the excellent social benefits, and more.	Rachelle Mee-Chapman

- Where were you born?

San Francisco, California, USA

- In which country and city are you living now?

Copenhagen, Denmark

- Are you living alone or with your family?

I live with my husband of 16 years, my daughters Eden, age 10 and Cate age 8, and our very silly dog. 

- How long have you been living in Denmark?

Since February 2008.

- What is your age?

A happy 39.

- When did you come up with the idea of living in Denmark?

A former colleague of my husband's offered to bring him onto a new team that Microsoft was building in Copenhagen. We'd wanted to downsize, live without a car, and travel more, so we jumped on the chance.

- Was it hard to get a visa or a work permit?

Not at all. Denmark is always looking for highly skilled workers. 

- Was it difficult for you to get medical insurance before you went there or when you first arrived?

Denmark has nationalized health care and getting an insurance card is just a simple piece of paperwork. My husband's workplace also has supplemental insurance, which we took advantage of because I have a chronic health condition that might require privatized care. 

- How do you make your living in Denmark? Do you have any type of income generated?

My husband was able to line up his job before we moved. The company brought us out for a week to interview and tour the area. Co-workers showed us their flats and took us around various neighborhoods, so we could see where we might like to settle and what sort of place we would be able to afford to rent. We were also able to visit local international schools and get on waiting lists. (In the end we decided to send our children to the local public schools.)

I am a writer and work from home, submitting my articles on line. A lot of our acquaintances either both work at Microsoft, or one spouse doesn't work outside the home, or one spouse has a job that is not of the same pay/prestige as what they would be doing at home. 

- Do you speak Danish and do you think it's important to speak the local language? Please add your thoughts on local customs and whether it's important for expats to respect/observe local customs.

Normally I would say it is very important to speak the language in order to learn the culture as well as possible and to show respect to the place your are living. However, the Danish language is very difficult. There is virtually no tolerance for mis-pronunciation. The Danes simply cannot extrapolate from a poorly pronounced word to the properly pronounced word. More importantly, virtually everyone in Denmark speaks perfect English, which is taught in the local schools from age 10. Only the very elderly or other new immigrants don't have English. Danes would much rather speak English with you than deal with your poor Danish!

That being said, the Danish government offers language classes to all new immigrants and many companies also offer private tutoring as a part of the relocation package. We've decided to learn only basic Danish, and then to use the time we'd otherwise spend studying to explore the country and its cultural sites. (Friends who are studying Danish right now spend 17 hours a week in class and homework!)

We are celebrating Danish holidays – learning the crafts, foods, and drinking traditions. (Drinking is BIG in Denmark!) But of course, we miss out on the cultural songs and such because we have not learned the language. Our children learned basic Danish in just 3 months of immersion style learning at the local public school and are now functionally fluent.

- Do you miss home and family sometimes?

We had a honeymoon period of about three months, then six months of being really homesick. My husband fared the best with this because he has so much social connection at work. But the children and I had a harder time. This has eventually improved as the children made friends. Danes are notoriously insular, but we've had good luck making friends with families where one parent is not Danish, or where a parent has lived outside of Denmark. 

I've also had good luck making friends through international clubs with expat members. We are disappointed that we can't make friends with more Danes. But ex-pats are an interesting group and we have acquaintances from all over the world. 

One thing about living in Denmark is that most visas work on a three-year basis (due to tax laws.) This means that your friendships cycle through like a revolving door. This took some getting used to, but we are adjusting.

The activities we engage in here are similar to those at home. We can watch TV and movies in English. We go to a lot of museums and street fairs. We bike and walk and visit the beach and zoos. The girls participate in cultural activities at school like St. Lucia day and Vinterbaeding (polar bear swimming!).

We are making friends by: 

• Going to meetings and gatherings with international women's clubs.

• Hosting a homemade pizza night on Fridays for school friends.

• Organizing monthly parties for expat and local friends from work. (Mostly holiday celebrations.)

• Joining an ecumenical, international church (International Church of Copenhagen).

- Do you have other plans for the future?

We plan to travel twice a year outside of Denmark. So far we've been to England, Sweden, and Italy. Next year our plans are for Spain and France. My husband likes his job and will stay several years here in DK, then try to transfer to England or return to the States. We haven't been back to the States yet, but hope to go back next Summer, which will mean our first visit "home" will be about 18 months after we first moved to Denmark.

- What about housing, have you bought, or are you renting a home? How much do you pay for it?

We are renting an apartment or flat. Here they count by rooms overall, not bedrooms. So a two-bedroom flat with a living room would be a three-room flat. We are fortunate to have a large place, 175 sq meters. Most people we know have much smaller apartments. It's roughly $3,000US, which is about the same as the mortgage on our 6-bedroom house in Seattle! Most apartment buildings have a common courtyard, bike parking, and storage. We have a washer dryer in our flat, but many people don't. Most flats, including ours, do not have a tub. Because of the limited daylight in Denmark, it's important to find an apartment with big windows, white walls, high ceilings, and an open floor plan. Living on an upper floor can help with an unobstructed view and more light. 

- What is the cost of living in Denmark?

It's very high. Our home town of Seattle is one of the most expensive cities to live in the US. This is more expensive. Everything is roughly 25% more expensive.

- What do you think about the Danes?

Locals are friendly, but distant. There is not a sense of wanting to understand other cultures. As a small country they are trying preserve local culture. There is little culturally sensitivity. One common saying here is "In Demark you are free…free to conform." 

- What are the positive and negative aspects of living in Denmark?

This is a very healthy country. People walk and bike a lot. We eat well. There's little prepared food and because of what is available it's much more natural to eat locally and "around the seasons." It's very emotionally healthy as well. Family life is tantamount, and work is secondary. People do not work long hours and everyone is home in time for a home cooked supper. Men and women share the workload a little more fairly than in the States. The pace of life is much slower and more comfortable. There is fantastic child care, maternity/paternity leave, vacation leave, sick leave, and free education for life. 

On the negative side, it's a very cold culture and people can come across as quite rude. The weather and dark days are also quite hard to adjust to. Coming from Seattle, which has a similar climate, it wasn't too bad. But if you come from a sunny clime you will find it very hard to adapt. The food is bland, but you can satisfy your taste buds by shopping at the international markets for curries and spices. Bring chocolate chips!

- Do you have any tips for our readers about living in Denmark?

I think my number one piece of advice would be: Make Connections. This is especially true if you are going to be the parent who is staying at home, or if you work at home as I do. Join an international group as soon as possible. Also, remember that the low point after the initial honeymoon period will pass.

Enjoy the beautiful things about Denmark: car free living, beautiful parks, a pretty little city built on a human-scale…and of course, the close proximity to all the rest of Europe!

- Do you have any favorite Web sites or blogs Denmark?

• Magpie Girl: My personal blog about life abroad and other lovely things. Click on the Immigrant Diaries category in the top bar, or on Snaps in the right for pictures. http://www.magpie-girl.com

• Life Abroad: a simple blog for family and friends about everyday things in CPH. http://lifeabroad.wordpress.com
  

• The Life and Times of  an American in Denmark: This excellent blog is written by a professional American journalist married to a Dane and living in Copenhagen. http://lbstadler.wordpress.com
  

• Politiken: Danish news in Englishhttp://politiken.dk/newsinenglish/ LINK (Ladies International Network of Kopenhagen): events, book groups, toddler groups, etc., for ex pats in the CPH area. http://www.linkdenmark.com/default.html