Whenever I used to come home from my Danish class, I felt like I had done a hefty physical workout while simultaneously working on a particularly demanding translation. Simply put, I was exhausted, and usually also socially drained to the point that my response to everything was irritation and hostility. I have told M countless times that I hate both the Danish language and Denmark as a whole, neither of which is actually true. Both frustrate me from time to time, but more often than not, I enjoy them. Yes, even the inane language.

Towards the end of last year, the classes left me less crippled. Tired, definitely, but not the same way as before. At some point the teaching turned from complete gibberish to understandable words and then sentences. I still don’t understand everything, but I do get the gist of most everything that is said in class. It’s considerably harder for me to actually produce Danish, but I’m getting better at it. It’s hard for me to tolerate the mistakes I inevitable make, especially when trying to talk, but I keep trying.

Today was my first class after the Christmas break, which ended up lasting for over a month because I couldn’t attend class last week. And boy, does it show! Whenever I was asked to say something, I struggled. The words I needed would pop into my head in Spanish and Swedish, but certainly not in the language I was supposed to use. So frustrating! By the time I got home, I was totally beat. Granted, it’s not as bad as it was when I only just started the classes, but there’s still a clear difference to how it was in December. Still, I did manage to borrow a book from the library all in Danish, which made me immensely proud. I’m learning, and while the pace is snail-like in my own mind, the progress I’ve made is undeniable.

(The post title is the first word I learnt in Danish a long time ago. It’s the name of a typical Danish Christmas dessert that M adores. Æbleskiver are small pancake-y spheres that are eaten by hand after dipping them in strawberry jam and powdered sugar. I’m not a huge fan of the Danish way of serving them, but I quite enjoy them with apple marmalade, no powdered sugar required… Of course, M thinks I’m a total heretic.)