So Close...

...yet so far away! Here I am in Sweden, in the fabulous city of Stockholm, when it dawns on me that my lovely home state of Maine has a sister city to where I am right now. Maine likes to take names from cities people like and name towns after them to make the state seem more fabulous. Among Norway, Poland and China, there is also a Stockholm! Located in the northern part of my fabulous state, Stockholm appears to be quite a fabulous place, even if it is nothing like the city I am in tonight.

Tomorrow my sister, mom and I are planning to head out into the city and explore the historical sites, and end our evening at Icebar. It should be an interesting experience. But more on that after it happens! For tonight I will leave you with the Wikipedia page for Stockholm, Maine. Enjoy!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stockholm,_Maine

- Devon

Lemon, Mocha, and a Long Study Tour Surprise!

Ladies and Gentleman, the day has come! My mom and sister made it safely to Copenhagen, and with them they brought an entire bag of things I had asked for. In this bag was... a new laptop! I don't really want to go into details (I am very superstitious and don't want to jinx myself and lose another laptop) but I will say it has made my life SO much easier, and I've only had it for about two hours. Because of the new laptop, I can finally download my pictures from late September and October, and get going with these cupcake reviews!

First up: Lemon Meringue!

I am a chocolate person. If my dessert doesn't have chocolate in it, I might as well not eat it because I know I won't be happy. But I decided to branch out and try a new flavor at Agnes, and went with the lemon meringue. Wow. Between the fluffy cake with lemon zest to the actual meringue topping, toasted to perfection, this cupcake was pure heaven. I may have to say the apple cupcake was better, but only because I love apples and it had cream cheese frosting. I would highly recommend this cupcake, but remember a glass of water because it was sweet!

Mocha

This past week after I got back from my long study tour, I spent Sunday catching up on emails and homework at the DIS library (one of my favorite places to go). After, I went over to the Agnes flagship store by Strøget just to see what flavors they had left (it was almost closing time). I noticed milk chocolate and mocha and decided for a little caffeine kick late in the afternoon. It turned out to be ok, I actually ended up eating two (don't ask) and wasn't blown away by either. It was a little depressing. The mocha flavor was there, but I make a caramel mocha cupcake when I'm at home that has way more flavor. It just didn't wow me. But it looked really good.

Amaretto? 

Before I went on my long study tour I knew I would have to do something about the cupcake review for the week. This of course was before my laptop went m.i.a. however I decided to still try and find a cupcakery on my tour. I had absolutely no time in Berlin, but stumbled across this fabulous place while in Poznan, Poland.

My friends and I all went and tried different flavors. I'll just say this: Agnes still reigns supreme. It wasn't that they weren't good, they're cupcakes, I'm pretty sure that's impossible. They just didn't have anything unique to them. Also they had been stored in a refrigerated display case, so they were a bit dry. Nevertheless I enjoyed my amaretto-flavored cupcake and the green frosting. It was a nice adventure between academic visits!

Overall I enjoyed the cupcakes I tasted these past few weeks. I feel like I tried one other one, but can't remember. Next week I will be tasting cupcakes with my family! My sister has unique taste buds, so it should be interesting. I am off to Stockholm for the weekend, and will be sure to blog about that when I return! Also, photos have been added to the long study tour blog, check it out here! 

Poznan, Poland. 

Have a fabulous weekend!

Devon

Pictures, Patients and Peirogies: My Long Study Tour Experience

Hello my wonderful blog readers! Before I explain my entire trip to Berlin and Poland, I want to say hi to whoever is reading my blog in Russia and Sweden! Blogger makes it really easy to track views on your blog, and I was looking at it the other day and noticed there were people reading this from all over the world! Many thanks to my friends abroad for adding to the diversity! But anyway, this blog is about my long study tour with my Medical Practice and Policy core class to Berlin, Germany and Poznan, Poland. I will keep it as short as possible, and promise to add pictures when I can get them off my camera!

My section went to Berlin first, and then traveled to Poland halfway through the trip. We took a bus to Germany, getting there in time for dinner and a tour of the Jewish History Museum in Berlin. The architecture of the building was fabulous! There were so many different meanings behind the shape. If you have a chance, I would highly recommend visiting and taking a tour. We had our first meal at the museum, and it was amazing. DIS always makes sure you are well fed, and this was no exception!

Russian olive trees in the Garden of Exile, Jewish Museum, Berlin

Monday we went to the DDR museum in the morning to learn about communist East Germany. I was amazed to feel the clothes they wore - I am very grateful for cotton pants now! The visit got my friends and me thinking about how strange it must have been to grow up with Germany being two countries. I only know it as one! It's something history classes never really have time to touch on, yet it is a huge part of the 20th century! We learned more about East and West Germany when we went on a great bike tour of Berlin in the afternoon. I am already planning a bike tour in Paris in November, they are a great way to see the city (especially when you've been riding a bike all around Copenhagen for weeks and are highly skilled in your cycling hand signals and stopping quickly). On the tour we saw the TV Tower, Checkpoint Charlie, Brandenberg Gate, Potsdamer Platz, Museum Island, among other spots in the city. It was fabulous!

The third largest existing portion of the Berlin Wall

Tuesday was our first day with academic visits. We visited the German Heart Institute, learned about what they do and then headed into the wards! We saw a man with an artificial heart for both sides, and next to him a man with an artificial heart for the left side. The difference is that one is placed outside the body and one is inside the chest cavity. The men are on the transplant list and can survive with the artificial devices for up to five years, so we hope they get hearts before then! We also visited the intensive care unit (ICU) and saw many patients returning from surgery. The ICU is very expensive, but necessary for all patients coming out of heart surgery. For this reason, the institution spends a lot of time fundraising to support their procedures.

Wednesday, before traveling to Poland, we went to the Center for Anatomy, located at Germany's largest hospital located on the outskirts of Berlin. Here we discussed the importance of cadaver anatomy and continued hands-on learning, and were allowed into a laboratory to examine four cadavers medical students had dissected last semester (in Germany the school year starts in late October). It was so amazing to be given this opportunity, as I have only ever used cats, sheep and pigs in lab. My favorite part was examaning the lungs - they feel like a huge sponge when healthy, but rock hard when damaged by tobacco and pollution. No wonder people who smoke have breathing trouble! After the lab visit, we went to the Medical History Museum also on the hospital campus. Here we had a great tour guide explain important parts of medical history and show us the thousands of specimens that have been donated since the collection began in the early 1700's. Normal and abnormal structures were perfectly preserved in jars, then placed in glass cases in large rooms for viewing. It was amazing.

Wednesday night we discovered the gem of a hotel DIS found in Poland. Complete with a sauna and American-style continental breakfast, we really hit the jackpot. It was so nice to have scrambled eggs and bacon! In Poznan, our main visits were to the gynecology/labor and pediatric wards of the hospital. On Thursday I spoke with a women who had given birth 10 hours before - her baby was adorable and perfectly healthy! Friday we visited children in the pediatric gastrointestinal (GI) ward. Many had genetic disorders of the GI tract, and one adorable five year old was malnourished from an ulcer in her small intestine. She was in too much pain to eat, but since being in the hospital had gained 5 kilos (about 12 pounds)! She was so cute, and luckily was being discharged soon! The visits in Poznan were very interesting, gender roles are not equal at all in Poland, and their medical treatment is behind western Europe and the US. For example, they still regularly use nitrous oxide (laughing gas) as a pain killer during child labor due to the cost of epidurals. I have not once met a women in the US who has recently given birth who was offered nitrous oxide. We mainly use epidurals. That was interesting.

Town square in Poznan

Other than medical visits, we had a walking tour of the city and went to a chocolate house! I loved Poland, it was the perfect size, nothing is expensive, everyone is friendly and the food is amazing. My entire group loved the peirogies, Polish dumplings with potato or meat filling. So good. Poznan also had amazing malls and we spent our free time Thursday shopping until our feet hurt. Which didn't take very long since our hospital visits did not include chairs. Friday evening after an amazing final dinner together, we boarded our bus and drove overnight to Copenhagen. Our ferry from Germany was at six am! Other than the cold ferry and my forgetting to use the bathroom when I could, the ride back wasn't bad! I made sure I had two bus seats to stretch out on and brought a blanket and neck pillow from home just for that purpose! Such a smart decision. Our drive was uneventful and soon we were home again!

Frozen hot chocolate - YUM!

I absolutely loved my long study tour, DIS does a fantastic job organizing the trip and including multiple cultural and academic visits throughout the week. The food was amazing, probably too amazing, as I am going to the gym extra this week to make up for the fabulous meals! Our hostel in Berlin and hotel in Poznan were great and had delicious breakfasts! So much Nutella... I promise to add pictures on this post as soon as I can, I have a ridiculous amount of photos from last week. My mom and sister are arriving in Copenhagen on Thursday (YAY!!!) with my new laptop in tow. Which I will guard with my life. And a laptop lock. We are headed to Stockholm this weekend, so look for a post on that soon! And I will have more posts later this week... think cupcakes. :D

Until then,
Devon.

Guten Tag aus Berlin!

Hallo!

Can you tell my German is limited to those two sayings? Well, it isn't, but it might as well be. I also know some wonderful sayings involing numbers, colors and how to eat, but thankfully have not had to rely on them here in Berlin. I absolutely love this city! It is absolutely huge, with so many train stations, underground stations, bus stations and light rail stops I feel like you could go anywhere without having to walk! The museums are fabulous, and there is so much history from the 20th century, the one you never get to in history class. Yesterday DIS arranged for my group to go on a bike tour of the city. I think I'm going to try going on one in every city I go to. They are inexpensive (€28) compared to other tours and you get some exercise too! DIS has organized some great meals too - potatoes, bread, meat, you can't get much more German than that.

Other than food and biking, we have visited fabulous medical campuses and learned a lot! I don't have time right now to explain everything (I should tell you that I'm blogging from a public pay-per-hour computer in a mall) but promise to keep updating as much as I can this week! I am having a great time, and am excited for tomorrow when we head to Poznan, Poland!

My current blogging location: the mall in Potsdamer Platz. My space bar is semi broken and the keyboard is in German. No big deal.

Hope the weather where you are is as fabulous as it is here!
Devon

Just Go With It.

Hello there blog readers!

I hope you enjoyed the cupcake review on Tuesday; I definitely ate way too many cupcakes last week. Anyway, the reason I’m writing today and not tomorrow is that I have to update you all on what my life has been life for the past two days. Unfortunately, Monday night when I was out, my laptop was stolen from my room. Even more unfortunate is that my roommate failed to lock the door, meaning insurance can’t cover the losses because it was technically not a break-in. So I have had to quickly say goodbye to my MacBook, my faithful friend that I’ve had since high school, and everything that was on it (I kept putting off buying an external hard drive, I know, I know) including papers, lists, my travel plans for my two week break, and all the pictures I have taken in the past three years. It was a tough loss.

What I will say is that I have been impressed with how DIS has handled the situation. Obviously being abroad in a large city means laptop thefts are unfortunately just something you have to deal with, and DIS knows what to do. They have already contacted the IT department to get me a loaner laptop for as long as possible, helped me file the insurance claim (even though it probably won’t be covered) and have done everything they can to make this as easy as possible. I’m glad I’m abroad with a program that knows the ropes.

As for the blogs, I will try to update everything as much as I can, but please be patient the next couple weeks. Right now I’m still using the DIS library computers, but I should have an external hard drive when my mom visits in October, and can then start uploading pictures again. Please bear with me; they might not be as detailed as before, I have limited computer access now. I’m not planning on buying a new laptop until I come home in December (just in case something was to happen again), so it will be a very interesting rest of the semester. There actually might be even more cupcake blogs (just without pictures) in the near future, because I like to eat away my sorrows in the form of chocolate.

So that's all, I just wanted to blog and tell you all what's up. Next week I'm in Berlin and Poznan, Poland, so I will try to blog but we'll see. More to look forward to when I come back!

Thanks for reading,

Devon.

Agnes Cupcakes: Fruit Overload

Last week I went to Agnes Cupcakes two times too many, meaning I went a total of three times. To explain why I went so many times, I will just say that I am so dedicated to making sure I review all thirty flavors, that I had a mini panic last weekend that I wouldn't be able to do just one a week. And so I went three times. 

The first was on Sunday, and I made sure to go early in the day to grab a flavor that is usually sold out by the time I make it there in the afternoon. When I arrived, they still had the flavor I was looking for. There it was with the cinnamon frosting, cute little star on top and red-brown cupcake sitting in the wrapper. I may have only tried a mini carrot cupcake, but this apple flavor may have topped the carrot in my book. Literally there were chunks of apple in the cupcake. You could see the specks of cinnamon in the frosting and in the cake. It was like having apple cake or apple muffins only with delicious cinnamon cream cheese frosting with it. Definitely a smart flavor choice, I loved it so much I ate it immediately!

I was good for two days, not going back and getting a cupcake I would immediately down without taking pictures. But Tuesday night I realized I needed to do more than just one cupcake a day. So I went back Wednesday, and saw just what I wanted: sea salt chocolate! To be honest, it made me want to bake some of my favorite cupcakes - chocolate with mocha frosting and caramel drizzle. I always put sea salt on top and when I took the first bite of the sea salt chocolate, it was heavenly. Salt adds that "sweet and salty" aspect to cupcakes. I mentioned in a previous post that the chocolate/chocolate frosting combination was a little too sweet, but the salt changed everything! Definitely a delicious flavor.

And here is where the guilt sinks in. Well, not completely, but I'm sure you're like, "She ate three cupcakes last week!?!" Well, I'd say I ate two and a half, and let me explain. Wednesday night my core class at DIS had an information session about our upcoming long study tour to Berlin and Poznan, Poland. Afterwards, Josie (my neighbor in our dorm) and our friend Amy were planning on stopping for cupcakes before going home. I asked them if I could come and have them review for me, and they happily agreed. Amy ordered the black & white and Josie immediately went for the kids flavor. I decided to snag a mini strawberry before they were all out, and because I was really curious about the fruit flavored cupcakes - Agnes has about five or six of them!

Amy loved the black & white, her only complaint was a little too much frosting and a need for water at the end! Agnes sells bottled water... they must know. Josie's cupcake was red velvet with cream cheese frosting, rolled in sprinkles. Definitely for the kids. It was... interesting. I took a quick bite at the end and was surprised it didn't taste better. It was good, but not great. I'm really interested in trying the original red velvet flavor now. My mini strawberry cupcake was very good besides the frosting (usually my favorite part!). It was too strawberry-tasting! I know that sounds odd, but truly it would have been so much better with vanilla on top. The cake had chunks of strawberry in it and had so much flavor I could have eaten it for days. The frosting... not so much. But that's ok, it was still very satisfying after dinner.

So in all, I have found some more really great cupcakes, and some that aren't so fabulous. I guess I knew this would happen, but it's still disappointing to eat a not so great cupcake. It's also a good thing I joined the gym last week. Josie and I do intense aerobics together and then I go for some pilates classes too. Bright and early in the morning, no less! I have some great cupcakes planned for next week, and then I believe I'll be able to make a review with a small twist in early October... we shall see!

Until then,

Devon.

Top Five Reasons to Study Abroad in Copenhagen

You're saying, "It's only September!" And I'm saying, "I already know it's the best place to go, and if I wait any longer to write this, it will be a top fifty!"

Onto the list so you know what I mean:

1. Amazing events take place without you being aware or having planned ahead knowing they were scheduled. Case in point: Denmark announced their elections in August, and I witness them in September. Also, the cycling world championships were held this past week. I went today to the finals, and was confused all week on my bike due to various road closures for the time trials.

2. Everyone is genuinely nice. My friend Jane and I went to an open house at a hospital yesterday outside Copenhagen, and were not only welcomed in English, but talked with medical students and other health professionals who all wanted to know about why we are here in Denmark. We learned how to place sutures, practiced arthroscopic surgery, tested rehabilitation equipment and even got to examine a placenta (with gloves on). Everyone was welcoming, extremely nice, and switched to English as soon as they saw the deer-in-the-headlights looks on our faces.

3. The weather. You honestly never know what the day is going to be like, even if it's pouring rain when you wake up. I've learned to love this about Copenhagen because it keeps things spontaneous. Today ended up being an absolutely gorgeous day with blue skies and just a breeze (instead of full on tornado-style wind like it has been lately). Everyone goes outside to walk, sit or have a meal on the sidewalk. Especially on the bridge near us people just congregate and enjoy the nice day!

4. Food. I know I've posted this before, but since then I have really experienced food here in Copenhagen. Besides there being amazing fish, there's also a fantastic variety of bread. On Friday I honestly did not want to go to class, and the only thing that made me go was that I told myself I could go to Lagkagehuset, the best and most expensive bakery in the city. Honestly, I didn't care that I paid three dollars for a pastry, I just went with it. It was a flat cinnamon bun that was still soft with plain and chocolate icing pooled on top. Absolute heaven. It got me through class and then some. And besides the baked goods, Denmark actually has very good sushi (because the fish quality here is amazing). I had some today and want to go get more it was so good! I'm sure I will find more amazing things to eat while I am here, and don't want to think about when I have to go back and can't eat them any more!

5. Transportation here is amazing. It's like it was sent from the gods. Today when my friend Rose and I went to the elite mens finals of the World Cycling Championships, we had to take the train out of the city and up the coast. Afterwards on our way back, we figured we'd have to wait forever for a train. I was telling her while we walked to the station that in DC when there is an event on the Mall the metro simply can't handle the masses of people and you usually have better luck walking home. But to our surprise the train came and we got on, and even found a seat! Danes don't cram into train cars like Americans do, apparently they dislike being human sardines. I like this. Also, the buses are reliable, safe, mostly clean and some of the best I have ever been on.

I know there are many more things I could write, but I am going to save them for another day. But to keep you all reading, I will tell you that the next cupcake review has been written - look for it on Tuesday!