Danmarks Tekniske Universitet (DTU)

All the international students go to the Moose, the Student House and the Cellar Bar but there are lots of other places around Copenhagen like Vega, Bar Fly (pretty ordinary), ice skating on Kongens Nytorv, Cafe Sorgenfri, the 20kr all-you-can-eat pizza place, Hilleroed, Stockholm, Lofoten islands in Norway, anywhere, it doesn't matter, the company is much more important and you'll have plenty of good company from the other international students, especially in the Spring semester. The best thing was probably just the student parties around DTU and in the containers.

Living close to the uni was great. At any time you can visit the other students in nearby houses or "the containers" (the infamous on-campus accommodation) or go to the computer labs where there are always some people you know. You can ride your bike everywhere, even to Copenhagen but most people just ride to the train station.

I was really keen to learn Danish (I still don't know why). I did some study before arriving in Denmark and then took advantage of the free courses offered by the government (and co-ordinated with DTU to make it really easy to get involved). I reckon I studied Danish harder than my university subjects and it paid off. After studying at DTU I took 7 months work experience in Aalborg where I met a lot of Danes and I found they were much more friendly if you at least *try* to speak Danish. By the end I passed the government exam (Almenproeve 2) and it just helped me feel a lot more at home in the country. I remember one time when I simply said "Tak" to a waitress and she gave me a big smile--they love it if you just make a little effort to speak the language. The courses offered by the government were great. Completely free and very helpful although you still need to do private study and practise as much as possible. Some people I know have had bad experiences mostly through having a bad teacher but I was very fortunate.

I have a St. George bank account in Australia and to withdraw money directly from that account (via VISA) cost about $4 per withdrawal. If you have a lot of money it's cheaper to open a Danish bank account and transfer it there. But transfer it all at once if possible as I got charged service fees by St. George, Nordea and Danske Bank meaning it cost about $30 for the transaction. If you expect to make more than 2 or 3 long train trips (e.g. outside Copenhagen to Jutland or Roskilde etc.) then buy a DSB Wildcard at the start of your trip. It gives you a big discount. Also, if you know if advance you are travelling by train try and get a DSB Orange ticket. They are a lot cheaper. If you're travelling around Europe don't forget to check Ryanair, EasyJet, Virgin, etc. There are always some bargains. We were all surprised how much money we spent on beer! Think twice before shouting! On our trip around Sweden and Norway we just camped and ate rice. So cheap and so good. You probably won't be eligible for a Dankort so you'll need to take cash with you nearly everywhere (most supermarkets don't take credit cards). Can be a bit annoying when you're in the supermarket queue and you suddenly realise you have no cash!

The best six months of my life!