Copenhagen

I'm sitting in the "Sleep-In-Heaven" hostel in Copenhagen... heaven might be a stretch, but it does have a nice atmosphere. I got into town at 11 this morning, ate lunch, and have been walking around for the last five hours. It's the last big shopping day before Christmas (most of the shops here will be closed tomorrow / Sunday / Christmas eve) so there were a LOT of people out in the shopping areas. And it's so nice here -- not everything is overdone for Christmas... there are some people peddling music on the sidewalks, and lots of "god jul" signs... but beyond that, it's not the "Christmas-from-hell" that so often pervades the holiday on the other side of the Atlantic. And it probably helps that I think I sat by Ms. Claus on the train this morning -- this jolly old woman with white hair and a bright red coat sat across the aisle from me.

Walking around this city, one truly has a sense for the history it has... the buildings are big, old, and stone. Most people live in apartments or condos... only a few single-family homes are in the city, and those that are have little if any lawn... the housing situation contributes to the feeling that people are just passing through the city -- and that the city itself is timeless. While the items sold in the shops might be a little (or a lot!) different now than they were several generations ago, the shops, the streets, and ultimately the people probably haven't changed a whole lot.

I think the timelessness of the city and the way some things don't seem to change make it harder for us to be aware of the other changes that we are having on the world... the impact of 6.5 billion people is quite a bit greater than the impact of 2 billion people (like it was 60 years ago) on the earth.

I'll be up early tomorrow morning in order to get to the airport... will try to catch the 6:19 bus to be at the airport a little after 7:00 to depart on a 9:00 flight... then spend 9 hours on the plane, but arrive in Atlanta at noon. Sounds like a long day!!

Merry Christmas!