Our new home...

And so, we have arrived in Copenhagen. What a week; at times it felt like England was holding on to us - didn't want to let go and let us leave (one of us lost a boarding pass at the airport and there were a couple of tense moments when we thought we wouldn't be leaving together!) but the stunning sunset that greeted us when we got off the plane last weekend was like a warm embrace welcoming us to our new home.

Where to start with the highlights of the past seven days? As a family we are reunited and no more flying backwards and forwards for my husband - a huge relief. How wonderful to be together at the end of each day exchanging tales of adventure. Seeking out the familiar but also enjoying the cultural differences, every day we venture into our new neighbourhood. The children have adapted well to the new surroundings, sleeping well and charming and disarming the natives!! I haven't managed anything too creative yet and am instead rising to the challenge of food shopping in Danish - there's good selection but sometimes the language barrier leaves me slightly flummoxed (why is England the only country to categorise milk in degrees of 'skimmed-ness' whilst others refer to 1%, 1.5%, 2% etc?? Semi-skimmed suggests 50% but that can't be right!!!).

Anyway, our new flat is absolutely beautiful. Given that we have moved from a home with 3 bathrooms and a kitchen with 2 ovens, 2 fridges and 2 freezers, it was always going to be hard to compete on the sheer square footage devoted to space for food preparation and grooming but the living space is stunning. The children have a playroom and we have a study (this is as well as bedrooms and living and dining rooms). So much space and high ceilings that in London would be chopped up and divided into 'mezzanines'. I have to admire the Danes for preserving a building that is obviously a relic from a bygone era.

I've been struck by a number of things that are done differently over here - things that are taken for granted as part of Danish life but that are a surprise to me and I'll share one of them before I sign off. Here in Denmark tenants provide their own lighting fixtures in a property and so here we are in our new home and when the sun set on the first night we were plunged into darkness. We didn't pack any light fittings and didn't expect to need them!!! With only one plug adaptor between all our various electrical appliances, its been a challenge to say the least. We've had to prioritise between sound and light but we have enjoyed some wonderful candlelit dinners....