World Collide is the podcast where I talk to people about their experiences abroad

>> Viktoria: Hey, welcome to a new episode of Worlds Collide. This is the podcast where I talk to people about their experiences abroad. And I am your host, Victoria. Before we start, I wanted to make sure that you follow this podcast on your podcast app. So push the button in the corner of your app so you will never miss an episode. And if you also want to help me out a little bit and like this podcast, then you could give it a five star rating on your podcast app. Or maybe even, if this is not too much to ask for, write a sentence or two on Apple podcast, and, yeah, that would be great. So thank you so much for that. That was that.

Aggelos is from northern Greece. So where are you right now

So now it's the time for this week's interview. Here it is.

>> Viktoria: All right. okay, so my guest today is Aggelos. Hey, how are you today?

>> Aggelos: I'm good. I'm good, thanks. Thank you very much for the call.

>> Victoria: Yes. thanks for being on my podcast. I'm excited to hear more about you. So tell me, where are you right now?

>> Aggelos: I'm in Copenhagen, Denmark. So northern Europe.

>> Victoria: When you're in Copenhagen, I wanted to always have somebody from, in Denmark, so. Yay. Finally. I didn't even know it.

>> Aggelos: Well, surprise for you.

>> Victoria: Surprise, surprise. Okay. Denmark. And where are you from originally?

>> Aggelos: I'm, from Greece. From northern Greece, a city called, Thessaloniki.

>> Victoria: Thessaloniki. I've been there on vacation once.

>> Aggelos: Really?

>> Victoria: Yeah. my old roommate, he was also from Greece. I once went with him to visit his family in Kiskil Kilkis? Yes. So I went to this small town there.

>> Aggelos: You really had the proper experience then.

>> Victoria: Oh, yeah, yeah, sure. And then we also went to Thessaloniki and to Charkidiki. yeah.

>> Aggelos: Nice.

>> Victoria: That was my only. That was my only time in Greece, so. But I liked it. Yes. And it's a long time ago, but.

>> Aggelos: It'S really nice that you. You got to meet your family and all that. That's actually, like, you see the real Greece.

>> Victoria: Yeah, yeah, exactly. It was like, small town Greece. I was like, oh, this is like, I don't know, like my grandma, you know, somewhere else, just.

You moved to Denmark in 2015 to pursue further studies in wind energy

All right. so, tell me, how long have you been in Denmark?

>> Aggelos: Very long. I moved to Denmark in 2015, in September. So it will soon be, nine years with a few small breaks that I temporarily moved, to other places.

>> Victoria: Okay, and why did you move there?

>> Aggelos: because, initially, because I'm an engineer, and I wanted to pursue further studies in wind energy. And the university here is, first of all, the only place that I could find that had a dedicated wind energy. Ah, masters. But also, it has a very good reputation also in terms of research. So that's how I first got here. but as an engineer, you kind of. You're not really bound by language. Language is English.

>> Aggelos: Or, professional language is English. So. Which means that after graduating, I had, for example, a lot of, a lot of my peers that went to other countries, for example, because they found, like, nice opportunities. Professional. Professional buttons. So they said, yeah, why not? I will take it. Okay, well, if you're doing, like, maybe other professions, like law, medicine, you are much more bound by language.

>> Victoria: Yeah, yeah, yeah. And for you, was it, like, ever, like, an idea to go somewhere else? I mean, if I think of wind energy in Denmark, it's very proficient, and also it's flat. I guess it's, like, the perfect place for it. Right? I mean, we went there last year on vacation, and there are so many wind turbines everywhere.

>> Aggelos: Well, but actually, you will see, because, okay, I'm working mostly with offshore wind turbines, but, like, if you drive through a country, the best examples where you actually see a lot of wind turbines are Germany and Spain. In Europe.

>> Victoria: Oh, okay.

>> Aggelos: so there's a lot of onshore wind energy in those countries. Denmark has a lot of. Has, let's, say, assembled a lot of know how over the years, mainly because it was one of the first countries to. To use what used to be windmills to harvest wind energy, not just for crops or for whatever else. but then Denmark, as such, is not necessarily the biggest market to sell turbines. UK is a very big market, for example, in Europe. So a lot of the design is happening here, but it's not necessarily.

>> Victoria: I see. Okay. Okay. And why did you then decide to stay?

>> Aggelos: I think it's a little bit what I. The same example as I said, that a lot of people found, like, nice opportunities in other places. I found a nice opportunity I wanted to try. I also felt, like, comfortable in Denmark. It also becomes, like, a bit annoying to move all the time. so I wanted to try. I found a nice job here, and.

>> Victoria: That'S the story, and that's it.

Your studies were in English, but did you also learn Danish

Okay. You just said your studies were in English, but was it also, like, did you also had to learn Danish?

>> Aggelos: I didn't have to.

>> Victoria: Uh-huh. But you did.

>> Aggelos: I get by. I get by.

>> Victoria: Okay.

>> Aggelos: It's a. It's a country where people are very fluent in English, and that is both a blessing and a curse. because you're not forced to learn to learn the language. And having also lived in, in Germany for a short while, it's, it's exactly the, the flip situation where it's like, people, a lot of the times, understand what you're telling them in English and. But they refuse to switch.

>> Victoria: I see. Sure.

>> Aggelos: But then it becomes a survival issue, so you, you pick up the language much faster.

>> Victoria: Aha. Uh-huh. Okay. Got it. So you understand it, but, like, speaking is different. So it's kind of like the same way as somebody would answer you. I understand what you're saying, but I cannot respond.

>> Aggelos: Yeah, I think it's like, I usually describe it as, speaking to a ten year old. So it's like you're speaking to a ten year old.

>> Victoria: Okay. Okay, got it. So, and so, like, how is your danish now?

>> Aggelos: Yeah, it's okay. I'm not gonna have a discussion about, geopolitics in Danish.

>> Victoria: Yeah, yeah, yeah. Okay. But, like, and what about your English before you started your studies? was it, like, as good as it is now or did you also had to learn more English?

>> Aggelos: it definitely improved. but it was not a problem in the sense vocabulary improved a lot.

>> Victoria: Yeah.

>> Aggelos: then, of course, you improve your accent or you pick up all sorts of accents from.

>> Victoria: Yeah, exactly. Especially when you're not on a local English speaking place.

>> Aggelos: Exactly, exactly. But, it was not really a problem. And I think the main reason was that, that in Greece, we don't have movies and series.

>> Victoria: Okay.

>> Aggelos: So in Germany, in Italy, in Spain, a lot of, a lot of tv, or all of tv adapt is in the local language, so you don't have any inputs. but in Greece, I usually say that I learned, English from watching friends.

>> Victoria: Oh, yeah. Okay. Watching friends.

>> Aggelos: Yeah. So, yeah, it was not, I could not write a, technical report or any report as I do now in English, but I could, I could do it, like, in a worse level.

So when you go to Denmark, have you been there before

>> Victoria: So when you go to Denmark, have you been there before?

>> Aggelos: No. And actually, that is a kind of a, ah, joke we have with my parents, because I was, they visited Denmark when I was, I don't know, two, three years old.

>> Victoria: Okay. Uh-huh.

>> Aggelos: And they didn't take me with them.

>> Victoria: Oh, nice. You still wanted to go check?

>> Aggelos: Yeah, no, it was the first time. It was the first time.

>> Victoria: Okay. And so what did you expect?

>> Aggelos: Nothing, really, because, like, Denmark is a, is a very small country. It's not like you, you hear about Denmark International. M even if you come from a european, from another european country. Right. So I don't know. I think it would be the exact same thing if I lived in Denmark and I moved to Greece. I wouldn't know much.

>> Victoria: Okay.

>> Aggelos: Maybe I would have an idea from summer vacation.

>> Victoria: I always feel like if it comes to the nordic countries, they're all just one, you know, it's more like. No, no, don't have a quiet, quiet, quiet. Of course, of course. Yeah. it's always like, oh, yeah, and Scandinavia, you always talk about like, scandinavia. You don't talk much about like the.

>> Aggelos: Single countries, I think. So the, I think the relationship is kind of a big brother, small brother, and, uh-huh. Depending on who you ask, you're gonna get different replies on who's a big brother and who's a small brother.

>> Victoria: Yeah. Especially it has like royalty too.

>> Aggelos: Yeah. And there is history with wars between the countries. But what I mean is that if you leave, Sweden, Norway, and Denmark in a room, they will just fight about everything. But then to the outside they are very close, so they will stick with each other. That's what I mean. It's a brotherly relationship, so they will pick on each other, but in the end they are, they will fight together.

>> Victoria: Okay.

Greece and Denmark are very different within the context of Europe

And so what was then the biggest difference to you when you got there?

>> Aggelos: a lot. I mean, within the context of Europe. and I think that's important and I will explain in a second why I think within the context of Europe, Greece and Denmark are very different.

>> Victoria: Yeah. I mean, also you are far away.

>> Aggelos: Yeah, yeah.

>> Victoria: You have totally different heritages and it's like, also, I mean, cold versus hot. I mean, everything.

>> Aggelos: Yeah, yeah. But again, so in the context of Europe and what I mean is that, like we, we always judge the world based on our own bubble. So the world is much bigger than Europe. Right?

>> Victoria: right.

>> Aggelos: So if you compare to any country in the world, I think we're very close. Like, all the countries within Europe are very close in culturally. but then if we just look at our own bubble, our own closed system, then, then we differ a lot.

>> Victoria: I mean, I would never though, it would not be like in, in my head to say that they're like similar because, I mean, just because of like all the, the greek ancient history, you know, is so different than, for example, I don't know, nordic history.

>> Aggelos: I can think of a lot of reasons. I don't know how, how much you want to talk about that.

>> Victoria: Yeah. Just, we can always cut it out if it gets too long.

>> Aggelos: Sure. but I think first, like, if you would start from contemporary things, like European Union, like, gives us a lot in common, even though we don't realize it. Like, being a citizen of the European Union. Like just the fact that you move to another country without thinking, do I need a visa? Do I need to do anything?

>> Victoria: Right?

>> Aggelos: And you have a lot more things in common than you realize. You actually, I think you need to meet people from outside Europe or EU to realize how much we have in common with each other. But then also if you go, I think, like many, many years back in time, the fact that, for example, it was one religion, okay, with small variations, and maybe now we don't believe as much or we do, doesn't matter. We have common origins, right? Stuff like that, that we look alike. And okay, if you look at me, tanned in summer, I don't look like a Dane, but it's also much different than putting in, like the facial characteristics, the body types are very, very similar compared to other countries in the world. So you also feel a little bit more, in a sense, familiar. If that makes sense. So that's what I mean, that we are much closer than we think. Languages, you have like two, three languages. Like you have Greek, you have Latin, and you have, I don't know if it's considered Saxon, like, yeah, if the correct word is Saxon, the correct name. But then, like, you have things that bring you together, like, you don't realize it necessarily. Like you, we usually stick to the things that we differ, like, to the things that set us apart. We like to talk about those more.

>> Victoria: Yeah, that's true.

>> Aggelos: But other than that, I think we're very similar.

What did you like most about Denmark when you got there

>> Victoria: So when you got there, so what was the thing that you really, liked?

>> Aggelos: I think that Denmark, is a society that works, and I really appreciate that, that a lot of things work as they work as described, let's say. So like public transport is punctual, communication with the state is, it's all digitalized. You have very small bureaucracy.

>> Victoria: Oh, that's nice.

>> Aggelos: You pay a lot of taxes, but at the same time you can see where your taxes go. So at least for me, that's a nice feeling that I don't like paying a lot of taxes, but like, I can see that, okay, there is a school being built, or like, the streets are being maintained, right? Stuff like that.

>> Victoria: Yeah.

>> Aggelos: So I think what I liked most, and I still like it from Denmark, is that it takes a lot of your problems away because things work.

>> Victoria: Okay. Do you think, like, especially when it comes to Greece, I mean, it's just because, economically they did not do so well.

>> Aggelos: So that is a good point, but I'm not even referring to that. I think, and maybe I have a lot of theories about that. No evidence to back it up, but a lot of theories. I do think that this has to do with the weather, because even if I look at, on a personal level, if I have to do something right. But then it's a really nice day outside, I will much easier say I will do it tomorrow.

>> Victoria: yeah, yeah.

>> Aggelos: I will just go out and enjoy.

>> Speaker C: so it could be related to the weather, but like, you're right about the economic, the, economical part, but I don't even think it has to do with that. Like the fact that some things work or that, for example, bureaucracy is like, the tax system in Denmark is very complex. I don't know why, but it's very complex. I think it's like you just go one way and then you just have to stick with it. Like the Sangen cost fallacy. And then you do patches and patches. But like, you don't have to worry about it that much in the sense that it's made. A lot of the things are being automized for your. They are reported directly to the tax authorities.

>> Aggelos: And you don't have to worry about it. Of course you want to review some things, but especially if you are like a salaried employee, like you don't have like maybe your own business or you don't have anything complex in the accounting sense.

>> Victoria: Yeah.

>> Aggelos: Then it's a very straightforward process.

This year was the only year that tax was not straightforward for me

>> Victoria: so are you doing your taxes right now?

>> Aggelos: no, but I had a. I had a. Actually, this year was the only year that was not straightforward for me because last year I was in the US for some months.

>> Victoria: Okay.

>> Speaker C: And then it was like a huge mess.

>> Victoria: Who pays what? Right, right. Okay. Oh, no. And you had to do it. You had to file the taxes yourself. Or do you have like an accountant?

>> Speaker C: No, like, in theory, I would not have to do anything, like, because in Denmark I would pay more tax. So basically I would pay the danish tax and then some of it would be claimed by the US.

>> Victoria: Ah. Okay.

>> Speaker C: For the months that I would be working in the US. But the, the tricky part becomes on the where in to what each country is blind. So I was working there and I was making this x amount of money. But like, does us know and does Denmark know? And you have to bring everything in, like everyone in the same page.

>> Victoria: I see. Oh, yeah. It's complicated. Texas, it's complicated. At least like here, it's like an easy system, you know? I don't know, but I know in Germany it's like also so complicated. So I would probably assume, like, it's more like in Germany where they don't have, the easier, more simpler, simplified tax system.

>> Speaker C: Yeah, I think so. It's not that it's simple here, it's just that a lot of things are being reported automatically.

>> Victoria: Okay. All right.

>> Speaker C: But then, so your employer will send you your paycheck every month, but they will also send it to the tax authority.

>> Victoria: Right. Okay.

>> Speaker C: So at the end of the month, sorry, at the end of the year, or like a little bit later than the end of the year, the tax authorities will ask you, are these things correct?

>> Victoria: Okay.

>> Speaker C: And then you just have to say yes.

>> Victoria: Okay. You say yes because, no, you have more work.

In Scandinavia, you're free to voice your opinion to anyone

And since we're talking about work, so how would you say, like, the work environment is different.

>> Speaker C: I think it's quite different. And probably it's also very different to Germany from my small experience in Germany, because there is no, there is a very flat hierarchy in Scandinavia in general. so you have, of course, roles and positions and all that, but you're, I don't know if you're encouraged, but you're free to say, like, your opinion to anyone. ah. And I mean your professional opinion. so, and at least in the. Being an engineer, I really appreciate that, because you're paid to solve a problem.

>> Victoria: Yeah.

>> Speaker C: And if you disagree with a solution or if you can see a better way, you're always free to speak up and maybe they will not implement your opinion or solution, but you're welcome to voice it.

>> Victoria: Okay, that is nice. So you're not, like, thinking, oh, I worry if I complain about this solution or if I, like, speak my doubts, then I'll be in trouble. Nice.

>> Speaker C: Not at all.

>> Victoria: It's actually very professional.

>> Speaker C: Yeah, of course. Like, of course this is something that I think once you, you understand it, it's something that you appreciate a lot and you try to protect in the sense that I will also be very careful about the things that I complain because I don't want to complain for the sake of complaining. Right. I want to complain to improve something, not just to be the annoying kid in the class.

>> Victoria: Yeah, yeah, of course, of course. No, don't I say something all the time?

>> Speaker C: Yeah, yeah, exactly. So. And I think, that works. Of course, you will always have people that tend to complain more than others. But that you have, regardless of the system.

The universities are really struggling to find accommodation for all the students

>> Victoria: Okay. And going back to, your studies. So I imagine so since you moved there for studying, did you just move into the dormitories of the university or how.

>> Speaker C: Of course, yes, of course no. I was lucky in the sense that, the universe, I think it's become worse now, but that the universities are really struggling to find accommodation for all the students.

>> Speaker C: So they kind of prepare you and they ask you to do your own.

>> Victoria: Research for accommodation, find your own room.

>> Speaker C: But I think, again, this is one of my conspiracy theories, because I was doing this master that I had to move around between countries. I think they were giving us a little bit of priority, in finding accommodation because we needed to change anyways, and it was not easy to find. Just like they, I think they give, priority to, students that come from outside EU when it comes to dorms.

>> Victoria: Mm Oh, I see. Yeah. Because, I mean. Okay, sure.

>> Speaker C: Makes, simply because it's because it's more difficult and, and because they pay a lot of tuition.

>> Victoria: Right.

>> Speaker C: I don't know if part of the tuition is also, I don't know if it's kind of a setup deal that like pay x amount of money, but then you also get some accommodation.

>> Victoria: Okay. So can you also pay for the service that they help you?

>> Speaker C: but, but I think they were trying to at least give a fixed amount of, spots to, students coming from far, away.

You had to move around for the, for the program

>> Victoria: And, and you said like, you had to move around for the, for the program.

>> Speaker C: Yeah, I had to go to, a small place in, Nieder Saxon. That's called Oldenburg.

>> Victoria: Oldenburg. Okay. Yeah.

>> Speaker C: I don't think, I never managed to pronounce it right.

>> Victoria: I got it. And how long were you there for?

>> Speaker C: Six months.

>> Victoria: Okay. And then you had to move back to Copenhagen.

>> Speaker C: Yes. And, at the end I had the, I had the option to do my thesis with either university, like at either university or of course, somewhere else if I found a different setup. But then I decided to do it in Copenhagen also because I was already leaning towards trying to stay in Copenhagen.

>> Victoria: Okay. And so when you then finished the program, you were like, more looking into jobs there.

>> Speaker C: Yes.

>> Victoria: Okay. So why did you like it so much then?

>> Speaker C: I think I appreciated a lot, what I mentioned about things working.

>> Victoria: Yeah.

>> Speaker C: Because, and then again, you can go into a very big discussion about this. These are not things like the bus running on time. It's not something that makes you happy.

>> Victoria: But you can rely on it.

>> Speaker C: But it takes one of your worries away.

>> Victoria: Yeah.

>> Speaker C: Like to go from a to b. I will just take this bus. End of story.

>> Speaker C: And if you sum all of these things up, again, they don't make you happy, but they kind of take your pulse down. They make you a little bit more relaxed.

>> Victoria: Okay.

>> Speaker C: I think that's the best way I can describe. And also, like, within two years, I had moved from Greece to Denmark, then from Denmark to Germany, then from Germany back to Denmark. I was also a little bit relaxed. If it was 50 50, let's say, if I wanted to, if I was 50 50, whether I want to move to Germany and find a job there or to Denmark, I would prefer to stay in Denmark so I don't have to move again.

>> Victoria: Yeah, right. Okay. Because you are also kind of tired of moving around. You wanted to have like a place where you finally, like, settle at least.

>> Speaker C: Yeah. At least at that point, it was quite, exhausting to move every semester.

>> Victoria: Yeah. You were ready. Okay.

Cov says he misses Danish food more than Greek food

And so, let's talk about danish food.

>> Speaker C: Why?

>> Victoria: I don't know. Because, do you like it?

>> Speaker C: I'm not a big fan. it's always a topic of, of like, making jokes about danish food.

>> Victoria: Oh, yeah. Because, well, it's just herring and bread.

>> Speaker C: Yeah. It's like they have this, what they call open sandwich, which is, to be fair, it's a full meal because they stuff it with a lot of things. And the bread itself, it's like this, rye bread that is like, very thick. Probably being from Germany. You know what I'm talking about.

>> Victoria: Yeah, I know, I know. And also, like, last year when we visited, I tried all of them.

>> Speaker C: Okay. But, yeah, it's not like if you would ask what kind of, let's say if you want to have dinner, and it's like, okay, what should we. Tonight, you will never say, let's eat dinner.

>> Victoria: Right. You say, like, let's go somewhere. Whatever. Thai or pizza or greek.

>> Speaker C: Yeah.

>> Victoria: So do you miss greek food?

>> Speaker C: I do. I would say I miss more. Not the food itself. I miss the way of eating. okay, so again, within the context of Europe, I think that the further north you go, you go from having all the dishes to one table and everything, everyone eating, from everything to having your own portion and people eating very quietly.

>> Victoria: Okay. All right. This is how you eat in the north. Yeah, exactly. Uh-huh.

>> Speaker C: So I miss that. It's not, I think you can deal with, you can adapt to the food.

>> Victoria: That's fine.

>> Speaker C: Or I can also make greek food, so it's not like I miss it so much. I can cook whatever I want. but you cannot bring the same vibe I see.

>> Victoria: Yeah, I know. But, it's funny because, my family also eats very quiet and just, everybody eats just their own plate, and it always drove me nuts. It's like you can't hear a needle falling on the carpet. It's like nobody's talking.

>> Speaker C: So I had a. Sorry, go.

>> Victoria: Yeah, no, so I always, like, I don't want to eat with you guys. Sorry. This is. I just rather just put on the tv. It's, I don't know, you know, same company.

>> Speaker C: Yeah, exactly. Some company. It's, it's just like, I think the, the, approach in Greece, and I've seen it also in Spain, in Italy, in Portugal, is that the food is there to bring you together.

>> Speaker C: But you could have, have, you could have had the exact same night with something that has way less. Worse quality in terms of food.

>> Victoria: okay.

>> Speaker C: of course, the fact that someone just put the effort and tried to make it nice for you, that counts. Right. But, like, you're in good company, then the food is the excuse to be with that company. Yeah, but then if I sit alone, not alone, if I sit quietly and just eat, like, put some salad in my plate, put some food in my plate and then just eat the food, then that's not the case anymore.

>> Victoria: Right. And so. And, what is there that you miss from. From Greece?

>> Speaker C: That's what I missed. I miss the, the eating, like, the way of eating. Not, not the food as such.

>> Victoria: And anything else. I mean, besides friends and family, probably.

>> Speaker C: Yeah. family, yes. It's, of course, one thing, I miss a little bit. People being more social.

>> Victoria: Okay.

>> Speaker C: because Denmark is a very close to society, people keep to themselves.

>> Speaker C: And they, they have this inherent feeling that I should. Look, I should mind my own business, and if I'm going to talk to someone, I should have a very good reason. Otherwise, I'm probably bothering them.

>> Victoria: Okay.

>> Speaker C: There was this, joke, after Covid, that was, like, okay, restrictions are over. Covid is pretty much gone. We don't need to keep, 2 meters distance anymore. We can go back to our 5 meters.

>> Victoria: Yeah, yeah, yeah.

>> Speaker C: I.

When you study abroad, it can be difficult to make friends

>> Victoria: And so. And how then, was it harder because of that to find friends.

>> Speaker C: danish friends?

>> Victoria: Yeah.

>> Speaker C: Friends in general? No, because, I think when you study abroad, and especially if it's a little bit bigger university and international university, which it was here you are being basically thrown into a pit of thousands of other people in the exact same situation that the, your common language is English.

>> Speaker C: And you are all in need of forming at least a couple friendships. Right?

>> Victoria: Yeah.

>> Speaker C: And the university here, I think it was also really, it was really nice set up in the way that there was like introduction weeks, and you would get to socialize with a lot of people in a very short while. So you would immediately get in touch with a lot of people, and then with some, you would stick with some you wouldn't, but then you would have.

>> Victoria: A head start, and then later, I mean, you studied and you also just said, earlier that a lot of people, ah, moved away. So, and later in work, like, did you just make friends with your coworkers? Yes,

>> Speaker C: I think, of course, like, I think the further away you go from studies, the fewer chances you have to meet people. and I think also it would be a very different situation for me. Like, if you ask me how much I like Denmark, having moved to Denmark for a job, like not being thrown in a pool of people in the same situation with me, then maybe I would tell you I cannot stand it.

>> Victoria: Uh-huh. Okay.

>> Speaker C: Exactly. Because it would be difficult to meet people.

>> Victoria: I see. Okay.

>> Speaker C: But yeah, I have some very, good friends from work. I have, of course, some very good friends that stayed all these years.

>> Speaker C: just like I did. So.

>> Victoria: Okay, so you're not lonely?

>> Speaker C: No, no, I'm not lonely. That's. I'm lacking in that sense.

>> Victoria: Good.

Is there a favorite holiday that you have? Favorite holiday

And is there like, a favorite holiday that you have?

>> Speaker C: Favorite holiday? No. What do you mean?

>> Victoria: I mean, okay, so I guess since it's still all more european and christian, but it's like if they celebrate Christmas different than, for example, you do, or if they have like, a holiday that they, like, whatever their danish independence day or something, where they really celebrate it.

>> Speaker C: It was constitution day yesterday, actually, so yesterday was a day off.

>> Victoria: Okay. It's like the day of work.

>> Speaker C: Exactly. I don't think I have a favorite holiday. I think maybe the only difference is that the big gathering in Christmas here happens on the 24th. like the family time, and everything happens on the 24th. In Greece, it would happen on the 25th, but that's. But that's it.

>> Victoria: I didn't know it's minor. I didn't know you celebrate, Christmas on the 25th in Greece because in Germany it's also 24th.

>> Speaker C: Yeah. A lot of, a lot of countries have the 24th.

>> Victoria: I always just thought it's just the US was weird.

How difficult was it to adjust to the short days in Greece

so how was it, though, for you to adjust to the weather or, like, the shorter days, longer days, depending on what season?

>> Speaker C: I think it's not the, It's not the weather that is there.

>> Victoria: Ah.

>> Speaker C: So it rains a lot, and it's. It's. It's cloudy and stuff. I don't think it's the. The weather. The problem, the. The difficult part is the. The short, the short days. because, like, going to the office and I. During night and leaving the office and still being night or being night again, because all the hours of daylight were from nine to three. That can be very tough.

>> Victoria: Yeah.

>> Speaker C: Because you go home and you feel like the day is over, you don't want to do anything. Yeah. That is, You have to get used to that. And not everyone does.

>> Victoria: And. But does it get, like, even, like, light out or is it just like dawn?

>> Speaker C: No, no, it's not that. It's not that. north.

>> Victoria: Okay. Yeah. Yeah. Okay. I only have been in summer, so I don't know. But in summer, you have, like, long days, which is nice.

>> Speaker C: It's. It's super nice. And actually, you, like, you don't really want to go home a lot of the days because it's. You're gonna have light until, like, very late at night, and you, like, dawn will start, I don't know, at 04:00 a.m. or not dawn. Official dawn, the way they measure it. But, like, you will have, like, a.

>> Victoria: The sun coming up slowly.

>> Speaker C: Exactly. so, yeah, summer is really nice. And also, what I always say is that if you work during summer, it's. It's much, much nicer to work from the north because, like, in the south, it's so warm that it's very difficult.

>> Victoria: Right.

>> Speaker C: To be productive.

>> Victoria: Yeah. I mean, this is also why a lot of the southern countries have Siesta. Do you have it in Greece, too, siesta?

>> Speaker C: No, we don't. We don't. But also, it was. It was never, Strangely enough, it was never a thing to have a proper lunch break in Greece.

>> Victoria: No.

>> Speaker C: So Siesta is partially because of the heat, of course, but also because people have just eaten, right. So a lot of people will not. Will snack during the day, but they will not have a lunch, break where they will eat something that will just drag them down for the rest of them.

Do Copenhagen now feel home, like home for you? Yes. Yeah. Okay. So you are planning on staying, or would you move somewhere

>> Victoria: Okay. Does Copenhagen now feel home, like home for you?

>> Speaker C: Yes.

>> Victoria: Yes.

>> Speaker C: Yeah.

>> Victoria: So you are planning on staying, or would you move somewhere else, or would you consider moving back.

>> Speaker C: I'm not planning on leaving, but.

>> Speaker C: That's always, you cannot tell the future.

>> Victoria: Right? Right.

>> Speaker C: You don't know what happens, but yeah, I don't have any plan on, baby.

>> Victoria: Okay. All right, well this is, well, this is good if you feel comfortable where you are, so.

>> Speaker C: Yeah, yeah, of course, of course it is good. And it's it even feels, feels strange when someone asks you, like after a long time, like how do you like it here?

>> Victoria: Yeah, it's like, oh, I fully adjust it.

>> Speaker C: I mean, if I'm here after all these years, I guess I do like it to a certain extent, at least. It cannot be that I don't like it.

>> Victoria: Yeah. and is there, but is there anything besides like the rain and like the short days in winter, is there anything that you don't like? Oh, I mean, you already said, like they're like not social and.

>> Speaker C: Yeah, I think this comes a little bit as a package that like weather is, is not the best. You don't get a lot of sunlight and then I, people also tend to stay more inside and then that also affects their personality. They're more, they keep to themselves. So. Yeah, they sound different, but I think that they, they come a little bit as a package.

>> Victoria: I think so too. I mean, also, like, while I'm doing this podcast, like, this comes up a lot. And everybody who moves like from like a different, like, climate difference, like from north to south or the other way around, they always say this. In the south, in the warm countries, everybody's very open and friendly, is always smiling, and in the colder country, everybody's always serious, you know, and more distant.

>> Speaker C: Yeah. And people are like, are very polite. Right. everyone here is very polite. If you ask for help, they will help you. But like, it's that then there is a very clear barrier of I'm polite, I help you, but like, we're not friends. Yeah, this is the end of this conversation.

>> Victoria: No, I get it. But here it's, here it's sometimes hard to tell like, who is your friend and who is not because like everybody is so friendly and like sharing so many informations and always does like so much small talk. but you will like never be invited to their house. And if they say like, oh, yeah, you should come over, they don't mean it, you know, it's just like.

>> Speaker C: Oh, yeah, no, that you will not have actually here. It will, it will be the exact opposite that, uh-huh. People, they will tell you, you should come like and they will give you a date, like, in three months in the future. Yeah, but then they will put it down in their calendar, and then they will expect you. They don't need to say it again. They will expect you to be there.

>> Victoria: So just like, how I, did the confirmation for the podcast, you know, I was like. Because sometimes, like, people, like, ask me, like, a day in advance. Like, hey, can you confirm? And you were just.

>> Speaker C: No, that's fine.

>> Victoria: No, we set up the date, and that's it. So.

>> Speaker C: No, that's fair. That you. That you wanted a confirmation.

>> Victoria: No, no.

>> Speaker C: Yeah, I would do the same.

>> Victoria: Yeah.

>> Speaker C: But, also in a more casual, friendly setup, like, if I told you, okay, come, over, bring your kids on September, fifth, whatever, and then I'll make dinner then I expect that if something goes wrong and you cannot make it, you will let me know.

>> Victoria: But otherwise, you're gonna show up.

>> Speaker C: Yeah, you can show up.

>> Victoria: Yeah.

Going back to when you were still, uh, in Greece and applying for university

Going back to when you were still, in Greece and were applying for your university, program, was it like, at some point where you, like, double thinking, hey, maybe I should not go? Or. How long did you have to decide on.

>> Speaker C: No, not for Denmark. well, not for studies, because I did have. I was kind of maturing it inside for quite some time. Of course, it's always a little bit of a shock, the days before you take the step. but even I don't think it ever really becomes easier. It's a shock at the very beginning, but then if you do it three times, I don't think that the days before, you feel very cool and relaxed about moving to another country. I think it's the same stressful, should I do it? Should I not do it?

>> Victoria: Situation. yeah. And where you're, like, ever thinking of, hey, maybe I should just see, if I can find a program that is closer, closer to home.

>> Speaker C: I mean, it doesn't really matter, right? If you have to go in a plane, it doesn't matter if it's going to be 2 hours or 3 hours.

>> Victoria: That's true.

>> Speaker C: As long as there is a direct flight, then. And. Okay, again, I'm talking within the context of Europe. If it's a direct flight, that it's to New York, then it's, 10 hours, then. Okay.

>> Victoria: Yeah, yeah. No, but you have, like, seriously, what, 4 hours?

>> Speaker C: Or it's less. It's, I think it's a little bit less than 3 hours. So if it was flying there or, I don't know, flying to utrecht, for 2 hours, right?

>> Victoria: That's not a difference. Okay, got it. No, no.

Okay. I guess I have all my questions. I'm very surprised that we answered all these questions

Okay. I guess I have all my questions. Thank you so much for being on my podcast.

>> Speaker C: No, perfect. I'm. I'm very surprised that we managed to answer all these questions so far.

>> Victoria: I don't know. Like, I'm, I always, like, send out that email in the beginning and I honestly, like, I don't even remember, like, what questions.

>> Victoria: Yeah, that was my chat with agilos about all things Denmark. I think Denmark is a great country.

>> Victoria: Probably everybody will cherish it if they.

>> Victoria: Like a, good functioning country. But I thought it's very fun to visit to. So, yeah, shout out to go to Denmark too. But I also don't want to forget to mention that Agilos has a, ah, newsletter. It's called the naive ignorance substack. There he writes about all things immigrants, expats. So, yeah, check it out and subscribe. You will find the link to it in the show notes. And as well, in the show notes, you will find all the contact information to reach out to me. So please do so. If you want to write me an email, send it to worldschool.

>> Victoria: Or reach.

>> Victoria: Out to Instagram threads or TikTok. But that was it from this week, and I hope you tune in again next week. Until then, bye.