Authentic Danish Crisp Bread!!!

One of the teaching assistants, Lene, at my school is from Denmark and brought in some crisp bread she made so I could sample it as part of my armchair traveling! It was yummy- like a much more flavorful version of Wasa bread! She's gonna share that recipe and a few others with me- I'll post them soon!!!

Here's Lene, and me holding up the yummy crisp bread!

Danish Fat Tax

Just this month, Denmark instituted a "fat tax" of 16 Danish kroner per kilogram of saturated fat in a food (about $1.29 per pound of saturated fat) which is added to the price when the saturated fat content of a food item is greater than 2.3%. This tax will affect the price of foods like butter, milk, cheese, pizza, oils, and meats. Although this may seem like a particularly extreme measure in the fight against obesity and  heart disease, this is in keeping with other regulations imposed by the country, including the banning of trans fats from all foods (which some researchers have credited with reducing rates of cardiovascular disease in the last few years by 30%) and increased taxes on sugary foods, alcohol, and tobacco.

Jakob Axel Nielsen, the health minister in 2009, stated “higher fees on sugar, fat and tobacco is an important step on the way toward a higher average life expectancy in Denmark.”  Overall, the Danish parliament seemed to agree, with nearly 90% of the members in approval of the tax.

Not everyone outside of parliament is quite as supportive. Many organic dairy farmers are complaining that the increase in taxes will make it increasingly difficult for people to opt for organic products.  The current tax makes no distinction between a product like organic milk and a BigMac.  Organic farmers also fear that restaurants will opt to purchase cheaper, non-organic products to keep food prices stable in their eateries.

Tricky, huh? My first thought was "Of course this tax is a good idea - we should have it here in the U.S." but I certainly can see the argument on the side of the organic diary producers (although I myself abstain from a lot of dairy as I see it as a health threat)...but it does seem somewhat Orwellian to have the government come down like Big Brother and start stipulating what people should eat...then again if healthcare is through the government and health costs start to soar because of unhealthy eating habits that affects all of the people in that country....I suppose overall, I still think the fat tax is a good idea, but I don't think something like this could possibly take hold in America for generations, unfortunately:(

Fallulah - Another great Danish up and coming musician!

FALLULAH (born 1985) is the stage name of the young pop music songwriter and singer Maria Apetri. Fallulah has been compared to British female singers, Florence & the Machine, Adele and Bat for Lashes. Her debut single ‘I Lay My Head’ was a massive hit in Denmark and was the prequel to the album ‘The Black Cat Neighbourhood’. She dominated the Danish pop charts in 2010 and the single ‘Bridges’ from the album was last year’s most played Danish-language single on radio. She describes her music as a mix between indie rock and Balkan beats with a hint of folklore.

Agnes Obel - popular Danish singer/songwriter

I stumbled across this musician on the official Denmark website - here's their short bio of her and a youtube video


AGNES OBEL (born October 28, 1980) is a singer and songwriter who released her first debut solo album Philharmonics in September 2010. It received glowing reviews from both Danish and international music critics and has been described as an album of sombre folk classics. Philharmonics has so far peaked at number one in Denmark and Belgium and charted inside the top-ten in France and the Netherlands. The first single ‘Riverside’ recently won Best song of the year 2011 in Denmark.

Off to Denmark!!!

Well, I'm wayyyyyy behind this month and am only writing my first post of the month on the on the 12th...yikes! However, I am excited to start on my online journey through the Kingdom of Denmark.  Although it is the smallest of the Scandinavian countries, it has two autonomous provinces, the Faroe Islands and Greenland...which is actually 500x bigger than Denmark, but has 100x less people!

Denmark was named the Happiest Country in the World according to a 2010 Gallup poll!  From checking out a few Danish websites, I noticed that there are all sorts of great family/vacation expriences available - lots of gardens, zoos, museums, castles and amusement parks to visit, as well as coastline that offers lots of water activities....I think that must contribute to the national happiness, as well as the strong national welfare programs.

Well, I'll be looking at some things more in depth in the posts to come, but here are some images to give you an idea of what to expect should you ever visit Denmark:

Egeskov Castle

Den Gamle By - an open air museum of urban history

Copenhagen

Yummmmmmm

Rosenborg Castle

Danish cuisine 

Tivoli Gardens

Burmese Deliciousness!

A couple years ago a guy at my church recommended that I try his favorite restaurant when I visited San Francisco - Burma Superstar.  Besides having the coolest name ever, this restaurant boasts some of the finest food I have ever had in my entire life.  If you are ever in SF, you gotta check it out!!!!

There's usually a line because it's SOOOOOO GOOOOOD!!!

The food is a sort of fusion of Asian flavors - Thai, Chinese, Indian - to create somewhat familiar yet striking flavor combinations unique to Burma.  I've enjoyed some of their curry and noodle dishes as well as their salads, so I attempted their Rainbow Salad (although, I  made mine veggie - no shrimp...they look like bugs, and no fish sauce  - I used half and half soy sauce and worcestire...which technically has fish in it though, so I should have just got the fish sauce!!!)

P.S.  I also attempted Burmese Curry with noodles:

Recent News: Burma

I usually sign up for Google Alerts for daily emails of top articles related to the country that I am researching each month. The articles from Burma have been more varied and related to really significant change compared to any other country I have virtually traveled to so far. I have a feeling that the people of Burma themselves are talking a great deal about some of these topics as it seems their country's status internationally is at a moment where it could go one of two ways - gaining respect from some of the peace-keeping/humanitarian allied countries, or drawing increasing criticism for the oppressive leadership and human rights issues.

A crowd of relatives and friends wait in front of Insein Prison in Rangoon on May 17, 2011, eagerly looking for their loved ones to appear as part of a general prisoner amnesty release.

Here's some recent articles if you want some more detailed info on recent events:

US and Burmese Diplomats Hold Rare Meeting in Washington

Bringing Burma's Nuclear Secrets to the Table

Rechecking the Number of Political Prisoners in Burma

Monastic Education the Only Choice for Burma's Poor

US Urges India to Wield Influence over Burma