dagene bløder sammen

Copenhagen, near the train station. I suspect this was not augmented by a local. 

the train to Malmö takes 35 minutes and costs about $10 each way. it's the third-largest city in Sweden but everything I read about it described it as "okay to visit, if you're just looking to cross another country off your list." I hate when guidebooks get smug and blasé. 

the train goes over the Øresund Bridge, which was built in 2000. 5 miles of it are above water and 2.5 miles are tunnel. I had my headphones in on shuffle and listened to Jesus Jones' "Welcome Back Victoria" in its entirety while we crossed. "border control" got on the train at Hyllie and casually glanced at everyone's passports without stamping anything. apparently many Danes live in Sweden and commute because the housing is cheaper, so to them it's probably like driving from Washington to Oregon. it reminds me anew what a comparatively paranoid place the United States really is. 

the first things I noticed when I got off the train: silence and a weird desolation. 

the sun was directly in my eyes. 

apparently I had exited the station in the unpopular unpopulated direction. 

the few people I did see all had cigarettes. 

and then I found this weird boat in a brackish canal. 

the puddles in the shade still had ice but it was nearly warm in the sun. 

in the background: Turning Torso, a 54-story commercial/rental residential building finished in 2005. it was based on a sculpture the architect did of a human torso and it's the tallest building in Scandinavia. 

it was windless, thank fuck. 

a horribly overexposed photo of a random, teeth-gnashingly picturesque Swedish street. 

and the world's twee-est Office Depot.

holiday decorations are going up everywhere- Copenhagen, too. lights are strung over all the streets but nothing is lit yet. if you're ever planning to go to Europe in the winter, maybe wait until December if you're into this sort of thing. 

they sell bulk frozen fruit at the supermarkets. 

and whatever the fuck these are. they were shaped like those individual cold cut things you can buy in the States, but fish cold cuts? it's actually not a bad idea. 

the guy at the cafe was pleasant and I already showcased the lone dancing man, but otherwise one huge and unexpected impression I got from Malmö was borderline hostility. I get the Nordic reserve- the same shit happens in Seattle, and I find myself often doing it too. but smiling at people when one makes eye contact and having them scowl back, like what the fuck do you want?, is still jarring for the puppylike American in me. as I walked through the streets I watched people together or greeting each other and they were laughing, smiling, hugging: a selective, special warmth reserved for those who deserve it. people from the U.S. are trained to smile toothily and say loud cheery vapid shit like "hey, how ya doin'?" and the rest of the fucking world simply isn't like that. and that's fine. but it's still slightly unnerving to experience and be reminded of. and it feels even lonelier if you're already by yourself. 

the moon rose over another canal.

oddly, there were no visible signs prohibiting animals, firearms, or nudity. 

sunset over the Øresund Strait, taken from the train. Air's "Universal Traveller" played in my headphones. some moments are so fucking cliched that I nearly weep. 

back in Copehagen.