Key differences between two countries
January 13, 2023
View of the capital city Copenhagen. The Danish cities are in general older and have the classic European style. After being here for about five months, I have been asked a lot of questions about what is different. I have tried to come up with a few of them.
I have been in the United States for more than five months now, which has led to a lot of questions about the differences between Denmark and here. It is difficult to name all of the differences, but here are some of the most interesting contrasts.
Language
“You speak Dutch, right?” I understand why people might think that because it starts with “d” and sounds familiar, but I speak Danish, which is very different. People have also asked when I learned English. I have had English for a long time in school, because it is mandatory to learn, but really movies and shows helped me a lot.
Transportation
I know that a lot of the bigger American citizens have great public transportation, but at home we have opportunities all over the country even though you might have to wait for a long time in a smaller town. Also, a lot of Danes bike to work, school, and grocery stores, especially in the cities.
Politics and taxes
We have a representative democracy and parliamentary system, which means we have a prime minister, Mette Frederiksen. Our taxes depend on our income, and they typically amount to 50%. This sounds like a lot, but Denmark has free education and universal healthcare.
Government
In Denmark we have a monarchy, which means we have a queen. Queen Dronning Margrethe ll has been on the throne for over 50 years. This is clearly different from here. The queen’s political powers are minimal, but she can sign laws and designate ministers.
Football vs. fodbold
Sports are really big here. No, extremely big here. A lot of people have a big heart for football and have asked me if it is a thing in Denmark. The biggest sport in Denmark is “fodbold,” a form of soccer. People get really into it during the World Cup and the European championships.
Weather
I got here on July 31, and it was really hot. The Danish summer can be as hot as here but that would probably mean a heatwave. The typical weather during the winter is rain, snow, wind, darkness and cold. Sometimes we can experience all four seasons in only one day.
Denmark is a small country in Scandinavia in Europe. Its area is 16,580 sq miles and we have 1,419 islands. Our population is about 5.843 million. Our capital is København (Copenhagen). Greenland and the Faroe Islands are under the Danish kingdom.