I knew coming to a foreign country that a lot of things would be different. I was prepared for that. What I wasn't prepared for was how much would be the same. This is my documentation of the American-obsessed side of Danish culture.
1) American-flag-print clothing
This is still baffling me whenever I see it. I first saw sweaters and shirts with American flags sold off of hanging racks on the main shopping street in downtown Copenhagen, and I immediately assumed they were meant for some of the over-the-top American tourists I had occasionally seen on the street. This is far from the truth. I have now seen not only shirts and sweaters, but shorts and even long pants with one leg stars and one leg stripes. All worn by down-to-earth, reserved Danes. Confused? So am I.
2) American Politics
Danes are known for their political activism. A very solid 87% turn out for each election without any compulsion by the government, and only a 3 week long political campaign by the members running for the various positions. But while Danes are involved in their own politics, if you're an American, all they will do is talk about U.S. politics.
This happened to me, of all places, on the 3:30 AM train on Friday night. Before I knew it, I was talking to a guy about Ron Paul and whether he would have been good or bad for the U.S. I'm doubtful whether the average Joe in America would know anything beyond recognizing the name. We also had an interesting conversation about Hilary Clinton (who we both coincidentally love). Two days later, as my host Dad flipped through TV Channels, he mentioned that they get a lot of American and British channels here. He then landed on CNN while it was showing the latest stats from the political race. The next U.S. president would seem to mean more to the Danish people then to Americans if you go by how attentive they are to the political race.
