The Geography of Bliss
One Can Advise Comfortably from a Safe Port
"The cure for everything, according to Kierkegaard, is salt water—sweat, tears, or the sea."
Visiting Copenhagen
Visiting the most expensive city in Scandinavia—Copenhagen, Denmark—is a fun experience. It's all about getting hygge (cozy) with the locals.
A Cup of Jonas
I haven’t had “sticker shock” since the late 90s, when the dollar took a beating against the yen. I once ordered two Domino’s pizzas and two bottles of Coke in Tokyo for $110 USD. Now, $5 euros for a coffee (around $8 USD) feels like I’ve wandered into a boutique instead of a café. And don’t even get me started on Danish kroner!
The Little Mermaid and the City of Bling
The Little Mermaid is... well, little, and the city itself? It's pure bling.
“Those who drift through life on ships are forever journeying, with their homes wherever the tides take them.” — Basho
The Geography of Bliss
Nothing is rotten in Denmark. Copenhagen is perhaps the most beautiful place to simply be. Sorry, Disneyworld, but Denmark holds the title of the happiest place on Earth. Why? Because the Danes have learned to relax and keep their standards within reach.
Depression, as Kierkegaard might say, is the inability to envision a future. Yet for Danes, the future isn’t something to worry about—it's already here and evenly distributed. Free college, state-funded health insurance, a year of paid maternity leave, and babies so safe they can nap outside alone. Yada yada yada... Here, life is predictable, much like a Seinfeld episode.
This brings us to lige nu. This Danish phrase means "just now"—and it’s the essence of their approach to life. Danes would make excellent Buddhists because they’re not on the hamster wheel of consumerism or chasing fleeting happiness. They live pragmatically, with their happiness clearly measured on the GNH (Gross National Happiness) scale.
Søren Kierkegaard's Influence
It reminds me of Søren Kierkegaard, the Danish philosopher often regarded as the father of existentialism, filled with honest angst. For him, money wasn’t the root of all evil—boredom was. The despair of not being one’s true self. Without risk, faith becomes impossible. He even coined the term leap of faith.
Kierkegaard used humor as a healthy way to gain perspective on life. It allowed him to distance himself from his problems, seeing them from a different angle. For years, I misattributed this famous quote—“To label me is to negate me”—to Nietzsche, but it was Kierkegaard. And his solution to anything? Salt water—sweat, tears, or the sea.
0 comments:
Post a Comment