This week Derek is joined by British comedian and friend of the show Conrad Molden to discuss the never-ending rivalry between Copenhagen and the rest of Denmark, namely Jutland. In his 11 years of life in Denmark, Conrad has spent the majority living in Jutland and recently moved to Copenhagen while still touring all over the country from Bornholm to Thisted. If you're looking for mentions of remote Danish towns - maybe the one you live in, you will love this episode. Are you a foreigner with q...
Jun 19, 2024•35 min
This week, Derek and Annie are joined by Rachel Warren, who you may know from TikTok as SheIsLostInIkea. Rachel is living in Denmark after studying in Denmark twice. She first studied in Denmark as part of an exchange program while working towards her Bachelors degree which prompted her to pursue a Masters degree in Denmark. In this episode you'll learn about the experience of studying in Denmark and how Rachel found personal and professional success in Copenhagen after her studies finished. Ann...
Jun 11, 2024•42 min
This week, Derek and Annie welcome back Mike Walsh to talk about what it’s really like to work in Denmark. As a former host of the show, Mike has not only worked in the studio, but has worked in Denmark as well as hiring and managing both Danish and international workers. He shares all of his insights of navigating the work culture in Denmark and around Europe as he has managed and visited international work sites. You’ll learn more about the culture clashes one may face in Denmark and learn whe...
Jun 04, 2024•42 min
Thorbern Alexander Klingert, a Danish candidate for the EU Parliament, is back to talk with Derek about all the EU and US elections coming at us in 2024. As a candidate himself, Thorbern describes the issues that he wants to take to Brussels if he's sent there to represent Denmark. He also details his opinions on the upcoming elections in the United States and gets Derek's opinions on the state of American politics as the 2024 rematch between Joe Biden and Donald Trump looms large. For more clip...
May 28, 2024•32 min
This week, Derek is joined by Thorbern Alexander Klingert, a Danish candidate for the EU Parliament. He’s spent years advocating for the international community in Denmark to make sure they had information on voting, and he’s taking his passion for democracy to the next level - and hopefully to Brussels. As a candidate for the EU Parliament, Thorbern explains his stance on many issues facing Denmark and why Danes and residents of Denmark should be more focused on the upcoming EU elections. Thorb...
May 21, 2024•27 min
This week, Derek and Annie welcome back Mike - a What Are You Doing in Denmark OG! Around the table, your hosts and former host discuss all the things that would have been nice to know before moving to Denmark. Of course some pleasant surprises are in the mix, and the goal is to have some laughs and share some advice, including the things that are still adjustments for us, even after living in Denmark for years. Annie shares the new pieces of clothing that have been integrated into her children’...
May 14, 2024•33 min
We’re back with part two of our conversation with Andres Artiles Jerrik, who has been working closely with Danish musical acts like Reiley, Aura Dione, and SABA on their Eurovision visuals and music. We discuss what makes a good Eurovision song - broad popularity or staying true to the local culture of the nation it represents and what the Danish audience can expect from their representation in Malmö. Andres is spilling even more tea and sharing all of his opinions on this year’s show. You’re ab...
May 07, 2024•22 min
This week Derek is joined by Andres Artiles Jerrik, a stylist, designer, author, and TV personality. He spills all the tea about putting his talents behind Denmark’s most recent efforts in the Eurovision Song Contest. You’ll hear him talk about his songwriting, which was displayed at this year’s Dansk Melodi Grand Prix, Denmark’s national Eurovision selection contest. Andres worked on the song Mirror Ball of Hope with musical artist Aura Dione. He shares how the song came to fruition and the ins...
May 06, 2024•31 min
Derek and Annie are back with Nanna Hauch, a licensed family and couples therapist who specializes in helping the international community in Denmark. Annie receives advice on how families can stay connected to their own culture while integrating into Danish society. Nanna shares some of the challenges that her family faced while living abroad and when repatriating and moving back to Denmark. Derek gets advice on how Danish work culture can become an adjustment and mental health factor for intern...
Apr 30, 2024•31 min
This week, Nanna Hauch aka the Expat Hero, joins Derek and Annie to address an important topic - mental health for foreigners living in Denmark. She discusses the unique mental health challenges that the international community in Denmark is faced with. Nanna brings her expertise as a licensed psychotherapist to the What Are You Doing in Denmark community and offers advice on a wide range of issues faced by international families including Derek and Annie. Nanna describes how her own experiences...
Apr 24, 2024•39 min
This week, Mike Walsh is back in the hosting chair with Derek and special guest Chico Muya. As a fellow international living in the Nordics, Chico pumps out hilarious content sharing his experiences as a South African in Finland. He brings the same energy to this week’s episode as Derek, Mike and Chico share laughs about nudity, making friends, and the Nordic obsession with salted licorice. Besides the laughs, Chico shares the heart-warming aspects of his love story with Finland and how he made ...
Apr 18, 2024•37 min
Lyndsay Jensen, the founder and editor of The International, is back in the studio with Annie and Derek to talk about the political changes in how foreigners in Denmark are treated and perceived. She recently spoke at Folkemødet on the needs of internationals living in Denmark and their important place in the Danish economy and society at large. In the discussion, Lyndsay references her eldest son, Connor, who moved to Denmark as a child and has been shaped by multiple cultures throughout his li...
Apr 09, 2024•24 min
Annie and Derek are joined this week by Lyndsay Jensen, the founder and editor of The International, an online magazine dedicated to helping foreigners living in Denmark find their way. Lyndsay shares her story of moving to Denmark after growing up as a Brit living in South Africa. You could say she’s been an expat her whole life. After a decade of life in South Africa with her Danish husband, she expected a soft landing in Denmark. Instead she found herself in a sink or swim existence. After fa...
Apr 03, 2024•30 min
Can potential employers ask you if you plan to have kids? Why do job interviews feel so informal in Denmark? Is there bias or racism in the hiring process? Leslea Petersen, the Founder and CEO of English Job Denmark is back at the table with Derek and Annie to answer all of your questions on finding a job and working in Denmark. She offers advice on adapting your CV and preparing for a job interview in Denmark. This episode is for anyone struggling to find a job in Denmark with questions remaini...
Mar 25, 2024•25 min
Why doesn’t your CV get any response from Danish employers? How do your skills and certifications land you a job in Denmark? Is there any hope for landing a job in the Danish workforce? This week, Annie and Derek are joined by Leslea Petersen, the Founder and CEO of English Job Denmark. She tells her story of how she found herself living in Denmark and struggling to find a job. Her “moving to Denmark story” and “finding a job in Denmark” will sound familiar and relatable to a lot of people. Unli...
Mar 19, 2024•26 min
This week, Annie and Derek continue their conversation about making friends in Denmark and why it’s so hard. Annie discusses the mixed emotions of relief and overwhelm she feels when visiting her native United States, and jumping back into a very social culture with different social boundaries. She also explains why her son struggled to socialize with Danish classmates as he transitioned from American schooling to Danish schooling. What did it mean when his teacher described him as “too American...
Mar 13, 2024•27 min
How do you make friends in a country where locals prefer not to talk to anyone they don’t already know? The Expat Insider Survey ranks Denmark 53rd out of 53 countries in the subcategory of finding friends and 66% of those surveyed reported it challenging to make friends with locals when moving abroad to Denmark. While it’s not impossible to make connections in Denmark, those numbers aren’t made up and this episode will help you defy the odds and understand the reality of moving to Denmark witho...
Mar 06, 2024•32 min
Derek and Annie are once again joined by comedian, Conrad Molden, to discuss Janteloven. The three practice ‘Jante Math’ (a spin on the online trend of ‘Girl Math’) by praising each other’s achievements and downplaying them in true Janteloven fashion. Why was it so uncomfortable for them? Discussion about the moment in history that the concept was named helps to unlock some cultural context around these societal rules. The conversation continues around the ways that Janteloven can seep into your...
Feb 27, 2024•28 min
This week Derek and Annie are joined by comedian, Conrad Molden, to tackle a source of culture clash and confusion for people moving to Denmark - Janteloven. The trio define the unofficial “Laws of Jante” and how the social code came to be so pervasive in Danish culture and Scandinavia at large. Particularly, the ramifications for international residents of Denmark are explained. Is Janteloven good for Denmark? Does it adversely impact foreigners living in Denmark? What are the pros and cons of ...
Feb 21, 2024•28 min
This week’s episode dives right back into our topic of being a trailing spouse when moving to Denmark. In it, Annie and Derek continue covering the unique challenges of following your partner to another country and how it can impact the relationship. They share the lessons they’ve learned along the way and how this massive change could have been a huge relationship stressor. Instead, it ended up making their partnerships stronger than before. This episode will give you tools to face these challe...
Feb 14, 2024•23 min
Life as a “trailing spouse” is mostly incredible, and looks like it from the outside. Still, it’s full of challenges, emotional ups and downs, and can put a strain on relationships and families. Derek and Annie have been through it, and open up about their life after moving to Denmark for their partners. This episode will help you understand the challenges that you face if you move abroad for someone else, with tips and advice on getting through them. Derek and Annie discuss their personal exper...
Feb 06, 2024•33 min
Author Keri Bloomfield joins Derek and Mike for more real talk about living in Denmark and how it taught her how to be more of herself. Sharing stories from her new book, Nothing Like a Dane, they discuss the difficulties of learning the Danish language and Danish culture as internationals in Denmark. The episode focuses on the long journey to realizing that foreigners in Denmark don’t need to change who they are, and Denmark is much better off when they don’t. Follow the pod on Instagram: https...
Jan 29, 2024•35 min
Author Keri Bloomfield joins Derek and Mike for some real talk about moving to Denmark, what Denmark gets right and wrong about integration, and the stories that inspired her new book, Nothing Like a Dane. Together they discuss the realities of life in Denmark for foreigners - both the good and the bad, as well as our thoughts on why Denmark has no problem attracting international residents, but struggles to retain them and why it’s becoming a major issue. Follow the pod on Instagram: https://in...
Jan 19, 2024•44 min
In this episode of What Are You Doing in Denmark, Mike interviews friends of the show, Annie Samples and Adrian MacKinder to learn more about the differences in schooling and education systems in Denmark. Annie is an American mom raising her four kids with her American spouse while Adrian is a British father raising his two kids with a Danish spouse. They share their experiences, advice, and a candid look at what it’s like moving to another country and enrolling your children in a foreign school...
Jan 08, 2024•18 min
In this episode of What Are You Doing in Denmark, Derek and Mike sit down to recap season one of WAYDID and react to some of their favorite clips and discussions from 2023. The two share laughs, advice, realizations, and some serious moments as they reflect on the year and season one. Some never-before-shared clips are mixed into some of the most viral moments of WADID season one with commentary from your favorite guests like Erin Chapman, Ira Sylvester, Annie Samples, and Conrad Molden. WAYDID ...
Dec 28, 2023•38 min
Diane in Denmark is back this week to share more tips with Derek on getting through the winter holidays and preparing for the New Year. Derek quizzes Diane on which celebrities are secretly anti-Christmas based on their public comments about the holiday. Diane also lets us know how to go into the new year with clear goals and resolutions that are actually achievable. She even offers her expert life coaching advice to several beloved Christmas characters who need it the most like Kevin McAllister...
Dec 19, 2023•34 min
This week Derek is joined one on one with Diane in Denmark, the incredible life coach from Scotland who now calls Denmark home. Diane explains the habit of winterbathing to a hypothetical American listener and then explains her hot and cold thoughts on various seasonal activities and trends associated with Christmas and New Years from ugly sweaters to dry January. You’ll hear Diane’s story of moving to Denmark for love over 20 years ago and raising a family in a new country and culture. We focus...
Dec 12, 2023•37 min
This week Derek and Mike are joined once again by the multi-talented actor and comedian, Jeff Bond. Derek tests Mike and Jeff to see if they can recognize fake Christmas movie descriptions from real ones and everyone discovers the true meaning of Christmas. Laughs abound as Jeff, Derek, and Mike discuss all the things you might do at the holidays that could make you Danish. Everyone shares their war stories from the conditions of New Years Eve in Denmark and debate how many types of advent calen...
Dec 04, 2023•38 min
This week actor and comedian, Jeff Bond, joins Mike and Derek in the studio. He shares the story of how his life in Denmark came to be from a part in the Crazy Christmas Cabaret, one of the most successful theater productions in Europe with an annual home at Glassalen in Tivoli Gardens. Jeff, Derek, and Mike share their most annoying jobs during the holiday season and all of the things they love and despise about Christmas. Jeff shares his experiences working as an actor and comedian in Denmark ...
Nov 28, 2023•44 min
Annie Samples aka Annie in Eventyrland is back at the table with Derek and Mike to talk more about being a mom in Denmark compared to the United States. Specifically, Annie tells us about her experiences with pregnancy and childbirth in both Denmark and America. Along the way you can share some laughs about 90s American television shows and how their titles were translated into Danish. Annie gets personal about the journey to having her daughter in Denmark, and the support that she received in t...
Nov 21, 2023•43 min
