A few crumbs of Danish

Colby requires that I take an introductory Danish class while studying at DIS. Most young Danes, particularly those working in stores or restaurants, can speak English and are eager to chat with Americans. I've tried ordering a cup of coffee in Danish, but most of my usage is still limited to saying "thanks" and "excuse me" on the street. After a few weeks of class, though, some of the phlegmmy soft "R" sounds and swallowed ends of words are actually beginning to make a tiny bit of sense. This morning I gave a presentation on my family in class. All I have to post here is the text—unfortunately I can't figure out how to upload an audio file to my blog yet—which is a shame, because written and spoken Danish are almost like two completely different languages. If I master technology and a few more sweet gutteral sounds, you may get the chance to laugh at my accent in a later post.

In the meantime, "Min Familie":

Det er min familie. Min far, Joseph, bor i et hus med min mor i Newton, Massachusetts. Han kommer fra New York. Han er en læge på en hospital hvor han arbejder med børn. Han ser fjernsyn hver aftenen. Min mor, Mindy, kommer ogsa fra New York. Hun er en sygeplejerske. Hun er ogsa en lærer på universitetet. Charterferie kan hun godt. På billedet, hun er i Alaska med min far. Min søster, Jessica, er 27. Hun bor i en lejlighed i New York City med hendes kæreste, Josh. Hun arbejder på Liz Lange, en modeskaber. Kunst kan hun godt. Vi taler i telefon om omsdagen og i weekenden. Min bror, Carl, er 24. Han bor i en lejlighed i New Jersey. Han læser medicin på universitetet “Robert Wood Johnson.” Han har en kæreste somme hedder Jess. Han laver mad hver dag. Mit hund, Pablo, er en år. Han bor i et hus med mine forældre. Han er sort og hvid. Han arbejder ikke.

The last four sentences can be translated as:

My dog, Pablo, is one year old. He lives in a house with my parents. He is black and white. He does not have a job.

The rest is yours to freely interpret or copy into an online translator. Hej hej!