Look at the chart accompanying this article, and ask yourself, "where is Lorry moving?" Maybe this will help people answer the oft-posed (to me, anyway) question of "what's different in Denmark?"

OK, so that's only part of the answer. Actually, the biggest adjustment seems to be something that only other people who have moved great distances can identify with: animals. Most people don't seem to put much thought into animals in their daily life, with the exception of pets. Popular pets in Denmark and the US aren't too different. I'm referring to all the other animals. The birds, rodentia, insects, and other animals you encounter 1000 times a day and either don't think about, or try to kill.

When I moved from Florida to Minnesota, there were some noteworthy differences in the animals. There are no three-inch cockroaches in Minnesota; at least, none have crossed my path while being here. But there are wild rabbits. In Florida, I'd only seen rabbits as pets. Now take that move and multiply it by 10. They have squirrels in Denmark, but they're red squirrels with ear tufts. All the birds sing differently. All the insects are different. It's almost like a parallel universe. Not that it's a problem, or that I have to change my lifestyle, but it's just weird. It's hard to get used to.

Let's see, what else is different? Shops aren't open 24 hours, and tend to be closed altogether on Sundays, as well as having short hours on Saturday. Cars are smaller, and gas is a lot more expensive. Public transportation is useful and convenient. Spanking your children is illegal. Abortion is not hotly debated by religious crazies, and is free during the first trimester. Adoption of Danish children is also free. Gay civil unions are legal, and no one marches in the streets against it. The political excitement all seems to revolve around immigration and foreign people, or how much we should hate the Danish People's Party and Morten Messerschmidt. Declawing one's cat is illegal, as it is in most civilized countries. New Year's Eve is a ridiculously huge deal in Denmark, and at Christmas, it's customary to get drunk on snaps and dance around the tree while singing until it's impossible to dance and sing any faster, at which time you collapse into a large, laughing pile of the rest of your family. Most Danes don't celebrate Halloween, but they do celebrate Fastelavn, which appears to be basically the same thing but at a completely different time of year, and involving a piñata-like barrel-hitting game. Though there is no separation of church and state, Danes don't seem to give a crap about religion except that it provides a number of excuses to not go to work throughout the year. The church has to approve the names Danes give their children, so that no one is named Candy Cane or Windsor Castle. It's also free to get married at the rådhus as long as one party is Danish. They even give you free wine (white or red, your choice). Also, contrary to popular belief, Danes do not speak Dutch or Swedish, but their very own language, conveniently called Danish.

Otherwise, Denmark is pretty much like the US.