The University can close now, we don’t need it anymore.
Students in Aarhus wait only one day in the year: Kapsejlads. And now that it is gone, nobody feel motivated anymore to routine lectures.
The kapsejlads hashtag flood on twitter accounts, especially between international students, that saw some Kapsejlads that didn’t really have an idea of what Kapsejladsen was if not from the few videos on youtube. Which left a lot of people unprepared to the super-natural way of celebrating the day, for the Danes.
My first and only tweet of the day was around 8 o’clock, as by arriving at the Universitet parken, the free University wifi connection was completely down due to the 25000 students around the campus. At 8 o’clock I wrote “From my window in Høegh Gudlbergsgade I can clearly see a diaspora happening. #kapsejlads “, as already at that time, people was going over the park to get the best spots.
It has been my second Kapsejlads, and by writing it, it sounds like it has been the second time I run the NYC marathon.
But it is kinda like a marathon where, in this case, the task in is slightly different: drinking – and staying awake.
I couldn’t not compare this year experience with my first Kapsejlads of 2011, when the sun was shining, there were around 20 degrees, and I was been thrown inside the lake by an engineer student. Something was better , something was worse, but clearly there was some sticking and permanent features , that made me feel that I was back in time. What I call “the mythological figures” : specific characters, that in the history of Kapsejlads will always be there, and have always been there.
1. The Guy That Passes Out at 9 am
This year, the strecher passed just 3 meters far away from me. Two paramedics were carrying an indistinct figure, and I could completely tell by the expression of their faces that they were thinking it would have been a “really looooong day”. Sometimes you want to be the first, and sometimes you prefer not. Like in slå søm i bræt. And in this case,you don’t really want to be the first to pass out at 9 am.
This incredible figure, has no sense of measures and believes that, a shot in the morning is the best way to waken up. Maybe two shots. I guess we all have a friend like this, or we are the ones.
2 The naked guy
Last month, Aarhus was having really well designed posters all around the city asking “Who has the biggest penis in Aarhus?”. We know for sure that all the guys passing in front of it smiled and though “Clearly they were thinking of me” (or maybe for the Janteloven they though: “No,no, surely not me!”). Maybe a way to answer this question is to be on the front row of the naked run.
What can people do for music,eh? As “drinking as faster as you can” was already taken, somebody had the intelligent idea to have naked people running around, in order to win a Roskilde festival ticket. This as an incentive to show your genitals, even though, getting naked in Denmark, is a matter of few seconds, without fearing somebody will judge you for that. Girls and boys run naked and it is not important to be in the best shape possible, as long as you arrive first and enjoy yourself. The naked guy that wins, is clearly one of the mythological figures, as , by doing something embarassing, but winning, he shaft everybody else, and receives respect (what more mythological than this?)
3. The Cans’ Collectors
Nothing in life is more pressuring than a Cans’ Collector staring at you, but most of all, staring at your semi-full can of beer in your hand, ready to collect it as soon as you will throw it away- That inevitably make you lose the enjoyment of having a beer – after 15 beers – but still is really unconfortable.
I will call them: Giano or Ianus, the roman mythological figure that had two faces, the God of material and un-material things. And there is nothing more material than cans.
Their figure is quite controversial in my point of you, as if they had really two faces.
From one side, I think that they clean up the park and it is a good thing. One’s man trash is somebody’s else treasure, and as long as Danish youngsters are ok with losing the pant money, it is fair enough. But the business behind it, and the involvement of kids inthe process of collecting and be the trash guards , makes me be quite sad about the whole situation.
4. The Stripper(s)
I can clearly tell that the economic crisis is still here. From the 2011 chabby strippers duo , the Economic Department , this year, choose to have a quite skinny blonde single stripper, saving them some money, but as well not securing this year victory.
One day I will know the reason why, there are always strippers, and only female strippers, in the Economy intro shows. Somebody might call it tradition, but it really awkward to see such show with other 25 thousands students, that think that is really normal.
As ” the more, the merrier” might be a motto of this department, they are clearly choosing girls with more boobs than ever.
However I have to recognize them, their ability, not as much as stripping, than in moving. They are really seductive and capable, but of course, it is their job. Sometimes I ask myself what do they think while not showing off, but showing it that easily, probably it is something Danish, that I won’t really ever get.
5 The Girl That Sails In The Race
There’s not a better mythological figure than the girls that drink fast, spin fast, and sails fast. The perfect girl to merry, if you are still a viking. I once tried to drink a beer quite fast. I failed, obviously, so I have a huge admiration and esteem for these girls, that battle like men. And I think, as well, sometimes , they are the key of success, because no man is good to spin around as much as a woman. Years spent doing the Ring a Ring o’Rosies, and finally found the reason we exercised for so long, in the old days.
6. The saviour
Usually, all the intros are about a history/problem which needs a solution. Usually students fight each other, and the good prevails on the evil, but there is always somebody that save the situation at the very last moment. It is an essential figure, otherwise all the small intro will end with the victory of the darkness, and the intro is needed to give a bit more courage to its own regatta team.
This year, the most recurrent savior, or theme song , has been the six pack lifeguard with attached ” I’ll always here” from Bay Watch. He saved Batman, and he saved the Ninja Turtles, so at the moment, I don’t know if there is any lifeguard ready to save normal people. But as long as the water is deep as the Uni lake, there’s nothing to get scared about.
More photos from the front row
