Nordic Tips for My New York Ladies

I'm lucky enough to have not one but two fabulous New York ladies coming to Copenhagen to work on the Nordic Google team from the beginning of April to the end of June.  With them in mind but hopefully helpful to many, I've put together my Top 40 tips for working at Google in Scandinavia and enjoying life in Denmark:

1. Say good morning to everyone on your way to your desk each morning
2. 80% of the office sits down for lunch together promptly at noon
3. Don't discuss work at lunch
4. When Google serves fish for lunch, dessert is served in the afternoon
5. Learn the bike signals, they're different
6. Do not mistake the bike paths for sidewalk, the cyclists will not stop
7. Scarves are a year round accessory
8. Bring a jacket with you even in the summer - the shade and the evenings get super chilly
9. Being stressed out is your fault - manage your time better
10. Be prepared to eat a ton of bread, it's amazing
11. Drinking on Mondays and Tuesdays is as rare as bad bread
12. Bring an eye mask to wear when you sleep - come June the sun will rise around 4:30am and set around 10pm in Copenhagen and it's more extreme in Norway and Sweden
13. Restaurant reservations have an end time and they will kick you out
14. Ask for the bill when you're ready to leave a restaurant or they'll never bring it to you
15. Get a dose of Mexican food before you leave the US, it hardly exists here
16. Get a manicure and pedicure before you leave NYC - they're about 5x the price here and need to be scheduled a week in advance
17. It's normal for anyone aged 15 to 50 to tell you that they stayed out until 6am last Friday or Saturday night
18. It's legal to drink outside
19. Sitting by the canals with a "to go" beer is where it's at
20. The washing machines take over an hour and there is different detergent for whites and colors
21. You know how you avoid NY street hot dogs at all cost?  Do exactly the opposite here.  The sausages (with everything on it) from street carts are awesome
22. Most shops and banks don't open until 10am on weekdays. On Saturdays they are shut by 2-3pm and on Sunday no shops are open except Magasin.
23. Put the grocery divider behind your groceries for the next person when checking out lest you get the stink eye
24. Bring your own bag to the grocery store or be prepared to pay handsomely for one
25. The subways run on the honor system but if you do get caught without a ticket you'll be fined about $200
26. The second floor in the US is the first floor in Denmark (and most of Europe). It’s good to know this if you plan to visit people or want to find the right room at your hotel
27. Take off your shoes at the front door when you enter someone's house
28. When you join a party with less than a dozen people it's good manners to go all the way around the room and shake hands with each person before you settle into a conversation
29. "Hi" means hello in Danish and "hi hi" means goodbye
30. "Mad" means food, "slut"means finish/end and" fart"means speed
31. Taxi drivers don't expect a tip
32. When going out in NYC, showing up 15 min late is 'on time'.  When going out in Copenhagen, text if you'll be five minutes late
33. Danes reference week numbers.  Ex., want to go skiing in Week 7?
34. A kilo is about 2.2 pounds, a liter is just a little less than a quart, temperatures below about 10 Celsius are cold, 11-15 are cool, 16-20 are warm, 21-25 are summer, and temperatures of 26 and above mean you're not in Denmark anymore
35. There is no hair of the dog culture in Scandinavia
36. The concept of brunch is new and doesn't involve alcohol
37. It's very common to have a family but not be married
38. Bring a debit card (ideally without internationally transaction fees).  Cards here have a chip and a pin for security.  You're still a step behind by only having a pin and one with neither will likely require a passport
39. You only have to be at the gate 15 min before departure for flights within Scandinavia
40. I swear the liver pate is delicious