My Norwegian Adventure
I had a long weekend, since I didn't have any school on Friday. We had Friday off as a sort of student/teacher prep day. I didn't do anything special, though I did spend some time in the city trying to avoid the Black Friday crowds. Black Friday here isn't as crazy as it is in America, but many places advertised Black Friday sales all week, though they're weren't as big of sales as in the US either. Saturday, my Rotary counselor's wife, Torhild, picked me up and they took me to Julemessa (Christmas Fair) that was put on by the school band their children had been in (not the same one Ylva's in). It was kjempehyggelig. You could buy cakes, cookies and drinks. I tried gløgg, but didn't like it as the spices in it tasted too strong for my tastes. There was also a "Santa's Workshop" where children could make Christmas crafts. You could buy some homemade goods, like sweaters, hats and scarves. Torhild said she used to make some things when her kids were in the school band, but this year she didn't, though she pointed out some things she had made that were left over from last year. I listened to Roar, my counselor, play in the adult band. They were very good. Today is the first day in Advent, which is a bigger deal here than it usually is in the US, despite most Norwegians not being very religious. Advent calendars are very popular, and Eli started putting out some Christmas decorations. Ylva's school band played at the Christmas tree lighting in the center, so we went to that. It was very cold, but a very nice time. The band played some songs, and some people sang. The tree in the center was very, very big, but looked incredibly beautiful when it was all lit up. The streets in the center too were lit up with all kinds of lights and decorations. I can't wait to experience more Norwegian Christmas traditions!
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Happy Thanksgiving everyone! Unfortunately for me, I won't be able to celebrate Thanksgiving this year because we're a bit busy this weekend, but I really don't mind-I'm probably gaining enough weight as an exchange student that I don't need to eat until I pass out. (:
Last night, there was a sale at Trondheim Torg, so I went with Eli and Ylva. It was super crowded because there were a lot of people trying to buy Christmas gifts and such, so we didn't stay long. Today, it was even more slippery than usual, so I penguin-walked to school and back home. I had Kjemi fagdag today, so we did an experiment to find the speed of a reaction. For lunch, I went with some friends to the cafe in the library. On the way, we saw the Christmas tree being put up in the center. After lunch, I had Norsk, so we had a brief lesson and then we could go to the library to read. I was pleasantly surprised to receive a phone call from my Mom. In fact, I was so shocked, I started crying! It was so nice to hear her voice and talk to her. I love you, Mom! Fun fact about the library: The library was once the site of an old church and grave yard, so before the library was built, there was an archaeological dig site there. Some of what they found is displayed in the library-including four skeletons dating back to the 14th century! Here's a link if you want to read more about that (it's in English): /http://www.trondheim.no/skeletons/ Even though I'm in Norway, and unable to have Thanksgiving dinner, I have still been thinking of what I'm thankful for. I have a lot to be thankful for, especially this year. I'm thankful for this amazing opportunity to experience a new culture, for a wonderful host family and Norwegian friends, but also for an amazing and supportive family in Wisconsin, as well as my friends there. These are just a few of the things that were on my list, but they mean a lot to me. Today I went to the police station for an appointment to get my residence permit (and not because I'm in trouble!). It was very quick and simple-I had to take a picture, and do fingerprints and my signature. It was my second time there, the first was in October to submit the final documents for my application. But today, while I was waiting, I experienced something very new and different to me-I realized I was the only person in the waiting room that was white. Coming from a small town in America, it was very unusual to suddenly find myself as being the minority in a group of people that consisted of Asians, Africans, and Latinos. There was nothing else that was significant about this, but I found the event interesting.
Friday evening we went to the cabin again. There was already some snow there when we got there, after dark. The snow made the cabin seem way more koselig! Saturday night we played Yatzy and watched TV. Mostly, we just relaxed, but that's okay. The snow made everything feel very Christmas-y, so I took a lot of pictures.
This morning Trondheim had it's second snow. (The first time was very brief, during school and nothing stuck, so in my opinion, it doesn't count.) I first noticed it this morning when I opened the curtains in my room. So of course, on my way to school I took a bunch of pictures. Sorry some of them were blurry, I was trying to walk and take pictures at the same time.
Today marks 100 days since I have arrived in Norway. It feels like it could not possibly have been that long, and simultaneously, like I've been here much longer. Over the past few weeks, I've been thinking quite a bit about this subject. I'm not sure when it happened, but living in Norway feels normal now; I can hardly call it an adventure more than I would have called life in Allenton/Slinger an adventure. I have made friends here in Norway, and I feel almost as comfortable with them as I had with my friends in Wisconsin. I feel like I'm at home in Norway and Trondheim. When I go home from school or being out in the city, I really feel like I'm coming home. I feel like a part of the family with Eli, Sture, and Ylva. A lot of past exchange students I had spoken with said that their host country was a second home to them, and I feel like I fully understand that now. Of course, I still miss my family and friends, but I would now say that "Family and Friends" includes those in the US and those in Norway.
Last night, Eli and I met up with my counselor Roar and the Rotary club president and went to Sissel and Jose's. Sissel had made a delicious apple cake and we just sat and talked for a while. Today, I went to a Rotary meeting in the afternoon. Nothing exciting happened there though. I also got a postcard from my parents from their trip to North Carolina. I put all the postcards I get up along my window, so now I have at least one postcard from 4 different states! I didn't do much special Friday night. Sture came home and we watched some TV together. Saturday afternoon I met with my Rotary counselor's daughter and her cousin. They did a little bit of shopping, but mostly we just walked around town. We were supposed to go to the movies and have a sleepover, but I wasn't feeling very well, so I went home and relaxed. Sunday I did some more relaxing and chatted briefly with Teresa. Mom and Dad joined in later, but then I had to go for dinner. After dinner we went to Felix's birthday party. Sissel had made some awesome cakes, cupcakes, and brownies. After that, we went home and again, I didn't really do anything special. Today, I walked with a classmate most of the way to school. We sort of accidentally ended up walking together, but that was okay since we were going to the same place. She asked about how I liked Norway and Trondheim and how much Norwegian I understood. We also talked a bit about the differences between here and the US. In gym, we split into two groups; you could either play basketball or volleyball. I played volleyball, though I'm not much good. We did some warm-up exercises and then played a small game. It was actually pretty fun. I've noticed here that gym class is a bit harder, but less competitive and a lot more fun. In the US, I wasn't very athletic, so I only did the work I had to do, but here, most of my class is very athletic (even if they don't admit it), but they all include each other and laugh at their own mistakes. Very often in class, I find myself smiling and laughing, something I almost never did in gym class at Slinger. Ellen and Ane had both made cake for our class, so I had cake at lunch. In psychology class (where I am now), the teacher wasn't there so a substitute talked to us briefly and then left. We're allowed to leave, but I preferred to stay here for a bit.
Alright, so Monday I had gym class. We played fotball (soccer). I'm pretty terrible, but it's still fun. Tuesday, I had a Spanish writing test, but I think it went pretty well. I had to write approximately 400 words about what "un amigo de verdad" is and when/why they're important. Then Eli, Ylva and I went to Ikea for dinner. After that, I finished wrapping Christmas presents for my friends/family back home. Finally! Wednesday, in Historie class, some students from ungdoms skole came to observe us. We got put in groups, each with one student to talk about Norway, Trondheim, and the katedralskole in 1066. Thursday was English fagdag and we discussed global concerns, with a lot of focus on the Syrian refugee crisis. I know this is an important topic in the US, but it's an especially popular topic in Europe and Norway. I've included the link to the video we watched discussing this topic. Today, nothing special happened at school. After school I went to the post office to get some boxes to mail Christmas presents in. While I was there I met a friend from the Norwegian course. We chatted briefly and then went our separate ways. For dinner, we went to Burger King. I didn't realize how much I missed fast food. Not the most exciting week, I know, but it was still a pretty good week.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RvOnXh3NN9w&index=19&list=PLZvLFYnLo2rqYWktJknt0wK2zQLmtmtBX Today was Father's Day in Norway, but we didn't do much to celebrate. We had American pancakes for lunch. This evening we went to Ylva's school band concert. Three bands played, and the concert hall was very, very full! All three bands were very good, especially for such young children. Unlike American school bands, most children join when they're six years old! A lot of the little kids sang or danced or played a beginner's instrument.
Friday, finally. I had a small cold all week, but its slowly getting better. Tuesday was my last Norwegian class, so we had a party with music and food from all of our countries. It was a lot of fun and we have plans to get together later this year. Thursday I had a test in Math that was pretty difficult. As in America, I thought I had a vague understanding of the lessons, but when the test was in front of me, I had no clue! Perhaps the biggest mockery of this was that, for the hardest part of the test, we were allowed to use our textbooks and computers! Oh, well. I was relieved when my friends said they found it just as hard, so hopefully my teacher is merciful while he grades the tests. I also got a package from Mom! Yay! Now I have some more American junk food provisions and also my senior girls shirt. Other than that, the week's been pretty normal.
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