Jeg elsker Norge :)

Things are staying consistent for me in Norway. Last week we had a thing called “faguke” which literally translates to subject week. Each day we had one specific class where we worked and took tests from 8 until 3 in the afternoon. 

I am getting more involved with the sports clubs now that I have settled in. I tried out Håndbal for a week, I wasn't the best but it was cool to try something new. We have this training physility not too far from the school were they hold a lot of exercise classes. I have taken part in some Zumba exercise classes which have been super fun! My sport class with the school is three days a week for 80 minutes each of those days. We do a lot of different types of exercising. In preperation for winter and the snow we have been recently running up hills with ski poles to get ready for cross country skiing, now that is one tiring workout. We also have days were we are given a map with which we must run and navigate our way all through the forest and town, not easy stuff. At least once a week we will have a day dedicated to soccer, definitely a popular sport here. As of now I am trying to join the tennis team in Gjøvik, and I hope it works out.

My host parents had their grandkids here last week for a visit, and that was a lot of fun. They stayed with us for about five days. They live on the west coast of Norway so we drove them to Sogndalen, halfway between Oslo and the West Coast of Norway, for the parents to come and pick them up. The drive was utterly breathtaking and the fjords were all so beautiful.

Niklas on the ferry to Sogndalen

I traveled to Oslo recently and was lucky enough to see the sun. My friend, Maria Norum, took me around the city. I got to see Vigeland Sculpture Park in addition to Karl Johan’s Gate. It was really fun to see Norway’s capital.

Stortinget

Karl Johans Gate

 Karl Johans Castle

Maria and I at the Vigeland Sculpture Park

Coming up this Sunday, the 25^th of September, I will be traveling to a place called Kinsarvik, on the Hardanger fjord on the West Coast. There I will meet with the other exchange students of the district and we will all take part in a weeklong language course along with some sight seeing. Following that week the schools have a week off. It is in the first week of October, otherwise known as høstferie, or fall break. 

Fun Fact: 

People in Norway, that live near Sweden’s border, often travel there to buy groceries, cars, clothes, you name it. The prices in Norway are among the highest in the world and in Sweden they are much more affordable. The Swedish folk often have trouble with finding jobs near them so they come to Norway. The low unemployment rate and the high availability of jobs really attract a lot of Swedes. Another plus for the Swedes is that the Norwegian kroner is of higher value, so when they travel back to Sweden they will have acquired more money.

Rain Rain Rain

It has been constantly raining here in Norway. Flooding has occurred all over and especially in Southern, Norway. It is the most rain Norway has gotten in 111 years.


 I am now beginning to really grasp the Norwegian language. I have attended school for almost a month. My head often hurts with all the new words and information but I have progressed. I constantly refer to my Norwegian English wordbook, without it I would definitely be lost.

Each student is provided with a school laptop so all of our documents are done digitally, which is a big change from high school. I have become close to a group of girls who traveled to the US last year on exchange. I am going to be living with one of the girls, Mathilda Tosterud, for my second host family. They are a family of five kids that live walking distance from the school. The teachers here are all very kind and they have been really helpful with all of my schoolwork and assignments. I do have to say that English is my favorite class, in addition to social anthropology.

Currently the Norwegian Valg (election) has been going on. This coming Monday, the 12th of September, schools are closed due to voting. The Arbeidpartiet (Labor Party) has received high praise for Jens Stoltenberg’s actions following the attacks on Utøya. Their popularity due to recent events has risen. It is unclear which party edges above the rest but soon enough there one will be chosen. The spectrum from right to left in Norway involves the Arbeidpartiet, Frp, Høyre, Krf, Senterpartiet, SV, and Venstre.

We traveled to Lillehammer to see the famous ski jump.

Lillehammer’s Maihaugen Museum

Downtown Lillehammer

Oslo, Norway

Here I am at my very first opera. This is Oslo's new opera house that has been remodeled--following the architecture of the opera house in Sydney, Australia.

Later on this month my rotary district is holding a weeklong language course on the west coast of Norway. There I will meet all other exchange students throughout the southern half of Norway. We will be staying in Kinsarvik, which is a place on the Hardanger fjord. It isn't too far from Bergen.

Fun Fact: Here is a picture of when Norway was in a union with Sweden. After Denmark sold Norway to Sweden, in 1814, the Norwegian flag was allowed to be flown, however the swedish colors had to be displayed in the upper right hand corner. Most Norwegians disliked the Union flag which they sarcastically called, "herring salad". On June 1905 Norway broke free of its union with Sweden. After nearly 400 years of foreign rule they had become an independent nation again. Prince Carl of Denmark was elected King of Norway under the name of Haakon VII.