I'll Be Home For Christmas :)

HAPPY HOLIDAYS! I hope you all had a wonderful, filling Thanksgiving back home in the States. And I am wishing you many holiday wishes as we approach the first of December :) yeeekkkkk the Christmas season just puts me in a constantly giddy mood :) Well, I know it has been awhile since I have last updated so again, we will follow with a simple date to date post.

Tuesday, November 13 we handed in out culture exams; boy was it a relief to be done with those! It was nice knowing that there was only one sit down exam, and one take home exam left before I was done with my studies for the semester. The following week I studied for my Social Psychology exam that was scheduled for November 21. I think it went alright, now I am just working on my History written exam, yay polar exploration!

Thursday, November 15 the new and improved Jekta Storsenter had its grand opening so Madelen and I headed to the other side of the island to do some shopping. It was ridiculously huge with so many shops and a crazy amount of people. We didn't even have to walk from the busstop, the bus driver just dropped us off directly in front of the mall entrance. I, of course, goggled at the "half cut prices" that would have been considered full price back home, but it was really fun to hang out with Madelen :) And my favorite part was the giant, sparkling snowflakes and white, bright Christmas decorations that were everywhere :)

Friday, November 16, I had Tina, Ashley, and Rudi come over for some pancakes :) My wonderful mother cured my craving by sending some pancake mix and maple syrup in one of her recent care packages. It was a delicious treat with lovely company :)

Saturday, November 17: Madelen's birthday was on the 13 but we had her celebration for her this day :) She made homemade pizza (the best) and delicious, cute, huge cupcakes. Yeah, she did all that. I made some mexicorn chip dip however--again thanks to care package makings sent from home :) It was  Henrik, Kristian, Ashley, Madelen and then two of Madelen's other friends. Enjoyed a lot of food and some crazy, tasty drinks. After Madelen, Henrik, Madelen's friend and I headed to the city where we enjoyed some nightlife :)

During this time I have been lucky enough to use the athletic facility Kraft. Yes, I tried to make it an every day thing but some weeks were better than others. Not only did they have any other machine at a sports facility but there were also classes available to members. I forgot to mention that a few Mondays ago, I had met up with an outside running group and it was fantastic. I was very excited, and my assumptions were that it was just a group of people who love to run just going for a little winter jaunt, but nope:: it was an interval workout on the icy streets of Tromsø. Honestly, it sounds worse than what was, it was great being with people who were passionate about running---my fellow tracksters would understand. It was a great workout, I was sore the following day, and although I only went only once I was very glad I went. I have also gone to a step class twice this past week. It was refreshing to not workout on a boring treadmill or elliptical, but it also reminded me how uncoordinated I am. The second day was much better :) I also ran outside this past Saturday, because it was a beautiful 45 degrees and a lot of the ice was melting. It was very nice to run outside again, can't wait to be back on a routine once track season starts. I am also looking forward to some holiday runs---Brittney?? :)

coffee love.

November 22, Thanksgiving back home. I met up with Rudi in the city centre to have some coffee. When we both ran up to each other, we were so very excited because they had just began putting up Christmas lights and garland over the streets :) It was beautiful and made us both very giddy. She took me to the cutest little coffee shop. We got mochas and the yummiest apple dessert. It was evident that this store was the owner's passion. We talked with her a little after our treats and she spoke that her inspiration came from her grandma and Bob Marley, she was wonderful :) We had done some Christmas/souvenior shopping as well. Then we met Ashley and Leonard at Driv for a nice meal of Thai Chicken Soup--what a thanksgiving dinner, huh? It was a very nice meal. We thought about catching a movie on the town, but Ashley, Leonard and I decided it would be cozier to watch one back home, we watched The Inside Man :) I of course scheduled a skype date for back home as well. My parents hosted our family Thanksgiving at our farm so the iPad was passed around as I got to see my aunts, uncles, cousins, and my grandparents--it was a real treat, kind of bittersweet but made me even more anxious to be home.

November 24, Ashley, Leonard, Holly, and I traveled to the city center just in time to catch the end of the Christmas markets--enough time to grab a tasty spring roll! We made sure to make plans to come back earlier this Saturday :) We went to Kafebønna, and luckily Karolina was working! It was a wonderful Saturday afternoon with friends, coffee, and ----darkness.

November 25, I met Rudi in the afternoon for some coffee again :) It was lovely to see her, as always. She left bright and early that Monday to meet her mom in Greece so it was kind of a I-only-get-to-see-you-one-more-time-after-this-hangout. Bittersweet for sure, and it made me think of all the other goodbyes that I will have to start saying real soon.....Sunday night the northern lights were very active outside my room window. Normally, they are very faint because there is a lot of light pollution around Stakkevollan so you have to venture away to really see them. I have seen a few little green lights here and there on numerous nights, but I hadn't seen any like this. I know some friends have seen some purple and white light, but green is good enough for me :) It took awhile to fall asleep that night, but that is mighty fine.

November 26, We were given our history exam prompt this day and the past few days I have been writing hoping to get as much done so I can enjoy the weekend as much as I can. I am coming to the end of it, only a few more hours tomorrow with coffee and the morning light--it'll get done.

The past few weeks have been wonderful here in Tromsø, Norway. And I cannot believe that I will be leaving this place so soon. But my heart could not be happier knowing that I will be back in Fargo in TWO WEEKS! It has been ridiculous. There have been a few nights now, that I have walked back from Kraft (instead of bussing) because it has been so beautiful out, and I wish I could share that with all of you. The more I think about it, the more I would definitely love to come back here. I have not regretted anything since being here, and the next six days are going to be the best yet. I missed you all at Thanksgiving, but I will see you soon :) Now go listen to that Michael Buble Christmas CD!

Morning in Tromsø :)

November, that means it's Christmastime:)

Tromsø Cathedral

Hi all! I know it has been awhile since I have last posted so I hope I don't miss too many things trying to catch up. Well, the morning of the 27th I made delicious French Toast--mmyep. I spent, as earlier stated that weekend/week writing a research article for Social Psychology which I handed in on Monday. Later on that day, I met up with Ashley and her boyfriend, David who came to visit her for a week. The three of us travelled to Tromsdalen in hopes of traveling on the cable car but were disappointed to see it wasn't available until November 5th. We hope to try again soon. The three of us then enjoyed the nice weather, freezing but nice, and walked towards the Arctic Cathedral and then around the city centre for some time as well. We came across a glass blowing shop where you can actually see the artists make the beautiful, creative works of art. We then treated ourselves to a warm dinner at Driv, lasagna--it was amazing.

On Tuesday, the 30 after going to Culture class, I got a months membership to the student athletic facility known as Kraft---whenever I think of it, I always think of mac & cheese. It had gotten really icy with the snow, and although I don't prefer to workout on machines, it is a very nice facility to be able to use. I try to go as often as I can, it is a nice daybreaker as is any good workout. The night of October 31, my friend Jana and her sister who came to visit made a few friends and I Serbian Crepes! They were delicious and temporarily cured my sugartooth.

A seal at the Polar Museum,
aren't stuffed animals cute?

Halloween in Norway

And then November was here, just like that. On Thursday, the 1st, Ashley and I went downtown to travel to the Polar Museum which we were scheduled to meet our class there for History. Well, of course the two of us showed early so went through the museums ourselves. It was very interesting, nice to tie in a few things we had learned in class while having something to visualize. The next day, Friday, Bill was hosting  a Cake Evening. So we went of course, because how could anyone pass up an evening involving sweets, and we had brownies and cookies--there was even honey wine, not incredibly fond of. But many friends showed and it was a really good night. The next day I travelled to Mortesnes once more to meet up with Rudi and her flatmates for a lively Halloween Party. I went dressed as a "female version of Indiana Jones," pretty much I just wore a green fedora, not too much of a hit but I didn't care. It was a good, crazy night.

This past Tuesday, November 6th, we were given our Culture prompt for our ten page paper due next Tuesday. So there has been lots of reading and writing this past week. But there has also been a lot of skyping, working out, and recently I started watching Modern Family and I can't seem to stop watching, it is such a great TV show and I recommend it to everyone. The snow just seems to keep falling, which is good because then it doesn't give it the chance to get icy. And of course, there has been an occasional waffle :)

The days are getting much shorter and I miss the sun but I know that it won't be too much longer before I can enjoy those Northdakotan short days. As of tomorrow it will be 32 days until I am in Fargo once again and I simply cannot believe it. The Seasonal Spice Craft Show was today in Minot and it has always been tradition that the Christianson's show. My mom and my sisters, along with her sisters and their daughters have been going to this craft show for as long as I can remember. We always strive to be the first in line with coffee in hand, showing up two hours before the doors open so that when the time comes, we are all ready to grab the "good stuff." This is also the day we have dubbed as the first official day of Christmas, so to get in the spirit I listened to Christmas tunes all morning. This year, the song I feel most likened to is of course, I'll Be Home For Christmas--gets me every time. But I will be!! But first, I am going to finish this paper and my other school assignments, enjoy and embrace these people and these sights, and extremely enjoy the Christmas Markets in Dublin and Copenhagen before I make my journey back home. Until next time....baby, it's cold outside.

Walkin in a Winter Wonderland :)

IT SNOWED! And is still snowing. I feel like it has been snowing almost nonstop since last Friday. As you can tell, I am pretty excited about it. Snow just makes everything look so bright and pretty, it is so quiet and refreshing, and it makes me want to break out the Christmas music---I may have already listened to a few Sinatra tunes.

So last Wednesday as I described in an earlier post, we had Belgium Night! It was delicious, Leonard prepared a broth the night before, and put in chicken, leeks, and carrots in, it was perfect for a cozy night. Also I travelled to ICA that night to discover a package from Tiffany and Jared! It was a wonderful surprise.

Thursday, October 18, I was lucky enough to be able to Skype Grandma and Grandpa Christianson! And not only lucky enough to see them, but Aunt Judy, cousin Jennifer, Hallie and Ethan. It was a pleasant surprise and we had lively conversation. After our skypecall, Brittney left their place to go pick up Grandma Doerr, brought her to her house, and I got to Skype her! It was so very nice being able to see family, lifted my spirits.

we were pretty excited.

 Friday night, my friend Bill invited Ashley and I over for tacos! We went over and met a couple more Americans, Cam and Jessica, a nice Russian girl, Natalie and Felix from Germany and the Canadians, Jana and Holly joined us as well! Bill had even invited one of his professors over! It was a very relaxing, fun night. While enjoying ourselves we looked out the window and realized it started snowing! It was such a nice sight to see, I got very excited :)

first snowfall, on friday :)

Saturday night, I joined my girls Karolina, Ashley, and Holly and we made espresso cookies :) They were so delicious. I also got to watch the Cobber Mens soccer game against St.Olaf that night.

Monday, the 22 of course involved the usual waffles at noon, groceries, and watching Once Upon A Time during the evening. Tuesday, I took a personal day and had waffles at noon, again. Wednesday, guess what I did at noon?! Waffles :) Sorry, but they are so good and I am going to enjoy them while I can. When I went in on Thursday, I made sure to pack a lunch, four days in a row would have been too much. Always wonderful catching up with Ashley, Rudi, and other friends. On Tuesday, Ashley's boyfriend David came to Tromsø! That was very exciting for her, we hope to go out sometime this weekend.

miss you.

On Wednesday, the 24 we remembered Grandpa Doerr who had passed away a year ago from then. It was bittersweet thinking of the memories, but reassuring knowing that we have the best guardian angel guiding us now. I wish I could have given my family hugs that day. Rest in peace Grandpa, I miss you.

The snow has kept on falling, and fall is officially over but I am not complaining :) I am anxious to take more pictures but I'll show you what I have for now. I hope that things are wonderful back home, and I miss you all very much. 48 days, uffda :)

Saturday Morning 20                                     Friday Morning 26

The First Frost! :)

Hello! Okay, well the first frost was not today, but was two days ago :) But it is still quite chilly, winter is quickly approaching in Tromsø, Norway. I can not wait until everything is lightly blanketed in snow!  There is definitely a lot of white on those mountaintops, each day the snow getting closer and closer to the bottom. On Monday, I ran by a few little lakes and they were already freezing over, it's so bizarre! But with snow comes Christmas :) I don't think I have had Christmas fever this early before but I am not complaining.

Pretty much all day last Saturday, the 6th, and Sunday I finished up writing my exam for History and thankfully handed it in Monday afternoon after running around campus like crazy trying to print it off with five other ISU students. They got new printers in the library and with our international students cards, the printers wouldn't work so we had to find our own that did. And of course, treated ourselves to waffles after the chaos.

Also, Rudi and I went out on Saturday and treated ourselves to
some ciders at driv and lots of girltalk :)

Tuesday, the 9th we have dried cod in class. Each culture session, our professor brings in some sort of "arctic snack." I have already experienced reindeer heart and seal meat. It smelt awful at first, but it tasted like fish flavored jerky--not bad really! Yesterday, Tuesday the 16 we had whale meat on flatbread flavored with either rose jelly or red wine jelly. I only preferred the flatbread, plain. I felt like I was eating soap while tasting the rose jelly.

The 9th was also the Halfway Point and knowing this made me overwhelmed with different, conflicting emotions. I was excited, happy, and still in utter disbelief that I was across the ocean and in Norway. I felt anxious  knowing all the things I wanted to do in the remainder 65 days, and sad being aware of the fact that in less than that I would have to say goodbye to these amazing people I have met, and say goodbye to Norway. I was very enthusiastic about being home, also while feeling dread that I was only halfway. I dealt with the mix of feelings as best as I could.

The next day, Wednesday the 10 Ashley and I went City Centre to shop! We stopped into any store that looked interesting or that would have potential souvenir gifts. We also went to the secondhand store titled Fretex. I love thrift store shopping :) I bought a pot so that I can have a homey plant in my room and a cozy scarf from H&M:)

The festive package I received from the Winkels--what a treat! :)
Thank you! and also walking back from ICA, I saw an adorable four
month old GREAT DANE PUPPY :) Saturday was a wonderful day.

Thursday, attended History lecture and Friday Holly, Ashley, and I travelled to Jekta, the mall area near the airport. We were just curious about what the mall had to offer and it was fun going into all of the stores. I left with masking tape to hang my pictures and some salmon in hopes of actually cooking it :)

Saturday, the 13 a few of my friends, Ashley, and I were invited to my friend Karolina's birthday party, with a halloween twist--you could either show up in a costume of a character from a musical or dress in "goth." Whatever that means to you, so Ashley and I dressed head to toe in black, and put on some eyeliner and called it good. Shortly before we were supposed to leave, we got a message that it had been postponed so we trekked up the the Coop Prix near our hostel and came back to make brownies and watch Invictus. It ended up being a great night, all while fixing my chocolate craving:)

This past week had been Homecoming at Concordia and the whole week I had been really missing my Cobbers :) Thought of you a lot. On Saturday both the football team (63-14) and men's soccer team (3-0) crushed Hamline leaving us with sweet victories :) GO COBBS! It being homecoming week made me think a lot about last years homecoming, and it is amazing all that can happen in that time. It was bittersweet being away during this time. My family, all five of them :) attended Kate Trewartha's wedding, the Trewartha's have always been great family friends. Congratulations Katie and Brent! It looked beautiful :)

my beautiful sisters at the Trewartha Wedding :) miss you! 

This past weekend was actually really hard to get through, but because of it I have been allowed to gain a new drive to do what I can while I am here. I have not held any regret and through the support of a family and friends, near and far, I only see now that things can only get better from now on.

Sunday night, I has a wonderful conversation with my dear friend Abbie Naze :) She will be attending school in Telemark, Norway Spring 2013 so we had a lively conversation about the culture, the difficulties, and realized that the two of us have lots more in common that we thought :) It was an uplifting conversation and I am so excited for her to be able to go through an experience such with mine, and I am just super excited to meet up with her in December because she is just a wonderful, beautiful human being :)

It is now Wednesday the 17th and the only thing on my agenda, besides running and studying of course, is to have Belgium Night with Leonard! Leonard offered to cook Ashley, Holly, and I a meal so of course we are going to take up the offer. I am looking forward to it :) My heart is at home, but I will be home in 57 days :) Tonight I will also be planning with my friend Holly to figure out how we want to travel once December hits, which I feel will be here before we all know it. I hope that everyone is enjoying the weather, may it be 70 degrees or starting to snow---as any Norwegian would say, "There is never bad weather, only bad clothing." Have a good day! :)

Fall in Tromsø :)

Good Morning World!

fall in Tromsø :)

Okay, so working backwards again just a little bit: Last Wednesday September 26th, I Skyped with Brittney's third grade class! During their social studies unit, they were emphasizing on Culture so Brittney --er Miss C thought that they should do a Norway Unit! It was so fun and the kids were so excited, I started off by letting them know what I was doing here and a little touch on what I have learned about the  Norwegian culture. Then a handful of students would come up to the screen and ask me questions like, "What's your favorite thing to do in Norway?" "What do Norwegians eat?" "What's the tallest mountain you've climbed?" It was cute. I also finished off by teaching them a few, short Norwegian phrases that Brittney says they still use :) It was a great skype sesh.   

Last Friday afternoon, I had tea with my flatmate Madelen; it is always lively conversation with her:) Also that day, the counseling center held a session about the fall and winters here in Tromsø, more importantly about staying warm (which being from North Dakota, I won't have a problem) and about the darkness that is quickly approaching; especially, appropriate study/sleep habits, making sure we are getting enough vitamins, and how to embrace this unique Arctic life. I won't lie, it was daunting at first but as they finished up the presentation, I felt more comfortable about the season that is before us. It was also very nice seeing friendly faces that I hadn't seemed to see in a long while.

the view from the UiT lib.

 Saturday, the 29 I woke up early so I could talk with my roomies back home! Allison, Kate, and Emily seriously made my day that day. It was a long overdue Skype session, but a wonderful one to say the least. It was really nice to catch up and see all three of them, hopefully we will be able to talk again soon :) I love and miss them all and can't wait to live with them in our cute apartment next January! Saturday night, I met my friend Rudi at her student hostel and met her flatmates while enjoying a few drinks and listening to good music. After we went to the city and went to a pub where the bartender gave free wine to the lovely ladies I was with :) It was a really fun night. 

 Sunday, I skyped  Matthew James for approx. 7 hours :) Not all at the same time of course, but it was quite the Sunday:) I am lucky lucky gal. I was also lucky enough to during one of those seven hours to Skype with Mary, Dave, and Justin, too! It was so unbelievably nice catching up with them:) I miss you all and look forward to catching up again :) 

 Monday, the 1st I received my first essay exam for my History class. We have a week to write about the societal and economical development in Arctic Norway between 800-1800, and I am still working on it. It will be a relief to hand it in on Monday. On Wednesday night, I had tacos with the ladies! It was a yummy meal with great company and lots of laughter.

So this past week I have been running, Skyping, and writing this essay---quite the life, huh?! Oh yeah, and lots of eating waffles from Cafe Bodega, you can never have too many waffles :) 

Har en fantastisk dag!

Hello from Tromsø! Another pretty day in Norway, I should be leaving for a run here shortly. I realized I had forgotten to mention that Thursday, September 13 we had taken a History class trip to two museums. One was on the island, the Folkeparken Perspektivet museum which was a collection of some preserved buildings, some dating back to 1826. The one which the tour guide showed us was an old boathouse with an exhibit throughout titled, "In Cod We Trust" emphasizing that fish was a way of life for northern Norwegians. We then traveled about a half hour inland to find Perspektivet Straumen Gård, a coastal farm with 11 buildings. Straumen Gård is among the most complete 19th century farms in this region. There is also an exhibition of furniture and implements that were used on the farm. We also went to the Tromsø Museum again for class the next Thursday, too. 

I have been posting pictures onto my Facebook page and I realize that some don't have access to them so I will provide the links::

http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10151105536465805.419191.501235804&type=3&l=b00632d876

http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10151173214385805.430045.501235804&type=3&l=15e96ee144

I hope that worked, have a wonderful day!! Take care, ha det! :)

To The Most Northern Point in Europe!

our little audi, with a scenic background of course.

Thursday, September 20^th my friends Ashley, Emely (Germany) and Antonia (Germany) embarked the Hurtigruten once more, although I was the only second timer. Being that we left at 6:30pm and that their was crappy weather so our view was limited, it was easy to sleep through the night on the ship. The next afternoon, we got off in Honningsvåg. After discovering that our hostel was almost 3km out of town we decided to travel up through what seemed like the city centre of the town. We took a few pictures, shivered a lot, and made a quick stop in at the grocery store to discover that they had a 10kr deal on ice cream treats! So of course, even though it was freezing outside, we helped our self to some sweets:) We started our trek away from the port and walked and walked. After it seemed like too long, we came across this bus station, so we thought we would ask for more specific directions. Found out that we passed the hostel a ways back, and an incredibly nice bus driver took a bus—just for us four—to the hostel. Upon arrival, also an incredibly nice woman checked us into the rooms while telling us about free showers and breakfast. It was a cozy place, a very neat facility. We were able to pick from a movie selection of three; two children’s film or a movie with Harrison Ford and Rachel McAdams, of course we picked the latter.

            The next morning, we came to a very elaborate breakfast: different kinds of bread, meat, fish foods, but most importantly yogurt, cereal, and being able to use a toaster. We definitely took advantage of what we were offered. We picked up our rental car, an Audi and a beaut was she, and began our journey North. Antonia’s friend had burnt her a “Norwegian” CD before coming to Norway, and we listened to the sweet, chill music. On the way up to Nordkapp (North Cape) there we in two smaller towns that were cute and cold. We saw reindeer! Lots of reindeer while we were on the northern peninsula and we frequently stopped to take pictures of the scenery. 

Upon Nordkapp, one paid an entrance fee to find a little building with a souvenir shop and café, the monument being outside through the building. It was fun because we ran into a large group of UiT ISU students traveling with four cars; it was nice to see some other friendly faces:) We took pictures with the monument, got some postcards, watched a film and made our stay worthwhile. On the way back we listened to the mix CD that was previously in the car and jammed out to a remix of the Titanic tune. Getting back that afternoon, we were very tired so we settled in and got cozy in the TV room. The lady from the hostel came in to bring us blankets and chocolate! She was already fantastic, but she became just so wonderful. It was quite a treat. After taking a long shower, sleep came easy knowing that we had to get up early so that we could catch the ship by 6:30am. The wonderful lady even put aside a breakfast just for us four so that we could have some good food in our tummies before we left. We made sure to leave some praise to her in the guest book; her eager helpfulness did not go unnoticed. Aboard the ship, we slept, we looked out to the sea, and we slept and looked out to the sea. There wasn’t much scenery in comparison to my Hurtigruten experience the previous weekend, and the weather wasn’t fit either.

            However, we were able in the late afternoon to stretch our legs in Hammerfest. We were there approximately an hour so we walked through the cute city centre and climbed atop a public hill and  took pictures with the polar bears sculptures that were visible from the bay. The rest of the boat ride  was not intriguing to be honest, and come 11:45pm we were grateful to pull into the port of Tromsø:) Home sweet home…for now. That night I caught up with Ali for about an hour, which was wonderful and then talked with Matthew until the good hour of three in the morning:)

            It was very nice being back yesterday; my day began Skyping Matt in the early morning and then with a long run. The colors are beginning to change and it is so very pretty, I love the fall. It was a really nice morning and it felt great getting out early. That afternoon I met Ashley for waffles in Café Bodega, always a treat; then continued to the grocery store for the staples: milk, eggs, bread, yogurt, and cheese. The rest of the night was quite chill--as most of  my day has been today. Again began Skyping the boy, followed by a run and workout, showered and continued to enjoy having this day to myself---and of course to catch up with my blog.   

           

Nordkapp
So finally I am all caught up and I again apologize for the delay in feedback, but all in all I am loving Norway. I discovered today that in about two weeks I will have reached the halfway point and that is crazy, scary, beyond exciting, overwhelming, and incredible. I can’t believe that I am here, still. Yes, it has been an experience, but I never would have imagined like this. On my run on Monday, I stopped in the middle of my run to walk by the bay. It was gorgeous, the mountains on the other side of the water, the reflections, the golden red leaves. It was nice to have a moment to take it all in, and the only thing I felt was gratitude—and the yearning to be able to share what I was viewing/feeling with everyone important at home. I constantly think of packing up, boarding the plane and arriving in the Fargo airport but I am sincerely enjoying my time here, too. Many mixed emotions, but mostly good. I am going to try my hardest to not take my time here for granted. I do love being here. Even though my heart is at home, I am happy. I am content. I think I found what I was looking for when I came here and that is comforting and exciting. Hopefully I will be able to update again in a few days, although I feel like a majority of my time will be spent catching up on the school that I have put aside recently to travel. But I don’t regret anything and I look forward to reading lots of articles! Until next time, have a wonderful day! And thank you for reading:)