First Day of Classes at UiT!! & Tromsdalstinden!

Okay, so I know I said I would tryt to write shorter posts, but give me one more chance:) I guess I got busy! So it is Tuesday, and I had my first class today! It was titled Arctic Norway-Aspects of Culture, following both my sociology and Scandinavian interests. The class was cozy, about 24 of us, while there were some Norwegians, a majority of the class were ISU students, whether I knew them personally or not, it was a room of friendly faces. The professor was a hoot, and I am looking forward to class. With the smaller class size and hefty reading material it felt like I was back home at Concordia:)

$10 raspberries, the sweetest and most expensive treat I have had
 in Norway thusfar.

I am currently in Café Bodega, just enjoying some downtime and company of new friends. This past week was spent doing numerous activities. Last Wednesday, Ashley and I along with other ISU students travelled to the student house, driv to gather for more information about volunteering for the two-week event, Debutuke. It is a kick-off for the school year including events such as Waffle Thursdays, various sporting events, and numerous concerts and parties throughout the city. Ashley and I signed up for decorating for the events this coming Friday and Saturday. Because of decorating, we also get free admission, a free tee, a free meal, and discounts on beverages! Anything free in Norway should not be taken for granted!! After the meeting, Ashley and I familiarized ourselves better with the city center and bought some garden goods from a local market. I mistakenly purchased a tin of raspberries for 60 kr ($10) I thought he said 16 kr, honest mistake but they were a good treat after a long week! Wednesday night, I met my roommate for the first time. Her name is Madelen and originally from Norway, taking her second year at UiT for political science. That night two of her other friends came over and we all enjoyed some drinks and chips—it was quite a treat!

Thursday morning I went for my first run around the island, I headed north and being on that end of the island there wasn’t much to see. It was a nice morning even with the constant clouds coming off the sea. I hope to run often and the persistent hills and curves should benefit me in some way or another. I know that it will never get boring! Thursday night, Ashley, Johanna, (from Germany) Madelen and I watched Shrek 2 at Ashley’s apartment. It was nice to kick back and relax.

Friday, Ashley and I came in for the Student Expo, and many UiT students were friendly and approachable. The only problem was that every time they excitedly talked with us, we had to shyly exclaim, “English, I speak English.” After the expo we enjoyed a nice waffle and coffee in Café Bodega—it was quite cold. Friday night, my kind roommate offered to make Ashley and I tacos! So we went to the nearest grocery store and bought some goods. It was a wonderful meal in comparison to the bland peanut butter sandwiches I had been eating the week before, and going to the grocery store allowed me to buy jelly and some more bread. After tacos, we scooted on over to Ashley’s again to watch Madagascar—we like the animated films.

Saturday morning, I went for another run but ran west instead of North and found a set of trails that went in and around a group of lakes that are higher on the island. While I was running, I realized that I was approaching a fenced in area. Running beside the fence, I came across a reindeer! It was quite the sight to see:) Saturday night Ashley and I headed over to meet our friends Jana (Canada) and Holly (also Canada) who were meeting their friends in Ordalen. There we met a handful of wonderful Norwegian guys and enjoyed a good night of laughter, inquisition, and beer.

Sunday, we conquered Tromsdalstinden!! –one of the highest summits near Tromsø. The summit measures 1238 meters above sea level. Funny thing is, my friends Ashley, Holly (Canada) and Leonard (Belgium) wanted to leave by 9a so that we could hopefully reach the peak by noon but we had a little trouble with the bus system that morning so we didn’t get to the base of the mountain until 11:30a. But because of it, we climbed alongside a group of 80 some med students from the university. Leonard, the trooper, had done the exact same climb just the day before but we were definitely glad we had him by our sides the entire trek. As we got off the bus we walked a good hour until we started the incline. It wasn’t bad at first but once we got out the valley we could see that it got really steep, fast. All in all, it was an amazing, rough afternoon—very joyful finally reaching the summit. It was seriously breathtaking. We were grateful to start the trek down, taking a longer more gradual route than our trek up. It simply was an experience. After six hours, we got onto the bus with sore limbs ready for bed.

Monday, I woke sore and headed to the library on campus to follow up on some readings that were due for class today. It was interesting being on a different campus, but my heart still belongs at Concordia. Monday afternoon, Ashley and I made an adventure to the grocery store! It was a success and my tummy has been very content since then:) Tomorrow, Ashley and I are planning to meet for waffles at Café Bodega and then enjoy an afternoon in the city—should be fun!

It has already been quite the experience being here—and already for 15 days! I am anxious to get into a routine with classes and continue meeting new people. It seriously is beautiful and I feel like I am still walking around with a postcard in front of my face. My heart is at home, but I am very grateful I am here. I can’t help but think of all the Cobbers starting classes next week and my XC team in Park Rapids this week—speaking of which, I will now go on my third run since being here in Tromsø. It’s only 50 degrees so I think I’ll just run in shorts this time!! Have a wonderful day:) Until next time! 

Hiking, lots of hiking :)

Hei, hei!! Another delayed response, but this is me catching up :) so …Sunday. Sunday I slept in, or at least tried to sleep in later. It is quite difficult dealing with the early sun because I wake up in the morning and freak out because I feel like it is 11a with it being so bright, but in actuality it is only 6a. I feel like once I get used the constant light is when darkness will appear. Ashley and I made no plans for Sunday but thought that it would be great together to walk around the northern part of the island, so we did just that. It was nice to have the day to ourselves. We started by walking across the northern shoreline and grabbed a few shells then headed towards the student hostel, Ordalen to see if any of our new friends were out. We didn’t see any other ISU (international students) but we did run into a group of Norwegian kids. There were two eleven-year-old girls, two nine-year-old girls, and an eight-year-old boy—all adorable. They immediately approached us once we were in view and as soon as they realized we were from the USA, they got excited about practicing their English. It was a lively conversation and we spoke for almost twenty minutes. Ashley and I said goodnight and continued our journey back to our hostel while learning a bit more about the other.

On Monday, our last day of orientation, we were scheduled to meet early on the campus so that we could board busses to venture further northwest mainland to Grøtfjord, a small beach place lined by steep mountains that looks beautifully north to the Arctic Sea. When signing up for the trip, you could choose one of three choices: be on the beach all day to play sand sports, go hiking up the mountain, or go fishing. I, along with a majority of the other ISU students chose hiking. We first dropped the students off on the beach who either chose to stay there or fish and then were dropped off ourselves a little bit a ways from the beach at the bottom of a mountain, there was a beautiful lake near as shown here:

It didn’t seem difficult at first; walking through forestry incline but quickly got steeper and one could feel it in their legs. It was incredible how the horizon kept getting prettier and prettier the farther we got up the mountain. Once at the top, almost three hours later, everyone was taking pictures of the beautiful landscape. And there were reindeer!! The guide did mention halfway up that there were many last year and didn’t know if we’d be able to see any but thankfully we did:) it was breathtaking, all of it. The climb down took less than half to get up but seemed much more dangerous because of rushed unsure footing.

Once at the bottom, it was amazing to look back up and see where we had been and I wanted nothing to do but then to get in the water. I grabbed a quick bite to eat, put swimsuit on and with friends by my side started walking towards the water—which got more intimidating the closer it got. We took off running, screaming, and almost tripping, we were in the numbing cold waters of the Arctic. So cold that we ran faster to get out than to get in. Freezing water but who can actually say they have swam in the Arctic?! The rest of the day was filled with sauna, beach volleyball, and conversing with new friends. We finished out the beach day with presentations about each country represented by every student from that country. A lot of students whether it was one representative (like Australia) or 38 (like Spain) confirmed or argued points of culture that were stereotyped by other countries. There were a lot of songs sung, dances danced, and lots of laughter. There were seven Americans and because we are so diverse culturally as a country anyways, we decided to do the Hokey Pokey. It was a hit ;)

From the small island of Tromsø to Grøtfjord, way North ;)

See? I really did swim in the Arctic!

 It was beautiful in Grøtfjord, just like it seems is everywhere else in Norway. And I look forward to much more hiking in the future. This morning Ashley, Johanna (from Germany) and I went into campus this morning to finalize registration and take care of other things on campus. Once finished stopped by Café Bodega to have a delicious waffle---cheap! and with nutella of course:)  It has been nice to relax tonight and being able to Skype home:) I don’t start classes until next Tuesday; the 21^st so this next week could get a little interesting! Our plan is to go into the city center tomorrow so that we can get and start using local phones so that we can keep in touch with the other students here:) We will explore the city center more than we have been able to and will definitely be taking a lot more pictures!

Welcome to Grøfjord

I miss home a lot and think non-stop about friends and family. There is a lot of good change happening in my family!! I have been thinking a lot about the Cobbers who will soon be invading Moorhead, and the XCers who are at Park Rapids this week. After coming here and dealing with this system, my heart aches for Concordia like never before. Thank you all for reading and have an incredible day, night, afternoon where ever you are in this world right now!!:) 

My First Week Above the Arctic Circle

Hello!! Hei hei, velkommen. As many of you know I, Callie Christianson, am currently skipping and humming throughout the realms of the Arctic. Yes, I am in Tromsø, Norway taking a semester while attending the University of Tromsø. Tromsø is located on the small island of Tromsøya just north of the Arctic Circle. Substantial parts of the urban area are also situated on the mainland to the east, and on parts of Kvaløya- a large island to the west. Two bridges and a tunnel to the mainland connect Tromsøya, and the Ice Cathedral is right on the mainland coast always looking over the harbor--so pretty. It is a small, beautiful, hospitable city of about 68,000 residents and lots of obnoxious seagulls.

YES: it is cold. And YES there is a lot of sunlight this time of year. It was about 50° F on arrival and immediately stepping out of the plane the crisp air took hold. However I feel that at this season, it is more so refreshing than anything else. One of many advantages about coming from North Dakota is that we are used to below freezing winters, but here the island is blessed with a warmer coastal breeze keeping the temperatures more constant throughout the seasons. From what I am told it shouldn’t be any colder than 20° F in December, and for that I am rejoicing! The daylight/nightlight has been something to get accustomed to. About two weeks before we arrived Tromsø had just finished the season of the Midnight Sun. The midnight sun is a natural phenomenon occurring in summer months in places north of the Arctic Circle where the sun remains visible at the local midnight. The opposite phenomenon, polar night, occurs in winter when the sun stays below the horizon hroughout the day. Right now there is darkness, I would not go as far to call it night but darkness from about 11:00p until 1:30a. It is strange to grasp that while I am Skyping back home until three o’clock in the morning the sun is definitely coming up.

I don’t believe the light has been too much of a factor of my cycle but the fact is that even five days since my arrival my body clock is still out of whack. I need to sleep and eat more on a regulated schedule—and I believe I will get that once the hassle of orientation is finished. This place thus far has been overwhelming, yet wonderful.

View from the plane, I am in Norway!!

Chronologically, Ashley Jacobs (the other Concordia student who is in the Exchange Program with me) and I had some trouble getting on our 6:00a flight last Sunday, but we got things figured out enough to where we caught the 6:00a flight on Monday. It was a blessing in disguise because then I got to spend just one more day with my incredible family—and the Winkels:) We took off from Fargo, then flew to Chicago, then to Newark, NJ and had a six-hour layover. The overnight flight wasn’t terrible; just a lot of scattered sleep and episodes of New Girl. Our flight left Newark about two hours later than scheduled so coming into Oslo we missed our connecting flight. After talking with information desks, we had to decide whether to wait in Oslo until the following morning to head straight to Tromsø, or fly to Trondheim, get through a seven-hour layover and then arrive in Tromsø late that night. We chose the latter. On the flight from Trondheim to Tromsø I made friendly conversation with a man from the Finnmark region of Norway and asked him many questions about where I will be living the next half year.

Arriving in Tromsø, first thought: beautiful. I know I have said that time and time again, but it is the sincere truth. Even through the chaos of travelling, it was wonderful finally being in this city. After some help from some people with the university, we got on the bus (as of now, the bus system is completely intimidating) and were dropped off near our residential hostel, Stakkevollan—a 20 minute walk from campus and a good bus ride to the city center. Two new friends, Bill (from Egypt, third year student at UiT) and Tricia (from Kansas, here for Masters Program for two years) helped us carry our baggage down to the houses. In conversation we realized that we didn’t have Internet yet, so Bill graciously let us use his computer to type a quick hello to our families back home. Ashley and I split ways, her building is two down from mine, and finally I was able to sit down and take in where I was. Well, I turned up the music and even though it was 11:00p started unpacking everything until the good hour of 3:00a.

Ashley, Bill, Tricia, and the other few international students who live in Stakkevollan agreed to meet up before starting to walk to campus the next morning. We met a few more friends, and the walk was lovely of all sorts. Beautiful bay and mountains on one side and friendly looking homes on the other. In comparison to home, everything was so very green—and pretty. UiT’s campus is small and through the past few days we have seemed to come to know the place well enough. We went and registered for orientation and with tea and coffee in hand and we started to mingle with other students, asking the same questions concerning name, the country they are from, where they live here, and what they are studying. I realized that interesting, wonderful people surrounded me.

Orientation was orientation. Went through the ins and outs of the university, how to register, and information about the city and some other helpful suggestions and demands—of course broken up by tea and coffee breaks:) Wednesday night we walked over to another student hostel, Ordalen, and met many other international students for a BBQ, making friendly conversation and eating yummy hotdogs. Thursday was just another day of orientation, but it was comforting when I could look at the same crowd of people and recognize faces here and there. After being at the campus for some time, Ashley and I walked back to enjoy a night to ourselves. Friday afternoon, the international students were given bus tours of the city and then went to the city center to have dinner at the student house driv. driv is this huge wood building, like a classy barn, that has a stage and bar on each of the five levels, and on the bottom a larger stage with an open overlook from the second floor. After dinner, a majority of the students went to apply for bus cards. It was a bonding experience for all of us—standing in line for two hours really holds ya together.

Friday night there was a welcome party at driv. We took the bus to the city center and walked to the student house. Once inside the atmosphere was incredible. The music was so very loud and everyone had a smile on his or her face. It was quite the scene and we jumped on in! It was especially fun knowing every other (American) song that they played. Lots of techno, lots of salsa, lots of pop. We stayed out as long as our bodies let us, knowing we were still recovering from jetlag, and we rode the bus back to the hostel and skyped until the sun came up…so 3:00a:) Saturday, the ISU (International Student Union) held a second-hand market for the international students. We went to Café Bodega (on campus) hung out with other students, drinking tea and eating waffles while some others went through the mounds of donated goods that will make our stay more comfortable and affordable while being here in Tromsø. Later that day, the ISU provided a movie for students to watch also if they’d like. We watched “Across the Universe” which made both Ashley and I feel bittersweet, yearning for home. While walking back to our hostel, we discussed the challenges that will and have already come with studying abroad. It has not been easy so far but I am very glad she is here with me:) We decided to walk into the grocery store near our hostel to grab some food and left with hotdog buns and yogurt. While heading out the door, we ran into our neighbor Adnan (from Pakistan) and he invited us over for dinner. After lively conversation, our stomachs were finally full and we’re very grateful for our new friends.

Above scenic Grøtfjord, Norway (I tell about Grøtfjord in my next post)

So far, it has been nothing less of an experience. I will try my hardest to keep up with new blogposts because I know that this one is pretty late. I will write later today about the past three days. I hope that you enjoy it:) Ha det!!