Finally Here!

August 13, 2017

Finally Here!

It's not easy to describe the feeling of getting on a plane knowing you won't be back in your house for another ten and a half months. I'm sure it's different for everyone, but I almost felt nothing. In fact, it didn't feel like it would be almost a year until I stepped foot in the US again, and still doesn't. After three flights and several episodes of nervous nausea, I had officially arrived in Norway. The two other American girls headed to Norway and I were all seated apart on the two flights we had together, but I'm sure they all felt a similar jolt as the last plane hit the runway. We stood at the luggage claim and waited for all the belongings we thought we needed for the year to come around the conveyor belt, then met YFU volunteers and other inbound students in the arrivals section of the most beautiful airport I have ever seen. Five hours and twenty or so other students later, we got on a bus along with some Norwegian students who had just returned earlier this summer from a YFU year abroad, and headed towards Hurdal, Norway for an arrival orientation at a camp called Haraldvangen.

I met lots of new people while sitting at the airport but solidified international friendships during the first hours of YFUka (the name of the orientation; uka means week and the camp is usually a bit longer than the two and a half days we were there). The orientation was completely in English aside from a few Norwegian lessons and while I understand that most people know some English, it seemed unfair that we were speaking in a language native to only four of 75 or so people. Everyone's English capability was amazing, however, and I hope it wasn't too stressful for all the other students there! The first day of YFUka consisted of some logistical and visa, high school, and Norwegian seminars as well as dinner and supper. Traditional Norwegian culture consists of frokost (breakfast) in the morning, lunsj (lunch) at noontime, middag (dinner; the big meal) around 4 or 5 p.m., and kveldsmat (literally evening's food, but the volunteers called it supper) around 8 p.m. The returnees also put on an evening for us inbounds with some Norwegian true-or-false questions, slang, and little quizzes.

It probably doesn't come as much of a surprise that the first night was a bit rocky. I got quite homesick the moment my mind had nothing to distract it from reality, but luckily I was in a room with the most amazing people who were always so kind and I was so tired that I quickly fell asleep. We were staying in two-suite cabins, one on each side of a mudroom. Each suite had one four-person room and one two-person room as well as a bathroom, all off of a common room with a table and chairs and couches. Despite being cabins, the beds were very comfortable which was much appreciated :)

Day 2 was full of activities including culture seminars, the four meals, group pictures, swim time, and International Evening during which all the students from each country did a short presentation about their country. As most people were almost fluent in English, we decided to teach everyone some American slang and said a few American jokes. During the middle of the day, we had an activity called Natursti in which we broke up into six groups and rotated through six different stations trying to win points in whatever the station was as well as creativity points. If anyone was curious, singing Christmas songs in Norwegian wins you big creativity points!! One of the stations was eating Norwegian food blindfolded and guessing what it was. Among the list were brown cheese or brunost, liver paste, tomato and mackerel in a tube, milk chocolate, and gummy people things that resembled soft Sour Patch Kids but weren't sour. Thanks to The Best Team's (yes, that was our name) large amounts of creativity and general success in the stations, we pulled ahead for the gold and got a huge bar of Norwegian chocolate!

Night two was much easier than night one, although admittedly later as International Evening went until about 12:15! The next, or should I say that, morning, we ate breakfast then had a host family and Norwegian seminar before eating lunch. After, we all waited for the go-ahead to turn the corner and meet our host families who were lined up outside the main building. I quickly found Anne and Espen, my host parents, and after talking with them and a few other students and families, we took my luggage to the car and headed for what is now home. After setting up a little, the three of us had a little food then Anne and I headed into Oslo while Espen went to get the kids from their grandparents. Anne and I took the route to my new school (I'm definitely going to get lost), then met Espen, Elin, and Bjørn by the water. We walked around, got ice cream, and stopped at a playground and little beach. While I don't have many pictures of the city yet, Oslo is a gorgeous city with a magical mix of new and old and city and nature that could entertain a person for life!

Later that evening, I helped prepare some salmon for our dinner which we ate before filling out some paperwork for my residence card. Tomorrow morning I'll go with Espen to do the first part of the process but the earliest appointment for the actual residency card isn't until October.

Today we had delicious pancakes for breakfast which are more like crepes than what we Americans call pancakes but were just as good with some fresh raspberry jam! After, we all drove to a little marina where we met Espen's dad who took us to their summer house on an island in the Oslofjord. They actually have two houses, one of which was just finished being renovated today! Anne and I went waterskiing, the first time I had ever done it, and let's just say it was obvious I was new to it. Maybe next time I'll be able to get up :) We ate sausages afterwards as a whole family; there were twelve of us there: us, Espen's parents, Espen's sister, and Espen's brother and his family. The Norwegians wrap their sausages in lomper, a potato tortilla wrap. After lunch, we all hung out in the warm sun in the yard and enjoyed what was likely the last day of summer. If it is, I'm happy to have spent it the way I did!

I think it might be fun to include a new Norwegian word I've learned in each blog post, so I figure I'll start with a very random one but a good one nonetheless:

et plaster: a band-aid

And now for the best part, pictures!