How the World Will End...I know it

If Vikings conquer the sky...no place on earth will be safe from their madness. I bet this is what's going to happen in 2012.

About as random as can get...

Ah blogs, blogs, blogs, blogs, blogs. Whenever I sit down to write, I can never quite seem to remember what I’ve done since the last blog. Thus I always end up writing about all the really random and obscure things I’ve done that honestly don’t even relate to Norway. But regardless…

The other day I was watching What I Like About You and this particular episode was about Val who is about to get married only the wedding, it turns out, is not star themed like she thought but Star Wars themed… The only thought I had during that entire show was ‘That would be kind of awesome’. Seriously. As long as Jabba the Hutt is nowhere in sight you’re golden and who wouldn’t want to be married by Darth Vader? The sad thing about this little spiel is I’m actually about 62% serious about this and only 38% sarcastic…But just so we’re all clear, I am not actually saying I want to have a Star Wars wedding. Because I don’t. If I went in the direction of really nerdy themes I could probably find something else… So. Now that all of you think I’m insane we can move back to Norway.

Erm actually one more sidetrack. The premier of New Moon is coming up and sparknotes has offered some very good advice on what to do which I thought I would share with you.

"1. Buy tickets to the midnight showing, which is sure to be packed with die-hard fans, and dress up as Harry Potter.

Wave your wand at horrified onlookers while angrily rubbing your lightning scar. After you purchase your tub of popcorn, loudly explain to the crowd that Lord Voldemort has returned, and you will need their help to defeat him. To prove your wizarding powers and the earnestness of your cause, claim that you will make your tub of popcorn levitate across the room. Then hurl it across the room with all your might. If possible, his someone wearing a "BITE ME EDWARD" t-shirt right in the face. BOw grandly, then proceed to enter the theater. At the most suspensful, climactic moment in the movie, shout "SNAPE KILLED DUMBLEDORE. WE CANNOT LET THIS INJUSTICE GO UNPUNISHED." As you are dragged out by security, scream that everyone in the audience is a death eater and a traitor, and is responisble for the end of all that is good in the world.

3. Show up to the premier covered in garlic butter.

Wear a giant silver crucifix around your neck. And carry a cross bow stocked with silver-tipped arrows. If anyone asks your name, glower and respond, "Your Worst Nightmare.""

-Sparknotes

Brilliant? I should say so.

And now back to Norway.

The exchange students had another get together. This time in Gjøvik. It was pretty awesome…basically we just…I don’t really know. There was a fancy dinner with all these Rotary people (it was their big fall meeting I think). That was quite long… But they also took us ice skating which was entertaining to say the least. (The blades were very dull). Aside from that, they also took us to Hunderfossen Family Park where we got a private tour, it was very much awesome. Hunderfossen, for those of you who don’t know (I certainly had no idea what it was until I got there) is Norwegian Fairytale land. There is a statue of a giant Troll who, as our tour guide told us, was apparently turned to stone by the sun (at which point I shouted out “Like in The Hobbit!!!!!” …no one else seemed to get it). It’s such a cute place though I loved it! Perhaps I will make my family visit it with me when they come… Another thing they showed us in the park was a panoramic movie about Norway. Or actually the landscape of Norway. I wish I could see everything they showed us in real life, it’s all SOOOO beautiful!!!! So that was Gjøvik. Kind of. I left out the boring stuff…or most of it at least. Oh and afterwards I had one of the other exchange students from Wyoming come and stay a couple days with me, which was fun.

And let’s see… oh yes. Halloween (which, might I add, also happens to be dearest mother’s birthday-I love you mom!!!). Umm I’ll just put a picture up in my next blog, I’m not very adept at explaining costumes and I havent’s loaded the pictures onto the computer yet so… But besides dressing up we carved pumpkins at Maria’s house. And then watched the Blair Witch Project. Mom, Dad, I’m really sorry but I don’t think I will ever be able to go backpacking in the forest ever again. So scary… L

So…that’s really all I can think of for now. I will hopefully have more pictures up soon.

Actually, since I have no new pictures loaded on my computer, here are some I took from language camp :D

I ate one of these. I can show you a picture of my reaction in the next blog. It was great...



Here's my work...



Look closely, can you spot anything wrong with this picture??


This was one of the last days. You can see how out of it we were. Living off coffee and...well that was about it.

The fridge in our rooms didn't really work, this is how we kept the drinks cold.

...no comment

Jean-Baptiste, Henry, Kate :D

So this is what we did with our spare time...

And this is the result of no sleep whatsoever.

One last thing. Apparantly that time I said it was snowing, it was "sleet" (lies, it WAS snow) but regardless, it has since been snowing...just not sticking.

And Ariana...can I just ask, why do I need an umbrella from Norway??

HAHAHAHAHAAAAAAAAAAA

SNOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! ...for like 2 seconds during school today. But still :D

Pictures anyone?

Ok. So here's two months in a nutshell-excluding language camp, I'll put some of those up later. And you should know that just in case you want to see a picture larger, I think you can just click on it... I tried that with my math test picture and it got HUGE. Seriously Harry Potter was suddenly life size. Ok so it didn't get that big but still...

Smoking "room" ...I still don't really know what to say about it.

The Palace. And Astrid :)

K same thing but with me in the picture...

SKIING :D

Fortress thingy... I have yet to actually explore that....

You can see what I'm eating in the next Picture

Ok so I wasn't eating that exactly, but I was eating the... well, edible part of that...

Hehehehe I got to drive a 100 year old boat :D

So this house is on a little island. By itself. Not gonna lie that would kind of suck... You would have to row yourself to shore everyday... what if you have a fever and are too weak but you need to get medicine???

This is just a random picture of Norway from the boat trip I went on (that's when I ate the shrimp)

I have no idea what building this is... I just thought it looked cool.

The building with the ramp looking thing in front is the Opera. That place is seriously awesome.

Hahahahahaaaaaaaa :D

Stavern Pictures:

...a street. I don't know what else to say...

VIKINGS!!!! QUICK, QUICK EVERYONE RUN!!!!!! (In case you're wondering, we did escape...but just barely).

Stavern = Beautiful

Random.....

best portrayal of the Reign of Terror EVER. My history teacher is a genious.

This is what we eat. Bread with brown cheese, cream cheese, blood, bananas...you know, the basics :) ...I'm joking by the way.

This is my school. Note the windows. It has windows!!! And we even get to open them!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Halleluja!

This is from the Opera. It's pretty awesome. I like the guy with his hand raised although I don't know if he's saying "f*** you, sun" or "I salute you, sun" ...and now that I look at it more it looks like he's doing that hitler thing... awkward silence... moving on.

Obama's face is on bags at the Nobel Peace building... I kind of found that hilarious. Our President is a celebrity (and I will be going to see him when he comes to Oslo)

So there's the outside of the building....

Taco Pizza = Best Pizza EVER!

So this is what I see from my bus stop.... I know you all wanted to know.

I forgot to mention. That time I got lost in Oslo, I managed to find the American Embassy. The place is seriously scary. It's very black. And it has bars all around it. I wanted to go ask them for directions but I was too scared!!!! :(

p.s. I will put pictures of my friends up later...after I've taken some pictures of my friends (and yes, I do have friends, I'm not making people up when I talk to you guys)

I

Home

So...since I can't upload pictures of Norway for my American people, I decided to put up some of Wenatchee for my Norwegian people, just so they have an idea of where I'm from.
The red dot marks the area where Wenatchee is located (I think). Yes, in that brown, dry looking area.


Again, red dot is Wenatchee






Ok, the big bright, white thing with the red running track next to it is my former school, Wenatchee High School, the town on the far side of the river is East Wenatchee (Not as cool as Wenatchee) ...just kidding.

Aw

AWW

AWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW

k...sorry about the last 3. I couldn't resist.

So...I got Lost.

I remember my first couple days of school here in Norway, I remember thinking that everyone at school reminded me of someone back home. Now however, I look at people and think “oh, they look familiar…they look like…” And then I can never finish the sentence. And I realized today that the reason I can no longer finish it is because I have become so accustomed to these people, even the ones I have never spoken with are so familiar to me now and it’s strange. You would think that after 18 years of seeing the same people every day, it would take longer to get used to a situation like this. Somehow, I can no longer imagine what my life was like before I knew these people. I guess what I’m getting at is I really love it here, the kids, the teachers, everyone I’ve met has been so wonderful to me, a stranger, a person that perhaps shouldn’t even matter to them. It’s amazing.

Ok, sorry, I’ll stop with the emotional rant... Moving on.

Since coming to Norway I have discovered something about myself that I never knew. I am really, truly proud to be an American. I love my country. I know it has its faults but I love it regardless. No, I’m not trying to say “America is so much better than Norway” I am simply saying that…well…I don’t really know. Perhaps I’ve just started to see the better side of America, perhaps I’ve stopped focusing on all the negative aspects. I don’t really know…

Ok. That was kind of emotional too. Sorry, we’ll try on more time.

So this past week has been “høstferien” or Autumn holiday. In student terms, basically just a week off. Except it seems that people here don’t stay in town or even in country. Oh no. They go to Sweden (which really isn’t a big deal to people here, I think they were kind of confused as to why I thought it was so exciting), or Italy, I even had a friend go to America (She brought me back strawberry pop tarts, Christine you’re the BEST EVER!!!!!!!!!). My current host family in fact also went somewhere, they headed off to Greece for the week leaving me in the care of AnneLouise Hoen, a woman from the Oslo Rotary club. Before you start pitying me for not being able to go to Greece, let me assure you that I had an awesome week! I went shopping and sight-seeing and all that jazz but the highlight of my week was on Tuesday. Basically in an effort to get from Majorstue to National Theater by foot, I made a very, very wrong turn. Or actually several wrong turns. Basically I ended up wandering the streets of Oslo by myself for nearly 5 hours. Well done me. I’m sure you will all be happy to know however that the trip was not a lost cause. I got a really, really cute hat :D It has a bow on the side.

Let’s see…Oh! Language camp. That was about…one week ago? Basically it was 6 days and an accumulated 15 hours of sleep. Awesome. I think about 2/3 of the kids there were from the U.S. or Canada and regardless, everyone spoke English. But basically we got served really awesome food. I at an oyster, ummm…and we all practically lived off the free coffee. Also salty watermelon is kind of icky.

Also, the word "Marklar". That word is the devil. Which reminds me, mom I need you to send me my katana :D

I joke.

...but not really.

My mom told me that I needed to put up pictures so I promise the next post will be more of a picture blog of various things I’ve seen or done…however once again I am at school and my pictures or not on this computer.

sticky tape

I went running the other day. One of those weird car things that paints the white dashed lines on the ground went past me painting white lines (obviously). I thought it would be cool to step in the white stuff and leave my footprint on the pavement...proof that Kirsten Valaas was in Norway and all. Did you know that stuff is sticky? I left my foot on it for a while, hopping that I would have maximum amount of paint on my shoes. Definitely could not pick my foot up when I tried. That stuff is like human sticky tape. Finally I managed to lift my foot up...only half of the white line peeled up with it. Yay me! Needless to say I avoided all other white lines on the rest of my run.

Sooo classes. Still don't understand much. Like in math for example. Supposedly a universal language. Well we had a test last week. The teacher wrote like 2 lines and a couple numbers on the board, rambled on for about five minutes in norwegan about what the task was and then everyone went to work. Kind of didn't understand the instructions. So....this was my answer:

Basically it says...

Given: heart=star+clover, and clover=rainbow(lightning cloud)

When: candle is cherry

Find: the integral of bomb to goldfish of harry potter(pinetree squared + cat)+2pie

Therefore: watermelon slice times the integral of cross + (norwegian flag + pineapple+ Leprechaun with pot of gold) - (triforce to the epona power + eiffel tower + viking)cubed

Final Answer: Gandalf the Grey w/ black hair

Update on strange things I've seen, heard, or done here... I've been asked some pretty strange questions in my stay here, but I think quite easily my favorite one has been "Do they have trees in America?" Hahahahaaaaa... My answer? "No. ...And we eat cars." (I want people to know that the person who asked this is the most awesome person in the world :) hun er superkul!) Also the other night My host dad made blood pudding. I think it took me about half an hour to get the courage to eat it. By the time I did, Leif and Anne-Beth had both finished.

I also recently was at språkkurs (I think that's how you spell it) until wednesday and I was able to meet a bunch of the other students. However as I am currently in class and I really need to get this health care essay done asap, I'll write about that at a later time.