Arrived

6/23/2011

Waiting… waiting…

I’m happy to say that the first leg of my trip went well.  No major turbulence, no pat downs or naked body scanners… I’d say that’s a success.  The flight did arrive about an hour late, but that’s great. Now I only have a four hour layover instead of five. I’ll take it! I was also excited to be coincidently sitting next to a woman who would be going to Oslo on the same flight as well.  Instead of summer school though, she’ll going on an arctic adventure and hoping to see polar bears! I just think that sounds so cool! We have such amazing places and sights on our earth… it just makes me want to explore!!

6/24/2011

Arrived.  After a long and restless flight, I am glad to touch ground.  My first impressions are that everything is so green! Colorado just isn’t like this.  What I’ve seen of campus is pretty… there’s a big water fountain in a main courtyard, everywhere is cobblestone with grass growing up between the stones, and there’s nice big trees from which the birds like to sing. 

I’m getting settled into Blindern Dormitory.  There’s some cool nooks with couches and the building is a striking yellow.  The rooms are basic. The window’s a little drafty… hoping it doesn’t get to bad. And the shower is... interesting.  Being from the U.S., I have trouble understanding why there’s a shower and sink between rooms but the toilet is down the hall.  It just doesn’t make sense in my mind but I guess we shall see how it works.

I was feeling a little discouraged when I first arrived, probably not helped by how tired I was.  It was nerve-wracking getting from the airport to campus.  I first had to take an airport train, which was pretty during the first half before it went underground, and then transfer to the metro.  I’ve definitely had to ask a lot of people for help in order to make that work.  Luckily I’ve ran into some nice people who could help me out.

My day started getting better when I began meeting new people.  I ate lunch with a new Facebook friend… now we can actually get to know each other! My roommate just walked in.  She’s from Central Asia (Kyrgyzstan?) and it sounds like we already have a lot in common. 

Well I’ve gotta go and try to figure everything out.  It’s confusing with so many people speaking different languages and not being able to read any signs…

Wish me luck!

Danielle