En stor suksess: Min første hyttetur

The hytte (cabin in the wilderness) is a staple of modern Norwegian life, as I finally found out for myself this past weekend. Many Norwegian families own or otherwise have access to a hytte somewhere in the country. These hyttene (plural, definite form of hytte; look at you, learning Norwegian!) are a popular place to spend the weekend or a longer vacation, and they help fulfill the inherent Norwegian need to be away from people and close to nature. They are also popular among students, and the university here has several in the region that they rent out. Why I hadn't been to a hytte before now beats me, but there's a first time for everything, and the firsts in Norway keep on coming!

I got to stay at a hytte with a group of good friends, old and new, mainly from a student ministry group called Quest (not to be confused with A Tribe Called Quest). Some hytter (plural, indefinite) are remote and rustic, and don't have electricity or running water. I was pleasantly surprised to find both at our destination, my friend Line's family cabin. From Trondheim we drove a couple hours south to Kvikne, settled in, and began making dinner-- homemade pizza.

In the entryway of the main cabin there was a supply of wool mittens, slippers, and even sweaters, all knitted by Line's grandma and free to use during our visit.

Line has spent a lot of time here with her family,

and made sure we knew:

"It's weird to be here with all of you."

Haha, likewise!

Adhering to the strict hytte dress code

Knitting is a good hytte activity...
someone has to keep those sweaters coming!

On Saturday we were fortunate to have good hiking weather (a mix of sun and clouds and just a little rain), so we bundled up and enjoyed a crisp fall day together.

 Ready to explore!

Look, Ma, we're exploring!

My favorite part of the hike was good conversations along the way. For a little while I chatted with the other American on the trip, who I'd just met. She is learning Norwegian and commented how it was sometimes difficult to get Norwegians to speak Norwegian with her. I can sympathize so I obliged (even though I'm a poor substitute for the real deal) and we spoke in Norwegian to each other the rest of way, very fun!

 Lunch break:
I sat in some berries by accident. Typisk.

WARNING: The following picture is
EXTREMELY NORWEGIAN!

Be advised and proceed with caution, if you think you can handle it.

Marius sweaters, Kvik Lunsj chocolate, and Solo orange pop.

Pay attention, people, it doesn't get much more Norwegian than this.

Sitting and eating is half the fun of hiking

We walked on until we came to a plateau with a ton of reindeer moss, a soft, spongy plant that looks a lot like sea coral and is very forgiving after a long afternoon:

Actually, a few of us stumbled upon the amazing softness when we fell down in protest at the back of the group. We wanted to stop there, enjoy the surroundings, and then turn around... it worked and we convinced the others to join us. Here's us making our big discovery:

The landscape was clearly very special. I felt like I was on another planet, since I'd never seen anything quite like reindeer moss blanketing the whole ground. Definitely otherworldly... and when I had a runny nose but no tissue I found reindeer moss both highly absorbent and surprisingly gentle on the skin.

I imagine Håkon is thinking,
"Reindeer eat it, I wonder if it tastes good?"

Great hike, now let's go back and get warm!
FYI: temperatures are already dropping
below freezing here during the night.

Tilbake på hytta:

Hyggelige nordmenn, med varm middag og fin utsikt

Sorry, sometimes the Norwegian comes out and I can't help it.

I made oatmeal chocolate chip cookies, which were a hit. Chocolate chips exist very scarcely and expensively in Norway, so I use the ones my mom has sent me to make some of my favorite cookies. I think this might be a big reason why Norwegians have kept me around as long as they have ;)

And this has to be one of my favorite pictures from the weekend:

The only running water was in the kitchen,

making it a popular spot to hang out.

Almost as soon as we came, it was time to go again. But what great weekend of nature, getting to know people, worshipping and seeking Jesus together, and being met by Him. I'm thankful for the opportunity and very pleased with my first hytte experience, sure hope it won't be the last. The hytte is a great place to go to get away without going too far, and a good way to catch a glimpse into Norwegian life.

Line asked me to write about our trip

in the guest book for everyone to sign.

I was honored to do so!

I thought about writing in Norwegian, but we

didn't have that much time so I settled for

English. Lame. Oh well, next time :)

Tusen takk for turen, alle sammen!

Goodbye, "Summer"

It's been no tropical paradise the past couple months in Norway, which maybe doesn't surprise you, but just in case you were wondering. People around these parts dream about summer the rest of the year as a time that makes up for the cold and dark days of winter (and autumn and spring). And normally, so I'm told, summer can be be pretty nice, with long stretches without rain and temperatures into the 80s. But not this year. Oh no. I traveled around the country a fair amount and summer days were few and far between. Or maybe the crappy weather just followed me, hmm... 

Despite the overall trend in the weather, there were, in fact, a few days that felt tropical. Keep in mind that I've been living here for a year so our definitions of "tropical" are bound to be a little different. When the sun was out and the temperature got above 70 degrees (it was never above 75, mind you), I was outside soaking it up. My favorite place to go was Lade, a beautiful and popular beach in Trondheim and not too far from where I live now. I went swimming in the fjord a couple times, and that made it feel like summer, especially when I could sun-dry afterward (only happened once). 

I don't want to bore/depress you with un-summery pictures, so here's a few of those rare, glorious days, now just fleeting memories as I dig my wool underwear out of the closet:

Korsvika beach at Lade

My beach buddy, Rannveig. It's obvious only one of us went to Greece
this summer... but I am pumped for Trondheim sunshine!

We were not the only ones who thought this was a good idea.
It warmed my heart to see so many Norwegians enjoying
themselves at the beach in weather that most people
(including me, in another life) wouldn't
consider warm enough.

Side note: It's not uncommon for little boys and girls, I'd say up to age 8, to play at the beach completely naked instead of wearing a swimsuit. That took some getting used to and I tried not to feel like a big creep whenever they ran by.

Otherwise, I've had a good break from school and time to relax and explore new parts of Norway. But it's good to have some routine again as I get started on my master's project and to have more friends and family in town. However, it looks like I will be hanging out in the lab a lot more than at the beach this fall. So goodbye, Summer, og takk for meg!

Worth the risk?

If you didn't already know, this is Preikestolen:

At 1,982 feet above the rocks and water below, it's a no-nonsense, one-wrong-step-and-you're-dead, sheer-rockface cliff. Preikestolen, which means "pulpit rock," juts out into Lysefjorden in southwest Norway. Its not far from Stavanger, where I was visiting some friends in July. Despite knee problems and possible asthma, I really wanted to hike up to Preikestolen and I'd been "training" with shorter hikes. Besides wondering if I could manage the hike, I was also a little worried that once I made it to the top I wouldn't want to go near the edge, making the trip feel like a waste. But Preikestolen was calling and I had to at least try.

 Pumped up: Ida, Julie, and Anne Marie

A ferry ride and short drive later and we'd be at the base.

For being one of Norway's most popular tourist destinations, this hike is no joke. About 2 hours long, very steep in certain places and lots of rocks to manuever, but there were old ladies and kindergartners doing it, so I kept on.

Proper fuel and good companions make

all the difference.

There's nothing like the promise of seeing Preikestolen

at the end to keep you motivated and moving.

Finally, in all its frightening beauty, Preikestolen!

"holy crap"

First things first before we go to the edge: let's eat!

Here's a riddle: How do you instantly produce fresh steaming hotdogs from your backpack at the top of Preikestolen? Put them in a thermos with hot water to cook while you hike... genius! I learn something new everyday in Norway.

Well-deserved and much-appreciated hotdogs
with Julie, my new roommate this year

 "Masse folk" = lotsa people... and not a guard rail in sight.

I was much more scared about the height of Preikestolen before the hike than when I was actually on top of it. It's weird, but when you're up there you don't fully realize just how high you are or how dangerous it actually is. At least I didn't. This must be some sort of metaphor for life also... it's all about perspective and not letting your worries get the best of you, or something like that.

Now, to the edge!

Laughing in the face of a 2,000 foot drop-- ha ha!

Despite the physical and mental challenges,

something inside told me Preikestolen was not

to be missed, and I'm glad I listened.

 OK, yeah, this is a little scary.
But a lot of worthwhile things are...

In moments after the hike and even now, I get more freaked out thinking about how close I was to the edge than I was when I was there, willingly standing near the edge. The mind is a funny thing, and if we let it get out of control we can talk ourselves out of amazing experiences. I remember when I was getting ready to leave for Norway last year a relative asked me, in all seriousness, "Aren't you afraid of being in all those airports alone?" Once upon a time I would have answered yes, but I've been set free from a life of fear so I could honestly answer, "no."

There are always factors to weigh and you have to be smart, but you can't let unknown places and potential harm stop you from seizing opportunities. If I let every single what-if keep me from doing what I'm convinced I was meant to do (very broadly speaking), I'd miss out on a lot of life and that would be a shame. So that's been a big theme for me the past year: there are some risks worth taking.

Yep, that's me on the edge.

Probably one of the more risky things I've done,

but my goal was to get there, and I did it!

Can I add Viking to my resume?

I know you have all been eagerly awaiting this development: Yes, I have rowed a viking ship on the open fjord. I should probably just come home now. I mean, I've climbed rugged mountains, eaten lutefisk, worn a bunad, and lived through perpetual darkness followed by perpetual lightness... what else is there left to do on my quest to be a true Norwegian?

Fully functional replica viking boat

 The rest of the crew:

The guy in front of me was coaxed onto the boat so that we had enough rowers to take it out on the water. He was clearly more interested in chit-chatting and slacking than rowing, much to the chagrin of our no-nonsense, viking-girl captain.

Me, on the other hand:

Grueling labor is fun!