Evelyn's Year in Norway

           The school's cabin in Hovden was really amazing. Undoubtedly the best part of the cabin was the dishwasher, so memorable that it deserved it's own picture. If that's not the definition of student life, I don't know what is.           Our first full day started with a relaxing morning, everyone glad in the fact that we had no commitments or  responsibilities. I sat on the couch drinking cocoa and reading my book, while Ananda knit, and others slept in. We had waffles for breakfast, and Marianne taught us that the 'real' way to eat Norwegian waffles is with sour cream, jam and brunost (the soft, sweet, brown cheese).          In the afternoon our class decided to get outside. Some of us went downhill skiing, and the others went either cross country skiing or stayed at the cabin to go sledding. (Looks like I'm sneaking through my year in Norway without cross country skiing). I haven't been skiing in a couple of years so I was a bit nervous, but I

           Last Friday was our last day of school before Easter break. I was supposed to be at the library from 11-2, but I really wanted to say goodbye to my  friends--most of whom were leaving right after lunch--so I called in and postponed work to 12:30. There was no dinner served that Friday so I was able to work until it closed at 3:30. The morning was an odd mix of emotions because of how permanent the goodbyes felt. Last year, the school shut down for Covid around now--with little to no warning--so everyone was anxious to give one last hug before we left our wonderful bubble.           While the Norwegians all went home to their families, the NLC class went back to their rooms. A good portion of the class had nowhere to go, or didn't want to be a guest for over two weeks, so Marianne proposed that our class use the first few days of break to visit the school's cabin in Hovden. We all stayed at the school from Friday to  Sunday--hanging out, cooking together, cleaning, an

           Each year, the NLC students spend one week working at a local business, doing tasks and practicing  their Norwegian. We were unsure if we'd be able to have our språkpraksisuke this year due to covid, but luckily it worked out for most of us! While some people went to work in Kristiansand, Ananda and I stuck a little closer to home and worked in Tangvall. I was placed at the small library there, and Ananda worked at the second hand store.           We had rather short days, since the second hand store didn't open  until 11, and we had to leave at 2 to get back in time for dinner. Marianne drove the other students to Kristiansand each morning--Valeria worked in another second hand store, Tommaso at the library, Sofia at a different library, Alina at a vegan cafe, and Tomimaru at a gardening store. Not wanting to sit on the bus for an hour while we dropped people off, Ananda and I walked there most days, about 50 minutes from the school.           At work, I had to wear

           Our most recent Agderlørdag was hosted by the Friluftsliv class, and it was Disney themed! For their last Agderlørdag, they did a reality TV show production where members of the class performed and they showed videos that they had made. It was definitely the most entertaining one we've had so far, so last Saturday the expectations were very high.           As usual, Friluftsliv--my favorite class--did not disappoint! My friends and I dressed up like Star Wars characters, with makeshift costumes that we had found in the prop room. Everyone else had really fun and creative  costumes, from Captain Hook to Scrooge McDuck to the Seven Dwarves. Of course there were a few Elsa and Anna costumes as well, and when we walked into the dining hall, Eskil was there dressed as Lumiere (the candelabra) from Beauty and the Beast.           The tables were arranged in two long lines, sort of like the tables in the Harry Potter Great Hall. The evening was kicked off by  Eskil leading the

         Our class came back from Kvinen Thursday night, and got the day off on Friday--which meant we had  lots of time to rest our sore feet and prepare for the school ball! We'd all been a little worried that the weather would prevent us from attending, but even 11 km through the snow couldn't keep us from prom!          The Ball Committee had worked so hard to make the evening special. Usually, the ball would be outside of school, but due to covid we couldn't hire a venue. The school was extremely  helpful, and after careful consideration even compromised with the students to allow alcohol to be served. (Their number one rule here is no alcohol on campus). The ball was to be held exclusively in the cafeteria--school rules applied everywhere else--and once you were in, you could only leave to go to the bathroom, no going to your room and coming back.           My friends and I got ready together in my room, and arrived at 6:30 for pictures. I wore my 2020 prom dress that

         After a delicious pasta dinner and a well deserved night's sleep--especially for the skiers--we woke up on Tuesday morning to another gorgeous day! I was up early, so I helped collect water and start the ovens. To get water, we had to walk down the snowy hillside to the river, fill our buckets and carry them back up to the house.  While the house was amazing, it was still technically a cabin, and we remembered that fact every time we needed to use the restroom. The utedo (outdoor toilet) was very nice, but it was really something seeing your breath in the bathroom, and freezing your butt on the toilet seat. There was very little light at the cabin after dark, and walking to the utedo I saw more stars than I've ever seen! Here are some pictures of the cabin:          Tuesday was so nice out, so after breakfast most of us went outside to hang out with the dogs, and just enjoy the sunny day. Around noon, Odd came back and gave us a little history of the area. Odd had a re

          On Monday, NLC and Global woke up early to drive around three hours to Sirdal, where we had booked a cabin stay for the week. On our last trip with Global, which I wrote about here , we had a lot of unexpected incidents, and a rather crazy time. This trip was just as eventful, but a whole lot more fun!           When we arrived in Sirdal we met a man named Odd Kvinen, who owns a bunch of sled dogs, and we were all excited for the chance to go dogsledding! It's an  11 kilometer (about 7 mile) trek through the mountains from the parking lot to the cabin, so we split into groups that would either cross country ski or sled there. The skiers set off, and the ten of us remaining got a quick lesson on how to dogsled. I was partnered up with Eric from Mozambique, and we--being the excited daredevils that we are--insisted on leading the pack.           The dogs were really friendly, and knew exactly what they were doing. Eric and I had to stand on the back of the sled and steer wi