Trip updates, photos and Norge!

Heisan!

(Steve and I at Raukr viking camp in Røykenvika, Norge)

I attempted to make a blog with photos of where we have been so far and what we are doing. Make sure you read to the bottom, I swear you can make it!

This is a part of the crew helping me pack before we went to the airport in Eagan, MN (Me, Olivia, Mom, Kurt). Uff da is all I can say... I know everyone says to pack light and then cut it in half, which I did, but Steve is carrying half the things around that I am. Lucky him.

This is the view from Anwen's house in Dinas Mawddwy, Wales. She lives on a beautiful sheep farm in the countryside!

This is me at the Guinness Storehouse in Dublin, Ireland. We spent a lovely afternoon here, and the best part was enjoying a pint from the 7th floor 'gravity bar' with a breathtaking view of the city from all sides. We walked all around Dublin and we could see how far we had been, walking from our hostel on the north side of the liffey to all the sightseeing we did on the south side.

Steve and I spent 2 days in Liverpool, England. The city was fun but industrial. I really enjoyed going through The Beatles Story and learning about how the group came to be- I really didn't know much before we went. This is me with the John Lennon statue outside The Cavern- the pub the boys made famous in Liverpool. I really liked the photography exhibit they displayed at the beatles museum of John and Yoko's 'bed-in' for peace.

This is the view from Arthur's Seat in Edinburgh, Scotland. Steve and I hiked up here and spent a couple hours enjoying the view from the top. We met a fellow Minnesotan up here, too! Edinburgh was a beautiful city with a nice blend of history and modern culture. We met a lot of people in our hostel (none of them Scottish). Steve's roommates were 4 French speakers, 3 of whom were looking for apartments in the city. We also met a fellow American traveling Scotland before school begins in a few weeks. It was nice to find some connections there.

Heisan fra Norge!

(Mette, Stina, Me, Kent)

We are currently in Jaren, Norway staying with my family, Mette, Roy, Silje, Stina, Kent, og Tinka (the dog!) Gjerdingen. Mette Gjerdingen is related to us through the Green side of the family. They recently took a 3 week trip through Minnesota and North Dakota so I had the chance to meet them before we came, and now they are showing us unconditional Norwegian hospitality in their home. First, let me introduce their family. Mette and Roy are married, and there are 5 kids together. Roy works driving a 'MaxiTaxi' (a Norwegian word Steve and I both like :)). Side note: I taught Stina how to say 'Mr. MaxiTaxi Driver, Mr MaxiTaxi Driver, won't you please open the door!? Good English game, right? Ja... The 16 passenger MaxiTaxi bus makes its way around the area. The schedule of his driving seems very busy, but I am surprised and happy at how well they coordinate their schdules to be around with the kids. Aina is Mette's oldest daughter. She has a wonderful husband named Lars Erik and a son named Kristian who will turn 3 in March. They were married July 4 and we have gotten to see many beautiful photos from the wedding and reception. Kjetil is Mette's 2nd son. He is my age (22) and keeps himself very busy by working for Gran Taxi service as well. He is very interested in cars and would like to own his own business someday. Silje is 12, Stina is 10, and Kent is 8. They all live where we are staying and we have had a wonderful time playing with them. Silje and Stina play cornet, and we had the opportunity to watch Stina's brass group play a mini-concert for us after her ensemble lock-in at school. Wednesday we will get to see Silje play in her band as well. We also hope to have the chance to talk to their school classes about Minnesota and America. They said we could speak English most of the time, but I hope my Norwegian holds up well enough to explain things to Kent's class! Mette is very interested in geneaology, and so she has explained many family connections to me. I really appreciate finding those connections all the way across the world. She has even helped Steve to find information about his Norwegian ancestors. Very nice! Steve is also learning Norwegian quite well. He will be a pro by the time we leave! Mette and I have been speaking to each other, her in English and me in Norwegian so we can practice. So, that is where we are right now. We have eaten so much good Norwegian food since we have been here. Norsk breakfasts are brødskiver med ost og syltetøy og fisk (bread, cheese, jam, fish. We have eaten so much good brown cheese!). I like Norwegian food a lot, but that shouldn't surprise anyone. We have had potatoes, sausage, onions, tomatoes, kjøttkaker (meat cakes), tyttebær(cranberries), kål(cabbage), rømmegrøt(sour cream porridge), kransekake, eplemost (applecider), og lefse.

(Me, Aina, and Copper)

We went to Aina's last night and she made us Norwegian waffles. They were absolutely heavenly. We ate them with her homemade jordbær syltetøy (strawberry jam), sour cream, brunost (brown cheese), hot chocolate and tea. We had a wonderful time visiting her. We got to meet Lars Erik's brother, Ole Martin, who was quite funny. We played Wii and got to know them much better. It was lovely. They live about 10 minutes from Jaren, in Gran.

(The Sister Churches)

On the way to her house she took us to see the sister churches, a popular site to visit around here. They are two churches, Maria church and Nicolaus church, that stand next to each other. They are built of stone, which is strange because most churches made at that time were built from wood. They are very beautiful and important here. So, we have had a lot of time to get to know the family and have been shown the ropes here in Norway. I hope you can follow my train of thought and get an idea of the wonderful time we are having here!

View from Mette's House in her backyard.