Home Sweet Home

For the first time since we moved to Norway in August 2010, we traveled "home". First that meant one week at home in Minnesota, for a whirlwind visit with four grandparents and a silly aunt and uncle, not to mention a few lucky friends. Then we traveled to New England, namely to the Upper Valley of Hanover, New Hampshire and Hartford, Vermont, which was our home for six years before moving to Norway. There we spent 10 days hopping from one guest room to another, squeezing in as many coffee dates, play dates, dinner get-togethers and two-day trips around the region to visit dear friends as we possibly could. 

The Green at Dartmouth College in Hanover, New Hampshire
snapped as we drove out of town on our last day in the US.

We have mixed emotions about going and coming "home"--to Minnesota, New England and now back again to Lillehammer. I was worried, and anticipated, that the trip would be much harder, emotionally. That I wouldn't want to leave the United States and that I would dread and curse coming back to Norway. I'll be honest--there was a little of that, but those feelings were not nearly as strong as I had feared. 

We had a little bright spot along on this trip, happily and easily adapting to new beds, new/old friends that she didn't remember, new/old haunts that she didn't remember. All that our four-year old daughter remembers is life in Norway, and for that I am a little sad. She had no problems whatsoever in switching into full-time use of English, and for that I am very happy.

As we drove down Main Street of the quintessentially New Englandy Hanover, New Hampshire, a street which I drove nearly daily for 6+ years, a street where I bought coffee and Christmas presents, ran into friends and patients, braved snowstorms and summer heat alike, Greta asked me from the backseat, oblivious to the emotions spinning ‘round in my head and heart: “Mamma. . .  which land (i.e. country) do you like better: Norway or America?”

I sighed.  Such an innocent, simple question. If only the answer were so simple. “Ohhhh. . . that’s a really difficult question to answer, Greta. . . “

Undaunted, Greta pressed on, “Pappa? Which land do you like better?”

Erik responded, also a little torn, but prepared to give a slightly more diplomatic (and non-binding) answer, “Well, there are parts of both countries that I really like.”

Greta responded, rather decided in her answer, “I like Sweden best.” 

Copenhagen: Flashback to December

Copenhagen in December

In an effort to remind myself just How Damn Good Life Really Is, I'm reflecting back a few months. We were very lucky this past Christmas to have been invited to escape the construction mess and instead spend the holidays with my in-laws for a week in Paris. We decided to take the opportunity to have an 8-hour layover in Copenhagen and spend the day enjoying another Nordic capital in the days leading up to Christmas before we headed further south.

Overlooking a canal with quaint
buildings behind us

It was hovering around freezing and overcast, but we were prepared with stroller, snowsuit and layers of wool (like any good Norwegians). We spent the majority of the day walking around the center of Copenhagen, window shopping and enjoying a tasty lunch accompanied by a strongly alcoholic mug of gløgg, a specialty Nordic holiday drink of spices and wine and rum. I had only had the norsk grocery store bottled version, which I now swear to never drink again 'cause the Danish version was killer.

As darkness approached around 4pm, we headed to the Tivoli--the permanent carnival located in the center of Copenhagen. It was filled with Christmas trees, and covered with lights. We were quite shocked at the entrance fee to even just walk around (slips my mind now how much it was, but maybe $30 for the family??) and we limited our rides to a single carousel ride and mini-ferris wheel. It was enough. We had all woken at 4:30am to catch the train to the airport and Greta had napped all of 30 minutes in the stroller. And the day was young: we wouldn't be arriving into Paris until nearly 10pm.

Double-decker carousel at night in Tivoli

I was surprised, impressed and charmed by the grandeur of Copenhagen, even in the bleak gray daytime. It still had a very sensible Scandinavian feel to it--hordes of cyclists commuting through the streets and everyone bundled up against the cold--but it felt different from Oslo. Oslo lacks much of the truly old, ornate, impressive architecture that gives European cities such a distinctive feel, but it wasn't until I visited Copenhagen that I really was able to recognize that myself. When the grand stately buildings in Copenhagen were being built, Norway was the poorest land in Europe and Denmark owned it. That explains a lot.

We hope to visit again, hopefully in a brighter, warmer time of year, and with a little more than 8 hours (and $30) to spend.

Greta loves Maihaugen.
She also loves running after her Uncle Jeremy.

 My brother Jeremy and his samboer, Amber, came to visit us in late August for nearly two weeks. My delay in writing this post has everything to do with waiting for my brother to sort through his 2,000 pictures and nothing to do with my own busy schedule. . . 

I do a little Big Sister
ass kickin' on the stilts at Maihaugen.

While the plane tickets were bought long ago, the planning was. . . shall we say, a little last minute? J&A wanted first and foremost to see their adorable niece, but also to get a taste of Norway. I, of course, wanted to visit with them too, but also wanted them to really like Norway. In fact, I was more concerned about their having an awesome, kick-ass visit than I have been with any of our other visitors thus far (aunt/uncle and our parents), mostly I think because of the amount of money involved and their age. Let me try to explain:  our parents, our aunt/uncle. . . they're retired/nearly retired, have some extra money on their hands in this stage of their lives. . . somehow for my brother and his girlfriend to drop the thousands of dollars it takes to get here--these two hard working kids with a mortgage. . . I really felt some pressure for them to have a great time. (And to want to come back!).


So, in addition to visiting Lillehammer and the requisite trip to Oslo (either upon arrival or departure, or during any of the train trips that generally require a trip into Oslo), I strongly encouraged them to visit Bergen. Bergen is located on the west coast of Norway, and notoriously rainy (kind of like Seattle). But it is colorful, cosmopolitan, historical, and beautiful, and since I visited it 6 years ago on a rare sunny day--I loved it. A link to this blog perhaps sealed the deal on visiting Bergen.


I also recommended a Norway in a Nutshell trip, which fellow blogger Michele described as "ridiculously expensive but totally worth it". It enabled them to get a taste of Norway in just a day or two trip--fjord trip, train trip to the mountains and glaciers, and back down to the coastline.


I thought Lillehammer, Oslo, Bergen, Norway in a Nutshell would be a nice taste of Norway. A few weeks before their visit Jeremy said, "We're going to start reading the guidebooks now!" I reassured them that late August into early September isn't high tourist season anymore, and not to worry too much about making reservations in some of the more popular tourist destinations.

And the weather continues to cooperate.
We stopped at the octagonal church in 
Sør Fron on our drive to Rondane to enjoy
the spectacular view and sunshine.

Oops.


Bergen was Booked Solid on their chosen days. Only horrendously expensive hotels were available. Jeremy sent us link after link to hostels and small apartments, and every one was booked. After playing with the dates of their in-country trips a bit, and only after Erik called about 40 privately owned apartments, did we find them a place to stay in Bergen for 3 nights.


Let this be a warning to you!!!

We begin the 5km walk to Rondvassbu Fjell Hotel
in Rondane National Park. 

Weather was the wild card. Remember we just had the rainiest June, July and August in history (or modern history) in Lillehammer, and so a few days of rain could be the difference between a miserable trip or an awesome one.


They had an AWESOME TRIP!!  The weather (although a little chilly for late August) cooperated. . . even in Bergen. For the most part.

Nearly there!
(No, I did not carry Greta the whole way. We had a stroller).

Once they arrived in Lillehammer, and we made the pilgrimage to Maihaugen, I convinced them that we should do a day hike into Rondane National Park and stay overnight in Rondvassbu, one of many classic Norwegian mountain hotels. My brother and his girlfriend aren't really hikers (they live in DC), but I reassured them that it wasn't so much of a hike as it was a 5km walk on a dirt road. With backpacks. Norwegians walk in on a Sunday afternoon, have a cup of coffee, and walk back out again. Parents push baby buggies, kids ride their bikes. But it's all in the middle of really incredible high mountain terrain. The sleeping accommodations are rustic (think bunk beds and candles) but the food is not (think 3 course meals with a beer/wine menu).


They agreed it sounded like a fun addition to their itinerary, without too much convincing. Erik was busy with work and house stuff, so it was the two of them along with Greta and myself. We packed backpacks full of layers of rainproof clothing, long underwear and our bed linens (only to find out upon arrival at the hotel that we could have "rented" the linens and spared ourselves the extra pounds in the backpack) and drove the two hours to Rondane, stopping along the way for some pretty incredible sight-seeing. Greta enjoyed the hike from the comfort of her stroller, and J&A were adequately impressed by the stark beauty of the high mountain range. 


After an evening meal of fish, potatoes (and a very tasty pasta salad for vegetarian Amber) and chocolate mousse, accompanied by a good beer and refreshing glass of wine, we settled into the living room to read and chat by the candlelight. The mountain hotel was a bit overrun by about 50+ high school aged kids, heading out on a first-week-of-school multi-night expedition. But they definitely added to the rustic, Norwegian feel to the place--all these kids not batting an eye about heading out into the wilderness with a few days' supplies on their backs. 

Rustic but cozy, right Amber?

The multiple layers of wicking long underwear, fleece and rain gear were unnecessary on our walk in--the sun was out and we all stripped down to a single layer of clothes. The walk out ended on a chilly note with a few sprinkles and strong wind, but did not dampen the spirits of our DC Hikers who, to their credit, got off the beaten path of the "typical" tourist in Norway. 


Come see for yourself! 

Come back soon, Jeremy and Amber!
You still have a lot of Norway left to see!

September weekend in Oslo

Enjoying the harbor near
Rådhuset (city hall)

The weekend of September 24-25, Erik, Greta and I traveled down to Oslo to meet up with Erik's parents during their last weekend in Norway.


We found a reasonable hotel near Oslo Sentralstasjon (train) and the Rådhuset (city hall) on the main Oslo harbor. Erik and I managed to navigate downtown Oslo in a car for the first time, at 10pm at night.

Saturday was cool (but not rainy!) and the city was mobbed by people running the Oslo Half Marathon and Marathon the next day. Saturday had many pre-race events, including a 3K that wound its way around many of the sights near our hotel.


We spent Saturday enjoying the views from Akershus Fortress, the harbor near Rådhuset, and enjoyed a delicious lunch at Aker Brygge, the shopping area near the wharf.

That evening, after Greta's afternoon nap in the hotel, we wandered over to the new Opera House, and walked up the slanted roofs to the top overlooking the harbor. We peeked inside the lobby of the opera house, which looks really beautiful. 

At the Opera House, where
you can climb on the roof!

On Sunday morning we hopped on a tour boat of the Oslo harbor that took us from the Opera House to Bygdøy, where 3 of Oslo's main attractions are located: the Vikingship Museum, the Kon-Tiki Museum, and the PolarShip Museum. Erik and I have seen all three, and we had a nap schedule we wanted to adhere to, so we limited ourselves to 30 minutes in the Vikingship Museum. It's a very interesting exhibit, and I highly recommend it. 

At the Viking Ship Museum

  

  

Vigeland's sculptures at Frognerpark

Sunday afternoon was a brilliantly sunny day, and while Greta napped and Erik caught up on work, I wandered past the runners loping down the main pedestrian shopping street, Karl Johans Gate, and up to the royal palace, Slottet. Feeling inspired by the fresh air and a few spare hours, I walked to Vigeandsparken, also known as Frogner Park or Vigeland's Sculpture Park. 

Monolith in Frognerpark

The park is filled with over 200 sculptures and statues of the life's work of Gustav Vigeland. It is an enchanting place, and probably the most unique and interesting side of Oslo. 

We were planning on meeting Erik's distant cousins, the three Tveter siblings and their families, for dinner that evening near Holmenkollen, the ski jumps that overlook the city. Erik agreed to pick me up near Frogner Park to allow me to savor the sunshine at the park, however we hadn't determined a time or place when I had left. That's what cell phones are for, right?

To pass some time, I sat down and tried to fix an annoying feature on my cell phone. After a few options, the phone asked me to "clear settings" or "reset settings" or something like that, which I agreed to do. BIG mistake. It basically locked me out of my phone, asking me for PIN and PUK codes, which I had no recollection of. I was stuck. After a few panicky minutes--it was getting very close to 4pm, when Erik was going to leave the hotel--I asked a nice looking Norwegian couple pushing a baby stroller (basically every other couple) if I could borrow their cell phone. Of course, I couldn't remember Erik's phone number the first few times, but eventually contacted him and set up a meeting time and place. Crisis averted. Yes, sounds so calm now. Not so calm then.


We had a lovely dinner at Frognersentern, a historic hotel overlooking the city, reacquainting ourselves with Erik's cousins--our only family in Norway! They were incredibly welcoming to Erik when he was a student here 15 years ago, and have hosted us on both of our visits to Norway.

Visiting Oslo with a 2 year old was a very different experience than our last visit 3 years ago, as you can only imagine. The boat ride was a big hit, as was running around the harbor. I think Frogner Park also would have been very enjoyable, so we'll put it on our list for next time. There are still many things in Oslo that we haven't done (or I haven't done), and many more visitors to come (we hope), so I'm sure we'll have plenty of opportunities to find some more favorites.

Early October: Week in Lillesand (i.e. southern Norway)

View from Lillesand, Norway

Erik's job as a forest researcher sent him down to southern Norway to hunt down old oak trees in the area surrounding Lillesand, about 4 hours south of Oslo. Since his work would have to pay for his lodging anyway, his boss suggested "take the whole family and rent a hytte". Well, OK then!

Happy 8th Anniversary to Us!

We have limited pictures from that week, as we actually thought Erik's lovely Nikon SLR camera had been stolen (we later found it in a side pocket of our luggage). How we overlooked a large SLR camera is beyond us. . . . Anyway, we were limited to our small pocket sized digital camera for the week, which Erik had to take in the field with him to document the oak trees.

When I told one of Greta’s teachers that we were traveling to Lillesand, she said “Oh it’s beautiful there in the summer.” Hmmm. We were going to be there the first week of October, so I wasn’t quite sure what to expect.

Norwegian dream house. . . 

It was still incredibly lovely and charming, despite the off-season. Lillesand is a small, coastal village, with nearly every building and home whitewashed. Our “little hytte” (that could sleep nine and had cable TV) was about a 10 minute drive from Lillesand. The weather was beautiful and sunny the first few days, although still easily in the 50s. Greta and I spent one day at the Kristiansand Dyreparken (zoo), which had a rather impressive collection of animals. We also spent a good deal of time simply playing outside, collecting acorns to toss into the sea, and meandering around the village.

Erik and I also celebrated our 8^th anniversary while we were there, and marked the occasion by buying a bløtkake (a cream and white layered cake with a marzipan fondant), which I have been coveting since the day I walked into a Norwegian grocery store.

The week was exhausting for Erik, as he was putting in long hours bush-whacking through the woods in search of oaks. It was evident he wouldn’t be finished with his work by the time Greta and I had planned on leaving on Saturday via train, and he returned home late Monday night.

I had planned on returning separately from Erik anyway, as we didn’t want to make the 6 hour drive from Lillesand to Lillehammer with Greta in the car. Instead, we took a 4 hour train ride from Kristiansand to Oslo, and then transferred to a second train from Oslo to Lillehammer--another 2 hour trip. The train ride was the perfect way to travel with a 2 year old. Now, I have solo-parented my two-year-old on an 11 hour Vermont/New Jersey Amtrak ride, and an 8 hour trans-Atlantic overnight flight on which she did not sleep, so I was prepared for a measley 6 hour train trip. But get this: Norwegian trains have “family cars” that have PLAY ROOMS in them, complete with little kid-sized benches, cushions, chairs, books, DVD player and a little loft accessible by two ladders.

Piece of cake. Yummy bløtkake.

Early September: Weekend in Rondane

View of our hytte (the one with 
the thatched roof)

In early September, we drove 2 hours northwest of Lillehammer to Rondane National Park to spend the weekend in a rented hytte (cabin) with some Trondheim based American friends that we first met about 5 years ago. The Strimbeck/Bazilchuk family is originally from Vermont, but moved to Trondheim nearly 8 years ago when Rick took a job teaching biology at the University where Erik was once a student 15 years ago! We stayed with them in Trondheim for a few days during our first visit to Norway in 2006, having only corresponded with them via phone and email. We enjoyed their company, and that of their two adorable little girls, and they inspired us to “keep the dream alive” of moving to Norway. In the months leading up to our move, we contacted them frequently for advice on our upcoming move.

See Grandma? She is warm and happy.

Our weekend in Rondane National Park was a way to meet up again with their family (minus their eldest daughter, now off to college!), and reunite them with their beloved bentwood rocker, that we moved with us from Vermont. Nancy and Rick also accurately guessed that we might appreciate a little English conversation, as well.

Our Saturday hike in the mist

The hytte was a delight. And a few words about Norwegian hyttes, if I may pluralize them that way. Many Norwegian families own a small cabin somewhere in the country. It may be a mountain cabin, or a coastal cabin, and are varying degrees of “rustic-ness”. Some have outhouses, other have flushing toilets, warm water, showers, even saunas. Some are very isolated, and others are in little cabin communities. Many of these privately owned cabins are available to rent, but there are also DNT huts (the national hiking organization) scattered all across Norway available for members and non-members to use. Some of these huts are small and require that you pack in your own food. Others are full staffed and equipped—essentially a wilderness hotel, where all you need is your own sleep sack—the down comforters are provided.

Family hike on Sunday

So, anyway, our rented hytte was a delight. The Strimbeck/Bazilchuk family had stayed there before on several occasions, including a Christmas week. To get there, we drove north out of Lillehammer on E-6 to Otta, and then headed up some very steep roads and eventually above tree line, to a rather expansive hytte community. It was misty and overcast, which was unfortunate, as we could tell the fall colors were at their peak (which, remember we’re above tree line, so the colors are limited to mostly heather and lichen).

We arrived Friday evening, prepared a warm dinner, let the two dogs get acquainted, settled Greta down into her crib, and enjoyed the warm fireplace, a bottle of wine, and “settling into Norway” conversation. In English!

Sunday's destination: fully serviced
DNT hut with hot chocolate

Saturday we braved the misty weather, and headed out for a hike into a nearby valley. The rain held until the last few minutes of our hike, and Greta was happy as a clam in her backpack through the entire 3-hour hike.  Sunday’s weather looked more promising, and we opted for a hike along a gravel road that would take us to a large DNT hut where we could eat our lunch and get a cup of coffee. Again, the rain held off, and the dogs were allowed to run off-leash (a big treat in Norway). Greta enjoyed the hike (and the destination) so much that she didn’t want to go inside once we arrived!

All in all, it was a very fun and relaxing weekend. It was great to see Nancy and Rick again, and be able to share our Norwegian moving stories with people who definitely knew what we were going through.

Happy hiker who
doesn't want to go inside yet!

Wrapping up the day with
a little sunshine and smiles

Photo Essay: What I did this summer

It takes approximately 4- 6 weeks for a container of household goods to be shipped from Vermont to Norway. We decided that the easiest transition for our little family was to maintain consistency by plopping ourselves down in essentially one location: Minnesota. Minnesota is home to both sets of parents/grandparents, who would welcome all 4 of us for as long as we needed a place to stay. 

Greta and Erik visiting
Great-Oma Stange

After a quick tour of Princeton, New Jersey, where we visited Greta's Great-grandmother, she and I flew from the Princeton area (Pennsylvania, actually) to Minnesota, while Erik and Tika drove the trusty Subaru.

Greta and Tika in the backseat of a very full Subaru

We picked strawberries, 

went canoeing,

played on the beach, 

hung out with Minnesota friends, 

and Minnesota grandparents, 

took side trips to Texas to visit college roomies, 

and to Washington DC to visit Uncle Jeremy and Amber*.   And that is how we spent our summer vacation. 

*My apologies to J&A, as I do not have a picture of us all on this computer. Stay tuned.

Monday: the Day We Sell the House

 Greta and I hop on the train in Essex Junction at 9am sharp, and enjoy a leisurely 11 hr train ride to New Jersey. Erik is in Thetford, VT, about 20 minutes from our house, and finishes returns to the house to finish some last minute straightening up.  The closing is scheduled for 11am. I’ve already signed Power of Attorney papers—oh yeah—did that on Friday along with the other important errands.


Around 9:30am, I get a phone call from Rowan, our realtor, saying that the money wire hasn’t gone through, and they want to delay the closing until 1pm. Erik has a 6 hr drive to make to NJ, and now needs to make a detour into Queens, in order to pick me up in Trenton by 8pm.


About an hour later, Erik calls me with the following news items

·      The closing has been postponed until 1pm, but that’s ok

·      Uncle Tom, in Princeton, will pick me and Greta up in Trenton

·      He needs the extra time because the ammonia filled ziploc bag we were using to clean the stove-top thingies leaked on our butcher block table, and so the table top needed some sanding and possibly refinishing

·      The upstairs toilet had a leaky pipe, which leaked into the downstairs bathroom ceiling, requiring the ceiling to be opened up, and the toilet attended to by a plumber!

·      He would be meeting me in at the WRJ train station in 20 minutes with a car seat so Greta could safely ride with Uncle Tom.

·      He needed the extra time to pack, since we had so much crap to bring to Queens and then to MN, that fitting it all into the Subaru was going to require some very creative packing.


In the end, the closing goes down without a hitch, although our buyer is very nervous about the toilet leaking. Our realtor deposits our check, which essentially bounces a few days later, because the issuing bank required both mine and Erik’s signatures, and only had Erik’s. It is being mailed to us—to our PO Box in Wilder—meaning it will then get forwarded to us in Minnesota, but we have yet to see it.

Erik makes it through Queens and to the warehouse, drops off our multitude of treasures, and continues on to New Jersey. But not until he crosses the George Washington Bridge into NJ, misses the exit off the bridge, decides the best option is to cross back into NYC to take the bridge out of the city a second time, this time knowing when and where the exit is. Turns out, it is free to leave NYC on the GWB, but it costs you $8 to return back into the city.


He arrives in Princeton around 11:30pm, where Greta and I landed in a hotel room about 2 hrs earlier. Tika is relieved to be reunited with her whole family, as are we.