Orientation week...

...has left something to be desired, I'll be honest. But out of it I have managed to befriend Elif, a German girl who I've taken to spending lots of time with when I'm out and about taking care of things. We both agree that lots of these planned activities don't actually do a good job of introducing fellow internationals to each other so much as just... cram them in the same place and hope for the best. So thus far, I've really only become good friends with her, and Vincent upstairs. That's all right with me though! The pace of the week has been so hectic that I've been getting lots of exercise at the very least, and as of next week when classes start, I expect I'll be making lots of new friends in my courses. I also obtained a monthly student travel card for about 450NOK--a very good deal which means I won't have to pay metro, bus, tram, or boat faire every time I want to take a trip somewhere.

Last night lots of us internationals took the T-bane to Nationaltheatret, which is a beautiful, historic part of the city with lots of lovely 19th century architecture... and I would have taken pictures, but unfortunately the night performance of my camera is lousy. Anyway, the whole fountain area was lit up with lovely white Christmas lights, with dome rooftops lit brightly to cast all kinds of shadows over the masonry. We saw the palace, too, which I'll need to photograph when I'm next able--but that wasn't the point of the trip. The point was to go ice skating.

This was a little bit of an adventure for me because the last time I went ice skating, I must've been 12 or 13, skating indoors in skates that definitely fit my feet. This time was much different, and I struggled to squeeze my feet into a pair of leather skates that were half frozen from the cold and didn't exactly fit. But once I got out on the ice (and miraculously didn't fall!) I felt like I was actually accomplishing something (even though, as stated earlier, these events really don't get us interacting with each other anymore than we already were).

This morning, Elif and I are going to the police station to register as internationals, then we might do a little bit of shopping. I need a hairdryer and some decent drapes, so a trip to Oslo City--the mall--and IKEA (pronounced "ee-KAY-ah" for all you uncultured yanks) might be in order. Tonight from 4-6 is International Coffee Hour (you get a cookie if you can spot the problem with that event), and after that, I think I'll come home and try to get some work done on a few projects I've been neglecting. Like my writing and drawing, for example. :)

Hadet bra~