A quick note on food.

I can in no way suppose that this is the case all across Scotland, but I do think it is interesting that at both the Holiday Inn and the Glynhill Hotel, I was provided the same sort of celery-potato-leak soup at meal time. I thought it was interesting that they didn't even ask, "Would you like soup?" but just.. assumed that logically, I would want soup. Why wouldn't I?

Anyway, it had a very nice flavor that reminded me of this potato soup that my mother's friend Susan Shellman, who passed away while I was in high school, used to make. So I'm wondering if maybe the recipes are similar, and if her recipe was inspired by this one.

Just some food for thought (no pun intended) while I try to make my way south to London. Assuming I get in, my step-grandmother and my grandfather have invited me out to see Cirque du Soleil with them at Albert Hall, which would be fantastic. I saw Cirque when they came to Huntsville early last year and maintain that that night was the best night of entertainment I've had in a long time.

Hello from sunny... Glasgow?

Yep.

If I look exhausted and bedraggled, it's because I am. However, despite the noticeably displeased expression on my face, my day has actually ended comparatively well given how lousy it was up until... well, I'd say an hour ago. I'm posting this update from my hotel room, by the way. Free wi-fi!

Monday night, January 4th, I was essentially up all night long unpacking and repacking my belongings, in an effort to make sure that I didn't forget anything important. Thus far, it appears that I haven't, which is apparently a testament to my wonderful packing skills!

To save you enduring the gory details of how I ended up in Glasgow, Scotland (technically Renfrew), instead of in Leatherhead, England with my family as planned, I've just got one word for you: snow. Snow, and lots of it. Here's an excerpt from the Telegraph:

"The South, including London and the Home Counties, was expected to bear the brunt of the snowfall overnight and early on Tuesday, with emergency services saying that they were already struggling to cope with the increasingly bitter conditions . . . Scores of rail services and flights were cancelled as temperatures struggled to get above freezing. On Monday night, temperatures dropped to as low as -14C (7F) in some areas — the worst since 1995."

In other words, the airports all closed down, and the only place that could accept us was Glasgow, Scotland. We ended up spending nearly three hours on the runway, waiting inside the plane because the airline wanted to "wait and see" if Gatwick would start accepting flights again. I was frustrated that they couldn't let us at least deplane long enough to stretch our legs, especially because we actually had several sick children onboard the aircraft (which resulted in paramedics coming aboard to make sure there wasn't some kind of epidemic breaking out on the plane--quite the adventure). But apparently due to security concerns, if you deplane, you've got to go through customs... which I eventually did. The bright side? I have a shiny Scottish stamp in my passport now! I do love collecting passport stamps.

US Airways was supposed to reserve us all rooms at the Holiday Inn, but after spending an additional four hours with over 100 other people crammed into the reception area, we discovered that US Airways had in fact only reserved 50 rooms. 50 rooms, knowing that well over 100 people were going to the Holiday Inn in search of a place to spend the night. Ridiculous! Fortunately, one of the other passengers called up the airline representative and pitched such a fit that we ended up getting much nicer digs at this lovely little hotel, the Glynhill Hotel, located in Renfrew. (I think Renfrew is to Glasgow what Madison is to Huntsville.) The building itself is very old and has lots of personality, with all kinds of twisting, winding hallways and a very friendly (and good looking) porter who carried my bag all the way to my room for me. So for tonight, I'm enjoying the free wi-fi, the BBC, and trying to unwind a bit.

Tomorrow, yet another flight leaves for Gatwick at 9am, though I'm apprehensive about my chances of actually getting to Gatwick. With the weather not letting up at all, it's possible that I'll need to investigate flying from Glasgow to Oslo, instead of to Oslo through Heathrow. This would bother me for a number of reasons, primarily because the whole point of my arriving in the UK before going on to Norway was to spend time with family. But, this is the hand I've been dealt, so to speak, so I'm going to deal with it to the best of my abilities.

Time to relax, watch a bit of TV, and possibly make an early night of it. I'm exhausted!

edit: My lovely friend Von phoned me at my hotel to keep me company!

Vonnie is my silly British friend, and I took this photo of her last year during her visit to Huntsville in May. I was hoping that I'd be able to pop down to Winchester while in the UK, but that's not going to happen this time around.

Much as this whole travel experience has exhausted me so far, I'm glad that I've got such a strong network of friends and family to keep me grounded. I've been in fairly constant contact with my father, my uncle, my mother, and several of my friends both here in the UK and back home in the states. It's nice that these friendships don't stagnate just because there's a bit of distance between us.

We're nearly there!

It's packing time! And boy, am I doing a lot of it.

I've sorted out the essentials: warm clothes (which will NOT be warm enough, I'll have to buy warmer stuff when I get there), snow appropriate boots, some bed linens and a pillow (since that isn't provided by the university housing), hats, scarves, my faithful gloves, plenty of warm, fluffy pajamas. The non-essentials (at least, not essential to my survival) have all been taken care of, too: the macbook, complete with adapters for any country I might find myself in, a Europe-compatible cell phone that I didn't ask for but my father thought would be necessary anyway, my sketch and drawing notebooks, my inking pens and my pencils. I'm still going through which few books I plan to take with me, and this is proving to be the hardest part of the process. There is so much I want to take with me, but so much of it would just be superfluous and provide extra clutter. Oh yes--the camera. Food tends to be something I don't pack to take with me, but I think taking some of my preferred teas along with me might stave off the inevitable homesickness that is bound to creep up on me when I'm least expecting it. So I'm including two of my favorite (and most sturdy) mugs, an equally sturdy teapot, and the chai I bought at India Festival this summer.

My carry-on luggage will consist of: the macbook, the sketchbook and pencils/pens, Odd and the Frost Giants by Neil Gaiman, the blackberry, the passport, the wallet with necessary picture I.D., dollars, pounds and kroner. I thought about packing my DS Lite but have since decided that it might be better to just scrap bringing it altogether. I rarely if ever play it here, so what makes me think I'm going to play it in Norway, especially when I'll have a foreign country to explore? Then again, I did buy that frigging thing to use it, grumble grumble grumble whatever I don't need more video games. *grump*

Still left to do: contact my bank to remind them that I'll be in England for most of this week, then Norway by the weekend. I expect I won't ask them to recognize any other Scandinavian or mainland European countries just yet, since I don't know when/if I'll be in Sweden or Denmark. That entirely depends on how comfortable I feel traveling, and how soon.

Additionally, some of you know I am a (somewhat irregular) patron of the Church of the Nativity, Episcopal here in Huntsville. I'm relieved to say that I've found myself a new Anglican/Episcopal home for the duration of my stay in Oslo in St. Edmund's Anglican Church. I really like the sound of this place, not only because services are conducted in English, but also because the youth organization seems geared towards addressing the needs of international students. I think getting involved in St. Edmund's will be a good way for me to established a non-school community for myself while I'm in Oslo--and going to church always makes me feel better, so! :)

I've said most of my goodbyes to friends and family alike; Mum, her fiancee and I went to see Sherlock Holmes tonight and then dropped by Barnes & Noble afterwards for coffee/tea. I visited my grandmother, who has been in hospital since October, and was relieved to see that she is not only doing much better, but is going to be moved to a physical therapy center in Madison come Tuesday after she receives dialysis. So, the long and the short of it is, the new year is getting off to a grand start, and I feel confident about my departure.

I don't intend to update this journal any more while I'm here in the states. The next time you'll hear from me will be from South England as I kill some time with my relatives. As of January 9th, however, my adventure really begins.

14 days and counting!

Another quick update from Huntsville:

All the red tape paperwork has either been completed or begun, so at this point, I believe I am all set for departure. I have paid my deposit for my room in Oslo, I have started the visa application process (which does not, in fact, have to be completed in the United States, only begun), I have booked my flights and arranged to meet up with some other program students upon my arrival on the 9th. It looks like a go!

I'm already very bittersweet about leaving Huntsville since there is a possibility that I won't be coming home for quite a while; there really is nothing quite like leaving your home town to make you appreciate all the things that you've taken for granted all your life. The Parkway with its pointless overpass across from the cinema, driving over Chapman Mountain on 72 to get home after a long day on campus, my morning walk from the office at work to the ugly 60s style courthouse, evening dinners with friends at Jamo's (drinking cream sodas and munching down more pita bread and hummus than can possibly be healthy), Friday nights spent at the Nook enjoying Guinness and Paulsner, random visits out to my grandmother's house in Madison, and even the long and treacherous drive down to Birmingham during the holiday season... I know I'm going to miss all of this when I leave it, but I hope I can form the same kinds of bonds with Oslo as a city as I do with Huntsville.

Hopefully, it'll feel a little bit like home to me, too.

A list of foods I must try while in Norway.

I like to consider myself the type of "foodie" that chef Anthony Bourdain would be able to tolerate for at least a few minutes; I love to eat, I love trying new things, and I always want to find the local places that are a little off-beat and off the normal tourist-y loop when it comes to lunch time. Mind you, I don't think I'll be trying chicken anus anytime soon. Bourdain is a better man than I.*

But I have compiled a meager list of things I would like to try while abroad in Norway--some obvious stuff, and then some less obvious stuff:

Norwegian smoked salmon. As a maritime country, the majority of traditional Norwegian cuisine involves fish. I have a sneaking suspicion I may end up comparing Norwegian smoked salmon to Alaskan smoked salmon. We'll see which one is tastier.

Gravlaks, or "dug salmon." This is apparently a salt-and-sugar cured dish seasoned with dill and lemon.

Reinsdyrsteik, or "reindeer steak." Apparently the meat is very rich, so it is often served with juniper berry or lingon berry sauces. On that note, I'm also keen on trying...

Cloudberry jam! I had some of this while I was visiting a dear friend in British Columbia, and when we looked it up on Wikipedia we discovered that it is grown and distributed in the Nordic countries even moreso than in Canada. (It tends to crop up in Newfoundland in Canada, unless I'm mistaken.) Tastes very nice on toast, and apparently is also used to make...

Lakkalikööri, a Finnish liqueur derived from the cloudberry fruit. You can drink it either on its own or in coffee, which seems rather like Baileys or Amaretto to me. At any rate, I'm determined to try this, too.

There are some other dishes I'm really interested in trying: torsk, which is poached cod, often served just with potatoes; lapskaus, a meat stew that can have everything in it except fresh pork for some reason; fårikål, Norwegian mutton stew; Norwegian coffee, which supposedly has its own very distinct flavor and texture; and, of course, mjød, perhaps better known on this side of the pond as mead. :)

This website providing the names and addresses of good restaurants in Oslo will, I'm sure, become my best friend, even if I will like as all be too broke to enjoy all of these things too often. But I am determined!

* yes, I am well aware that I am not a man at all. shh.

Some thoughts on why I'm going to Norway.

A few people have asked me recently why I'm going to Norway to study abroad instead of somewhere else, so I thought I would take a moment to lay out my response to that here while it's on my mind.

I got into Scandinavian and Nordic history and literature via a pretty interesting segue way--Icelandic music. Sigur Rós is one of my favorite bands and has been since 2006 when I first got into them; they kept me company while I moved out on my own for the first time, got my first serious job, and started taking on more responsibilities in my life as a student. For Christmas in 2007, a good friend gave me a copy of their musical documentary Heima, and... well, let me just quote directly from the website:

"The question of the way Sigur Rós’s music relates to, and is influenced by, their environment has been reduced to a journalistic cliché about glacial majesty and fire and ice, but there is no doubt that the band are inextricably linked to the land in which they were forged. And the decision to film this first-ever Sigur Rós film in Iceland was, in the end, ineluctable."

Needless to say, I was more than a little inspired. :) The stunning visuals combined with Jónsi's melodic voice and the sound of the language on my ears turned me into an addict pretty much overnight. My dad found a copy of The Sagas of Icelanders, which immediately got me hooked on medieval Icelandic literature. This continues to be what interests me most.

So... why Norway? Why not Iceland? For one, it was easier for me to study at the University of Oslo than in Reykjavik in Iceland, because the program I am enrolling through, the University Studies Abroad Consortium, did not have an agreement with any Icelandic universities. For another, Oslo is centrally located on the Scandinavian peninsula, meaning I'll have greater access to its neighbor countries. More travel opportunities! Having said that, I've got every intention of visiting Iceland while I'm abroad, and I have no doubt that it will be an intensely personal and uplifting experience for me.


Sigur Rós's "Heima."

Norway in T minus 29 days...

Hello!

For my last semester as an undergraduate student enrolled at UAHuntsville, I've been accepted to study abroad at the Faculty of Humanities at the University of Oslo in Norway. According to the university website, it was established in 1811, before Norway gained its independence from Denmark, which I think is pretty cool. :D Over the past few weeks, I've been doing my best to get all of my affairs in order before departure; this included filling out a Declaration of Acceptance on the university website, applying for housing (the rental contract for which has now arrived in the mail--I'll be living in the Kringsjå student village!), applying for the visa, etc. It's turned out to be quite the exhausting process, especially while juggling a lot of responsibilities here at home, but I'm going to take a page out of my dear friend Jennifer's book, who is being an awesome Fulbright Scholar in Celle, Germany as we speak. This journal is intended to be a travel blog, not a personal diary, and so my personal whinging will stay out of it.

So, my travel itinerary at the moment: I'll leave Huntsville International Airport on January 5th for London, where I will spend a few days with my father's family in and around Wimbledon. Having family scattered across the globe is pretty nice, I'll go ahead and admit it; last year while Jennifer and I were in Germany for a university course, I was able to meet up with my paternal grandmother's family in former East Germany. It didn't seem to matter that I spoke no German and they spoke no English, because when you're family, somehow these things just sort themselves out. :) Anyway, I won't be going to Germany, at least not immediately, on this trip. On the 9th, I'll fly out of London and straight to Oslo, where the SiO people are supposedly going to meet me to help me get to my student village in the city.

I've been looking at some photographs of Oslo online while preparing for my trip, and it looks so strikingly modern in comparison to other European cities. Here are some photos nicked off Google:


This is actually an image of the University of Oslo itself. :) I'll be there soon!


Photograph of a longboat in the ship museum. I'll be all over that. :B


Norwegian flags!

I'm sure I'll post a few more entries while I'm here in Huntsville as I prepare to leave. Go ahead and bookmark this if you want to keep up with my adventuring.