Last Day in Norway

8/18/12

It’s odd to think about how the U.S. school systems decide what material to teach us.  Joe and I went to the Kon-Tiki Museum today and I learned so much about something I had never heard about, something that was so important in Norway that it was repeated twice and is soon to be a movie.  Kon-Tiki which means Sun God, was the name given to the mission under which Thor Heyerdahl and his crew attempted to prove that it was possible to sail a reed raft across the Pacific, evidence that is was possible that people from South America had first populated the Philippines.  This adventure was carried out three times and only succeeded on the last trip with the first needing rescue in Barbados due to raft failure and the second being lit on fire in protest of international intervention in the war between Ethiopia and Somalia.  We were able to see an exact reconstruction of this raft and the actual raft that succeeded in the third journey.  There was live footage from the latter attempt as well as clear pictures that made it easy to see the conditions these men were put through.  The ideas behind Thor’s choices were also what made such an exciting expedition; he chose the people in his crew from many different countries as he called himself a worldly man and didn’t see the lines separating race, culture or society.  They didn’t use any modern amenities except for a balloon to signal the modern world with updates and film and video cameras.  The walk through the museum took less than an hour.

Visiting the Opera House in Norway was my first experience with great Scandinavian architecture.  Its snail-like ascending spiral that makes up the structure of the building adds an aspect for the people, allowing everyone the option to walk up the roof for an amazing view of the city and the iceberg sculpture in the sea below.  It was crowded with tourists, dancing locals and concert attenders, so we didn't stay long but I'm so glad we went to see it.  

The night ended off with our attempt at quesadillas/tacos/burritos (Mexican food isn’t as well understood here) which were successful, and then we walked over to Hannah’s house to meet some of their friends.  The language barrier on my end is definitely noticed when a group of friends get together.  At the beginning and with those sitting directly next to me, English was spoken frequently but as people got increasingly excited, Norwegian took over.  I didn’t mind at all though because it was so interesting to observe the voice inflections and hand gestures and I was surprised to find that I was able to understand some things by recognizing one word and watching.  It was fun to learn about how different everyone’s experiences were and how much more Norwegians travel!  Also a friend of Hannah’s loves music festivals and they sound exactly the same to some I have gone to.  It was a great last night and a great trip.  I really appreciate the lack of culture shock this granted me and allowed me to ease into Scandinavia; I’m now ready to go to Copenhagen!

(now im in cph but I have been so busy and will write about it soon!)