Pics since we've been home

We've been umm...enjoying? the weather. The house is a total mess because it is too hot to finish unpacking and putting everything away.

Final trip post

Here's the final journal entry I made about our trip. Last night I was looking through some of my old journal entries and discovered a bunch of mistakes-spelling, grammar, typos etc. I usually wrote them at the end of the day and was tired. I plan to make corrections before printing them out for my scrapbook I'll be making. I may or may not go back and make the corrections on the blog. I am working on one last journal entry about some of the things I learned and final observations that I may not have gotten down on paper.



Thank you to everyone who wrote nice comments. Sorry I didn't get write back much but I read everything. Ok, enough rambling.



Home again! Let’s see. We left Margrete’s house at 7:20am Monday morning, Bergen time. We arrived home in our house at about 6:45pm Monday evening, Seattle time. That’s approximately 20 hours of travel time. To be fair, we stopped at Dick’s and got hamburgers on our way home but that didn’t take much time.

Once again the kids did a great job traveling. Nathan has been quite helpful, taking an extra suitcase when he can. Alex did complain in the morning until we got inside the airport and started crying right before we got off the plane in Seattle. Both times she was tired. Nathan napped on the plane for about 2 hours. Alex didn’t actually sleep. When I thought she had fallen asleep and started to remove her headphones, she put them back on. Neither Oystein nor I slept on the plane.

We had three flights to get home. Bergen-Oslo-Copenhagen-Seattle. We had a three hour layover in Oslo. Oystein had purposely left his garment bag at the office in Oslo and had them send it to the airport today for us. He had to get the bag and check it in. We also spent time at the Duty Free buying candy and we had our last soft-is of the trip.

The flight from Copenhagen to Seattle is long-we didn’t have a watch and don’t know the exact times but it was about 10 hours. It really dragged on for me. Although I was happy to be going home, I didn’t have any anxiety about it so I’m not sure why. I think it was partly because I couldn’t sleep at all. On the long flight to Europe, I didn’t sleep much but I did doze off and on and that helped the time go by.

We were seated in front of a dad with two young kids. Unfortunately, the youngest had some trouble—she cried and yelled some. Dad did his best to help her out though his own voice was a bit loud. I felt sympathetic to his plight as I could see that would have been us if we had tried this trip a few years ago. (So glad we didn’t!)

My mom met us at the airport. Wow! It’s hot--such a change from Bergen. I’m not complaining though. I want a bit of sun this summer, even if it’s hot. Next week it can cool down to the 70’s for us. J

We disembarked the plane and then went through customs. The lines weren’t long at all. Oystein said that usually a British Airways flight comes in around the same time and the lines are longer. After customs it was to baggage claim where they had a police dog sniffing the carry-on luggage. You get your baggage, walk into another line to give someone your customs ticket and then put the baggage on another carousel for it to go downstairs so you can claim it again. All this is before you enter the regular airport where people can meet you.

I commented to Oystein that we had to go through more here in the States then anywhere else and that it was odd to claim the baggage, drop it off and then claim it again. He thought I was complaining about it all but I was simply making an observation. I know much of it is for safety so I’m not too bothered. The only thing that didn’t make sense to me was to claim the baggage, put it back and claim it again. I am curious as to why it is done this way.

We got in the van and Oystein drove us home with a short stop at Dick’s Drive-In on the way. Oystein decided that an air conditioner was needed so after dropping the kids and I at home, he headed to Costco. He has been talking about getting one for awhile and the 90 degree heat made the decision for him. LOL Of course, they were out and so was Home Depot. We kind of figured that would be the case.

The kids were so happy to see their rooms and toys and played for a little while. Then I put in a DVD knowing that they would fall asleep. Alex almost fell asleep in the car on the way home. She was asleep in a few minutes but Nathan didn’t fall asleep until after the short movie.

I went to start a load of laundry but the washer needed an obvious cleaning so I ran a cleaning cycle instead. Then I did some things around the house as needed-put away some things from the luggage, started a grocery list… I wasn’t tired and knew the minute I sat down I would be. Sure enough, I sat down to type out the day and didn’t last through the whole day. After only a couple of paragraphs, I went to bed. It was about 8:00. I fell asleep relatively quickly but was awakened by loud music at 10:30 from our neighbors. That has not happened before. I fell right back asleep.

At 2:30am, I was awakened again. This time by the kids…playing. Nathan had already gotten dressed. I asked them if they knew what time it was and they were surprised when I told them. I made them watch a DVD and let Nathan play the DS. I was hoping it would make them tired. It didn’t. They were hungry too so they had some cereal. By 4:30 I fell back asleep and slept until 7:00. The kids never did fall back to sleep. They watched some videos and played. They both stayed up during the day, falling asleep early Tuesday night. It’s going to take some time to get readjusted to Seattle time.

Margrete's bathroom I wrote about on Day 30. The shower is in the upper left corner, the toilet in the lower left corner and the sink on the right of the picture.

We're home

We got home Monday night after 20 hours of door-to-door travel. We do not have internet or phone at our house though. When we get it back I'll post my last travel update. Right now we're at my mom's enjoying her air conditioning in this heat. :-)

Days 29 and 30

(The pictures are at the end and not necessarily in order.)

Day 29

This morning we went into town to the Flybanen (pronounced flay-bon-en). It is a small train that goes up one of the mountains here to a lookout. It was overcast but we didn’t see definite sun in the forecast so we figured now was the time. At least it wasn’t raining or foggy. We took pictures and enjoyed the view before going into the gift shop to look around a bit. We went into the restaurant to consider a snack but the prices were too high. While in the gift shop, the rain started up.

We got in line first to be the first ones on the train going back down. We were able to sit in the very front for the pretty view.

We found a bakery and had our snack before walking around a bit. Margrete took us to some old houses nearby in the city to see. The kids were restless but the walking was ok. However whenever we stopped, one of them would ask “can we get soft-is now?” We had promised them some after our walking trip.

After soft-is we went back to Margrete’s to pack an overnight bag. Margrete drove us all out to her mom’s house for dinner and an overnighter. Alvhild has a big house with the bottom floor as a whole self sufficient apartment. We had the bottom floor to sleep in. Alvhild’s sister, Magnild and her daughter Nina came over for dinner with us. Alvhild made home made pizza. For dessert she had made a chocolate cake and had ice cream and strawberries.

The kids enjoyed playing outside. There was a grass area and the other side of the house had big rocks and stones for the kids to climb on. It was good for them to have free outside playtime. The sun was peeking out between the clouds and it was nice to feel it. Oystein looked up the weather for Tuesday in Seattle-in the 90’s. Yikes. Too hot. LOL

I gave the kids showers and put them to bed. Magnhild and Nina took the ferry home around 9:30 and we watched a movie and went to bed.

Day 30

Today is our last day here. The kids are excited to go home. They told me this morning that going home is like Christmas. They will be getting a house for Christmas with all the toys already in it.

We slept in (until 8:30 or 9:00) and took our time getting ready. Margrete’s bathroom is different than any I have seen before. She has a shower, toilet and sink but no shower curtain or doors. When you take a shower the drain is just in the floor and when you are done with your shower, you use your towel to dry the floor. Alvhild, on the other hand, had a fancy shower in her downstairs. Margrete also does not have a hair dryer. Hers broke a couple months ago and she hasn’t replaced it yet. Her hair is short and dries fast. I have been taking my shower at night and curling my hair in the morning. Alvhild had two hair dryers so I took my shower this morning.

Alvhild had a nice breakfast ready for us. After breakfast and clean up, we went for a nice walk. By the time we got back to the house it was time to make middag. Middag is the main hot meal of the day, whether it be at lunch time or dinner time. We had salmon with a hollandaise sauce, boiled potatoes and several kinds of vegetables. It was delicious. And of course, after dinner, she brought out several desserts.

Next it was time to head back into Bergen. We met Oystein’s other aunt, Magnhild, at their mother’s gravesight (Oystein’s grandma). She passed away in Feb. of this year.

When we got back to Margrete’s it was time to start packing so Oystein and Margrete took the kids to the park while I packed. We needed to take 3 of the suitcases to Magnild’s tonight. She is going to meet us at the airport in the morning with them. We can’t all fit in the car we are borrowing from Alvhild’s boyfriend with all the luggage.

After packing, we went to Magnild’s for an evening meal of waffles. When we got back to Margrete’s, I put the kids to bed and finished the packing for tomorrow.

Tomorrow we are heading home. We figured that the travel time from leaving Margrete’s house to getting to our house is 18-19 hours. It will take some time to get back into a routine and to get used to the time difference.

Day 29 at Alvhilds:

At Alvhild's this morning:

Our walk this morning:

The ferry. On this ferry the extra cars drive down under the main level instead of up and to the side.

Walking around Bergen yesterday:

The view from Alvhild's house:

Alvhild has this marrionette. The kids loved playing with it.

Alvhild and Margrete:

Magnhild and Nina:

The Floibanen:

Day 28

We took the bus into town again this morning and transferred to the free bus to go to VilVite. VilVite is a hands-on science museum similar to our Pacific Science Center but on a smaller scale. When we arrived, it was not busy at all-there were a few families in the museum and a couple of families in front of us in line. The cash registers were not working so the cashier kept a tally of those going in and just told us to come back to pay. I mentioned that would never happen where we are from, they would find a way to collect the money.

The people working there were so nice and friendly. They also spoke English very well. We spent about three hours in the museum and we all enjoyed it. There was a bicycle set up to drive around in a circle upside down. An employee got you strapped in and you pedaled the bike forward, fall back, pedal forward, fall back a few times until you finally go all the way around. I refuse to go on roller coasters that go upside down but I didn’t mind trying this. Oystein and I both had fun with it.

Alex’s favorite thing to do was play in the ball pit. Nathan’s favorite was driving the remote control boats. They both enjoyed the motorcycle that simulated wind in your face at different speeds.

After the museum we took the free bus back into town. It was raining but we still went for some soft-is. We ate inside the shop and watched it pour outside. Several times people would come in and wait, hoping the rain would stop, but it didn’t. We decided to go ahead and check out a couple of shops. We all had good jackets on, it wasn’t cold and we had two umbrellas. Margrete met us downtown after work. We had planned to go to the flybanen, which is a small train up a big hill to a look out over the city. Between the weather and the kids started to act up a bit, we decided to just head home.

We stopped at the grocery and got some things for dinner. We had open face shrimp sandwhiches. The shrimp that is most common here is already cooked whole shrimp-with the head, eyes and even some eggs still inside the shell. It was an experience just peeling them.

By the time dinner was over it was bedtime for the kids. Margrete, Oystein and I chatted a bit until bed.

Days 26 and 27

(I have some internet access but may still not update every day.)

Day 26:

This morning was packing up and getting ready to go to Bergen. I asked Oystein if he would take the kids to town and have a snack or walk around so that I could finish. It’s easier for me if everyone is gone. Stig went with them. I was able to finish packing and cleaning up a bit after us.

Stig and Bernt took us to the bus in Mor and we spent some time walking around the mall next to the bus station while we waited for the bus. The bus and plane ride were uneventful. It was a short plane ride—about 30 minutes.

Alvhild and Magnild, Else’s sisters, met us at the airport. It took two cars to get us and all our luggage to Margrete’s house. Magnild had made rolls so we had a snack then we went for a walk. There is a lake across the street that is about a mile around. We walked around a small portion of it, fed the ducks and then went to the grocery store. Unfortunately, Alex threw a temper tantrum so I took her out and back to Margrete’s. She fell asleep quickly.

Day 27:
We got up at a decent time and then took a bus into downtown. Both the kids said they just wanted to stay in the apartment or go feed the ducks and play at the playground. It was raining so the playground was out and the adults wanted to do something.

We walked around just a bit. There is an area that has houses that are very old. They are leaning. The houses are now shops. Margrete was telling us that in the 70’s they were going to tear them down and build a big shopping mall. It’s a good thing they didn’t. It is a great tourist attraction and the shops were busy.

The kids were complaining today. Nathan was tired and Alex just wanted to go to the apartment. We had lunch by the water in a open air market area. Oystein and Nathan had fish cakes, of course. After lunch Oystein, the kids and I ended up going to the movie theater to watch Ice Age 3. Margrete went home for a short time before she went to work. The movie theater is small. We bought the tickets for the English version. The movie screen was small and there were probably only 60 seats in the movie room we were in. There were a few adults in the same movie as us. The movie was subtitled in Norwegian. I found myself reading some of the Norwegian and trying to figure out some of the words while the English was spoken. It was fun to do. They had another movie room with the movie in Norwegian that had a line with more kids.

Both kids wanted to go back to the apt. right after the movie but I wanted to finish walking around the open air market. It wasn’t very big so we went back and looked around before catching the bus back.

The kids played and I organized clothes while Oystein made us dinner. He made fish balls for him and Nate and bought a rotisserie chicken for Alex and me. After dinner we went to the lake to feed the ducks. Then it was showers for the kids and bed.

Observations: The kids are ready for home. They are restless and not as patient anymore. This is the time I think it would be nice to have a babysitter with us so the kids could just hang out here and play while Oystein and I went out sightseeing and doing things. Alas, we will just have to work together.

Our first purchases when we get home: Oystein, a Starbucks coffee, Me, a Reese’s peanut butter cup.











The "shop" inside the movie theater. I thought it was interesting the way that popcorn is sold.

Day 25

We met Oystein’s dad (Bernt) and his wife, Ann-Marie downtown this morning. We walked the shops and Ann-Marie bought the kids each a new jacket and Alex a stuffed dog and Nathan some knights. The kids loved their new things.

Then we walked to the docks to see Bernt’s boat. The weather hasn’t been cooperating so a ride in the boat was out, but the kids got to go on the boat and check it out. They really enjoyed that.

Next we drove to Oystein’s cousin Dina’s cabin for lunch. They have a cabin about 15 miles from here that they vacation in. Dina and her boyfriend have two sons-a 19 year old and a 4 year old (Sundre). The kids played with Sundre pretty well outside even though they don’t speak more than a few Norwegian words and Sundre speaks only Norwegian.

On the way back to Stig’s we stopped at Oystein’s dad’s house to get an extra suitcase. Sven, Oystein’s uncle and his wife, Rose were also home so we visited with them for a bit. Rose is from the Phillipines and she had made lumpia (I love lumpia and haven’t had it in a long time). She also served lefse and some desserts so we had a variety to choose from.

After a rest time at Stig’s we went to his mom’s house for dinner. She had invited us over yesterday. She served a meat stew that tasted really good. She also had an ice cream cake dessert. The kids played with the dog and we had a little incident with Alex’s behavior but we still enjoyed our visit. We waited until Sigurd got home from work so we could say good-bye to him. Anna had a gift for each of the kids-a dog for Alex and a flashlight for Nathan. Both the kids enjoyed that.

It was a full day of eating with seeing several people here on our last full day. I am almost done with the packing as we are headed to Bergen tomorrow. The packing is getting harder with each new plane trip. I’m not sure if we will have any internet access in Bergen so there may be no more updates until I am home. Since I am typing everything in Word on my computer, I’ll just upload it to the blog sometime after we get home if that happens. We go home next Monday.

Observations: Nathan may actually finally hit 60 pounds with the way he is eating here. He loves all the Norwegian food. He has also been doing such a great job with his manners. He says “Takk for matten” which means “thanks for the food” without any prompting. He has learned several Norwegian words and is enjoying everything.

Quiz Answer

And the correct answer is 11:20pm so Heather is the big winner. :-) I will bring you something yummy. (I'll bring Carrie and Abbey something too, just for playing along.) LOL

Check the quiz

Ok, I only have two answers for the July 15th quiz. I'll post the answer tomorrow night (Tuesday morning Seattle time). You still have a chance to answer. Heather and Carrie both get candy just for participating. But the winner gets more. LOL

Day 24

When we woke up this morning it was obvious that Alex had indeed caught Oystein’s cold. She was stuffy and coughing and said she didn’t feel well. We took our time eating breakfast, getting dressed and packing everything up. Since Alex wasn’t feeling well we decided to just head back to Stig’s.

We took the less expensive, two ferry route home. It was raining and foggy so we couldn’t take any pictures on our way out. Well, we could have but they would have just been pictures of fog. LOL

We spent the afternoon just hanging around the house. I let Alex watch TV and Nathan played DS a bit. Oystein and Nate went to Oystein’s dad’s house for dinner. He made them fishcakes-perfect because they love them and Alex and I do not. Alex and I just stayed at Stig’s. We watched TV, colored and chatted. It was a nice bonding time. Alex is feeling better this evening.

Day 23

Oystein felt better this morning but Alex woke up with a cough. Nathan was the only one of us who slept well last night. After assessing the situation, we all decided to forge ahead to Geiranger. There are two ways to get there. One takes two short ferries and the other is the scenic route, taking the tour ferry into Geiranger. We decided to take the scenic route first and the less expensive way on the way back. The ferry ride there is one hour and it’s so beautiful. We all enjoyed the ride. A German couple was next to us part of the way and the husband pointed out some things for Nathan to take pictures of.

When we arrived we drove to one of the lookout points for pictures and then checked into the cabin Oystein had reserved for us. When Oystein looked into the hotels for a one night stay, the price was too high. The cabin we booked had a bathroom (a must for me) and beds for everyone. He thought about us camping but I asked him “please, no.” We were both so glad he decided on the cabin since he wasn’t feeling 100% and it looked like Alex was catching the cold.

We drove to the downtown and walked around the shops a bit. The road to our cabin is about a ¾ mile dirt one lane road, for two-way traffic. If everyone was feeling perfectly well we would have walked but Oystein and Alex didn’t have all of their energy.

We ate dinner at a café and stopped at the grocery store on the way back to the cabin. The evening was relaxing and quiet with no computer, video games or TV. There was a TV in the cabin but we had already made the decision to stay unplugged, except for the phone. The kids played on the swing set for a bit. It has started to drizzle when we were eating dinner but it was a light enough rain we let the kids play out in it. We played some card games, ate dessert and then told stories before bed. We were all in bed by 8:30.

Alex had a tough time right before bed getting upset about something. She was super tired and fell asleep first. It took me awhile to fall asleep though I was really tired. Oystein barely slept at all. Nathan slept just fine.

Observations: Norwegians camp like Seattiles—rain or shine.

The view waiting for the ferry to Geiranger: On the ferry:

Views from the ferry ride:

An abandoned farm on a cliff:

These waterfalls are called the seven sisters. There is a big waterfall across from it that makes the shape of a bottle. The legend is that the big waterfall turned to the bottle when all seven sisters continued to refuse his marriage proposal:

The bottle:

The view of Geiranger from the look out point:

This was taken from the ferry. It's the only road leaving Geiranger that is open all year round. There is one other road that goes in and out of Geiranger but it is closed during the winter and bad weather months. This road has 11 turns in it-the turns are like 180 degrees.



Our cabin:

The view from the back of the cabin:

Horses or mules on the one lane road to our cabin:

They came right up to our car, not afraid at all. Oystein had to be careful not to run them over.

The Viking shield Nathan bought:

The moose call horn Alex bought:

Playing cards:

Going back to Sykkylven. Alex wasn't feeling well.

There are tunnels and ferrys everywhere.

Day 22

Oystein is still sick. Actually it’s moved into his chest. Please pray that he feels better tomorrow. His history when this happens is a doctor trip, antibiotics and prednisone. We would like to avoid that this time.

Since he is feeling so bad, he has just stayed around the house. He did make a trip into town with Stig to buy some decongestant and whiskey for a hot tottie. Hot tottie’s do seem to help break up the congestion. The kids and I have just hung out around the house as well. We did make a trip to the park the afternoon and after dinner. While the kids played I worked on the syllabus for next year’s science class.

Oystein’s dad gave us some Cod and I made baked cod, potatoes, carrots, and rolls for dinner. It was nice to have a healthy well-rounded meal. J

If Oystein is better tomorrow we will be going to Geiranger. We will be unplugged so it will be Monday night at the earliest that I post again-maybe later.

Day 21

My poor, sweet husband has come down with a cold. He woke up yesterday feeling a little bad and by the time he went to bed last night, he could tell he was sick. He spent today laying around watching TV, playing computer or trying to nap. He never was able to sleep.

After the kids and I had breakfast and got ready for the day, Stig drove us to the town and we walked around a bit. Alex bought a dog collar and outfit for one of her animals. She is so into playing with her animals right now. The kids asked if they could have Softis so we stopped and got some. Then it was off to the grocery store to buy stuff to make dinner. I planned Dill Shrimp for tonight.

I took the kids to a school this afternoon to play at the playground. It’s only a 5 minute walk there but about a 10 minute walk back because it’s uphill. LOL The kids loved the park.

I laid down for a short rest this afternoon and started thinking about making dinner. I realized that I forgot the shrimp. It’s a little hard to make Dill Shrimp without the shrimp. How could I not laugh about that? Stig kindly drove me back to the store. I’m just not comfortable driving here. It isn’t crowded or even far away but with my sense of direction I would still get lost. Ha ha.

After dinner I took the kids back to the park then home for a dessert and bed.
Observations: Everytime we go somewhere the kids use the place in their play when we get back to the place we are staying. For example, the other day when we went to the toy store, Alex wanted this dog that comes with an outfit. She didn’t have enough Kroner so when we came back, she made her own outfits with what she could find to use. When we went to the Children’s Art Museum when we were in Oslo, she drew pictures for her own art museum back at the hotel. At the aquarium yesterday, she said she was going to be a turtle when we got home after we saw the turtles.

Day 20

Oystein and I were up early this morning. Yesterday he made an appointment for me to get a pedicure here in town and the only appointment available was at 8:15 this morning. It was worth it. The pedicure was very relaxing. Oystein dropped me off while the kids stayed home with Stig and then he and the kids picked me up afterwards.

We ran errands and then went back to Stig’s. After lunch we drove to Alesund, a nearby city to the aquarium. We got to watch a diver feed the fish and some of us saw the penguins being fed. Alex was too busy digging up a “whale bone” in the sandbox. We met Stig’s sister, Maria and her husband and kids there.









After the aquarium, we went to Fjellstua which is a lookout area over Alesund. The view is pretty. It was overcast and a bit foggy though so not as pretty as it is in the sun. We then drove to a nearby town to do some shopping but the mall was closed. We can shop another day.



Then it was home, showers for the kids and bed. Nathan was asleep within 10 minutes. Alex just came down with tears in her eyes telling us she misses her animals and bed and home. Oystein and I both hugged her, kissed her and comforted her. I have her tucked back in bed with the animals she does have. Oystein and I are impressed that it took over two weeks for one of the kids to express homesickness.

Observations: My hair is so dry here. I try to curl it every day because when I just pull it up in a clip it flies everywhere.
The first hotel we were in had a regular king size bed. However, every other place has had twin beds. Some places have them pushed together but not all. Even here at Stig’s our bed is two twin beds but there is a Styrofoam piece in the middle so at least we can lay next to each other.

Day 19

Once again we all slept in after falling asleep late last night. Oystein made a big breakfast for everyone-bacon, eggs and bread with jam or butter. He said the bacon was different here and harder to cook. At home he makes it in the microwave. Here, he undercooked it and then burnt it so he decided to cook it on the stove. He ended up adding a bit of cooking oil while cooking it because it was so hard to cook.

After breakfast we went to Stig’s mom’s house (Anna). Stig and Oystein are cousins because their fathers are brothers. Here is the view from the front of her house. Many of the houses here have beautiful views it seems.

Anna served us strawberries with ice cream and vanilla sauce. I’ve not seen vanilla sauce in the USA. It was similar in consistency and color to cream and made me think of Hershey’s chocolate sauce in a vanilla version. It tasted good. They have a dog and the kids loved petting her.

Stig and Nathan:

Sigurd (Stig's younger brother):


Anna and her boyfriend:

We walked to a play area nearby at a kindergarten and let the kids play a bit. Stig got on the teeter totter with them.

Oystein's optical illusion. This is the same slide on the last picture. He had Nathan stand to make it look straight.

Two handsome cousins:
This is the kindergarten building. There are many buildings here with grass on the roof.
Next was a tour of Stig’s work. He works in a factory that makes specialized piping products for various industries. Then it was back home for a bit. I spent the time ironing clothes.

Yesterday Ann-Marie told us about a place we could pick wild blueberries so we drove down there with containers and picked about 2 cups worth. The kids always like picking fresh berries. Then it was off to Oystein’s dad’s house for dinner. He made a delicious stew with several kinds of meat (including hot dogs so Alex would eat some) and vegetables. For dessert we had strawberries, cream and vanilla sauce. The kids played outside and chased flies in the house. The windows of the houses here open in such a way that you can’t put screens on the windows.
Once home again Oystein, Nathan and I played a game of Norwegian Yatzee. Nathan won. Norwegian Yatzee has a few different rules than ours. There is one pair and a small straight is getting 1-5 while a large straight is 2-6. There are a few other different rules also.

After a shower for Alex who got food in her hair and berries on her legs, the kids went to bed.

Observations: Denise, I can’t find any peanut butter and chocolate candy here. If you come to Europe, bring Reese’s with you. LOL
Hazelnut is very popular here. I think that is my new addiction. Nutella is everywhere.

A quiz

Here's a quiz for my readers. What time were these pictures taken? I took these from the back porch of Stig's house. I'll give the answer in a few days. The closest to the correct time wins. What do you win you ask? You win your name being announced as the winner here on my blog. LOL Ok, I'll bring you some Norwegian candy and I promise it won't be salty licorice unless you ask for it. It'll be something I like.

Day 18

(I added pictures to yesterday's post.)

We all slept in a little bit. The kids didn’t fall asleep until about midnight last night and were up around 7:30-8:00. They played DS until Oystein got up about 9:00 and then he woke me up at 9:30. We went to bed late also and I had trouble falling asleep so even though I was up late, I didn’t get a lot of sleep.

Oystein and I had showers and we all ate breakfast. Oystein’s dad came by to give us his car to use. Oystein drove him home. Then the four us drove into downtown. We went to the bank first. Oystein has had an account here since he was very young and before we left we wired money to it. It was the best way to save on all the fees that occur when traveling internationally. He asked about adding me to the account and the banker worked on it. Since I’m not a citizen here he fills out some paperwork and it goes somewhere and has to be approved and he gets a number for it. I won’t be on the account for this trip but the next time we travel here I will be.

We walked around the town. The kids looked in the toy stores and we had soft-is. We made another trip into the grocery store to pick up a few items we needed and it was back to the house for some down time. We ate lunch, the kids played, I worked on laundry, Oystein cleaned the kitchen, I dozed a little and Oystein played DS.

Next we drove over to Oystein’s dad’s house to visit with him and Ann-Marie, his wife. The kids picked currants and sweet peas and made their own salad.

Actually, we filled up the car with gas first. The car is a mid-sized sedan and had a quarter of a tank in it. The cost to fill 500 Kroner, about $80. That translates to approximately $8 per gallon. And we complain when it gets to $4. LOL The taxed here are very high-most things are taxed at 25% but the prices include the tax so you don’t have to take it into consideration when purchasing things like we do in the States.

I made tacos for us all at Stig’s house for dinner, and then it was a shower for the kids and bed.

Observations: The washing machines and dryers here take a lot longer to work. It takes 1½ - 2 hours to wash one load of clothes and the same amount of time to dry them. The dryer has a bin that you empty after using it. It is the water from the clothes as far as I can tell. There is no vent going to the outside. Stig’s washer and dryer is about a third of the size of ours at home so one load of laundry actually is three loads here. I am thankful to be able to use it.

When I came to Norway with Oystein 15 years ago, I started feeling homesick about a week into the two week visit. This I’m doing fine. I do miss the comforts of home and friends but we have been busy enough that I’m not feeling bad. I have been praying every day and I know God is with us. I miss my church family. We have not attended any church on our trip and I miss the fellowship of other believers. But the trip is good for our family. Yes, we’ve had our moments but I’m thankful that God has given me extra patience.

Pictures of the town of Sykkylven:




In the summer they close this road (it's one block) and put out tables and benches for people to sit on. I also noticed this sand box for kids. I haven't seen a street light here yet but Oystein thinks there is one somewhere in the town. We went through downtown and it wasn't there. Downtown is basically one street.

Day 17

We were up with plenty of time to finish packing and get ready to go. Oystein ran out to get the cash needed to pay for the shuttle and breakfast while I finished packing. We took a shuttle to the airport.

We arrived with plenty of extra time. Normally we check in our baggage and go all the way through to the gate and then find a place to eat and use the bathrooms. So of course, we checked in our baggage, went through towards the gate and saw a sign: no toilets after this area. This was right before the security check. Oystein asked a lady where we could get something to eat. She was quite rude to him so he asked another lady who was much more helpful. We had to go upstairs to catch an elevator to go downstairs to the cafés. The airport was not well marked either so we had to ask a couple of people where to go.

When we got to the elevators, we went into one with some other people, the button was pushed, the doors closed and a loud beeping sound started—and went on for about a minute. The elevator went nowhere. We were pushing buttons, including the alarm button. Nothing. Finally after a minute or so, the doors opened onto the same floor, because remember, the elevator went nowhere. Of course, the two men in the elevator decided to try it again. The same thing happened. Finally they realized that it wasn’t moving. We got out to wait for another elevator. Out of four elevators only one was working. We waited our turn and finally made it down.

After eating we headed up to security to catch our plane. We had purposely waited a bit to head back to the gate since we knew no restrooms would be available until we were in the air on the plane however we still had some extra time. It was a good thing because security was slow.

All in all we weren’t too impressed with the French Charles De Gaulle airport.

The plane ride was uneventful. We only had one hour to catch our transfer plane in Oslo. That was a bit stressful to us, but we realized that the worst thing that could happen is we miss our connection and have to stay a night in Oslo. That wouldn’t be the end of the world so we let the stress go. Because we were on an international flight going to a domestic flight in Norway we had to get our baggage and go through customs. It went well and we made our connection with time to spare.

This plane ride was short-45 minutes. We took a bus to a place where we met Oystein’s dad, his wife and cousin. The bus station had a grocery store next to it so we bought some groceries and then headed to Stig’s house where we unpacked and ate a light dinner. (Stig is Oystein’s cousin.) Stig’s house is beautiful. It is a five-floor townhouse. The top floor has two small bedrooms that he set up for the kids so each kid has their own room with a bed. The next floor has a bedroom where Oystein and I are and a bathroom. The main floor is the kitchen, living room and dining area. The next floor down is the laundry and I don’t know what else because I didn’t go further but the kids did. Stig’s room and bathroom is there too. The kids love having their own little room although right now Alex is sleeping on her blanket on Nathan’s floor because she was scared to be alone in her room according to Nathan.

It’s almost midnight here now and we’re getting ready to head to bed.

The view from Stig’s house is beautiful! I would love a view like it. It’s been rainy and we’re tired but tomorrow I will take some pictures to share. I didn’t take any pictures today.

Observations: The bathrooms here are called toilet. It’s pronounced more like to-alet. Even people who don’t speak English well usually understand that word. I’ve gotten used to it but it took some time. Asking for the toilet in the US isn’t common and even sounds a bit crude to me. I did ask someone for the bathroom once and she looked at me a little funny like she was trying to figure out what I wanted until I said toilet.


At the airport. When Alex discovered my new purse she asked if she could have my old one because I was just going to get rid of it. I told her she had to carry it at the airport and be responsible for it. So far she has done well.

Day 16

Last night was not fun. We hit the point where we are feeling the smalleness of the rooms and space and my patience is being tested. The kids argued over the bed and the music and going to sleep. I'll leave out the unpleasant details and just say that it was midnight before they fell asleep. The grumpiness carried over a bit this morning. I am thankful that we had already decided to make today more of a kids day.

Today is Oystein and my 12th anniversary. We hope that by allowing the kids to do something more their speed that they would tire out and actually sleep tonight without all the unpleasanteess of last night.

We took the subway down to a park-the Jardin des Tuileries. Oystein had looked up parks on the computer and this is where we decided to try. We discovered it has a small amusement park there. The kids each got to choose three rides or games. It was too expensive to do more. We took our time looking around and picking what to do. Oystein decided to play a shooting game and won these:
In case you can't tell, they are fur handcuffs. Such an ummm...interesting anniversary gift? We had to laugh about it.

Here is the view from the top of the ferris wheel:




Rides:




We ate more junk food-Churros, crepes and the kids had slushies. Oystein and I shared a steak kebob sandwich that was yummy. Nathan had some too and liked it.

Next we walked to a play area and Oystein and I sat on the bench while the kids wore themselves out. After that it was back to the hotel for showers for the kids and for me to start the packing process. We catch a plane tomorrow afternoon for Norway.


We decided to have a sit down restaurant meal since it is our anniversary. We took the subway back to the same area we were in earlier. It is next to the Louvre. It is a tourist area, many people speak English and there were some retaurants open before 7:00pm. We had asked a couple restaurants in our area what their Sunday hours were and the ones that were open opened at 7:00pm--later then we wanted to eat. I had a seafood salad for dinner and it was a welcome change from the carbs we have been eating. Oystein had a steak that was ok, not great. Nathan had french fries and french onion soup. Alex, well she had a hot dog. Here's what you get when you order a hot dog here:


Alex takes the hot dog out of the bun and cheese and then dips it in ketchup. At least she got some protein in her. After dinner we went back to our hotel with a stop at the bakery for dessert.





When we go back to Norway we will be eating better. Being here for only 3 full days we are taking advantage of the pastries everywhere.


Observations:

Here are some pictures I took at the street near us. I don't know if you can see the cigarette butts in the last picture but they are everywhere. The street we ate dinner at was much cleaner than here. Again, it was a street obviously geared towards tourists.


In our hotel in London and here the bath/shower had a half door. It doesn't go any further so if you aren't careful water gets everywhere.

Day 15

This morning we ate breakfast in a new bakery in the area of our hotel. We are so far away from any South Beach diet here. LOL The bakeries here are like coffee shops in Seattle-everywhere.

One of the main streets by our hotel has a sidewalk area in between the street. I’ll try to describe what I mean. First you have cars driving one way (north), then there is a large sidewalk with a bike lane and pedestrian lanes, then you have the cars that drive the other way (south). Anyway, this morning there was a farmers market on this pedestrian/bike walkway. There were fresh fruits, vegetables and meats. There were a couple of tables selling soaps and clothing. In the middle was a place serving crepes. They made them to order on a portable stove. We shared two crepes even though we had just eaten at the bakery. Actually Nathan, Alex and I each had two mini items at the bakery so it wasn’t too much food.

We took the subway system to the Louvre. I had packed Alex’s MP3 and headphones in our backpack in case she got restless. My first impression of the Louvre was “wow, it’s big.” It really is. The main entrance is in the middle of the courtyard that the Louvre makes. http://www.bargaintraveleurope.com/07/images/louvre_halls.jpg You enter through a glass pyramid.

After purchasing our tickets we headed to the Egyptian area. Somehow we ended up going the wrong way. We decided we had to see the Mona Lisa since we were here. Honestly, I have never been a big fan of the Mona Lisa. It was fairly crowded in that area and roped off about 10 feet from where it was hanging. There wasn’t a line, just a big area to see it. We got as close as we could and just waited patiently behind some people thinking that when they were done we would move up and the people behind us would move up and it would be orderly and we would all just wait our turn. We had waited patiently awhile when a lady soon came up to me, said “Pardon” and got in front of me. She didn’t really push me and I tried to explain that I was waiting to see. Finally, after trying to be patient waiting my turn, I confess that I just slipped in front of that same lady and someone else and looked. I didn’t stay long; I just wanted a peek. I realized that if I wanted to see it, patience wasn’t going to work. Oystein was tall enough to see where he was standing and he picked up both the kids so they could see.

Many of the ceilings were painted and sculpted. The architecture of the building itself was beautiful. The walls were stone and it looked like most of the floors were marble tiles.

Alex was bored until she saw a picture with a dog in it. Then she decided to look for hidden animals in the pictures. That got us through that section.

We then stopped for lunch at one of the cafés in the Louvre. Afterwards it was back to the Egyptian section where we went the right way. Nathan, Oystein and I really liked this section. It was so neat to see history come alive. Nathan took about 200 pictures. You can use cameras in the Lourve, but not flash. A lot of the items were behind glass. In spite of all this, we got some good pictures.

This was the point where I took out Alex’s MP3 for her. Oystein joked “I’m glad I thought of this.” The MP3 allowed us to enjoy the museum-all of us. Alex went from bench to bench listening to her stories (we loaded it with music and a bunch of our Adventures in Odyssey CD’s).

The explanations on the exhibits were in French. We could have rented listening devices in English that would explain everything, but Oystein and I decided against it. If it was just the two of us, we would have. Most of the rooms did have a laminated sheet with an explanation of the room in English as well as sheets for other languages.

After the Egyptian room, we went through part of the Oriental areas. Then we headed to Starbucks for the donut we had promised Alex earlier. The Starbucks was in the Louvre. I looked for a cup for you, Amber B. but the only one they had was too big. I’ll keep looking. J

After all that the kids were ready to go so we headed back to the hotel for a rest. The Louvre is huge and you could spend days in it. If we ever come back, without kids, Oystein and I would like to spend time with the listening devices and take a full day to explore it.

Soon it was time for dinner so we walked a different way then normal. We ended up in a very busy part of town. We are guessing it wasn’t a tourist place by what we observed. We checked out a couple of cafés and restaurants and ended up eating at McDonald’s. We decided it would be a neat experience to try McDonalds in a foreign country. It is one of Alex’s favorite restaurants. The kids had Happy Meals, I had a regular hamburger and Oystein had something called a 280. The happy meals were the same as the US except that there was a yogurt drink added to it. The 280 was a hamburger on a different bread. It was square shaped, had lettuce, tomato, onion, and condiments including a sauce we couldn’t quite place the flavor. It tasted good.

After dinner it was back towards the hotel in a different direction to see new streets. We stopped by the same bakery we had breakfast at to buy dessert to take back to the hotel. Oystein and Nathan had a almond pastry, Alex had a peach tart and I had a chocolate dessert. Everything was yummy. This is a good bakery and we have already decided to have breakfast there again.

I forgot to put the camera back in bag before heading out to dinner so we didn’t get pictures. The McDonald’s was in a tall, skinny building. You walked in and ordered from one of four stations then walked towards the back to pick up your food. Then you had to walk upstairs or downstairs for tables to sit at. The upstairs was closed so we walked downstairs. Oystein said it was like a dungeon. The walls were stone and there were a couple of small rooms to sit in. It was crowded and we found a place all the way to the back. There was seating outside of the restaurant on the first floor but when we had walked into the restaurant it was full. Plus outside seating usually means someone nearby is smoking.

Observations: The first day we were here and walked out to get dinner, Oystein noticed a Norwegian flag in the music shop next door. He went in and spoke Norwegian to the man at the desk. It turns out he is French but his family is from Norway and he spoke Norwegian.

The prices here in France are higher than London though not as high as Oslo. However, the entry fees to the Louvre and Eiffel Tower were reasonable. It seemed the entry fees in London weren’t too bad either.

In London we found that the tourist places had things in English, French, Spanish and often several other languages. Here in France, everything is French and occasionally you will see English or another language. Most of the people we have talked to have spoken very little English but have been nice about it. I know that at one point the French had a reputation of being rude to those who didn’t speak French but we have not had that problem. The shopkeepers have spoken more English than we have spoken French so we can’t complain! We have a French book to help but haven’t really used it. I do know the simple things—thank you, please, excuse me…
Oystein made the comment that in the area of our hotel about every third person or so was carry a baguette. We likened it to coffee in Seattle where everyone carries a coffee cup.

This is the Louvre when we first walked out of the subway station:




This is inside what I call the courtyard:


Inside the Louvre:
This was on a ceiling:

This painting was opposite the Mona Lisa. We took a picture of me in front of it for perspective. The painting is huge. It is called the Les Nocesde Cana which means the Wedding Feast of Cana. It is a depiction of Jesus turning water into wine and is the largest work in the museum according to the book we bought.

Pictures from the Egyptian section:






Ok, readers, I need an honest opinion. I bought this purse. Is it ok? Too touristy looking? The words on the purse do say Paris France.

Day 14

We slept in today, though it wasn’t planned. Nathan was up earlier than the rest of us. Oystein and I woke up about 9:00 and Alex about a half hour later. I had a lot of trouble falling asleep last night and so did Alex. I also woke several times. Our room is right next to the elevator and we can hear it.

We didn’t stress over the time, just took showers and got ready to go. I’ve been taking my shower at night so that I can curl my hair in the morning but since I didn’t last night, I ended up just pulling my hair back.

We had pastries at a bakery and then walked to the subway station. We wanted to buy the 3-day ticket that allows three days of unlimited transportation on the subway and buses. The station we went to only took cash or credit cards that had some sort of chip in them so we walked a few blocks to a main station where we could purchase our tickets. Finally we were on our way.

It took two trains to get to the Eiffel tower. It wasn’t too crowded on the trains-nothing like it was in London. There were three lines to get tickets to the tower and they were all long. There were a lot of panhandlers in the area-not something we saw in London often. There was a group of women who said they were from Bosnia asking everyone if they spoke English. Then they showed a paper saying they had been here for two months and needed money. It was quite interesting.

We stood in line less than an hour for the tickets. We didn’t really get a choice of the kind of ticket we bought. We had to walk up to the second floor and then take the lift (elevator) to the third floor. That is 704 steps people!! Yes, I did it. Yes, we went slow, though not super slow and we stopped several times for a breather. The first floor (about half the steps) had a couple of cafés and a shop or two plus the look out areas. We stayed for a bit and then made our way to the second floor. After getting some pictures we stood in line for the lifts to the top. Nathan wanted to walk to the top. We said no and besides that wasn’t a choice anyway.

We took pictures and enjoyed the view from the top before walking all the way down with a short stop on level 2. I was surprised to find that my ankles and calves got sore about half way down. I’ve never walked down so many steps at one time.

The kids did a great job with all the walking today. Alex had two times-once going up and once going down-where she complained and slowed down. However, both times were short and had more to do with boredom or not getting her way then it had to do with actually being tired. J

We stopped at a store or two on the way back to the subway and caught a train to Champs-Elysees street, a famous Paris street with high end shops and cafes. We walked down it a couple of blocks and back and got a snack before heading back to the hotel for a rest. The kids played at the hotel for a bit before Oystein and the kids went to dinner. I stayed at the hotel as I wasn’t hungry and had a bit of a stomachache. I used the quiet time to go through some of our pictures. We have taken close to 1000 pictures so far. I usually try to put them on the computer daily and at least delete the really bad ones but there have been a couple of days I didn’t go through the pics.

When Oystein and the kids got back, the kids had showers, I read to them and they went to bed.

Observations: The Champs-Elysees Street was clean and nice but I still found much of what we were seeing as dirty. There is graffiti everywhere and garbage on the streets. I’ll try to remember to get some pictures of this.

It’s been interesting being somewhere where most people do not speak our languages (English or Norwegian). I think it’s a good experience for me to have so I can more easily empathize with those in the US who do not speak English well. The majority of people we have spoken to have been nice.

There are lots of motorcycles and mopeds around here. Also, bicycling seems popular. Based only on my short observations, it is more popular then in London and less then in Oslo. We noticed that some areas have actual bicycle lanes on the sidewalk. Again, I want to remember to get a picture of that.

London was more instructional than Paris. We noticed that in London the subways had many warning signs about being careful and minding the gap between the train car and the sidewalk.

Day 13

Our train to Paris was at 2:00 in the afternoon and check out at our hotel was 12:00. We decided to just spend the morning in the hotel packing and relaxing. It took me about 2 hours to pack and all of our suitcases were full. Yikes. We do have a little space, but not much. We let the kids watch a little bit of kids TV.

We checked out at noon and caught a taxi to the train station. It was quite uneventful. The train ride was about 2 ½ hours and we were served lunch on the train. Paris is one hour ahead of London and on the same time as Norway.

We caught a taxi to the hotel. Our taxi driver spoke a little bit of English. Oystein had to have him stop at an ATM to get some Euros so we could pay him. We unloaded the taxi and the kids and I got the baggage in the hotel while Oystein paid the driver. Oystein came in and I said “Do you have my backpack?” “No,” was the reply. My heart started pounding faster. It was left in the cab. I kept thinking to myself “It’s just things, it’s not eternal,” though I confess I wanted to cry.

The receptionist at the hotel called the cab company but they said we would have to call again in the morning as they didn’t have a way to get hold of the taxi driver that night. My backpack is my carry on for the airport and we use it for our day trips. It had my Bible in it, some souvenir books we bought and all three of our cameras in it as well as a few other items. I took a deep breath and remained calm. A few minutes later the driver came back with my backpack. I said “Merci” several times and Oystein gave him another nice tip.

We got checked into our hotel. The elevator (it’s called a lift in Europe) is tiny and it took three trips up it to get all our suitcases. The room we have actually has two rooms in it so the kids are in one room and we are in the other. It’s not as spacious as the room in London but it’s bigger than we expected it to be.

After getting a few things put away we walked to find a place to eat. We ate lightly since we had a late lunch on the train and picked up pastries to have back at the hotel. Nathan and I had chocolate éclairs, Alex had an éclair that looked like it was maple and Oystein had an apple tart. Alex didn’t like the éclair but the rest of us liked everything.

Alex didn’t get hives today. We allowed milk products but limited it a bit.

Observations: My first impression of Paris was it is dirtier than London. The first areas we drove past had quite a bit of graffiti. Paris is even older then London which accounts some for its dirtiness. As we kept driving the areas looked neater. Our hotel seems to be in a pretty central location and so far it’s been quiet. Our room overlooks a courtyard.

The roads in Paris seem even narrower than London. In general, everything feels closer together so far. However, we have only been from the train to the hotel so it will be interesting to see what impressions we get tomorrow.

I am finding myself feeling a bit stressed. I think we are go, go, go too much and are expecting too much. Oystein and I talked about it and decided that we would take Paris more easily than London choosing one thing to do every day and not worrying about what we don’t do. Tomorrow our plan is the Eiffel Tower. Oystein is researching the internet for ideas for Sat. and Sun.



Scenery:

Day 12

It was nice to sleep in a bit; we got up about 8:00 this morning. We caught a bus about 10:00 and walked the rest of the way to Buckingham Palace. A tea store on the way was giving out samples of their teas and all of us enjoyed the tea so much we decided we needed to buy some after the palace. The changing of the guards is at 11:30 and we were there before 11:00. It was already crowded. We ended up across the street and only got to see the horses, guards and a couple of marching bands pass by into the gates of the palace. We didn’t get to see the actual changing because of the crowds. We left before it was completely done.

We walked around the area just a bit, bought our tea and found a place to eat. We had been noticing a place called Pret A Manger all around. It was obviously a chain deli and we decided we should check it out. We discovered that the name means “ready to eat” in French and that there are a few of them in New York and Washington DC. It was basically a deli that served ready made sandwiches and a few other items. It was good food.

After lunch we took the tube to the free museums. We went to the Natural History Museum first. They had a butterfly house that cost to enter but the museum itself was free. We enjoyed the butterflies but did not stay too long in the History Museum. It was full of Darwin and evolution and millions of years and didn’t have many hands-on things for the kids to do. Alex was bored and complaining. We left and went to the science museum.

We started off having a snack in a deli at the science museum and that did help Alex feel better. The science museum had some hands-on things to do and the kids liked it more. There were a lot of antiques to look at, like old radios, computers, telephones and many other things. The energy room was where we stayed the longest as it had several things for the kids to do. Honestly, by this point, my feet were really sore and I was happy just sitting on the bench while Oystein and the kids tried out the things in the energy room. Alex didn’t like the areas that were not hands-on and made it quite clear. We were all getting tired so we left and headed back on the tubes to Victoria, an area that has a lot of places to eat. We ate at the Spaghetti House and then went back to the apartment. By that time it was after 7:00.

We told the kids to get their pajamas on. Alex said “Mom, I have a bump on me.” Well, it wasn’t just a bump, it was a hive. Actually, it was several hives on her torso. I gave her some Benedryl and we are just watching her for now. After the Benedryl, she got a couple more hives but then they all started to look better, less red and smaller. She also complained the inside of her tummy was hurting a little. She isn’t whining and the way she told me I can tell it isn’t too bad at least. We will be laying off the milk for a bit. We will probably allow baked in items, such as muffins but no more cheese, milk or yoghurt for at least a day or two and we will keep a good eye on her. We have allowed the kids to eat almost whatever they want so Alex has been eating a lot of pizza. Dinner today was pizza with gelato as dessert. When we got back to the apartment she had some yogurt with Oystein. At lunch she had fruit and a croissant, the snack at the museum deli was French fries and breakfast was Cheerios without milk. So there was quite a bit of milk this evening but the rest of the day wasn’t too bad. The hives could also be from something else so we aren’t going to overreact and cut out all milk, but we will be cautious and deep a good eye on her.

Observations: We really haven’t been eating well on this trip. In some ways it’s been a challenge because we want to stay in our budget which means we limit where we eat. Also, we have an attitude that we want to try different things that we don’t have in the States, and of course, I love desserts so that is where I tend to try new foods. I can easily order an appetizer or starter for a meal sometimes and we eat at deli’s usually at least once a day. Here in London we’ve eaten at pubs a couple of times and that is less expensive as far as a sit down restaurant goes. Oystein and Nathan have both had traditional English fish and chips but Alex and I haven’t. Alex isn’t interested in tasting the fish and deep fried fish usually upsets my stomach too much so I decided to pass. Of course, Oystein has enjoyed trying different beers.

I am enjoying the architecture here. I love the stone buildings and the fact that most of the buildings aren’t really tall. I would guess most buildings are about 5-7 stories high. We did notice one skyscraper on our first day and David, our guide, said it was controversial when it was built because the higher floors can look into the Queen’s garden or something like that.

There are telephone booths all over around here. One block can have three phone booths on them. They are usually red and they are the style you see in old movies where the doors close all the way.

Often when you are crossing a street as a pedestrian, there will be the words “look left” or “look right” painted on the street by the sidewalk. We’ve been here three full days and it is still strange to see the cars driving on the left side of the road.

It would be more difficult to live in London then Oslo for me. I prefer the smaller Oslo with fewer crowds.

Buckingham Palace:

The Natural History Museum:

The Science Museum:

Day 11

(By the time I get around to writing about our day I am tired. I am just trying to put down enough info for me to remember the trip and often I am not happy with how this comes out when I'm writing but I figure better something than nothing. Hopefully I will rewrite some of this when I go to make my scrapbook of our trip.)

Hoping to get to the Tower of London before the crowds, we got up fairly early this morning. Unfortunately, we didn’t realize how bad rush hour is here. We went down to catch a tube (the subway) and it was crowded. I don’t mean just a little, I mean that we couldn’t even get on the first two tubes that went by because the cars were full with people sitting and standing. Those right by the door had to be careful not to get closed in the door.

We took one tube to the next stop where we would have changed tubes but because it was so crowded we made a change of plans. We ended up taking an open bus city tour. The weather was overcast but it wasn’t raining yet. The traffic was terrible but we didn’t care; we enjoyed the ride. About half way through, Alex and I went to the bottom of the bus because she was cold. We got off at the Tower of London stop and got something to eat and bought Alex and me sweatshirts before going into the Tower of London. We really enjoyed walking around there. There was a more medieval feel to this castle then the two we visited yesterday. The main tower in the middle had an exhibit called Henry VIII: Dressed to Kill. Nathan especially loved it as it featured armor, shields, and weapons from the medieval times. Alex began to lose interest by that point (we had been at the Tower about two hours already) so I tried to keep myself from being too frustrated with her. I really didn’t get to see much at that exhibit. At the end of that section though there were a few interactive things the kids could do and that perked Alex up.

After the Tower, we caught the city boat on the River Thames. It started pouring rain about 5 minutes into the ride. When we got to the end and it was time to disembark, it began thundering and lightening. Alex began to cry a bit and say she was scared. I prayed over her and comforted her. We decided to wait and were the last ones off the boat. We had purchased two umbrellas earlier in the day when it started drizzling and were glad to have them as it had rained off and on all day. We decided to try to find a place to eat and then catch the tubes back to our apartment as it was rush hour again. We figured if we ate then rush hour would be over. Unfortunately, with the rain and thunder and lightening it wasn’t so easy. The first couple of places we saw were packed with people. We stopped at a doorway for a minute when the pouring rain got even harder. It was still thundering and lightening too. After being there for just a couple of minutes, it started hailing. Both kids did great dealing with this delay. Finally we thought we would catch a taxi back to the apartments and deal with dinner there, but all the taxis were full (not exactly surprising given the time and weather). We finally found a small deli that had empty tables and ate dinner. Afterwards we caught a bus back to the apartments. We were back by about 7:00. It was nice to get back a bit early and not feel rushed to get everyone to bed. I helped the kids with showers and then they played a bit before I read to them and Oystein started some laundry for us. Tomorrow’s plan is to go to Buckingham Palace in the morning to watch the changing of the guards and then to two of the free museums here-a science one and a nature one. We will be able to sleep in until about 8:00 tomorrow.

We have kept our plans flexible knowing that we have only three days here and we can’t do everything we would like. We are also trying to keep the kids in mind and the museums appear to have some hands on things the kids can do.


Observations: In Norway we noticed that the delis and bakeries we went into had two prices for their items. One was an eating in price and was typically 4-8 Kroner (Norwegian money) higher than the take away price. (Take away is what they call take out here.) That’s about a dollar more per item to eat in.

In all the places we have stayed so far we have found that it is hard to find places to plug things in. The plugs are also in strange spots. For example, our bathroom here does not have a plug at all. At our last hotel, the bathroom plug was above the mirror-I couldn’t reach it. I ended up using a plug that was right outside the bathroom door.

Europe has a different voltage then the US. Almost all of our electronics (computers, cell phone chargers, and camera battery chargers) are already equipped with cords that convert the voltage so we have only had to use the plug converters. In Norway the prongs are skinny circles while in England the plugs have three prongs. We only have one converter for England but two for Norway.

The bathroom we have now has an interesting shower. Picture an American bathtub with a shower, but there isn’t a shower curtain. There is only a half glass door on the tub/shower at the end where the shower head is. We have to be careful not to get water everywhere. The shower head is pretty neat though. You can move it up or down on a pole so when the kids take a shower I can have it lower and Oystein can move it higher for his.

There seems to be fewer boundaries concerning personal space here. When we were at the Tower there are many narrow staircases. People just go without regard to others and I had to watch that all four of us stayed close. At one point, we started heading upstairs with Oystein first followed by Nathan. A few other people came from the left side of us and walked right in front of Alex without regard for anyone. I tried to say “Excuse me, we are together” but I don’t know if they heard me or understood me. Basically it was like when we were kids and someone would cut in line in front of you. When walking around and touring places we keep a line of Oystein first, Nathan second, Alex third and me last with Nate and Alex occasionally trading places. We do this because if we get separated it will most likely be that each child will still have an adult with them. When we were in line for the city tour boat, we had a large group of people walk up beside us and basically get in front of us. In the US there would have been an organized line, but that doesn’t seem to be common here. I have a hard time remembering that I need to reflect the love of Christ and not get angry about it. It isn’t even that I care if I am first, it’s the selfishness that bothers me. When people get in front of others who were first, they are disregarding others.

Day 10

We got up early this morning, about 7:00. There is construction on the road our apartment faces but they didn’t really start making noise until about 8:00. In this situation we don’t mind since we want to be up early in order to get our sightseeing in. Everything here closes earlier than it does in the states so starting early is better. Today we had a car tour to two castles. (http://www.londoncountrytours.co.uk/kent.htm). Basically we were picked up by a driver (David, the owner of the company) and he took us to the castles and to lunch. He was very helpful giving us ideas of things to do for the next two days and tips on when the best time to go to beat the crowds is. The castles are out of the city and having a driver was easier for us, especially Oystein. It would have been a challenge driving on the left side of the road. David didn’t go into the castles with us, which was fine. He was very flexible on how we spent the day and gave us a couple of options on which castles to see and other stops we could have made. We chose to keep it simple with a visit to two castles.

The drive to Leeds was about an hour and a half. We made a quick stop at the town of Greenich and took some pictures on the way. The traffic out of the city wasn’t too bad today. We spent about two hours touring Leeds castle and the grounds. The kids loved it! The entrance is through the oldest part of the castle but most of the castle has been renovated through the years. It was beautiful for the most part. I have always thought of castles as being cold, drafty and uncomfortable. Although there is truth in that the tapestries, rugs and blankets made it more inviting. Of course, the castle currently has electricity so the lights were on making it easier to see and the windows had glass on them so it wasn’t drafty. You can actually rent rooms in the castle for conferences and they have rooms to rent that are similar to a hotel room.

Nathan and Alex loved the moat. Leeds had an “I Spy” activity for the kids and Alex especially liked looking for things on the “I Spy”sheet. They did a great job and really enjoyed the castle.

After Leeds we went to a Pub and had lunch with David. Then we drove to Hever Castle. Hever is a smaller castle and has associations with King Henry VIII. We enjoyed this castle though were disappointed that we couldn’t take pictures like we could at Leeds castle. Also, this was a “newer” castle so not as many older items. Alex wasn’t as enthused about this castle though she loved the cabinet they had filled with dog figurines. After going through the castle we went outside to the water maze. They had boards on water that you walked on and some of the boards would cause some water to squirt up when you stepped on them. The kids of course loved that. Then we walked through the Italian garden. They are renovating it but it was still beautiful.

We didn’t get back into the city of London until about 6:30 so we had lunch at the bar and grill here at the apartments. The service was very slow though the servers were polite. The food was acceptable. By the time we got back to our apartment it was 8:30. The kids fell asleep pretty quickly. Actually, Oystein and I did too.

Day 9

(FYI for my readers: When Oystein was working in Oslo we had internet because he needed for work. Now we will only have it as we are willing to pay or it will depend on who we are staying with when we go back to Norway. I've been keeping my journal on Word on the computer so when I can update I can just copy and paste. Pictures may be scarce or not labeled well because it takes so long to upload pictures. Carrie, we will be going back to Norway after France. We will then be on the West coast and staying with Oystein's family.)

Last night I woke up in the middle of the night with an incredible stomach ache. Not fun! I ended up taking my pill for sleeping and was thankful to wake up this morning feeling better, though tired.

I forgot to mention that yesterday Alex had a bloody nose three times. The air conditioning is very drying and she is prone to them so we weren’t concerned. She handled it like normal, just saying “I have a bloody nose, I need a tissue.” I hand her the tissues, she squeezes her nose for a bit and that’s about it.

We were up at 6:30 and caught the bus to the airport by 7:30 after we ate breakfast. The airport and plane ride was uneventful. I did hear the lady behind us complain that she would have to pay if she wanted to eat on the plane because she had already paid 300 pounds for the ticket. Oystein knew that the short flights would probably charge for meals so we weren’t concerned. We figured we would snack on the candy from the duty free shop and eat when we got to London.

Heathrow airport is huge and crowded. It is not a place I would want to be by myself with my anxieties and sense of direction (which is non-existent basically). Oystein had researched in advance how to use the transit system to get to the hotel. He was smart and asked at the information booth to confirm what he found on the internet. It was good he had as there were some changes due to some lines being down. He continued asking different transit people as went and kept getting different info. Can I just say again how glad I am we were together? It ended up taking us three trains (two in the tubes-their subway system) to get to our hotel. At the first terminal to catch the first train, there was a big crowd. People were rude, going in front of others and ignoring everyone. It ended up we were standing where the first class section stopped so we had to move down. With all the people however, we weren’t able to get on the train. The doors close on time and you are on or off; we were off. One lady was quite upset and practically yelled at the worker because her mom got on the train and she didn’t. We were frustrated but choose to have a good attitude. What a difference it makes to choose a good attitude.

The whole system was a bit frustrating and it sure showed a lot about the selfishness of human nature. People who arrived at the station after us ended up on the train we missed because they “pushed” their way to the front. They weren’t literally pushing, but almost. The lesson we learned was that next time, we will pay the extra money to use a taxi. We probably saved at least $100 using the transit system though. The kids did an awesome job! We are so proud of them. Alex had a little time of complaining when I bumped her and a bit toward the end but overall did so well. Nathan didn’t complain once and even helped his sister out by pulling her suitcase for a bit.

When we finally arrived at the hotel at 4:00, our room wasn’t ready. Normally it would have been but they had a few problems crop up. We checked our bags in with them and took a double decker bus up the street a bit and had dinner at a Pub. Then we found a grocery store and got back to the hotel to check in. Although I have been calling it a hotel, it’s really an apartment. We have two bedrooms with king size beds, a living room, a bathroom and even a small kitchen—all furnished. We booked the place when Alex was still not allowed to have milk and decided to keep it even after she passed the challenge. We figured we would enjoy the space and we were right. It’s nice having two bedrooms and extra space for a bit.

Observations: The transit system here is extensive. I can see how once you are used to it, it would be pretty easy to use. Oslo is smaller and has a smaller feel to it. I prefer that feeling.

Day 8

Oystein and I slept in until after 8:00am. I was asleep last night at about 10:00. The kids were up around 7:00 and they played quietly until we woke up.

After breakfast and showers we took a ferry to Bygdoy (pronounced bigday) peninsula to the Viking Ship Museum. The museum had a couple of authentic Viking ships and some items found in the graves of some Vikings.

After the museum we stopped at a toy store and then had lunch. Lunch was at Baker Hansen, a chain bakery. Oystein and I had smoked salmon sandwhiches and the kids had a pastry. Then we all shared a dessert.

Then we went back to the hotel for a rest. Oystein looked up information for London, I packed and laid down and the kids played.

For dinner we went to the grocery store and bought bread rolls, crackers, salmon spread and strawberries. We took it to the park and ate. For dessert we had gelato. Then it was back to the hotel for a swim, showers and bed. Tomorrow we have to get up early to catch the plane to London.

One thing I’m finding challenging is living out of our suitcases. We aren’t staying anywhere long enough to fully unpack but I still end up having to completely repack the suitcases before taking them anywhere. By the end of this trip I should be an expert packer.

Observations: Not very many places have air conditioning. In Seattle, if we’re hot we can head to a mall or store or restaurant and get cooled down from the air conditioning. Here, going into a store doesn’t help. The nicer restaurants, the grocery store we went to and a few places have it, just not most.

So far we have been doing pretty good with the budget we set for this trip. It was easy when Oystein was working because I preferred not to do much alone and the kids and I were happy with having a small snack and/or ice cream for lunch. We usually had such a big breakfast (which was included in the cost of the hotels) that we didn’t want a big lunch anyway. Now that we are all together all day, it is a bit more challenging on the budget.

A fountain in the city:


A play area we discovered by the water before catching the ferry:



The ferry:


The museum:

Day 7

We started out having breakfast together in the hotel (breakfast is included in the price of the hotel). Oystein was off to work and the kids and I went to the pool for an hour and a half. After showering, we went to the grocery store and bought a few things to eat. We spent the afternoon in the hotel room playing and napping. Oystein got off work a bit early and was at the hotel by 3:00. We decided to walk down to Aker Brygge (the waterfront) to walk around the Akershus. The Akershus is an old fortress built in about the 13th century.

The weather was hot-83 degrees. I did grumble a bit about the heat but quickly caught myself. Unfortunately, I did get frustrated with Nathan when we had ice cream by the waterfront after the fortress. For some reason, both Nathan and Alex make a big mess whenever they eat ice cream. I mean they look like 2 year olds. I don’t expect them to be perfectly clean but I also don’t expect them to have it all over their face and hands. We didn’t order cones because those are usually messier-we ordered the ice cream in cups. Somehow Nathan ended up with it everywhere and I found myself using an irritated voice. Alex didn’t want ice cream-she had a Solo which is an orange soft drink. Oystein found a nearby bathroom and Nathan cleaned up.

We walked to a nearby shopping center and bought Alex a bathing suit. She has been complaining that hers is too tight on the shoulder. Then we had dinner at a café style restaurant. Nathan and Oystein were able to order Norwegian meatballs.

After dinner we went to the pool for about a half hour. Alex really wanted to show Oystein how she could “swim” and Nathan wanted to show how he could tread water. Then it was showers and bed. The kids were asleep by 9:00.

This was probably the hardest day for my patience so far. Alex was quite whiny about the heat and the walking. She also asked about the pool every 5 minutes until I finally said if she asked again she would definitely not go in tonight. I know the heat and walking aren’t things the kids are used to but there isn’t much we can do about that. Oystein and I are working on not overdoing things for the kids but we aren’t going to sit in the hotel room all the time. I joked to the kids that we didn’t fly thousands of miles just to swim in a hotel pool. They joked back “sure we did, mom.”

Observations: Bicycling is very poplar. You see people in suits and skirts bicycling. The transit system is good and traffic isn’t like Seattle. It’s definitely better. Of course, gas here is way high so that deters some from even having cars. Oystein and I both noticed that there weren’t very many overweight people and we are guessing these are some of the reasons why.

There are a lot of statues of people without clothes on. The kids and I walked to the statue area of the park when we went to the park a couple of days ago. When we noticed the statues were of people unclothed we left. They weren’t sexual in nature, just not clothed. There was a mom and child hugging and a person just standing-basically just everyday type poses. Statues of unclothed people can be found everywhere though. Even today by the waterfront we saw one. The kids really haven’t been paying attention to it and I’ve decided not to bring anything up about it unless they ask or I see them interested in them. Actually, when we saw the statues at the park, Nathan asked why they were naked and I answered I don’t know.

Day 6

We were up early again this morning. I was awake at 6:00 and by 7:00 we were all up. After breakfast we moved to the new hotel. We were able to do an early check in and Oystein was off to work before 10:00. Here's the new hotel. Not as much charm but still very comfortable.

After doing some ironing, I found the concierge and asked about how to get to the International Museum of Children’s Art. http://www.barnekunst.no/en/ I was a bit nervous about going because it was in an area I haven’t been yet and I would be taking new buses. With my sense of direction, I get lost very easily but I wrote down all the information as we went. I had to write down what side of the street I caught the buses on so I would catch it on the opposite side to get back. We made it to the museum just fine. It was located in a house in a residential neighborhood. The kids and I spent about an hour at the hotel looking at the beautiful art and ate an ice cream outside in the play area before catching the bus back. I bought a book of Children’s art to bring home. Cameras weren’t allowed in the museum.



While waiting for the bus back to the city Nathan and Alex found this "stick" caterpillar. We had just had our last science class the Friday before our trip and the last thing we studied were butterflies, moths and skippers. It was so cool to see something we were studying. It's hard to see on these pictures because of how I have to compress them, but the caterpillar is camouflaged as a stick.

When we got back to the hotel we put on our swimsuits and went to the pool. The kids loved that. Nathan could touch the bottom of the pool on one side but Alex couldn’t at all. She hung onto the side. Then it was back to the air conditioned room for a nap. Both Alex and I slept for about an hour and a half. Nathan played DS and read his book.


The kids and I had dinner at Deli De Luca, a little café type place, eating outside. Then it was back to the pool. Neither of the kids swim and usually Alex won’t venture away from the stairs, but she let me hold her a bit and she went around the edges of the pool by herself and even put her face in the water. Nathan could touch at one end and he practiced treading water.
After swimming it was back to the room for showers, reading and bed. Oystein is out on another business dinner

Observations: I am amazed at the peace that God is giving me so far on this trip. I was quite nervous about spending a week in a foreign country with the kids while Oystein worked. Oystein is a great protector and has been looking out for me. When we travel he is the one to get directions and ask questions. He leads, I follow. With him working, I have had to do things on my own that I normally wouldn't. God has been with me and I have been able to catch the trams and buses, ask questions and find places without Oystein. Only once did the anxiety start up in me and I was quickly able to calm it down and not let it spiral out of control. I know that is all God's provision!

Scenery

I took some pictures as we were walking today so I would have pictures to remember the scenery. This first picture is the building Oystein is working in.

Day 5

This morning we were all up between 6:00 and 7:00. We all slept pretty well. Oystein and I took a shower and we all went down for breakfast together. After breakfast we took our laundry to a dry cleaner to have it washed. The hotel prices are way crazy (like several dollars per item). Oystein asked around about laundry mats but the only ones he could find were not within walking distance or on our tram/bus lines. I think he said there was one place that we could take a taxi to. In the end we decided it was worth it to pay to have our laundry washed at the dry cleaning place. We’ll pay a little more then at a self serve, but we would have to factor in the cost of the taxi and our time. We’ll pay a lot less than here at the hotel.
Oystein headed off to work and the kids and I came back to the hotel. The kids played while I fixed my hair and picked up a bit. Then we went to the small grocery store down the street. Think 7-11 size with twice as many aisles. The aisles fit one person at a time. We bought a couple of drinks and snack items. We also went to a bakery and bought sandwiches and pastries. We took the tram to the park and the kids played while I sat in the shade. When we got back to the hotel the kids took cool baths and I read to them. They played and I wasted time on the computer until Oystein got back. He freshened up and we all walked to the laundry place. Then Oystein headed off to a work dinner and the kids and I took the laundry back to the hotel. I was pretty hot after that. The laundry was pretty heavy. It was in a rolling bag but honestly, it wasn't that easy to roll. The kids and I had dinner and came up to pack. Tomorrow we will be moving to another hotel. Did I mention that it is in the 80's and we don't have air conditioning and we are on the top floor? The hotel we are moving to has air conditioning and a pool but no free dinner. However, it costs less so we will be saving money on the last day when we have to pay. That should make up for having no free dinner.

After packing, we went to get some Gellato. Now the kids are in bed and Oystein will be here soon.

Observations: The majority of the hotels here do not have air conditioning, including ours. The weather here is warmer than normal-in the 80s so we have been sleeping with the windows open. Unfortunately, that means we can smell some of the smoke from smokers outside. It isn’t too strong but it is a bit bothersome. We could have asked to move but we are in a suite with lots of space. We have two rooms right now. The front room has a couch, two chairs, a TV, two single cots for the kids to sleep on and a desk. Our room has a small closet, cupboard, TV and king size bed with side tables. We have two bathroom areas. In our bedroom there is a bathtub, shower and sink. However, the door to the bathroom is glass. It’s partly frosted but not enough. The bathtub and shower are separate and both are big. The toilet is in it’s own bathroom with a sink.

Smoking is more prevalent here. Smoking is not allowed indoors but you can smoke on the street.

Drivers are quick to stop for pedestrians. However, the first couple of times getting on the trams, I found it a bit unorderly. When taking buses in Seattle, people seem to line up and go one at a time. Here everyone just gathers and people even start trying to get in the tram before others have had the chance to exit.

Waiting for the tram to go to the park:
at the park:

on the tram back to the hotel: (they are sweaty, dirty and hot, hot, hot)