Getting up close and personal with Norwegian nature is easy with these free resources.

Usually the first thing people think about when it comes to Norway is the natureā€” the mountains and fjords. Afterall, didnā€™t all those amazing Instagram photos of Norway inspire you to move here? Well now itā€™s time to actually go on some adventures! Before planning any outdoor adventure, youā€™ll want to use these top 3 websites and apps.

Outtt

This website and app gives you detailed content on popular and off the beaten trail hikes and adventures throughout the country. also gives you guided offline maps, a detailed trail description, tells you exactly what transportation to take, and where to stay and eat. Thereā€™s even an opportunity to track your own adventures and share with friends. The amazing part is that itā€™s all in English!

UT.no

is a website and app owned by the Norwegian Trekking Association (DNT), the organization that runs public cabins and lodges throughout the country and responsible for marking trails. There are over 7,000 hikes curated by DNT and users, which makes it sometimes challenging to navigate and find quality content. Overall, itā€™s a great resource for finding cabins to book.

Visit Norway

Dubbed the official travel guide of Norway, Visit Norway gives readers an overview of the most popular hikes in the country as well as well-known local hikes. Thereā€™s also lots of content for newbies to Norway in terms of adventures and blog posts. Trip Advisor reviews are attached to most posts, giving the reader a better idea the experiences of other users.

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At approximately 5am (in Norway, the ā€œmourningā€ after the election) I noticed a tweet trending explaining that Canadaā€™s immigration website had crashed. I laughed, but I wasnā€™t shocked.

Canada has always been Americaā€™s neutral neighbor. Iā€™m sure it would support us Americans like a parent in times of hardship such as electing a person such as Trump.

Then around 7am, I found myself pouring Canadian maple syrup onto my pancakes at an American themed breakfast with the American Ambassador to Norway. At this point, I began thinking of Canada as a sneaky sister whoā€™s making fun of me. Are Norwegians refusing to buy American maple syrup now?

Perhaps being awake more than 24 hours had taken a toll on my thought processes, but I found it hysterical and a slap in the face: having maple syrup from the country so many Americans are now trying to seek refugee. After all, Vermont and nearly all New England states are known for maple syrup.

Democrats & Republicans Abroad

I attended the election party at HĆøgskolen i Oslo og Akershus (HiOA) hosted by the American Chamber of Congress in Norway, The US Embassy, Democrats Abroad Norway (DAN), and Republicans Abroad. It was a great event that reaffirmed almost every American in Norway was voting for the best candidate, except perhaps a select few.

The Democrats Abroad table was decked out with hats, pins, and even drinking glasses made out of ā€œ100% shattered glass ceiling”, all of which nearly sold out. Journalists swarmed the table and were eager asking us democrats why we're excited about Hillary being the next president.

In the meantime, the Republicans Abroad table, consisting of a few over the hill men with a small table a balloons, which appeared solely frequented by journalists to keep the media ā€œunbiasedā€. As the American beers and wine began flowing, the night felt like a celebration of the candidate everyone knew who would win.

Even though I knew Hillary would win (after all I told the press in an interview I was 100% confident that she would be the next president), I was committed to being present until a candidate was elected. Hours spent in front of the bland newschannel, CNN, was intermingled with excitement. That enthusiasm soon died down and became panic. At around 4:30am, I ran to find my phone and quickly got in touch with my mother and sister. I was scared and even had chills, as the likelihood of Trump becoming president was becoming more of a reality.

It might sound extreme, but this is the moment I realized the world will never be the same again. It was the same surreal moment I experienced in 1st grade, when the pledge of allegiance was interrupted by the news of the 9/11 tragedy.

Reality dawns

The more snaps I viewed and texts I read, I realized this really was reality: the @realDonaldTrump could actually become my president. Friends in the US were sobbing and described their watch parties as funerals. Soon it was 6.50am and the 50 remaining party guests and I were ushered through the Norwegian blizzard to another side of HIOA.

As I chatted with a politician from the green party, we noticed we were behind the handful of Trump supporters. Not surprisingly they waved their red signs in the wind and were obnoxiously loud as they smoked their cigarettes. These characteristics only briefly touch on what describes the typical Trump voter, a world that Iā€™m not exposed to enough.

As I reflect on the rollercoaster of emotions and physical sickness I continue to feel right now, I wonder how I will present myself to the world as an American. How will my national identity evolve? During the campaign, Norwegians would joke with me about Trump as the American president. I didnā€™t think much about it, but itā€™s true now. I just donā€™t know what to do.

The day after the election, my sister sent a photo of a Canadian check-in signs at Penn Station in NY. The train that regularly goes from NY to Canada is not normally very crowded, that day it was. Perhaps the signs were a joke, but at least Canada is prepared.

Even though itā€™s been days since the election the mood here in Norway is still one of shock. At the same time Iā€™ve felt much sympathy from Norwegians, as if they are acknowledging the empire has fallen in the same way that the US has died.

In fact, yesterday I went to the police station to complete the last task of renewing my student visa, taking my photo. The immigration employee gave me her condolences and even told me she was glad Iā€™m here. Which I agreed.

The post Watching the US Election from Norway appeared first on 51³Ō¹ĻĶų.

It's 7:18 am and I'm standing so close to the others making the commute, that I can hardly breathe. In fact, itā€™s so strange to feel like a sardine packed in a tin for the first time in this country and perhaps the first time in the countryside of any country.

Quickly after I show a blinking image indicating to the driver I have a ticket (for Ruter, the state-owned transportation companyā€™s ticket app), I sit down. Iā€™m next to an attractive middle-aged man reading the sports section of Aftenposten, on his phone. I soon remember that a law was just passed requiring passengers to wear a seatbelt at all times. I awkwardly find the strap and resume my audiobook, ā€œHappy Cityā€ by Charles Montgomery (ironically about the future of cities) and attempt to fall back to sleep.

I normally take a 30 minute train from Ȧs (where my university is located) to Oslo. Simply put, it's quick and efficient in terms of traveling from the countryside. For nearly 4 weeks, NSB (the public transportation company responsible for passenger trains in Norway) train drivers whom are in charge of the eastern side of the fjord, have been on strike over the duration of their educational training.

NSB reduced the education process for driving trains from 2 years to a mere 8 months, and drivers are mad. The drivers think this isnā€™t enough time to sufficiently learn all that is needed to know to operate trains safely. Fair point.

My initial reaction was, ugh just give them what they want and let me have my 30 minutes of pure blissā€”wifi, a comfortable seat, and jaw dropping views of the countryside and fjord. But recently Iā€™ve changed my views.

Last week, I attended a talk at Google Norway, where Jan GrĆønbech, the CEO and founder of Google Norway discussed the future and whether technological advances are simply innovation or game changing disruption. He reminded me of an article I read in the BBC several months prior about an Oxford University and Deloitte study. The study predicted that 35% of jobs will not be in existence in the next 20 years.

According to the interactive platform linked to the article, train and tram drivers have a ā€˜fairly likelyā€™ chance at 68% to have their jobs taken over by a robot, at least in the UK. I can only infer that the percentage is much higher in Norway, with a smaller population, highly progressive transportation department, and significantly bigger budget in proportion to the population.

GrĆønbech himself said, train conductors will be some of the first jobs to go. He later discussed that the CEO of Ruter, Bernt Reitan Jenssen, intends to have the next shipment of trams and buses be self-driving. This isnā€™t a goal to reach in decades to come, itā€™s in the very near future. Jenssen is working towards making all trams and buses in Oslo automated within the next 5 years, maximum.

I understand that the train drivers are striking in regards to public safety, but I can only imagine that they are also striking to preserve their livelihoods. People have bills to pay and a family to support, but the future is coming. Soon trains too will be self-driving. Self-driving trains will be safer because they will not be plagued by human error, despite the number of months or even years of training drivers. NSB appears to just be preparing for the future, unlike its employees.

Now, think back to the ticket I had on my phone, it wasnā€™t printed and handed to me by a ticket salesperson or the bus driver. And the article my seatmate was reading on his phone, it wasnā€™t on a paper he bought in a store. Or even the audiobook I purchased online. All these tasks used to require humans, however, now they are all automated. Itā€™s funny to think back to the days of switchboard operators and toll-booth collectors, they seem so far away, but in actuality itā€™s not so far into history. These jobs have more or less been eliminated, yet we donā€™t think much about it in our everyday lives.

We as a global society need to realize that automation of jobs and reorganization of companies is our reality. We have created jobs and figured out ways to be more efficient to make our lives better, itā€™s as simple as that. Like everything in life, jobs go in cycles. Yes, perhaps it sucks that the educational training has decreased, but NSB is facing reality.

For now, I donā€™t mind taking two crowded buses that make me dizzy, not to mention have no wifi. I'm ready to sacrifice for the future of efficiency and safety and overall human progress, aren't you?

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As I entered a concrete four-story building, a bubbly Spanish veterinary student helped me with my bags.

Perhaps it was the six-hour overnight flight from New York to blame that caused me to be plagued with exhaustion, but I told her I could manage my bags until we arrived at the elevator. She quickly replied in laughter that there wasn't one.

There wasn't an elevator? All the dorms I had ever visited had an elevator. Where was I about to call home? I knew then, that I was in for the adventure of my life.

The last ten months of life in Norway have been a learning experience, to say the least. Iā€™ve questioned my own identity, perspectives, and sense of belonging. I have never felt so calm. There are so many things I wish I knew before transitioning to life here.

Below are 11 things to keep in mind if you are an international student interested in studying in Norway. Although these tips and realizations are primarily from the American perspective, I do think they are helpful to any international student.

Independence

Unlike American universities and colleges, Norwegian universities (and almost all other universities in the world) give much more academic freedom to students. Each course usually requires a term paper and final exam or only a final exam.

Read more: How to Study in Norway as an International Student

This allows you plenty of time to study and not get caught up in busy work. It takes, however, a lot of discipline to stay on task throughout the semester.

At times I felt very disconnected from my professors, but then I discovered Twitter. I now follow and keep up to date with my professorā€™s research and thoughts on current topics via the social media platform. This ā€œreal timeā€ connection has enabled me to be much more engaged in the subject matter.

Informality

There is only one professor at my university who insists on the title of ā€œprofessorā€ before his name, everyone else prefers to be addressed by his or her first name. This really helps make the student-professor relationship much more equal. Professors might dress very informal, but you should remember that this is an academic setting when acting, speaking in class, and writing exams.

Less focus on grades, more on learning

Due to there being only one or two grades for a class, the focus is on the actual material you are learning and not just the grades. After all, isnā€™t everything a journey not a destination? I absolutely love this format having come from a competitive college prep school where grades appeared to make or break my peers lives. If you earn a grade that you do not like (if there is only a paper and exam) you have the option to retake the exam and class!

Studying

Norwegians are all about work/life balance, and university students are no different. I rarely saw other students before 8am or after 4pm in study halls (unless it was close to exam period). If you are most motivated to study when surrounded by others make sure you study during those 8 golden hours of the day, otherwise, youā€™ll be very lonely.

Internships

The culture of paid and unpaid internships for students at the bachelor and masters levels is just launching in Norway. There are a few programs that set up these types of experiential learning, but they are few and far between.

If you are interested in gaining experience in your future career reach out to people you admire and see what they have done. LinkedIn is a great place to start. This by far has been one of the most challenging aspects of living here, especially that the majority of internships require Norwegian fluency.

Making friends & getting involved

You will most likely be quickly welcomed into the international community on campus, however, do not let it discourage you from befriending Norwegian students. It takes much longer to break into the Norwegian crowd, but donā€™t give upā€”staying in an International/ English speaking bubble is dangerous in terms of integration.

If it is important to you to truly experience Norwegian university life, push yourself out of your comfort zone by attending events that are inĀ Norwegian. Although most Norwegians are fluent in English, the best events are in their native tongue. Check out an event on Facebook and translate words on Google Translate or by a friend, if need be.

In February, I attended a 3-hour workshop on how to wax cross-country skis, spoken in Norwegian. Although I only understood half of what the instructor said, I felt part of a community and learned many new words. I then went on a weekend camping ski trip consisting of wearing a giant backpack while skiing on frozen lakes.

Bonding over Norwegian music is also a great way to make friends! I have found that going on club ski trips and outings to be a fun, easy, and quick way to bond with others. Potluck dinners are also very big here so be prepared to cook!

Most Thursdayā€™s are reserved for ā€œQuiz Nightsā€ at pubs and bars. The pub on campus will most likely have a quiz night. Sometimes they are in English, so get a group of friends (or acquaintances) together and go. You wonā€™t regret it.

Food in your dorm

Some prisons here will be nicer than your dorm, but thatā€™s okay. Itā€™s also okay if your roommates arenā€™t super friendly at first, it just takes time to get to know them. Youā€™ll be cooking a lot of your food so be prepared to brush up on your cooking skills and creativity in the kitchen.

The grocery stores have a limited selection of food for the international palette, so visit Asian and Middle-Eastern shops in immigrant areas. If you want foods like ā€œrealā€ pita (the normal grocery stores have pita too, but itā€™s more like white doughy bread), lentils, and barley these shops are the place for you!

Most Norwegians (even adults) bring a packed lunch, so learn to eat cold lunches! There isnā€™t much of a variety of healthy snacks here, so use Pinterest or blogs to get fun ideas of quick protein rich study snacks! Late August is blueberry season and mid-September is apple picking season. Many of your friends will love these seasonal activities.

Drinking culture

My Norwegian classmates go out about two times a week, Wednesday and Friday. BingeĀ drinking across all ages is pretty widespread here. When people drink they usually drink to getĀ drunk.

If you are attending a concert with your friends make sure you bring your own alcohol for the ā€œpre-partyā€. ā€œVinmonopolā€ is the state regulated wine and spirits shops throughout the country.

It closes very early throughout the week and Saturday, so make sure you plan ahead.

Money

If you are a degree-seeking student not from a EU country, Switzerland, or Nordic country you will be required to wire about NOK 105,000 to your universityā€™s bank account, allowing you to apply for a student visa. Donā€™t be alarmed! You will get this money back.

In order to apply for a student visa you must have this amount in your name in a Norwegian bank, unfortunately you must have a Norwegian ID number (social security number) before you can open a bank account, which of course you wonā€™t get until a few months after you are granted a student visa.

Mindset

International students come to Norway for a myriad of reasons. ā€œWhy Norway?ā€ is the question you will most likely be asked the most. Figure out why you are here. Have a short and long answer to this question. Understanding other international studentā€™s motivation for studying in Norway enables you to figure out if they are worth your time.

Study Abroad semester students are usually all about traveling and partying (with other internationals) while degree-seeking students spend more time building a sense of community, studying, and learning Norwegian.

Less of a rite of passage

University is a time to study and develop yourself, but in a less structured way than that of American universities. The academic university is almost completely separate from the student life. All clubs are individual non-profits, which makes the uniformity of clubs and finding out about events a bit tricky. The best information about anything not related directly to your studies will be from your peers not the administration.

Overall, I have thoroughly enjoyed my university experience here in Norway. It has taken time to adjust to cultural norms and life here in general as it would anywhere else in the world. Although I did eventually find an elevator on campus (not my dorm building), I try to do what the Norwegians do and walk up the stairs, even if it is five flights!

The post Attending University in Norway appeared first on 51³Ō¹ĻĶų.

I look around and wonder, is this 2016? Or am I in one of the most bizarre cross-cultural dreams of my life? I did not see anyone wearing New York Yankees ball caps (in my vicinity) or American paraphernalia, maybe this is a dream?

Iā€™m wearing a polyester forest green cream collared dress, an apron (found on a shelf titled ā€˜for dollsā€™) and my hair is tied back with a mustard yellow headband. Even if I wasnā€™t American, this outfit would make me feel like I was.

I had just delivered chocolate milkshakes to 5 women wearing long wool dresses adorned with giant silver buttons and necklaces. Itā€™s not just these women wearing these outfits on a hot sunny day, nearly everywhere I look people are wearing something similar.

Men are sporting high stockings with shoes reminiscent of Santa Claus, and giant wool shirts embellished with silver. Itā€™s as if we have all traveled back in time, me the 1950ā€™s and everyone else the 1800s.

As I regarded the tables sporting numerous Norwegian flags, I realized that this was no dream, I was in an American diner on the 17th of May, Norwayā€™s national constitution day.

Since moving to Norway for university, Iā€™ve dreamed of this cultural explosion of a day. It appeared to be the epitome of Norwegian holidays filled with lots of drinking, celebrating of children, and of eating ice cream. My idea of it was a fusion of the American July 4th and South American Carnival except a little more formal and of course, colder.

During the month before the big day, high school seniors began celebrating (and partying) by wearing red overalls adorned with Norwegian flags, passing out cards with their pictures and explicit quotes, and driving around in giant customized buses in a celebration called Russ.

Days leading up to the 17th, I voraciously read expat blogs about the doā€™s and donā€™ts, and the somewhat frightening stories of expats wearing jeans on the day. I chose to wear a longish blue dress and red overcoat which I felt would make me fit in amongst my Norwegian counterparts.

A shopping nightmare

What the expat blogs didn't tell you is that the “Vinmonopol”, the only stores that sell wine and spirits in Norway, would close on Friday, despite the holiday being 5 days later. To my surprise, but not shock, all of the grocery stores closed on Saturday at 4pm.

Thankfully, I bought champagne, a 17th of May breakfast necessity, in time, but let another American help me out by buying three boxes of strawberries. Despite being very immersed (attending university here, but came originally as a ā€˜lovepatā€™), she had no idea the store closed early, and arrived 3 minutes before closing.

While managing to snatch a box of questionable looking berries, she described the store as as if a zombie apocalypse had occurred. If anyone is familiar with the American store Trader Joeā€™s on Sundayā€™s, the line was probably double the size.

Fast forward to Tuesday, and itā€™s the most wonderful day ever. The morning of the May 17th felt like Christmas. I woke up with that feeling I always get on Christmas morning, threw on my blue and red and headed to my breakfast.

My Norwegian friends were assembling the beautiful table of food when I arrived. My female friends looked straight out of the 1800ā€™s, with aprons and long dresses as they took things from the oven.

Although, since this wasnā€™t 200 years ago, our male friend was helping as well. The breakfast featured terrific traditional food (and non traditional–crepes from our French friend), lively chatter, and lots of mimosas.

We headed outside to find what seemed like thousands of people wearing bunads. When I was growing up I thought that people in other countries wore their traditional costumes all the time, so it was a bit like a childhood fantasy coming to life. Immigrants wore their traditional outfits as well, which truly made this feel like a cultural explosion.

Now back to the checkered black and white floored diner where Iā€™m pouring coffee to a table of exhausted Norwegians. Iā€™m now wearing my green dress, and so far Iā€™ve only counted 3 people wearing American paraphernalia today, which is very satisfying. Iā€™m wearing my American Bunad and they are wearing the real one. Now if only I had a Yankees ball cap, I would then be golden.

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