Det Gamle Landet

So the past few months have really flown by in this beautiful country! There have been so many new things to see and experience that it would be quite impossible to fit them all here but I can summarize and give you all an idea through my pictures. I have met tons of people, all from different countries and backgrounds. It did not take me long to get used to the cold weather (the presence of snow definitely helped) and I have had more time here to get out and experience new things. Oslo has a lot of beautiful parks and museums and it seems that I am seldom home. Not since Florence have I felt the drive so much to get out and just walk…anywhere! To summarize succinctly: I love it here! It has also been great to see some of my family again after almost five years. Speaking of which, I was just up visiting in Langevaag and Aalesund and it was the most beautiful weather I have see there. Around six degrees and the sun shone everyday. I took advantage of this rarity by taking tons of pictures. While Oslo is very fun, Sunmore definitely surpasses it in beauty. Mountains dropping into the sea is the best description I can think of but I will let the pictures speak for themselves...

The gorgeous town of Aalesund where min besta Asta grew up. Aalesund burned down at the end of the 1800s and was rebuilt with help of Kaiser Wilhelm of Germany. Yes, that would account for the Bavarian-style of the buildings. Aa, det er saa veldig, veldig!

I couldn't resist adding this picture. How many families have a road sign directing visitors to their side of town?

Nynorsk aaargh! Silly me: I thought I could read basic Norwegian.

So, basically I took a really nice, long walk.

This is one of the boathouses just down the way from the area where my family lives.

Okay, so perhaps I will say a little bit more. Here is a little family history for y'all... My bestan Joakim "Kimen" grew up extremely poor on a very small farm in Langevaag. The story goes that he met besta Asta when he fell off a ladder at the hospital where she worked. He would row across the bay to Aalesund when they were "courting". Aa, kjaerlighet! Another interesting anecdote is that Asta was a midwife who would deliver babies by candlelight during WWII. Let me tell you, they have some good stories! Anyways, Kimen had nine siblings, many of whom remained in Langevaag as well as their children and grandchildren. Long story short, the Molvaer farm was split up and doled out to the various kids and now is covered with the houses of my relatives. It is quite nice for visiting actually, breakfast at one house and then lunch next door followed shortly after by dinner at the neighbors:) In all seriousness though, my family over here is very fun and they have always made me feel that I also belong in part to this beautiful place.