Hello Little Girl

I've been spending some a lot of time getting organized, and I thought I'd share this picture that I found from a zillion years ago...

Please excuse the poor quality, it was taken in 2002!

Holy crap, we look like kindergartners!

In other news, I've been looking for a job. It has been a while since I've actually searched for a job and we all know how awful the job market is, so please send positive thoughts my way!

Young Blood

I've been keeping busy the last couple of days. It is refreshing to have places to go and people to see! I went out with friends on Friday night to a nearby bar called Wild Bill's. It was the first time any of us had ever been there, so it was fun to go somewhere new. There isn't a whole lot for nightlife in the CPG, so any time we go to a new spot it is a welcome change!

Kristy, Sam, and me

Sam, me, Kristy, Alyssa, Lisa, and Elise at Wild Bill's

On Saturday, we celebrated my Uncle Jim's 60th birthday. We went up to Elk River to have dinner with almost the entire clan (Travis is still in Norway). I met my brother's girlfriend in person, also.

Tralle family dinner

Happy 60th, Uncle Jim!

My mom and Aunt Minnell enjoying birthday cake

Uncle Jim's birthday hat (and souvenir from a recent trip to Puerto Rico).

The apron I was given as a welcome home gift!

Maybe you all are wondering when Travis will be home! Considering it is one my FAQ's, I'll just announce it: Travis will be home on Monday, April 4. I'm looking forward to having him home! Manglerud Star played the last game of the year today, and beat their opponents 10 - 0. Trav had one goal and one assist. Manglerud finished in first place in the qualifying playoffs.

It's All Too Much

I went to my favorite place today...

Target! I also went to Cub Foods. I thought I would be overwhelmed at both stores, but I felt completely at home. I was walking around imagining how a Norwegian would react in such a large store. A large grocery store in Norway is comparable to a Trader Joe's or the Festival Foods in Lexington, MN. They are small with only one or two varieties of each product. I would think that the "Target experience" would be sensory overload for most Norwegians.

I actually asked my friend Katrine (who was an exchange student from Norway my senior year of high school) and this is what she had to say about my favorite place:

"I remember that I liked Target a lot, just because they had absolutely all I needed in there, and it was cheap as well.
I liked walking around to look at all the different kinds and versions of the exact same product. It always took me hours to decided which one to buy because there were so many different kinds of everything.
I also remember buying a lot of nail polish at Target just because it was so cheap ($2 or $3 compared to $10-$15 back home) and the quality was even better.
I guess my conclusion is: I like Target and I wish they had one in Norway, and at least one here in San Francisco."

In other news, I saw the movie Cedar Rapids with my mom last night and it was the perfect movie to see after moving back to the Midwest. It was so funny!

She Came in Through the Bathroom Window

I finally made it home! My flight landed in Minneapolis yesterday afternoon, and I couldn't have been happier. Okay, that is a lie. If there hadn't been 6 inches of fresh snow on the ground, I would have been happiest!

I am almost completely unpacked, although my closet is in complete chaos. I was so used to the limited amount of clothing that I brought to Norway and I was incredibly overwhelmed when I saw all the clothes in my closet and dresser. I had the urge to bag everything up for Goodwill, but I decided it would be best not to make such a decision after traveling for 40 hours and only getting 6 hours of sleep.

I got together with my girlfriends last night for dinner at Big Bowl. There are plenty of places I am looking forward to eating at, but Asian food is at the top of my list. It is so much better at a restaurant! Getting together with friends meant that I had to drive for the first time in 6.5 months. I was pretty nervous, considering the roads were covered in slush, but I did just fine. My favorite part about driving? Listening to the radio and singing as loud as I possibly can!

Manglerud played Comet today and kicked their butts. The score was 11-1 and Trav had 3 goals and 3 assists. They have one game left in qualifications, but they have already done well enough to stay in the Get League for the 2011-2012 season. 

If you are wondering about the future of this blog, worry not! I am going to keep writing. I will probably not write as often or share as many pictures, but I like having a place to record what is happening in my life. I also don't know how much longer I will keep up the Beatles theme.

Back in the U.S.S.R.

I'm back in the homeland. Unfortunately, I'm stuck in Chicago overnight due to inclement weather. My flight from Oslo to London was entirely uneventful. My flight from London to Chicago involved "a state of holding" as the flight attendant called it. The flight status monitors clearly showed that we made two very large (and turbulent) loops over Lake Michigan!!! The captain came on the PA system and told us we'd finally be landing, and when we started to approach the airport, we were sent away. It turns out there was an emergency on another flight, and they took our arrival time.

Long story short, my flight from Chicago to Minneapolis tonight was cancelled. American Airlines wouldn't let me check my (very heavy and awkward) bags tonight, so I'm at a hotel. I was really hoping I could take the El into the city and stay with my BFF Meghan in my old apartment tonight, but I have too much luggage to haul back and forth from Lincoln Park.

Okay, thank you for listening. I will stop ranting. We've all had our share of airline/flying/weather/travel nightmares, and I guess I should just be grateful that this isn't even close to my worst!

A Day in the Life

Considering only a handful of you have seen our apartment, I thought I'd take you on a tour of our humble abode before I hightail it out of here tomorrow morning. Enjoy!

Flying

We went sledding yesterday! Trav and I headed up the mountain with a couple of his teammates and their friends. The name of the toboggan run is Korketrekkeren (translated: the corkscrew) and it is next to the bobsled run that was built for the 1952 olympic games. The run is 1.25 miles long and the elevation drop is over 830 feet. The entire run takes about 15-20 minutes. The run starts at Frognerseteren and ends at a metro station, where you hop on and ride back up to the top of the mountain.We rented a sled for two, so I got to ride along while Travis steered.

Here is a short video from the afternoon:

Hey Bulldog

Travis got in a fight last night. I wasn't able to embed the video, so follow the link:

http://www.demokraten.no/d-tv/article5533065.ece

I am happy to report that Travis wasn't at all injured. He may be suspended for the next game or two, though.

Too Much Monkey Business

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Personalize funny videos and birthday eCards at JibJab!

In other news, I am feeling much better. After spending time on the WebMD symptom checker, I believe I was suffering from a migraine. Don't worry, Tina, migraines aren't contagious.

Misery

So, I've pretty much been feeling like crap the last couple of days. I could sit and complain about being sick for hours, but at least I have no responsibilities or commitments that are forcing me out of the apartment (and my sweats). I took a 3 hour nap today, and I think I'll be crawling back under the covers in a few minutes. I would give anything for this stupid, stinkin' headache to just go away!

Anyway, I thought I'd show you this Norwegian commercial for Stratos chocolate. Because of this commercial, I no longer remember the actual lyrics to MC Hammer's "U Can't Touch This." I tried singing along when it was played during one of Travis' hockey games, and the words from this commercial came out of my mouth.

Drive My Car

I have to tell you all about this ridiculous car vehicle we've been seeing in Oslo. It is called Buddy. The Buddy website says that, "Buddy is an EUV (Electric Urban Vehicle), a refined and practical electric vehicle for personal transportation in the city."

Maximum speed? 50 miles per hour

Length: 96" Width: 59" Height: 59"

Price: $20,800 to $31,100

Full battery charge can take up to 8 hours and is good for 50 miles.

There are many benefits to driving a Buddy: free parking in public places, free tolls throughout Norway, and reduced road tax. That's great and all, but I'd have a hard time driving around in something that looks like...

The Sheik of Araby

Yesterday, Trav and I went on a guided tour of Norwegian Parliament. In Norway, parliament is known as Storting.  Our tour guide is an art historian, so some of the tour focused on art throughout the building. It was a great opportunity for us to better understand the way government works in Norway.

Construction on the Storting building began in 1860 and was formally opened on March 5, 1866.

The Storting lions were carved by two convicts from the prison at Akershus Fortress. Both prisoners were set free and one immigrated with his family to America where he became a pioneer settler on the prairies.

This is a copy of the Norwegian Constitution. It was signed on May 17, 1814 and was a product of the Eidsvoll Convention. The Norwegian constitution expresses ideals similar to the American Declaration of Independence and Constitution as well as the French constitutions.

This tapestry hangs in the Central Hall where the press interviews members of parliament and is a popular meeting place within the building.

This is the Eidsvoll Gallery. It was once used as a reading and smoking room and later as a reception room.

The room has been named after the 18 members of the Eidsvoll Convention whose pictures line its walls.

The Storting Chamber. Every four years, 169 members are elected to the Storting.

The painting in the chamber portrays a scene from the Eidsvoll Convention of 1814.

Travis enjoyed learning about Norwegian government.

Members are seated by their electoral district, rather than by political party (as it is in the US).

The view from the Storting Chamber. The building is located in clear view of the Royal Palace, with the National Theater in between the two.

This was the strangest piece of art we were shown. It represented the transition of Norway from an agricultural to industrial society. Our tour guide also mentioned the partnership/welcoming of African farmers (huh?) which made absolutely no sense to either of us.

I'm not sure what else Travis and I will be up to during my last week (or so) in Oslo. I want to get out skiing, but I've been feeling pretty crummy the last few days. I suppose I should probably spend some time packing, but there isn't a whole lot else I feel like I have to do before I leave.

Day Tripper

Now for the grand finale!

On our last day in Bergen, we went on the Norway in a Nutshell tour. We took a train on the Bergen Railway from Bergen to Myrdal. At Myrdal, we got on the Flåm Railway which took us to the town of Flåm where we boarded a ship that cruised along Aurlandsfjord and Nærøyfjord which are both branches of Sognefjord. We left the ship at Gudvangen and took a bus to Voss where we then boarded a local train back to Bergen. The entire trip took about 10 hours. It was a long day with a lot of traveling, but it was well worth it!

Our route

View from the train from Bergen to Myrdal.

Waiting to board the Flåm Railway (Flåmsbana) at Myrdal Station.

The Flåmsbana runs from Myrdal at an altitude of 866 meters, to Flåm, which is just 2 meters above sea level. It is the steepest normal gauge railway in Northern Europe.

The Flåmsbana stopped at Kjosfossen waterfall.

The waterfall falls a total of 308 feet.

The water is used to produce electricity for the Flåm Railway (among other things).

We couldn't believe how blue some of the frozen waterfalls were!

View of Aurlandsfjord from the town of Flåm. As the cruise left, I spotted a harbor porpoise! Holy wildlife!

It was very cold on the boat, but my dad spent almost the entire time on deck snapping photos. I would say it was his favorite part of their entire trip to Norway.

Aurlandsfjord is is about 12.5 miles long and is one of many tributaries of the Sognefjord.

Like other fjords, the Sognefjord was carved by glaciers during the many ice ages in the last 2-3 million years.

Originally, the fjords were only small cracks in the mountain massif which ice and water have gradually gouged out, making them deep enough to come into contact with the sea outside.

Sognefjord is Norway's longest and deepest fjord.

Nærøyfjord is 12 miles long and only 820 feet wide.

UNESCO listed Nærøyfjord in its famous World Heritage List in 2005.

Norway has the highest concentration of fjords in the world.

This is one of Jake's photos, and though I didn't want to admit it when he was here, it is a pretty darn good picture!

Thank you, Mom, Dad, and Jake for coming to visit us. We enjoyed having you here, and in your words, Dad, "Thanks for coming and thanks for going!" I'll see you at home in no time.

Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds

On Friday morning, the Tralle family hopped on a train headed to Bergen. Bergen is the second largest city in Norway with a population of 260,800. Bergen's city center is situated among a group of mountains known collectively as de syv fjell (the seven mountains). Bergen was for several hundred years the center of prosperous trade between Norway and the rest of Europe.

It was a long train ride (6 1/2 hours), and Jake was a great pillow

Jake posing with a statue of Varg Veum. Varg Veum is a series of crime novels written by Gunnar Staalesen, about the private detective Varg Veum, who lives in Bergen.

Bryggen is a series of Hanseatic commercial buildings lining the eastern side of the fjord coming into Bergen. Bryggen has been listed on the UNESCO list for World Cultural Heritage sites since 1979.

We took a ride to the top of Fløyen mountain on the Fløibanen Funicular.

Riding on the funicular. A funicular is is a cable railway in which a cable attached to a pair of tram-like vehicles on rails moves them up and down a steep slope; the ascending and descending vehicles counterbalance each other.

View of Bergen from Fløyen mountain.

Fløyen mountain is 1,050 feet above sea level.

Fløyen mountain is the most visited of the seven mountains that surround Bergen.

A giant pulley at the top of the mountain.

There were trolls all over the top of the mountain.

Jake's Norwegian girlfriend.

New FB profile pic?

Trying on fur hats at the fish market.

Very fresh fish at the fish market.

I tried smoked whale at the fish market. The taste and texture combined with the smell of the fresh fish was too much for me too handle.

We stopped in for a beer and the bartender gave us samples of aquavit. Aquavit is a traditional flavored spirit that is principally produced in Scandinavia, where has been produced since the 15th century.

Aquavit, like vodka, is distilled from either grain or potatoes. After distillation, it is flavored with herbs, spices, or fruit oil. Commonly seen flavors are caraway, cardamom, cumin, anise, fennel, and lemon or orange peel.

In Norway it is particularly drunk at celebrations, such as Christmas or May 17 (Norwegian Constitution Day). I didn't particularly care for it. It reminded me of moonshine. Yuck!

That's all for tonight, folks!