The Countdown to School Begins

Hey All-

Well, I've officially got a day and a half of summer left. My summer language course ended yesterday, and I just took the final test this morning. I always told myself that I'd NEVER go to summer school, but I guess had to bend the rule a little bit. The test I had to take will determine what level language course I'll be able to take. If I pass it (grade E or better) then I'll be able to take the level 3 course.

Like always, last week was packed full of adventure and very exhausting. Friday night was spent in town with friends, and then we had to wake up early to go to Klaebu with the language program. We were hoping to be able to lay out by the water and take it easy, but that definitely did not happen. The place they took us to was like a camp for adults. There was a high ropes course, canoeing and some crazy games.

Later that evening we had a going away party for one of the guys in my language group. He is studying at the University of Bergen, so he had to leave early to attend orientation. Bergen is the second largest city in Norway (Trondheim is 3rd). So naturally there is a lot of competition between the two cities (especially in soccer).

On Sunday I went on a hike with a bunch of friends. Considering this is Norway, no hike is complete without a swim in a lake and some berry eating. The berry of the week: raspberries.

This past week has been orientation week for NTNU, so all the students are coming back. Since I was in that language course, I couldn't take part in most of the orientation activities, but that's ok. There's a place here called the Studentsamfunet, which is a big red round community house for the university. There's places to hang out, concerts, and parties. On Tuesday night there was a huge party for all the students in town. I honestly can't say I've ever been to a party with 2000 other people. It's quite the experience.

Enjoy the final days of summer!
Julie

Summer Life in Trondheim

Hey all!!

The past 2 weeks have been action packed. I'm 2 weeks into a 3 week intensive Norwegian language course, so I have class everyday from 9-2pm. We have homework to do everyday, but there's still plenty of time to enjoy the wonderful summer days. Early last week, several of us took a ferry to Munkholmen, an island in the middle of the fjord. We swam in the fjord and laid out in the sun until early evening. The water is freakishly clear, but definitley chilly. The language program also organizes several social events for the all the students.

Last weeked we went up to Søvassli, a cabin about an hour from Trondheim. We were up in the mountains surrounded by tons of lakes, so it was absolutely gorgeous. After dinner on Friday, we went for a sunset swim and hung out on the beach until around midnight. With 20 hours of daylight, there is so much one can fit into a day. Shortly after midnight, a bunch of friends celebrated my birthday by bringing cake, drinks, and a gift. A 20th birthday here is just like a 21st birthday in the states. At 20, a person is completely legal to do/drink anything. So I got a very amusing Norwegian birthday card explaining what life at the age of 20 may be like...

On Saturday we went for a hike up to a peak called Gråfjellet (gray mountain). There was a lake at the top that we all went swimming in to cool off. The hike was a lot of fun, but I am not a big fan of traveling in such a large group (~50 people). After dinner some of us went for a sunset canoe in the lake and then hung out at the beach until 'dark' again. It's never really all that dark at night. At least not yet...but the sunsets are fantastic!!



Sunday was spent canoeing and eating blueberries. August is prime time for berry picking. Food, especially fruits and vegetables, are ridiculously expensive to buy at the grocery store. The good thing is that there are berry patches all over the place. So whenever we pass one, we have to stop and eat some. A couple of us spent almost an hour eating blueberries. They are 100 times sweeter when they are right off the vine and totally natural (unlike the genetically modified, pesticide soaked ones we usually find back in the states, but let's not go there).

Norwegians love to swim and hike in the summer. On Tuesday, we went on a "Viking Hiking Trip." We swam accross one lake, then hiked about 30 minutes, swam in another lake, hiked, swam in a 3rd lake, then ate dinner. And all of this was done 15 minutes from where I live. Trondheim is a relatively large city, but nature is never too far away.

Now for the best part: I Now Have A BIKE!!! It's nothing special, but is was free. One of my flatmates had an extra one, so he just gave it to me to use. It's old, pretty beat up, and too short for me, but it gets the job done. There's only 6 gears, so the hills are tough. I haven't tried riding uphill from the Sentrum yet, but I have a feeling I'll have to walk this bike up the steepest part (It's really steep!!) For those of you from Boulder: think of the hill on Folsom Road by the stadium. Now make it a little bit steeper and about a mile long. I might get a different bike from a friend that has gears in the front, but until then this will do.

Take Care!
Julie

P.S. I've got a website with picture slide shows loaded up to it. So far the pattern seems to be one slide show for each blog entry. The link on the right will take you there, or you can use: http://photoshow.comcast.net/JKorak

Adventures from Week 1

Hey Everybody!

I can finally say that I feel settled in. Most of the legal paperwork is out of the way, and I have finally found an alarm clock (that was surprisingly hard). I've spent a lot of time walking around to learn the city. It's really easy to get disoriented when it's hilly and none of the streets are straight. One afternoon, I went to see Nidarosdomen. It's the largest cathedral in Norway that was built in the 13th century. Trondheim used to be the capital of Norway (before Oslo). So pilgrims used to trek here from all over to see the grave of St. Olav. The cathedral was then built on top of his grave. The church is gorgeous and very similar to many French Gothic cathedrals from the same time period.

This past weekend I had quite the adventure. I decided to go on a solo hike to one of the huts. Norway has an awesome trail system with over 400 huts spread throughout the country. Some of them have full time staff, while other just offer people a place to sleep. It's very nice because you can go for multi-day hiking or cross-country ski trips and not have to worry about carrying sleeping gear or tons of food. This makes for a pleasantly light backpack. To get to the trail, I had to take a 2 hour bus ride from Trondheim. The hike to the hut was about 14.3 miles and took about 8 hours. The ground was really soggy, so it felt like I was walking on muddy foam most of the time. I did get to see tons of wild reindeer for the first time along the way.

The hut (hytta) itself was so cozy, I loved it. The first floor has a common room, dining room, kitchen and dog room (kennels for people who bring their dogs). Then there are rooms upstairs with bunk beds (pillows and down comforters provided). All people need to bring is a sleeping bag liner to keep the blankets clean. I could have gotten a 4 course meal there, but I just ate the food I brought. I met a guy there, named Knut, who is hiking the entire length of Norway (south to north). Norway is long! If you pivot Norway 180 degrees around the southern point, the other end would reach the bottom of Italy!! The next morning I ate breakfast and started the hike out. I picked a shorter way home (~10 miles).

It all went smoothly until the last mile of the hike. The trail I was on was supposed to intersect a trail called Pilgrimsleia, which would then lead to a parkinglot and dirt road. I found the markers for the Pilgrims route, but it certainly didn't lead to a dirt road. I followed it for almost a mile until I could clearly see that it would certainly take me over the next ridge. So I started cutting down hill back the other way, hoping to intersect the road. The ground was so soft that I was sinking all over the place into the mud. At that point, I could feel my survival instincts kicking in. I found a creek and decided I followed that. Water always flows down! The creek got narrower... and steeper... and soon I was knee deep in water. Then I saw an area that had been clear cut for lumber. There was an obvious track from all the machinery, so I followed that. That led to the road and eventually the bus stop I needed. Thank God. I still had 3 hours to kill (partially in the rain) before the bus came. Let's just say I got some weird looks from everyone driving by.

Take Care,
J