The ambience of Dublin;

I had an unbelievably good time in Ireland this past week. The country is as green as it is always depicted, which is a direct result of the fact that is does indeed rain (at least a sun shower) every day. The rain never lasted more then ten minutes each time which did not hinder my walking around the city very much. The rain showers also allowed me to view a full bright rainbow on three different days during our seven-day trip.

The hotel we stayed at was a small B&B, just a ten-minute walk from Trinity college (the KDE location). The hotel was a typical European hotel, which means the rooms are small and the hallways tight. We ended up having to change rooms three times because the Ryder Cup was also in Dublin this week, and the hotel did not have the same room available for our entire stay. Two of the rooms we stayed in had only a shower and sink. The actual bathroom was down the hall on the landings. This is also very common in European B&B’s and other small hotels.

The people in Dublin were extremely friendly and polite. In fact, they went out of their way to help me if I was having trouble locating a street. One gentleman even walked six blocks with me to make sure I found what I was looking for. After being so used to listening to Norwegian accents, I found myself having a hard time understanding the Irish one. By the end of the week I was doing fine hearing the words, but every now and then I still could not understand what I was being asked.

One great thing about all the attractions and tours I attended, was the history lessons. While on my tours of churches or other monuments, the guides would give the customary history of the property and what it meant to the people of its time. They would then go further and explain how future history would be affected as a result of this particular site both in Ireland, and the rest of the world. As a result I know more about how the world impacted Ireland, and how it impacted the world, then I ever learned from other sources.

Good to be home;
We just got back from Akademy in Dublin. I will blog all about the trip in the next few days, but for right now we are in need of a shower, hot food, and our own bed.

Dublin

It is time again for the KDE conference called Akademy. This year it is Dublin Ireland, and we will be there for seven days. Of course I made an itinerary of everything I am going to do there while the boys are in meetings. I even got a train ticket and will travel for three hours to Blarney Castle to kiss the blarney stone. I will blog all about the trip when we get back.

Kayaking

Girish and Tahara invited us to go kayaking with them last Saturday. We met them at the last stop on the bus route, and headed for the harbor. None of us had ever kayaked before, so we were all a bit hesitant. The renter of the kayaks seemed a bit concerned at our lack of “out door” abilities, and joked about having a rescue boat follow us. After a bit of effort, we were all settled in out boats and headed out in to the harbor.

We followed the coat line where we had a great view of nesting birds, and the cliffs. The weather was perfect, and the clear skies gave us a great view of the Fords. Sometimes powerboats would go by, creating large wakes. Our boats road the waves, much to our delight at the up and down motions.

After about 45 minutes we headed back to the pier. Poor Tahara (who is not as strong as the rest of us) lagged behind so much that when the rest of us docked, the renter thought we had lost one. Kayaking was not as hard as I thought it would be, and we are already planning on going back next season. We went out to lunch at a restaurant near our apartment and had fun conversation about how the different cultures view marriage. It was nice to talk to another couple about married life, when we are so accustomed to going out with the single guys.

Toys “R” Us

While looking up Toys R Us locations on line, we discovered that there was one “near” us. We decided to go for a long walk and find it. During the walk we found the circus that has been in town for a few months. By looking over the fence, we saw the elephants, and some dogs that had just come out of the ring.

We followed the bike path along the high way for about two hours, until we reached the border of Oslo. We were about to give up out search and head home when we saw a mall. We decided to investigate in a last effort to find the store. As we reached the back of the mall, we finally found the Toys R Us sign.

We found Transformers and Care Bears, but did not purchase anything. The store was as big as the one in the states, and even had the same smell. Although we are still not that good at speaking Norwegian, we recognized the whiney voices of children stating “But I want it!” I think that is one of the few phrases that has a universal understanding.
After thoroughly exploring the store we turned around and walked the two hours home. We agreed that we never thought we would spend four hours on a Saturday walking back and forth to a toy store.

Today I realized that when you are craving a tangerine, a banana just does not cut it.

A movie in the park:

When we went out for our walk the other day, we noticed a structure set up in the park across the street from out house. On further inspection, we realized that an out door movie theater had been set up. There was a free showing of “Grease”, with movie-goers sitting upon the hills and under the gazebo. We did not sit and watch the movie, but we were definitely impressed that the city set it up.

The end of summer;

Our “two weeks” of summer has come to an end. The sun is setting enough now for the stars to come out. This week it has been raining almost every day and the clouds are always blocking the sun. The fall berries are out on the vines, and it is getting cold enough for blankets at night. We have not needed shorts for a few weeks, and I am currently wearing a sweatshirt to fight off goose bumps. We are hoping that the weather will be nice long enough to have one last picnic in the park. So until then, we will have our umbrellas ready to go.

Hedgehogs;

Now that it is starting to get dark again, we have made a discovery when we go out for our walks. Apparently the parks are home to Hedgehogs. We have never before seen one in the “wild” and upon our first sighting were a little surprised. We often spot a pair of hoglets next to the high way. They let us sit near by and watch them until they decide to scurry off back to the safety of the bushes. We always forget to bring the camera with us to capture them, however we know that as soon as we remember it, the hedgehogs will be nowhere to be found.

An old friend;

I have known Rachelle since I was thirteen years old. We were together for every event of our teen years, and she served as one of my bridesmaids on my wedding day. Even though we had moved to different states than Rachelle, we managed to see each other once a year, and talk via the Internet.

Rachelle and two other guys we knew in high school planned to back pack threw Europe for the summer. To my ultimate delight, they were planning on coming to Norway for five days.

They arrived from Copenhagen by ferry to the Oslo harbor were I picked them up. Rachelle stayed with me on the couch, and the boys stayed at the local hostel.

We spent the week visiting the major tourist destinations like the Folk Museum, the Viking ship museum, Vigeland Park, and a few others. I also took them to see the near by Ford. Although the views are beautiful, the boys spent most of there time looking for topless sunbathers.

Rachelle and I had lots of time to walk around, shop and talk. I do know a few girls that I talk with, but having Rachelle to converse with was different. With people you do not know well, you will often have to deal with that uneasy silence when everyone is trying to think of something interesting to say. When Rachelle and I would finish a topic, there would just be the comfortable silence of old friends. We could talk about old friends, or current events. She is recently engaged so we talked about how relationships change with marriage. We talked about about `children and how we feel about them. She vented about the boys she is traveling with, and I vented about life in Norway.

I saw them off at the train station early Saturday morning, and then took the long walk home. It was refreshing to have Rachelle around to talk or to just be with. Even thou our time was short, I enjoyed being wrapped in the loving sweater of an old friendship built from years of trust and respect.

All in All;

Abolishing false stereotypes and accepting true ones is something I deal with a lot. It always amazes me what I think I know, only to realize my knowledge is based on a stereotype.

Pairs has been featured in countless movies and television specials. For this reason, there is no way any city could live up to the expectations that have been placed upon it. I found my self a bit disappointed when I would gaze upon a monument or work of art, and realize how small it was.

I found Notre Dame not to be the dark gothic “sanctuary” I have seen in film, but a light colored beautifully decorated cathedral. Mona Lisa was smaller then her posters in the gift shop, and the Eiffel Tower was just not tall enough.

I expected a more romantic atmosphere like music playing, or people kissing everywhere. Part of me even realized I was disappointed that the air smelled like a city and not like perfume.

I know the difference between reality and fantasy; I just never realized how much of my “reality” was built by a fantasy. So all in all, Paris was a great trip with my husband. We spent lots of time together, and saw amazing things. It was relaxing yet tiring, as all vacations tend to be. I learned that Paris is just another city, and to check my expectations of what is real, and what is fantasy.

Food;

Like I have said before, we are not very experimental when it comes to the foods that we eat. While in Paris we did bow to the stereotypical experience of eating a croissant on a park bench, and we did share a flute of bread when we were at the airport. However as far as every day eating, we visited a grocery store and bought a few non-perishables to have in our hotel room. We got some snacks to keep in our backpacks, and some breakfast buns and rolls.

As far as dinner was concerned, we found a nice little restaurant that had a fantastic chicken dinner (Kentucky fired chicken). We also ate a little café that made great burgers (McDonalds). And we had pizza at busy lunchtime bistro (Pizza Hut). We know how bad it is to go to other country’s to obtain cultural experiences, but not try the food. It was our vacation and our decision how “cultural” we wanted to be. I do not regret not eating more French cuisine, and the chicken at KFC was the best we have had in a long time

Where we went and what we saw in Paris:

Eiffel Tower- Built in two years, the tower was the most important monument of the 1889 World fair.

We rode the trolley at the north end to the 2nd floor. From there we traveled by elevator to the 3rd and highest floor. We took many photos and visited the shops at the top of the tower. Since the Eiffel Tower can be seen from any other monument in Paris, by the end of the week we found ourselves saying, “there’s the tower again”.

Arc de triomphe- The Arc was built from 1806 to 1836 and its purpose was to commemorate the military exploits of France under the Revolution and the First Empire.

The Arc stands in the middle of a rotary. To reach the middle the city has built a tunnel that runs beneath the street, eliminating the need for pedestrian stoplights. The tunnel also diminishes the frequency of tourists being injured trying to cross the busy street. There were over 200 steps to climb to the top of the Arc. From the summit, there are amazing views or the entire city. Even more fun, was watching the traffic circling below you.

Notre Dame- The cathedral was under construction from 1163 till 1245. After the revolution the monumental and decorative statuary of the portals and towers were badly damaged. At the beginning of the 19th century, the towers, like the rest of the cathedral, were in very poor condition. After the success of Victor Hugo’s novel “The Hunchback of Notre-Dame”, a campaign was initiated to restore the cathedral to its original splendor. The renovations took place in 1845.

Inside the cathedral is as breath taken as the out side architecture. The stain glass images that line the church give a off a soft glow that bounces off the conclave ceilings. Standing outside on the bridge between the towers makes you appreciate the silent calm that comes from being high above the traffic and crowds.

The Louvre- The construction of the Louvre began under the reign of Philip Augustus in 1204. The construction took some seven centuries to complete. Originally used as a palace of the kings of France, it became a museum in 1793 and is now, one of the largest museums in the world.

While at the Louvre we saw many famous works, however we were surprised at how small most of them were. People seem to associate size with importance so I was surprised when I saw that the real Mona Lisa was smaller then the posters of her sold in the gift shop. We also saw “The Winged Victory of Samothrace”, the “Venus de Milo”, and masterpieces from all four teenage mutant ninja turtles.
Pantheon- Built from 1764 to1790, the Constituent Assembly decreed on April 4th, 1791, to turn the basilica into a temple destined to accommodate the remains of the great men of the Nation. Later the great women of the nation also found a final resting place within the Pantheon crypt.
Along the walls of the Pantheon are murals depicting French history. In the center of the room is the enormous Foucault’s pendulum guarded by a black cat. Ascending to the top of the dome, you have a 306-degree view of all Paris.

Boat Cruise-

After walking for four days, we took a boat cruise on the river. The cruise took about an hour and featured seating on a double decker, open top boat. The tour took us passed all the major sites that we had just spent hours walking to. I was a nice break for our feet, and the tour was given in English.

Moulin Rouge-

We did not sit in for a show at this famous landmark, but we did walk past it. As with so many other monuments and works in Paris, The Moulin Rouge did not seem to measure up to the size expectations Hollywood has placed upon it. Seeing the height of the windmill was a bit of a disappointment.
Cimetiere Montmarte-
During our walk to the Moulin Rouge we literally stumbled upon this famous cemetery. The graves and tombs are all above ground, and is the resting places of some well know celebrities including Jim Morrison, and Dumas.

Flee market-

As we were walking back to our hotel on the last day, we spotted flea market spanning the length of five blocks and two streets. We were hoping to find care bears only sold in Europe during the 1980’s, but to no avail.

Candid camera-

While we were walking down the street on our first day in Paris, a woman approached us and hit my spouse with the bouquet of flowers she was carrying. We kept walking, assuming it was a case of mistaking identity, when we heard clapping and laughing. A man came up to us explaining that we had just been filmed for a candid camera type of show. We gave him our information and consent for the footage, and they will be sending us a DVD of the show our segment in on.

Paris in general:

We did a lot of walking while we were in Paris. We could have just as easily taking a bus, subway, or joined a tour group. We felt that if you are going to see a city, you might as well walk it and see all its aspects. This approach allowed us to visit a few tourist traps we might have over looked from a bus window.

Not only did we walk a lot, but we also ascended around 1,000 stairs. When we visited the various monuments and structures, the only one that offered elevator service to all was the Eiffel Tower. The Arch of triumph and the Louvre had elevators for the disabled only, while Notre Dame did not have the space for an elevator. All of the stairs we climbed were constructed in and continues circling ascension, which created a high sense of vertigo.

All the buildings we entered had an amazing architecture inside and out.  Our favorite part of many of them were the ceilings. Every ceiling we saw was as ornately detailed as the walls. The passages and stair wells were from a different time. They were very narrow with only recently installed railings and safety measures. This was mostly evident at Notre Dame, where to cross the bridge between towers, only the ten year old did not have to round the corners by walking side ways.

The people were not the rude pencil thin creatures personified in art and print. They were very polite and helpful, especially in restaurants when we were a little lost. The one stereotype that seemed to be true was the amount of people carrying flutes (long thin loaves) of bread home for lunch and dinner. There were also many people sitting in out door cafes enjoying coffee and pastries at every corner.

Spring trip:

Last week we celebrated our fourth wedding anniversary. We decided to take a trip together to celebrate, and see a new country. For our anniversary where else could we go but Paris? I know it is cliché, but why not? When would we be able to take advantage of being a two-hour plane ride away from France?

So last Wednesday we got up very early and headed to the airport. We spent six days and five nights in Paris, and saw as much as we could. We were able to get to everything we really wanted to see, and a few things that happing to be in the direction we were walking. I will blog about everything we did and saw while in Paris in the next few days, but for right now……..time to sleep.

An “interesting” movie:

We went with some of the guys to a movie down town. The theater is presented as an “artsy” type theater. No food or drinks are allowed in order to preserve the appearance of the theater. They show a lot of older movies and unlike many other theaters, there is no assigned seating. We went to see “Zardoz”; a movie from 1974 that, stars Shawn Connery, and takes place in the future.

It was an interesting movie, but not what we expected. There was a lot of nudity and tons of sexual innuendoes. I am not very familiar with 70’s film so I was very surprised at the content. At the same time the movie was hilarious as a direct result of that same content. It was a good experience to not be disturbed by the graphic scenes, but to laugh them off in the humorous mood as it was intended to be.

God Paske! (Happy Easter)

Even though most people in Norway are not very religious, Easter is a very big deal. It kind of feels like an extended Thanksgiving because many people travel home to spend the week with their families. We are enjoying the time by going on walks, sleeping in, and spending time together.

Starting Wednesday afternoon, everything closes down because of the holiday, and they do not reopen again until the following Tuesday. The grocery stores open for a few hours on Saturday for those people that run out of food, but other then that they remain closed.

As a result of this I have a weeks worth of groceries in my kitchen for the first time in nearly ten months. It is strange when I realized how acclimated I have become to shopping for food every two days. On Thursday I was sure that half of the food I bought would spoil before we had a chance to eat it. It then occurred to me that I used to have this much food in the kitchen all the time back in the states. That realization showed me that I am integrated more in to this life then I had previously thought.

New place, again;

Well for the most part we are all moved in to our new apartment. After one more trip to Ikea, the apartment is no longer in need daily used items. All that remains is the spontaneous personal touches takes years to place, such as photos from travels, and sentimental items from experiences not yet had. The apartment is on the first floor which means no more “soft feet” out of respect for the down stairs neighbors.

We are enjoying the fireplace / stove in the living room, and have lots of wood stored in our basement storage room. We have used our attic storage room for out of season coats and clothes, and some under utilized computer equipment. The dryer in the laundry room dries the cloths in an hour, instead of the two days it used to take on the drying rack.

Besides the amenities, the apartment was recently updated for a clean and modern look. We are really enjoying this place and are relived to no longer have to worry about moving. We are still waiting for the Internet to turn on, so until then, we are doing all our Internet activities at Trolltech.

Moving;

We officially move to the new apartment on Friday. We have been staying at our new place, although we return to the last apartment to use the Internet. The connection at the new place has not yet been activated so this will be my last post for a little bit. Ha det bra! (Good-bye in Norwegian)

Ikea;

We have made two trips to Ikea so far to purchase items for the new apartment. The Ikea is about a twenty-minute ride from center of the city. Ikea has a wonderful bus service to bring customers with out cars to the store. Two special “Ikea buses” takes turns going to Oslo every half hour. The buses are fitted with lots of shelf space to accommodate all the boxes and bags.

The Ikeas here are just like the ones in the US. They are big and have everything from furniture to household needs. Ikea’s style is affordable, good looking modern furniture that you assemble your self. The items are also meant for setting up your first house, which means that they are not meant to last a lifetime. Since we were looking for items we can dispose of in four years, Ikea was a perfect fit.

We found everything we needed for the bedroom and the kitchen. The best item we found is called the “Ikea kitchen starter set”. Literally this set contained everything you need for cooking in your new kitchen. The set had pots, pans, casserole dishes, a timer, cutting boards, hot pads, potato peelers, scissors, a cheese grater, mixing bowls, Tupperware, every cooking utensils needed, and even a set of knives. Best of all, you got all this and more for about a quarter of the cost of buying the pieces separately.

Besides the obvious convenience of Ikea, the store is a nice destination for a day trip. It takes us about an hour to walk to the center, and then about fifteen minutes for the bus to take off. Walking around Ikea takes another hour at the very least, then the bus ride back to Oslo. After the half hour ride on the city bus and the walk home, we are pretty much done for the night. Just like in America, you never go to an Ikea on the weekends. This means that I go by myself during the day, or after  work.