Non-stop Norwaying.

I rather neglected the laptop over the course of my holiday. So here's an update conveyed through the magic of pictures (with relevent labelling).

Mia and I watching skins, wasting the morning away:

We paused, so she could check I didn't put any ugly pictures of her in my blog :P.

Foreplay with some of their friends on Wednesday evening. This is where I learned how to swear (and ask for a quickie and for beer) in Norsk:

I should maybe explain... foreplay in the Norwegian context is the before-bar/club gathering of friends at someone's place. Beer is so expensive there that buying all your drinks out is like buying a new TV every night.

Caroline, one of the women hosting the foreplay, showing me her bunad - Norwegian national dress. Like kilts, there are different varieties depending on where you come from and what not.:

The single most fun handdryer I've ever encountered, right beside the single most fun towel dispenser (in a bar called bær og bar in solsiden - a rich area of Trondheim):

Peddle-powered, mofos.

Miiiiiamia

The tyholttørnet tower's revolving restaurant, where we had pizza with Jørgen's friend Marius. This is the second time I've been on a winter trip to a town with a large revolving restaurant as an attraction. This place was the very epitome of cozy:

Pretty beautiful. Next time I'll need to see in daytime.

After a huge pizza each, we went to digest (and watch Ross Kemp on Pirates) at Marius' flat. Mia and Jørgen for all intents and purposes used to live here so they felt right at home... apart from one major alteration. If you don't want to see a video of something we call 'the porn toilet' than don't click play! You've been warned:

You know your relationship is solid if you can read FHM whilst wrapped up in your girlfriend.

I had seen a lot of Trondheim by transport or high vantage points, so I couldn't wait to dip my toes in the sand. The next day, we went for a walk and saw some of the sites. At once point we took a break for some coffee at a shop called Choco boco, which is fun for any Final Fantasy fans out there (no pictures, but you can google it.):

Here's a picture of the student village Mia stays in. You wouldn't want to drop a match in tree-house Norway. The whole town'll burn around your feet.

The town is dominated by the river where-ever you go. It's still a little too cold for many people to fancy flying around in their boats, but It still made a really nice sight.

In the old town area, Mia showed me her old house. It was in here (on her computer...) that she first spoke to Gavin and I so many years ago. Who would have thought a week long visit from some Norwegians in 3rd year of high school would result in a bangin' holiday years later (as well as such an incredible friendship).

Here's the old town. Tobermory is put to SHAME. It baffles me that buildings in Scotland are all grey when they can look this good.

Anonymous take to the streets in the city centre. Problem?

So, we get statues of fairly obscure podgy people in coats. Trondheim gets a guy with a SWORD and a bloomin' Hawk. Olav the Holy - don't know much about him apart from his role in uniting Norway.

We had some dinner (Komla, reeeeeeally really satisfying) and prepared to go out with Jørgen's brother Henrik, and friend ørjan to a for pubs. No one knew the old-man-pub we sank into at first; but we soon had a brilliant time at the Three lions. Perhaps obviously, it was an English sport's bar that was embarassingly better than the rubbish Scottish one down the road. The people had real character and were damn happy to sing along to the live music after several encouraging beers:

LittleMia always had to stand on chairs to reach anything on the top shelves in her flat. I wonder if I'd be this happy if I were small :D

MacBeths: Better if you're 60+ and drunk. (also, what's with the traditional 'British' phonebox?)

What did I see in the Three Lions but the signature of a friend of mine from back home who visited last year. I asked for a pen, and signed my name alongside.

Hoots the noo.

This is how Norwegians look if you spill their beer.

Yesterday was buuuuusy. Like with the revolving restaurants, my visits abroad are always met with a large family gathering where I can't understand the language. Jørgen's mother was kind enough to invite me to her 50th! Lovely family, and the food was just incredible. The plates were passed around the table in a circle in a sort of 'take what you want' tapas scenario before an exceptional dessert found its way to our plates. It snowed for the first time since I arrived (bah, stupid warm spell):

It was exactly what I'd been hoping for in terms of weather. After about 5 minutes in this you became the same colour as the ground.

Dinner, in a private room aside from the main restaurant. The patrons of the other room were all members of the blind society; something I wish I had known before I got impatient with a couple of individuals who rudely ignored my signals that I wanted by... Cringe.

The setting for Resident Evil 6.

Finally, after many hours of eating and chatting; we went to meet with a laaaaaarge group of people for another foreplay. Hoho... This was the most fun I've had when out and about for a long time. When we were suitable, ahem...sated, we went out to the student centre. Something completely beyond any attempt at a centre I've seen in Scotland thus far. I wish I'd taken more pictures of it:

Look what genuinely gets sold here!

A crowd of people I really hope I meet again.

At about 2am, I dramatically declared Trondheim 'conquered' then fell into a taxi.

On my last day (sadface) in Trondheim, we have relaxed and spent time in each others' company. With any luck I will find my way back here soon, and craft a home in the wood and snow. Tonight we play poker, and I prepare for my trip home. Thank you for the memories Trondheim!

Jeg er ikke Norsk, men....

Det var en flott tur!

I've only been in Trondheim a few hours, but my God what a welcome. The flights went surprisingly well, in a system where delay is practically mandatory. Schipol Airport in Amsterdam was the biggest and...grandest airport I've ever seen. You could fit Dunfermline within the buildings, let alone the grounds. Lots of marble / marble effect and many different types of bar and restaurant from various places in Europe. I was very tempted by the first ever revolving sushi restaurant I've seen in my life... but I had to run. I had been delayed from getting from arrival-lounge to the next gate by a huuuuuuuge queue of Asian folks wearing medical masks. It stretched off into the distance like a line of men who just heard that Christina Hendricks had decided to do individual lap dances for each of them.

This left me a little startled, but Mia later assured me this sort of thing happened quite often with Asian folks travelling through Europe. Some mad (and frankly a little insulting) fear of catching disease from us. Psssht.

All of this was completely driven out of my mind (along with everthing other than awe and the realisation that a life-long memory was being formed) when I saw the Northern Lights from the plane. Tempering this exceptional view was the ferocious lightning storm silently flaring in the clouds behind the mountain range to the north. Like with all such moments, a perosn has the choice to look or to take a picture. I chose to look, unfortunately for you. Insert generic northern lights photo here:

It looked roughly like this. Except there was lightning and an astonished American woman.

I got into Trondheim just before midnight, lugging my luggage (fun to say) off the bus next to Sentralstasjon. Trondheim has a river going through it called Nidelva, and next to the station was a boardwalk filled with boats. My breath was misty in the freezing air as I leaned against the barrier and took in my surroundings. The buildings were all wooden and painted colourfully, the snow tips of nearby hills and mountains poked out over the top of them. I still had no idea what the city looked or 'felt' like, but I was welcomed warmly by random drunken citizens who shouted and waved at me from across the river. All my nerves about travelling washed out of me in a slow-drip of coziness, and I waited for Mia and Jørgen with a smile.

Koselig :)

They helped me with my bags, and very kindly paid for my bus ride back to their student halls. Shaded in Darkness, the city was yet a mystery and my focus was directly towards the bastard ice-rink beneath my feet. Ice everywhere. Mia had warned me repeatedly about the size of her flat, saying it was 'veldig bittesmå!' I live in a bedsit back in Dundee so I'm fairly used to cramped living conditions. Mia's flat, I can tell you, is HUGE compared to mine, and richly furnished! Look for yourself!

Scottish first year students living in halls, altogether now: "Sadface".

And for God sake, pictures say it better than words, they greeted me with a table flushed full of Norwegian food. Just...take a moment to think of the noises my stomach made when it saw this:

Notice that they had kaviar? Buy it. Go to Norway and buy it immediately. It tastes like victory.

So, all in all a very cozy arrival! I woke up today to see Mia; whom I've long known through photos and text, smiling and making breakfast. It was so cool seeing her for real again! When online reality coalesces into the offline world, bloody good holidays result! Her Dad, the author Birger Sivertsen, came round to give us a tour of Trondheim in his car. What a pleasure to see the city through the eyes of locals who knew some of the history. Here's a few of the pictures, until my next post :).