Week Two in Oslo: The Land of Tall, Blonde, Leggy People

My second week in Oslo has been and gone! Time is flying by - on Tuesday, I finally start lectures, which I am actually quite excited about as it's the first time since being at university that I will have been able to choose my modules. This law degree will start to seem more like "my" law degree!

Here's a recap of the week:

MONDAY.

In the morning I headed to Grønland to buy fruits and vegetables... The best decision ever. I got a TON of fresh stuff for only £15 - I honestly think it might be even cheaper than in the UK! I made a huge delicious ratatouille which lasted me 5 days, and paired that with mystery mincemeat (Norwegian labels, you know?) which I'm pretty sure was beef. I also sorted out some boring but important documents which ensure that I will get my Erasmus Grant - free money, and part of the reason I chose Norway as my year abroad destination.

In the afternoon I explored Vigeland Sculpture Park with a few friends from my buddy group - Marta from Spain, Angèle from France, and Lipi from Australia. Gustav Vigeland is the artist who designed all the sculptures, and I read somewhere that they are meant to tell the story of 'the human experience' (debatable) - which results in some pretty funny sculptures, and some great picture opportunities.

TUESDAY.

We had an orientation meeting about the law school - it covered basic but handy things like where to find your timetable, how to use the library, etc. Plus we got free tea, coffee and cakes!

Afterwards, I headed to IKEA with Marta and Tajda (from Slovenia) for the second time since arriving in Oslo. Weirdly, they do not provide curtains in the student rooms here - something I do not understand at all. I can now attest to the fact that curtains are rather expensive, too! I bought some £9 specials which are a lovely orange but don't block out the light all that well... but I also don't get blinded when I wake up in the morning, and I have been able to retire the eyemask (for now), so they're good enough!

WEDNESDAY.

On Wednesday morning I woke up at the crack of dawn (i.e. 7am) to be the first in line to get my student card at 9am. It was worth it - I only had to wait about 2 minutes instead of over an hour. I also bought a 3 month gym membership - £60-something with access to 5 gyms, classes, a swimming pool, climbing walls, and no joining fee... a pretty good deal! The gyms are super nice here, too. I also bought a compendium of articles I needed for one of my modules (extortionately priced at £54). Then... I went to IKEA... AGAIN. I'd forgotten the stupid hooks for the curtains.

In the afternoon, friends and I headed to Gressholmen, an island in the fjord. The weather was lovely, and after an unintended detour through the trees and down a steep hill (I was leading - sorry, girls!) we found a nice area to eat our lunch and even have a little swim. Yes, I swam in the fjord, and it was not as cold as I imagined it would be! I do use the word 'swim' a little loosely though, as the area we were in was ridiculously shallow, and apart from a little bit of breaststroke mostly we were just crouching in the mud. Shortly after we dried off, it started to pour it down, and we narrowly managed to avoid getting drenched by taking shelter in the outside area of a cafe (which was closed. The owner saw us. That was awkward). I was wearing flipflops - highly inappropriate footwear alert.

That evening, a bunch of the girls from our buddy group all went over to Angèle's flat, where her flatmates joined in as well for a 'bring your country's dish' evening. I made apple crumble (thanks for the recipe Mum!) and we also had pancake from Finland, crêpes from France, sushi from Japan and tortilla from Spain (plus some other snacky bits). It was a really lovely evening with great people and I am thoroughly looking forward to the next one!

THURSDAY.

I headed to the gym with Marta, Angèle and Sara (also from France). I seriously intend to make the most of this three month membership. I was pretty knackered after Wednesday, though, so after the gym I mainly just lazed about.

In the evening we all headed to Chateau Neuf for an event called "How to be a Norwegian student" which was basically a really tiny version of a society fair with just a few stands and some information about how to contact the other student societies. BUT we got free pizza! Totally made it worth it.

FRIDAY.

Headed to the gym again, this time for a Zumba class - and let me tell you, Norwegians do not mess around. There were no slow songs in this Zumba class where you could catch your breath. We were essentially jumping for an entire hour - and also doing squats and lunges, because that's how you do Zumba in Norway!

The more Norwegians I see, the more I feel like a heffalump - they are all so beautiful, and blonde, and ridiculously fit! And even if they're not tall (although most of them are), they ALL have legs that go on for days. I would like to suggest that it's all in the genes but I know they have a much more active culture over here than we do in England, and it totally shows. If I could be one tenth as fit as these Norwegians by the end of my year abroad, that would be a success!

In the afternoon, Marta, Tajda, Lipi and I headed to the city center to do some shopping, and we also checked out the Opera House. It's quite a striking building; designed to look like an iceberg, it actually melts (sinks? falls?) into the sea! Warning: it can also cause you to go partially blind when the sun is out and you have forgotten your sunglasses.

SATURDAY.

Saturday morning I awoke to several messages from my parents asking me to skype them because they had good news. And... my sister got engaged to her boyfriend, on her birthday!! Super exciting! I also skyped my eldest brother, who is the proud father to the most beautiful 3 (and a bit) month old baby girl I've ever seen. It's always a treat to talk to him, and to see my niece's adorable smiley face!

In the afternoon I headed to the gym with a friend from my buddy group who is basically fitness chick #1. I haven't done such a good workout in a long time - thank you, Tajda! I'm writing this on Sunday and every single time I move it hurts. I have discovered muscles that I didn't even know existed!

SUNDAY.

Today I headed to a free walking tour of Oslo's street art with Marta. It was really interesting - I'm not really an arty person at all, I normally prefer history museums and the like, and I probably wouldn't have even noticed quite a few of the pieces of art if it weren't for the tour. The tour guide was a little eccentric and walked around barefoot for the entire 3 hours - his little tidbits about Oslo and the art scene certainly made it a great tour! I highly recommend it as a way to spend a Sunday afternoon.

As the tour ended in Grünerløkka I grabbed a delicious red chicken curry from a food stall at the market there. Yum! Afterwards we headed to the gym again (4 days in a row! Am I as fit as a Norwegian yet?).

NEXT WEEK...

Will be a little different! I have my classes on Tuesday and Wednesday, and from Thursday I am heading to Copenhagen for a long weekend to see my sister and her fiancé(!). I'm super excited! Pictures have been sparse this week so I'll be sure to try and whip out my camera more often too.