KRISTIANSAND, NORWAY
August 15- 17, 2019
the airport was very small and it took us less than 30 minutes to go from sitting on the plane to riding to the hotel in our taxi, which was really nice. when we arrived it was cold and rainy, which apparently is typical for Norway. the car ride was pretty short and when we got to the hotel, grammie and i stood outside the lobby near the street with all the bags while mom checked in. as we were standing on the sidewalk, a big bus pulled up and parallel parked into our bags and knocked them all over and almost hit us. that was cool, love that for us.
the hotel we are staying at is super cool, the outside is being redone but the inside is very modern and there are lots of cool places to sit and hang out. the breakfast is also insanely good in the hotel, they have basically everything you could even think about at 8 am for food. they have breads and cereals and vegetables and fruit and nuts and yogurts and meats and an espresso machine and a juice machine and i’m really hungry while i’m writing this so i guess that’s why i am so talkative about the food but actually it’s so nice. the coffee at the hotel and in Norway in general is probably some of the best coffee i’ve ever had. basically anywhere you go for a meal they serve coffee, and i love it. speaking of food still, the cafe’s and bakeries are amazing. i could sit on my computer, drink coffee and eat pastries all day haha. there are a few cute bakeries and coffee shops near the hotel and after lunch every day mom, grammie and i have tried out a new one. i think we should definitely start this in America because there are bakeries all over Europe and they’re all amazing. when i come back i’m starting a petition.
it’s beautiful here. everything is within walking distance and not many people ride their cars around the towns which is really different than the states but i love it. there are so many little shops and boutiques and cafes. it’s a bit more urban than Amsterdam was. there are less bikes, more cars and more lime scooters than anything else. the shops all have adorable clothes but when i read a price tag it means almost nothing to me haha. their money is so different. American dollar is the same as about nine Norwegian krone. so, not only is everything a bit more expensive in general, but the prices look odd anyway haha. a coffee is like 67 krone here... which looks crazy expensive and when you convert it, it really is a bit pricey in comparison to home. but, it’s worth it. i would definitely be even more broke than i am if i lived here.
the language barrier in Amsterdam wasn’t bad at all. everything was in english and most everyone spoke it as well. here in Norway it’s a bit more difficult. there are rarely things written in english and when someone does speak it, they only know a little bit. i’m not surprised, obviously, we’re in a foreign country, but it was kind of a shock going from a different country that spoke our language to one fairly close in proximity that didn’t. even at restaurants and little touristy areas things aren’t written in english. some places do have a separate english menu, or a smaller english font under the Norwegian, but it’s confusing. another thing that is different is that everyone is always smoking everywhere here. grammie really really hates yet at every meal we somehow end up sitting outside next to someone smoking. it’s worth it though because hearing all of Grammie’s comments are very entertaining.
The weather is a fairly similar to Amsterdam. It's rainy and windy but the sun comes out occasionally. Norway is beautiful and i love all the architecture, the people, and the over atmosphere of where i’ve been, but i feel like i could never live hear because of the weather. apparently Seattle is the same longitude as Kristiansand, but i feel like we have warmer at home. it is fun to wear big sweaters and layers and stuff though. a lot of the girls here wear tons of layers and just tie them around their necks or waists or something.
This post is a bit all over the place, so, i’m sorry for that, but we’ve all been so busy exploring the shops, churches, parks, restaurants, coffee shops and everything else. Tomorrow we will board the ship and I can’t wait!