Less than one week...

So. One week until I leave for Oslo. One week for me to look over some more Norwegian before I go, one week to look over all the logistics, one week to get my suitcase under the weight limit...It's strange to think that probably, once I return from my 7 weeks in Norway, this whole month I have had to prepare will have felt like a lifetime ago.

My interest in Norway has had something of an interesting start. Many have asked me, "Why Norway?" or just "So, you're Norwegian?" Yes, it's true that I am part Norwegian (my grandfather was), and there are many who have chosen to study Norwegian primarily because of their ancestry, but that isn't really the reason why I am a Scandinavian Studies major, or why I will be going to the University of Oslo. Even more interestingly, I will actually be the third generation in my family to attend the International Summer School, but this is certainly not the reason why I will be attending, either. I think it has greatly helped that I have been raised with at least a familiarity with this country that does not often get the attention it deserves from us Americans, and that I have grown up with people who know first-hand that this school is very well worth everything, but in the end, as any young person or anyone who knows young people knows, just because your parents like something does not mean that you automatically will. The same goes for my real interest in Norway/Scandinavia. If it were not for my wonderful opportunities to connect with Norwegian history, culture, and language on its own terms, it would be hard to say that I would be as personally invested in all of this. My first connection with Norway really began when I turned thirteen, and I got this surprise gift in the mail from some Norwegian friends who my parents knew from before they moved back to Norway. It was a tourist/souvenir book about Oslo that explained about its attractions - both historical and cultural, as well as of modern urban Norwegian life, and with it I began to pick up more about its socio-political dynamics and its role in world affairs (after all, this was during the start of the Iraq war, when matters of diplomacy and "drawing lines" were especially interesting....). The book gave me an insight into a country I realized I really didn't know very much of before, and thankfully, I was shown that there was much more to Norway than lutefisk and stuffy old worn-out Ole and Lena jokes, and it was actually pretty interesting.

My next experience came several years later when I was in high school and I was introduced to the Kent Sister Cities youth ambassador programs. My city has many great exchange programs with cities all around the world, and I realized that it would be a very meaningful way to really connect with another culture. One day, my school broadcast an announcement for the exchange program to the Sunnfjord area, and that if I wanted to do it, the applications were due in the next few days. So when I came home from school that day, I talked to my parents about it, pretty sure that I was springing this on them with too short notice and that the answer would be "no." But I thought it was worth a try. Besides (and this is really a whole other story), I had just recently won some money on a gameshow, and figured that traveling would be a nice use for some of it. Yes, really. Anyway, they actually encouraged me to apply, so excitedly I rushed to get together all of the things needed for the application, figuring at least it couldn't hurt. I was invited for an interview and went, but also thought I wouldn't really get any farther than that (after all, I was on the older end for eligibility, which was actually a strike against me). But then, a few days later, I got a call that I was chosen to be one of the two Youth Ambassadors to represent my city in the exchange program! It is funny to think how spur-of-the-moment this all was...!

The YA experience was, without a doubt, unbelievable for me. It was really fun to be able to host a Norwegian, show her a slice of local life, introduce her to some of my friends, and just be a Seattle tourist for a while. Then I traveled with her to stay with her family, and I just had an incredible time. The time spent there was not very long, but thinking back at all I did during the time I had in Norway (while still feeling like I was having a relaxing and a really good quality time with my host family) was extremely impressive. Not only did my family welcome me to a lot of the language, social/cultural issues, and political opinions, and even quirks surrounding Norway today, but they themselves were the most warm and welcoming people I've ever met. It was also really great for me to finally be able to meet the people who helped coordinate this program on the Norwegian end, one of whom I was emailing on a fairly regular basis and still keep in contact with to this day! So overall, I guess you could say that I wasn't going to forget about Norway any time soon.

So to make another long story short, I decided to go to PLU for college. And when I was choosing my classes, I saw that there was this January Term course that was going to Iceland and Norway studying language, culture, and identity in Scandinavia.....which seemed like pretty much the perfect course for me, considering these are all issues I was especially passionate about, AND I would be traveling to Scandinavia to do it. I asked the professor leading it if it would be possible for me to go, even though usually college freshmen aren't allowed to study abroad during their first year. I was told that if I were a Scandinavian Studies major, it would be much more likely that I could - oh, and by the way, think about taking Norwegian next year! And I figured....yeahhh....why not...? Besides, I was very interested in pursuing something with international relations, and why not view international relations through the lens of Scandinavia....

And thus I was sucked into being a Scandinavian Studies major.

And hence the reason for attending the ISS ....besides, as a triple major, taking classes during the summer was just a prudent thing to do. I will be learning more Norwegian in the context of a global community (a "mini-UN" as I have heard many put it), AND I'll be going back to Norway, AND I'll be able to travel back to Sunnfjord again.......so I am extremely excited.

And this is probably the place to mention (at least for the first time) how incredibly grateful I am for the generous scholarships from Nordmanns-Forbundet and the Sons of Norway. Their financial support really means a lot to me, because, well, Norway is expensive.

Anyway, my next post will probably be from Norway. So in the meantime, I will miss you all, and cross your fingers that my suitcase doesn't go over the weight limit!