Right now, I am just checking in because I know it's been a while. Also, I could tell you a little bit about Oslo, Norway where I went this past weekend and got to see Sondre, a good friend (who's from Norway) from high school.
I went with three girls from my program, Sarah & Lindsey & Charlotte, and they were perfect traveling buddies! I am really grateful that they agreed to go to Oslo with me on one of our 2 travel abroad weekends. I am also grateful that Sondre let us crash at his place, because we had a good time & saved some serious money.
Here are some important facts about Norway that you may or may not know:
1. It's really cold.
2. It's beautiful.
3. The public transportation system works on an honor policy and we bought 80 kronnen tram passes that we didn't actually need.
4. It may be the most expensive city in the world.
5. Lindsey really likes the idea of a sculpture garden. Charlotte does not.
6. People in Oslo are like Canadian nice.
7. I don't think a lot of people think 'Let's take a holiday to Norway!' But I definitely suggest it. Especially visiting a city like Oslo and working up North where the reindeers live. I hope one day I can get back and visit the wilderness of Norway.
Overall, it was a really wonderful trip to Norway. We visited sculpture gardens, drank to stay warm and visited the Nobel Peace Prize Center. What an interesting place to say that you spent a weekend in, that's for sure.
In the second part of this blog post, I would like to introduce my Independent Study Project, which is a big component of all SIT programs. Next week is our LAST WEEK OF CLASSES. No more Dutch class, no more 10-3 in the SIT office and all research all the time. We get the following four weeks to conduct our own personal research to put together our Independent Study Projects (ISP). I spent 8 hours in a Starbucks on Sunday finalizing my ISP proposal. My topic of study focuses on Netherlands laws revolving around immigration, adoption and marriage policies and how they have changed over time. I am going to use these laws and oral histories of families who were affected by these laws to get an idea of how the legal system can shape the idea of family in the Netherlands. I am hopefully interviewing youth & young adults who come from alternative families that were most likely shaped by Dutch law.
To find my interviews, I will be starting to volunteer with the NGO, Profor Foundation, and starting tomorrow, I will be teaching children English! I'm excited to have some responsibilities because this semester has really just been about making friends and spending some serious $$$ (which we're all struggling with now).
Anyways, life is good as always here in Holland. Last night, after an evening SIT event, Myell, Lyla, ShaVante, Sarah and I were late night bike riding to go get some ice cream and I had an 'infinite' moment. I couldn't stop smiling because of my love for these people, this city and this moment in time. The thought of December terrifies me. Anyhoo, we have 2 parties for Halloween this weekend (hopefully there will be tons of pictures to document it!) and 2 papers due. Let's hope I can do it all.
Lemme know if I left something out,
Alex
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