Bergen – Retrospective

October 15th.

I am currently writing this (and catching up the Bergen posts) on a plane leaving Bergen heading to London (Cape Town is the next stop). I really liked Norway and will probably go back there for a while (maybe 6-12 months) in the future. I am scheduled to be back in Norway in January and possibly in April as well for the ROOTS conference which could be very cool.

Leaving was a bit weird. I stayed an extra day at Tone’s because flights were cheaper. She walked me to the flybussen earlier and said goodbye (who knows maybe our paths will cross again in the future, I am coming back to Norway and she is heading to Cape Town what’s funny is that we are both going to the opposite place at the same time… seriously what are the odds of randomly meeting a girl in Norway with precisely opposite travel schedules from yourself?)

random political note: even the Norwegians seemed amazed that Obama got the peace prize

I have to say that the weekend at the cabin with Tone was the highlight of my trip in and around Norway. It was so peaceful there and I believe we both had a great time.

One thing I learned on this part of the trip was don’t rely too much on things like credit cards. Keep lots of money in many different places (hedge your bets) you never know what can go wrong.

A bonus for me was that I spent 22 days or so in the same hotel which is a large brand in Scandinavia called Scandic Hotels. I joined up their frequent stayer package and already have amassed a few free nights that I can use in the future. I will try my best to stay with them again when I come back through Sweden and Norway in January.

I will be arriving in London in about 45 minutes though I will not be staying very long. I will be staying with Sebastian Lambla in Picadilly Circus (always better to stay with friends right?). the tricky part will be getting from Gatwick to his house but I don’t think it will be too bad. I will also try to pick up a SIM card for the iphone at the airport even though I won’t be in London long.

Leaving Bergen I grabbed a few souvenirs/presents for people. For Sebastian I got a filet of smoked salmon. For me personally I got some caviar and a wine bottle topper with a troll on it (don’t ask). I guess I received another souvenir because I had to buy a sweater while there as I did not bring enough warm clothes (sweater = 1400kr <> $300 US ouch but hey it’s “special”). Leaving I gave Tone a present, a copy of On the Road by Jack Kerouac.

Since I am going to be back a few times I decided to pick up a book on Norwegian. I won’t put too much practice into it as its a language that only 4 million people speak but having some cursory understanding could be a good thing.

I will be doing a talk in London Saturday for their alt.net group then will likely head south on Sunday to Cape Town where I will hopefully be meeting up with Ernst and getting settled down for a few months.