Home Sweet Lillehammer!

Here I am, snuggled up for the evening in my lovely little flat. Home sweet home!

Two days ago, I finally got a chance to put sights, sounds, smells to the place that will be home for the next few months. The ten of us Americans represent one third of all of the international at the University here in Lillehammer, the others of whom we met yesterday morning~right before we began our first day of classes! More on that later though…

We are staying in two little flats in one of the student housing developments here in town. Two bedrooms, two bathrooms, a living area & a kitchen make for a pretty simple layout for our little apartment. We’ve had to get a little creative to make it our own, but we’ve done a pretty good job of settling in, complete with grocery shopping, having some “family time,” arranging bedrooms & unpacking. I know, oh for cute! Emma, Courtney & myself are the ladies of the house, with the resident guys being Erik and David. It is a really healthy group~lots of wit, humor & personality, which makes for a really fun, lovely atmosphere.

The first day of classes approached quickly after having had a month and a half off…kind of a rude awakening! But thankfully, it seems like we have a good mix of courses that will be interesting and keep us busy! All of us Americans are taking the same set of classes, which include culture & history, Norwegian language, a Scandinavian food course, and Legacy of Luther (which includes an overview of Islam as well). I’m super excited to learn about this place that is home for the next few months, as well as to gain at least a bit of survival Norwegian to avoid my wide-eyed, “ahhh, I don’t understand” face as often as possible. And most of you know, I’m a Luther lover…so that’s what I’m reeeallly looking forward to! Pretty diverse areas of study, some of which will contribute to my major progress, some that will just be fascinating to soak in the information (and then sit a four hour exam come April…eeek!).

Overall, I’m feeling good. It’s so nice to be settled and to know that I’m not going anywhere for the next few months~particulary when you factor in the fact that since December 17^th, I have moved out of my apartment in Moorhead, moved home, been back and forth between Esko and Moorhead three times, staying at various friends houses & being their resident “futon creature” for a few days at a time, took a jaunt to Kansas City, Missouri for the Youth Ministry Network Extravaganza (Such a fantastic weekend! So many great people in one place!), spent a layover-length time period back in F-M saying a few final farewells, then headed home to Esko…and two days later I was flying to Iceland. Whew. Constantly in motion, never in one place for more than a few days…so it feels fantastic to be able to just be home in our little flat.

Home. How bizzare, huh? But here I sit, surrounded by friends, and life is good!

Peace to you dear friends~L.