Studying abroad

In the summer of 2004, I studied abroad in Norway. I was there for about a month and 2 weeks. About 15 other Tech students went also, and a professor from Tech who arranged the whole trip. It was definitely a learning experience!

We lived in a small town in Norway called Honefoss. We each had our own little one room apartments with a bathroom & kitchen. I took 2 classes while there, International Marketing, and International Management. Every day, I walked down this huge hill to the school....(and I fell a couple times going down). Everyone in Norway was really nice. They all spoke English, but communication was still a little hard.

If I wanted to go anywhere, I had to walk. They had a tiny mall downtown, and some of us would walk down there every once in awhile. It was probably about a 3 mile walk from my apartment to downtown, and back.

Pretty much EVERYTHING was different there. The food was weird! They put butter on their sandwiches, instead of mayo or mustard. And the lunch meat that was on there was very questionable. They put corn on hamburgers & pizza. And everyone ate pizza with a fork and knife. One big staple there was hot dogs from the local gas station. I searched ALL OVER for a Dr. Pepper, and finally found one.

Also, everything was very expensive there....about 3 times what it is here. Like a coke was about 3 dollars. I went to the grocery store several times. I had to buy laundry detergent to wash my clothes. I could not read the labels on the boxes, and almost bought just fabric softener. I had to ask the cashier at the front "Is this to wash your clothes?" She looked at me & said, "No, this make....um clothes soft".

I bought some frozen pizzas to cook in my little oven, and they tasted really gross. Who knew it would be so different? I had to ask the guy at the grocery store if this bottle of white liquid was ranch dressing....he said no, it is sauce to put on pizza. Good enough for me...that's what I wanted it for. I actually brought some food, though so I was good. I looked forward to eating Velveeta mac & cheese every day....haha.

I got really homesick while I was there also. I knew I would miss everyone, but I never realized just how much. I talked to David on the phone every day, and cried every day. We spent A LOT of money on calling cards.

The whole studying abroad experience was something I am very glad I did. I learned so much about other cultures, and how to deal with all kinds of people. I learned a lot about how to get around when traveling. If you are considering studying abroad, do it...it's a once in a lifetime experience. It will teach you so much more than you would ever imagine!