You can get with this... or you can get with that

Norway isn't Sweden.

Norway, also, isn't America.


I don't know if I've made that fact clear over the eight or so months of this blog (save the summer vacation break).

The two countries are different, not radically different (yeah, the whole "different language" thing jumps out at you...), but different (but, Norway and America are WAY similar than Belgium and the good ol' USA).

It's not a bad thing (something I had to remind myself early on...), but it can lead to a lot of "Wait.  What?" moments.


For Example:

Numerous items in supermarkets are sold based on weight (i.e. Carrots cost 51 kroner a kilogram), not that much different than in the states (well, carrots wouldn't run like $4 a pound unless you were in Alaska, but I digress).  However, in Norwegian supermarkets, there are no scales to ascertain how much one has procured of said product.  I didn't realize this the first time I went to a Norwegian supermarket and proceeded to walk around the store for like twenty minutes searching for a scale.  I ended up almost sending six apples through the bread slicer (if you're scoring at home, yes... there's a fancy, bread slicer, but no scale).  It wasn't like I wanted to only buy 60 kroner worth of apples, I was curious how many grams equaled six apples (approx. 720 grams).  A buddy of mine just chalked it up to the "Norwegian way", but I have definitely seen people sneaking scales into the supermarket.

Whatever.  I've adapted by guessing the weight and, when I'm right, I break out the Anne Hathaway...

Fine, something non-food related...

Alcohol cost more in Norway.

Though, its not to say that all the differences are bad or annoying.

Here is an Oslo, city bus

It is cleaner and runs on a vastly more efficient system than virtually every major city bus I've rode in the states (NYC, Baltimore, DC, San Diego, Chicago, Philadelphia).  A lot of the bus lines (particularly the one I frequently ride) run 24-hours a day.

Additionally, there is a flat rate for Bus, Subway, and Light Rail (all vastly cleaner and efficient) so there's no figuring out if you have enough on your travel card (I think NYC is also the same and I know the bus and subway in Baltimore are the same, but who takes those?).

Anyway, the longer I live here, the more I appreciate what makes Norway unique and cool (speaking of cool, it snowed twice in the past week... Fall doesn't linger here).  It's a special place with a lot of interesting food and culture.  Writing this blog has been my way to share with you all how fortunate I feel to be having this experience...

Instead of sharing more sweet and corny sentiments, I'm just going to post another funny, norway related .gif

ALT FOR NORGE

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Russ...

Attention American, High School Seniors (and those that were high school seniors at one point, even if it was way back in '99), congratulations on graduating!  However, as you embark on Senior Week, know that while you might think your week-long, dalliance at the beach or having crazy house parties with Matt Damon are the ultimate, you're mistaken.

Norwegians go harder than you... Yeah?  Oh Yeah...

It all starts with the magical time of Russ.

I don't even think this needs a caption...

The Basics.
The period of celebration for graduating Norwegians is referred to as Russefeiring and those that participate in it are Russ (not to be confused with Rus, which means intoxication from drugs...).  The word Russ derives from the latin cornua depositurus, which means "bound to put aside one's horns" and is synonymous with many Scandinavian University Acceptance ceremonies (sinister legend suggests that during the time of "union" with Denmark, when Norwegian students attended The University of Copenhagen, snarky Danish students made them wear horns to denote their more "rural roots".  The Danes are mean).  Either way, there have been Russ, in some form or another, for a couple hundred years.


That sounds kinda gangster, but how can that compete with beer bonging and party hopping on the beach?


For starters, the period last longer than a week as it stretches from May 1 (May Day) to the National Constitution Day on the 17th.  Secondly, since the school structure is different here (Norwegian "middle school" is four years long), most Seniors are 19 when they graduate or, if they're precocious or born in the back half of the year, 18.  The drinking age in Norway is 18 (for beer and wine, 20 for hard liquor... but whoever waits?).  No fake I.D. needed.   


But they don't even have beer pong, how much fun can it even be?


It looks like a blast.  For starters, the whole "rural roots" thing gains traction here.  The customary clothing are overalls (yes, everyone and yes, they wear them for the duration of the 17 day period... it's frowned upon to wash them... in fact, if you get caught, they make you caught off a leg of the overalls), for everyone.  Boys and Girls.  They also have different colors depending on the course of study going forward.  Blue are for the Business kids, Black for Engineers, Green for Agriculture (the most rare of the Russ), and, for everyone else, Red.  Additionally, to discourage drunk driving, its customary for Russ to pay for transportation.  Not just any kind of transportation, but a tricked out bus.  You think your prom limo was fly, these busses can cost upwards of a quarter million US Dollars (think part RV, part tour bus).  

Where does the money come from?  You get sponsors, of course!

LEGO man gotta beer!

Or, your parents are just Oslo Ballerz and you and your friends just pool your allowances for it.

Either way, kids race around after school (that's right, these kids party and bomb out of their mind WHILE SCHOOL IS STILL GOING ON... they haven't even graduated yet.  They still have to take exams, which is in mid-June) going from party to party (The first weekend in May, there's a huge party in Stavanger) or creating their own.

Ringnes and Hansa for all

There are actually prizes for having the best bus.  The whole thing isn't a complete loss because most Russ recoup a sizable portion of their investment by reselling the bus the following year to the next set of Russ.

Aww, crap... I give up.  Are there anything else that they do that should make me hate my life or try to pose as an exchange student?

Instead of getting those wallet-size graduation pictures to hand out (There's a drawer at my parent's house that contains about a dozen of them along with my junior prom pictures... poor investment), Russ have mock business cards that they hand out to anyone that, if you clink the link you will see, contain a picture and a whole bunch of zany tidbits.  I think when I found out about this, I spent a few days trying to figure out what my cards would say.

So yeah... I won't say this often, but Norway wins.  Hands Down.

"Like" the OSLOst in Space on Facebook (Facebook.com/oslost)

Alt for Norge

Thank you for coming to Løews and random pictures

Slow week on this end of the Atlantic... I think the most exciting thing that happened was going to the movies to see Hugo (it was outstanding!  Thanks for asking!).

Whose ready for a movie?  THIS GUY!

Contrary to Pulp Fiction, not every European film house serves beer (Oslo being in the non-serving company).  Though, when one orders popcorn, unlike in America, where a teenager will, disinterestedly, scoop out day old popcorn from a huge tumbler and hand it to you; in Norway, they just have bucket upon bucket of popcorn, pre-scooped, sitting behind glass like they were sodas at a gas station shop.

That's another reoccurring theme here... they don't believe in the illusion.  There's no presentation, it's just "here you go" (what do I mean by this?  Another example, in the states, at Starbucks or most other drink shops, there's a high counter where the barista/server will disappear behind and "perform their magic" before returning with your drink.  Here, the counter is low and there barista/server will hack and sloppily scoop/mix the ingredients before handing you your order.  Also, whipped cream isn't part of the deal!  Wars have started over less...)

Anyway, the inside of the theater looks relatively the same (not sure what I was expecting).

So that's that...  and since I have nothing else funny to say, please enjoy some pictures I took while hanging out around town (no, these aren't all from the same day):

No... I didn't rent out the whole tram.  It just feels that way.  I spent the two stops when no one was on pretending I was Denzel Washington in that movie where the train is running away... That's how good that movie was, I can't even remember the name and don't feel like googling it to reference it.  I'll stop typing now...

         

No... The city of Oslo is not in complete black and white.  That would be cool, right?  Anyway, here's a slightly creepy ad to drink more chocolate milk.  Steers is pimps, too, go an' brush ya shoulder off!

This is like my Ken Burns' shot... I can almost hear soft, piano music accompanying this shot

No matter how many times I see it, I always trip when I come across the "random street going through a building" building 

This graffiti artist does not care for children playing!  Though, the one kid on the right looks like he's doing the running man.  

That's it... oh, if I get enough questions, I will do a "Q&A" post next time.  You can message/post the questions on my wall on Facebook (www.facebook.com/OSLOst)


And, as always... Alt for Norge