It's been gettin' crazy here!

Hello again!

What an adventure the past two weeks have been! I will do my best to put to word what I've seen since my last entry. To help, I'll also attach some wonderful pictures:) (Not all of the pictures are mine, so I will give credit where credit is due, naturally) 

Even though it has been about two weeks since my last entry, I will spend the majority of my time talking about the 13th through the 15th of September. During that time a group of sixteen friends (including me) headed out to the coast of western Norway. We left Thursday morning in three separate cars, each rented for the weekend, and four other girls went by train. It was around a 7 hour car ride. the car ride was actually really fun. But, of course, we all had our hiccups. Two cars would leave for the area of Stavanger at 9 am. The third car would leave at 12. Unfortunately for the third car, which was my car, we were late by around four hours to pick up our car. The pick up time was scheduled for 8 a.m. and we didn't arrive until 12 p.m. So, you can already tell that my bad luck does in fact follow me wherever I go. No worries though, we ended up finding another car from the same service within 30 minutes. Once, we got on the road, we managed to stay relatively on track and we arrived in Sandnes at around 8 p.m. Again, we found trouble. We had no navigation system to lead us to the cabins where we would spend our night. So, after a long and slightly frustrating game of cat and mouse, the others found us and we headed back to the cabins.

The next morning, the real adventure started. We headed out for the beautiful Preikestolen over looking the Lysefjord. It was amazing, to say the least! The hike was relatively easy, but fairly steep at certain parts. After leading a fearless expedition up the mountain...from the very back of the line... my friends and I reached the top. It was a view I will never forget. Below, you can see a picture of me with my roommates from the side of Preikestolen. (Picture by Claudia Koening)

The view here was almost indescribable. The cliff edge forms a square. You can see in the picture below what the view of the ledge is like from above.

The view of the fjord was equally beautiful. In the picture below, you can see the fjord creeping it's way through the mountains to reach the base of Preikestolen. Even though you don't see the actual cliff face, you do gain an idea of how long and wide the water stretched. 

The weather was fairly nice on our way up Preikestolen even though it may look cloudy. We headed home that night exhausted from the climb and decided our plan for the next day. Unfortunately, our trip was somewhat spoiled by a lack of planning on all of our parts. We took only three cars, which would sit 15 people for a group of 16. That night the group had decided that it would split up. One group of 5 would take a boat tour of the fjord just around Preikestolen. The other 11 decided to head to Kjerag, a mountain made famous for it's breathtaking view and dare-devilish photo site. Instead of cramming 11 people into two very small cars, we decided to rent a third car. Realistically, we should have done this from the beginning. So, on the second day we headed to Kjerag. Sarah Brenkman, one of my roommates, did a wonderful job leading our group through a lot of the trip to Kjerag. From finding out how hard the hike was, to figuring out how the group could travel to Kjerag. With out her, a lot of the plans we had may never have happened. It's great to have someone around who takes time to care and plan for the group. I think we all help in our own way, but in my opinion she has really stepped up. But, I can brown-nose more later. 

We finally left for Kjerag, rain, wind and all the next morning. To be honest, I was nervous about climbing the mountain. I had a ridiculous rain pancho that was far too small for me and I had never truly climbed any mountain. Those from around our parts know that it is pretty flat back home. So, as the group went on, I did my best to keep up. The rain made a lot of the rock slippery, but thanks to chains running up the majority of the mountain, climbing to the top was possible. 

I don't think I ever saw anything as beautiful as Kjerag. It took my breath away. Truly, I can't even come close to what I saw. So, I'm going to leave the description to the few pictures I was able to take on the way up and at the top. Enjoy.

Kjerag near the top

Kjerag near the top

Panoramic view of valley

Kjerag again

The big rock in the center is famous... you'll see why at the end! Keep reading ;)

The way down... not really 

Water behind Kjerag

I loved this waterfall

Here is the actual way we went down. Just kidding mom, I wasn't that crazy!

 Hopefully those picture did some justice to the trip we made to Kjerag. Now, if you all remember, I mentioned earlier that Kjerag was pretty famous for its dare-devilish photo spots. It truly was one of the best places to take crazy pictures from. So, just to scare my family I thought I would share the following. Please sit down if you already aren't mom.

Trust me, you didn't want to fall off.

I'm not scared...

And to think I made it home alive

Look at that smile!

Hope you all miss me as much as I miss you!

Stay in tuned for more Adventures of Norway!

I like that ending... Its like I have a tv show or something.

It's been awhile.

Hello again,

I apologize for how long it has been since my last entry. I'm sure you've all been sitting at home waiting anxiously to here another breath-taking adventure from far across the ocean. So, I won't delay this train any longer. 

The last week and five days have been just as fun, if not more, than anything I've experienced. My classes are in full swing now and I have no complaints thus far. I am taking Norwegian 1 for international students, Intro to Norwegian Life and Society and Objects and Identities in the Viking Age. As you can tell, my plate is full of Norwegian goodness! The course on Objects and Identities in the Viking Age is by far the most challenging course.

As for all my free time here, I've been spending it wisely! I went to a lake on the 24th with my friends. The view here is absolutely stunning. There are over 400,000 lakes in Norway so it is easy to find some secluded and peaceful water. The next day, we went to the ocean shore off of Oslo. We arrived at a small island and hung out at the shore for the day. Now, if you're ever going to go swimming in Norway, you should read this next sentence carefully; Norway's beaches have no sand. Why is that important? Well, if you want to keep your feet from being sliced open, then you had better bring some sandals. Norway: One, Brent: Zero.

The next week went by in a relatively quick flash and before we knew it, the weekend was upon us. The majority of my friends and I signed up for a cabin trip sponsored by the Erasmus Student Network. (It's a European thing) The trip was awesome! The walk up was a brutal up hill walk but it was well worth it. When we arrived, you could look out onto miles of trees and hills. On the other side of the hill, at the foot of a small cliff, lied a pretty large lake. The water is always cold here, but, in my opinion, it has yet to be too cold. The cabin trip lasted one night and consisted of a lot of dancing, pictures, games, and plenty more. It will certainly be a night I will never forget.

I guess that's all I've got. Don't miss me too much, America. ;)

-Brent