Feels like Spring!

yaaay! the sun has come out for the first time in a loooong time! I think we will have great weather all week long! I woke up early today and went for a nice long ride on Drengen, the neighbors pony. He is like Candy, only a little shorter and with bad manners =p he is a lot of fun to ride though. I have also been learning how to milk the cows, and go up to the chicken farm to talk to my dutch neighbors when they are collecting eggs. It is a family living about a half mile away, they have a son and a daughter my age, and I can just barely say their names! I have also been training calves to go on walks like dogs. lol it is really cute because they were born in the winter, so they have never been outside the barn before, so when they see outside for the first time, their eyes get so big and they run around investigating everything and they are scared of their shadows.

Also: Bet had a foal! It was late last night and I have not been to see him yet, but Morten says it is a healthy little colt. hopefully I can get up there to see him today!

Some pictures from Denmark

Fancy new Windmills! they cost about 6 million dollars each, but they

give a lot of power

We went to a confirmation at this church- I thought it was really cute!

Martha, Steen, me and Helene outside the church afterwards

This is Kong Harold, My favorite cow here =) He isn't Danish though.

When we stopped the car for a bit to visit Steen's family,

I climbed up this hill and got some pretty cool pictures

A typical Danish house

New home and I'm sleeping in the snow!

this has been quite a busy time lately!
Reasons why this has been an interesting month:
1) I now live on a great big farm with dairy cows and chickens and cats and a bunch of feilds
2) I learned how to snowboard during spring break oon the ski mountian
3)I went on a "snow hole tour" on skis with the other exchange students
4) I went to Denmark with my host family this weekend.

My new family is really great. they have a daughter my age named helene, and we go to school together (It is at least a mile to the bus stop by the way!). my first week with them was during spring break and we were on Budor, the local ski mountian. they have a great cabbin right on the side of the slopes, so every morning I could just snowboard down the hill and start going from there! my host dad, Steen (he is danish) taught me how- he is really good!

The weekend after that I packed a big army backpack with food and extra clothes, and grabbed a pair of skis to go with the other exchange students on what quickly became the most unpleasant weekend of my life! the first problem was that I can barely ski- I can get around for a couple of miles, but it was tough here because we had the backpacks and it was straight UP the mountian. you couldnt take your skis off though because the snow was so deep you would get stuck. after about three hours of uphill progress we finally stopped, ate some bread, and started digging. it was only about ten of us students, and two norwegians a year or two older than us, and then a couple of the rotary members (they made the fire!) we dug two metters into the snow(ICE!) with these little pick ax shovels we had brought with us, and then we dug straight up, so in theory the place where we would sleep was higher than the door, so it would be warmer. the whole time we were digging and skiing, it had been snowing so we were soaking wet and it was SO COLD. there was so much snow and fog in the air you literally could not see more than a few hundred yards away the whole weekend. Anyway, we didnt get the holes done for a few more hours because it was so solid, but when they were done it was pretty impressive actually! the worst thing of all was the bathroom though---I will never complain about a port-a-potty again for as long as I live- at least the seat isn't made of ice!
when we were finally finished we ate dinner, but we were so cold and wet we ran straight back to the caves to get in our sleeping bags. that was the worst part, was trying to sleep! It was the coldest I have ever been in my life! It was four of us in our cave huddled as close as we could get, and it still wasn't warm enough to sleep! the next morning when we went to put our jackets back on, they were frozen stiff, like a block of ice, and we had to sit with all our clothes inside the sleeping bags before we could put them on! after a really quick breakfast, we went back down the mountain but those five kilometers went a lot fast downhill I tell you what!!! when i got home I took a shower and went straight to bed and slept 14 hours solid! I think it will be a long time before I would do that again, but I am really glad I got the oppertunity, and it was deffinatly worth it! (at least I thought so a few days after!)(picture above!)


Aaaaaand, Denmark!!! It was a really short trip, but I think I saw an awful lot for such a short time! we took a ferry boat from Oslo to the top of denmark (about seven hours) and it was at night, so we slept in a little cabin onboard. In Denmark we drove about halfway down the whole country (a LOT of windmills, though not as pretty as the ones you see in old books- they are huge and silver but look like they give a lot more power!) we stayed with Steen's family there, and went to a confirmation on Sunday. It was an entire day of partys and eating. after the church service we had a five hour meal uuuuhf! Danish is supposed to be like Norwegian, But I couldn't understand peolpe when they talked fast. they understood my norwegian though, so that was cool =p

also, I have just uploaded a bunch of pictures from these events onto photobucket, so you can see them by following this link if you would like. http://s296.photobucket.com/albums/mm166/sarahnorway/

Some Pictures!

Just one horse picture, I promise :D!!! this is Ideelle before a race. She isn't as ugly as she looks in this picture though :p

This si a typical winter day here^^ I still think it is the most beautiful thing in the world, even it my nose is frozen!

Norway has the most beautiful sunsets! the cool thing is, even in the middle of the day there is some sort of pastel glow in the sky. This was taken by Torgrim's owner.

Sunset over lake Mjøse, the one I go by every day on my way to school.

These are some photos from the past couple of weeks, In Løten and Ådalsbruk.

If they don't make you want to come to Norway, I don't know what will!!!

A bit Strange!

So here I am in Tønsberg, the middle of No-Mans-Land Norway, and staying with my host Mom's Sister. Well after breakfast, the neighbor called and Lilla (I think that's how you spell it!) was telling her that I was staying there. The Neighbor, Sissel, wanted to talk to me, so we were talking a bit, and she asked where I was from. I said "Statesville". "near Greensboro Right?" yes sort of. It turns out, her sister lives in Greensboro. Kindof cool :D

Today was all pretty interesting. We went out on the Ferie, since we are on the coast. It isn't at all like the beach I am used to though- no sand- Mostly rocks and cliffs and fjords! it is really pretty though. Unfortunatly, It was raining and cold, so I don't think I got many good pictures, but I will check when I get back home! It is quite cool here- it is very rocky and hilly, with colorful houses in little clumps here and there. there are also lots of islands, some with only room for one tiny house and a boat dock. There is a very colorful church with a teal blue roof, overlooking the "main road" (cars have to take turns on each side, because only one can squeeze between the rocks at a time) I really like the chuches here- they are mostly very plain on the inside, with white walls and pews that are green or blue or something, but the coolest part is the ceiling- it is traditionally blue with clouds painted on it, so it is like you are unter an open sky when you are at church. We don't go to church very much at all though- most norwegians go only on easter and Christmas, and for babtisms and comformations.

Tommorow we are going to Oslo after breakfast, and Hilde and I are begging to be set lose to shop, instead of Museums :p we might have to settle for a compromise though!

Winter Vacation!

haha Now let me tell you, this is a NICE invention!
We have this whole week off, mainly so we can ski and such I believe. Since Hilde and I are both more inclined towards horses than skiing, we are in the southern part of Norway, at a horse show. it is really amazing- Grand Prix dressage and really amazing jumping!
The town where we are staying is called Tønsberg. We are at a big conferance center made by the Masons (the religious group, though I'm sure they were helped by brick layers :D)

http://www.hestefrelst.no/aegtv/Default.asp?action=view&id=980&WebKatID=128&alternateURL=1

this is a live feed to the cameras at the show, if you see this before Monday.

This evening after an auction, we are going to Kragerø, which is even further south, and on the coast. Then on Saterday we are stopping in Oslo on our way back :D

New Family!

This is Torgrim, who's name I had formerly spelled wrong :p He is a Norwegian Fjord horse. They have a blonde colored mane with a black stripe in it, that continues all the way down their back. They usuall have their manes cut like this to show it off =D

Hi! I have not had as much internet access as usually, so I am sorry for not having posted sooner :D I have moved in with my new host family, the Bjørkes. Per, Hjørdis, and my host sister, Hild Mari. She is my age and we go to the same school. It has been very nice so far- they have a very big family so I have been meeting quite a few people lately! I am not living to far from where I origonally was, ut now I am REALLY out in the country! It is a place in Løten called Ådalsbruk.

It is nice because Hild Mari (Hilde) rides as well. She has a horse Named Spriten that she is moving to the stable i have been riding at, so we can go together after school and ride. I am really excited because this Tuesday is a Trotting horse race, and the horse I have been riding and conditioning, Idiella, is going to be in it! Mortin and Nina are picking me up after school so I can come and watch =) I think she will do very well- she has gotten into great shape and is now scared of everything, which according to Mortin means "She is in the right condition to race!" haha. Also, the neighboring barn has actually moved Arc, the horse I was riding for them, so Mortin and Nina's barn! this is great, because now I can ride her whenever I want with Hilde.

Today our family is going Ice skating, which should be fun! I am not very good at it, but I am better than the first time I tried it, that is for sure! School has been going well too. We get our grades tommorow, and i am quite curious to see how I did, especially in spanish :p We haven't had final exams or anything, because our classes don't switch at the half year like they do in America. but no EOCs? thats allright with me!!! Well, I had better go and get ready to go skate!