Europe 2012-2013: The Lost Stories

When I think about my year abroad, now 2 1/2 years later, I realize that there are some stories that I never really told. I think I'll save them for my next blog (coming summer 2016), but I wanted to put a place here where I can link to them later, since they are a part of this "So you think you can France?" year. I don't necessarily promise to tell them, but I hope to do so.

The Story of The Midnight ER Run

The Story of The Greek Man Who Has Facebook (...of course)

The Story of the (Kind of) Expert Party Escapers

The Story of the Jolie Fleur

The (full) Story of the Most Stressful KFC Visit Ever

There may be more, which is why it's good I now have a place to collect them. :)

London Calling (if I had a phone)

After leaving Lottie's on May 15th, I headed to London so that I could catch my flight back to France on the 16th. You may or may not remember (probably more like not because it's been 2+ years since I posted this), but the week before I stayed with Em and Lottie, I had left my little old faithful red phone in my bed. In a hostel. In Scotland. (I still remember: room 7, bed 7, Budget Backpackers hostel.)

Luckily, my new Australian friend Caroline was staying in the same hostel and headed to London next, so I asked her if she could do me a HUGE favor and bring it to me in London. She graciously agreed (seriously, meeting awesome people when traveling is the best!), and so we were set to meet in London on the 15th. After I met up with Caroline to get my phone and go for tea, I was supposed to head to my friend Nicole's apartment on the other side of London.

Speaking of meeting fantastic people when traveling, I met Nicole in the summer of 2007 when we were both in a French immersion program at l'Université Laval in Quebec City. We were part of a group of four girls who were inseparable during those 6 weeks. She's hilarious and has one of the best fashion senses I've ever seen. She's Colombian but was living in London, Ontario when we met, and has been jet setting ever since. (I think she's possibly lived in my more countries than I've even been to.) Anyway, she was living and teaching in London at the time, and when I told her I was coming through and would love to meet up, she graciously offered to host me for the night!

So, back to me in London on May 15th. First I strolled around a (very short) while. Basically just getting out of the train stations. See?

the Gherkin, actually called 30 St Mary Axe

Anyway, I wanted to have WiFi access when waiting for Caroline to arrive at Liverpool Station, in case she needed to contact me (since I didn't have my phone). So, I parked myself at this exact KFC on Liverool Street across from the station to sit in that chair on the left, eat some fries, connect to WiFi, and wait.

This is actually important because it became an important/funny moment/memory. Full story some other time.

Then, I saw her! I ran out of KFC with my laptop open in my hands. 

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It was not her.

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I went back to KFC. This time I bought a soda. Soda for WiFi. I sat down again. 

It was at this point that I started getting a LOT of email. Email regarding some business at home. Email that was kind of urgent, was stressing me out, and was coming in fast and loose. I was trying to respond to these emails, figuring out how I felt about the pertinent situation (which would affect my future), trying to watch for Caroline, and trying to communicate with Nicole to a) figure out where to go to get to her place later and b) explain my weird limbo phone state (and how I would communicate with her once I got my phone, which would of course be dead after a week).

Finally, I see Caroline! 

I rush out to meet the real her this time, and we start talking, and she breaks the news: 

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She's forgotten my phone. 

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BUT! Don't fear the worst! She didn't forget it in Edinburgh. 

She left it at her friend's house... boat.

That's right, a houseboat. I'm thinking... Huh? I spent three weeks in London (in 2007) and never once saw a houseboat. There are houseboats in London? How far away are these houseboats? Are they even in London?! Houseboats. I tried to rack my brain to think if I'd ever seen a place where I thought one could possibly even park a houseboat. I came up short. Houseboats, y'all. Of course.

So, we headed off to meet her friend (of living on a houseboat fame) and have tea. We did, and had a nice little chat (occasionally punctuated by me (not at all) surreptitiously checking my laptop for signs of communication from Nicole and to explain to her that I would be later than originally planned).

Anyway, after our tea, we headed off to [I honestly have no idea where we went; we took the Tube and a bus and ended up somewhere] so we could arrive at...

THE HOUSEBOATS.

Okay, so, I'm actually pretty excited that she left my phone and we went to the houseboat, because it was pretty sweet. Perhaps that will be my next adventure?! Katy: The Houseboat Years? The Houseboat Blog? (real name tbd) (If I ever have a houseboat, that is.)

Anyway, I was reunited with my precious little red phone,* then I headed off to the other side of London to meet Nicole. Unfortunately it was super late by the time I got there, but we had wine and made falafel and it was so amazing to get to talk and laugh after a casual six years without seeing each other. She was teaching in outer London at the time and had some very interesting stories, to say the least.

Honestly, one of the coolest things about traveling is meeting great people. It's even better when you cross paths again somewhere down the line. It feels like time travel. I hope I see both Caroline and Nicole again at some point in life.

Next morning, I was headed back to France home, so that I could get get my stuff and go to Texas home. That's right, y'all. The final posts are coming. 

(But get ready for some general sappy retrospective musings in tribute to that beautiful year, first. Sorry. Also coming up (less sappy, more exciting): The Lost Stories... funny or sweet stories that I never shared but deserve to be heard. I'm looking forward to that one.)

I should conclude by saying that when I was rereading this for edits, I kept thinking "MAN, traveling is so much easier now that I have an iPhone that I can use to check things quickly instead of opening my laptop up every time I need the Internet. It's too bad I didn't have an iPhone then!" And then I realized that HELLO that would have helped zero percent because almost the ENTIRE point of this story is that I am stupid enough to leave my phone in my bed and then promptly LEAVE A COUNTRY.

*Honestly, I really loved that little phone, even though it was a dumb phone. It had so many adventures in its 3 1/2 years with me, truly. It could have had its own action & adventure movie, bless it. RIP.

I love you and I miss you, lil' red. ♥

Prodigal Blogger

I have an announcement: I’m back to the blog. I feel ashamed that I’ve been away for so long, especially since I never finished logging this most epically adventurous year of my life (so far).

The truth is this: I returned back to my life, and my life is an American one. Not just American, but an American #teacherlife. We Americans, we value convenience. We value speed. We value efficiency. We as a society value being busy, and stressed, and overbooked. (WHAT the heck is wrong with us?!) Throw in being a high school teacher with 3 preps (2 of which are solo), which usually involves working 6 days a week at school. (Not to mention almost.every.other.waking.moment.) 

So, just like that, two and a half years have passed. (I just turned 29, y'all. I'm basically 30!) I’ve been busy. Too busy. Often too busy to spend enough time with the people that I love, and I hate that. (Still attempting to find a solution to this problem… please hold.) The good news is that upon my return, I was (obviously) gainfully employed and have had the same job ever since! (Story to follow, because the story of my hiring process from start to finish was straight up ridiculous.)

But it is time. The return was born of several things: the ache in my feet to travel to places they’ve never been, the more easily fulfilled desire to walk down memory lane, the need to write about old adventures and new* before they’re lost in my mind forever, the need to write, period,** and the some serendipitous encouragement of a friend. #shoutout

I will first be finishing “So you think you can France,” which will be a blog unto itself, solely following my year in France. I started some of the writing back then in May 2013, when I was getting ready to return. Some of the writing will be new, and therefore a little tainted or blurred by time. (I wish I'd finished sooner. But alas, here we are.)

I then hope to start a brand-new more general travel blog, which may include some other regular-life musings.

So, to anyone who’s still out there: I’m sorry if I never answered your comments, and that I never finished this blog. But here I am again… a casual two and a half years (un)fashionably late. But read this truth, from my fingers to your face: I’ve missed y’all. I’m glad to be back. Allons-y!

I look like this now. On a good day. Pretty much the same-ish. I hope. Oh I got LASIK! Bought this shirt in France... in 2013. Ha.

my 10 year high school reunion... I told you I got old.

But mostly, I do this. Wear a lanyard and school badge (but not makeup) and go to work. And look exhausted.

À bientôt!

Katy

*I did some traveling in summer 2015 that I need to write about, too!

**Thank you, Amy Poehler, for writing in a very real way that reminded me that writing is a beautiful thing. It’s like your words reached into my brain and coaxed my own out again. Except that I’m not as good as you. But I’m still doing it.

A Norwegian Reunion

Next stop after Stockholm: out west to Oslo! I hopped a six-hour train through the Swedish and Norwegian countryside to head to Norway's capital city. It's funny, I had decided on my destinations already and contacted Silje, my housemate for 5 weeks in Quebec in 2006. We hadn't seen each other since then, but I thought it'd be nice to see her for coffee or something. Instead of coffee, she generously invited me to stay with her! How kind, right?! I was super excited to see her after 7 years, catch up, and let her show me some of her life.

a still half-frozen lake on the way into Oslo

Our first night, I was super tired from my early departure from Stockholm, and we stayed in, watched TV (in English - in Scandinavia, they don't dub their English language movies/TV, but they put on subtitles in the local language). Dinner was tacos! Apparently Norwegians really like to make tacos on Friday nights. Fine by this Texan!

Norwegian breakfast, which shares the same concept as German breakfast, but with some different ingredients - Silje prepared this for us every morning! How welcoming! It was such a beautiful spread, and delicious, of course.

harbor in the Pipervika bay

Akershus fortress, built at the end of the 13th century and has survived many an attack (especially by Sweden)

Oslo Opera House, finished in 2007

walking up the opera house and... being cold

Oslo Cathedral

interior - I thought it to be a very humble interior, and I thought it interesting that all the nave and the transept seem about the same width and length; I must be too used to Gothic cathedrals after living in France.

"... greatest of all is love" (in the courtyard of the cathedral)

the Stortorvet plaza

flower market in Stortorvet

architecture along Karls Johans gate, the main thoroughfare in the city which runs from the central station to the Royal Palace

"Hmmm, that building is pretty..."

"...I wonder what it is?"

It was a bakery. Obvz I headed in.

Kanelbolle, a cinnamon roll, which was just as delicious as it looks, I assure you.

looking down Karl Johans Gate toward the Royal Palace

women dressed in traditional dresses

... and then I got another pastry. SURPRISE. Here's me & my pastry in front of the Royal Palace.

another woman in traditional garb

Finally I conceded to the cold and decided to go to a café to read, only for my plan to be THWARTED by the face that there were no more interior spaces. So I settled down with one of the free blankets and tried to do my best. It lasted approximately 15 minutes.

That was when I met up with Silje and we went to her boyfriend Danijel's apartment, where he graciously prepared us the very Norwegian meal of... burgers! That's right, friends. My first two Norwegian dinners were tacos & burgers. It was like a little bit of home!

The next day, Silje, Danijel, and I all took a little excursion (in Danijel's car, no less!); first stop: a view point in East Oslo to take a look at the city!

looking out over the harbor and the islands

the harbor (construction forefront, whoops)

me & Silje*

Next, we headed to the Bygdøy peninsula in West Oslo to head to a museum, but we got stuck in traffic due to the hundreds of people gathered to watch the releasing of the royal cows. No joke.

The houses on the peninsula are really really nice; West Oslo is the upper class area, and the peninsula is even moreso.

My Oslo museum choice: the Viking Ship Museum! Here's the Oseberg ship, the most beautiful of the three ships. The only reason we have these three ships is due to the Viking tradition of using ships as burial mounds to aid rich and powerful people on their journey to the afterlife. They found lots of various trappings in the ships meant to accompany the dead; the Viking culture was similar to ancient Egyptian culture in this way (think: Pharoahs buried in pyramids with tons of loot).

view from above - Can you imagine 30 men eating, sleeping, and living in this boat for who knows how long? Not exactly spacious. These people sailed all the way to Canada in conditions like this!

intricately carved cart found on one of the three ships

beautifully carved sled, also found on one of the ships

We then headed down to Huk, a beach on the peninsula. It was an absolutely gorgeous day, and lots of people were out to enjoy!

Silje had packed us a perfect picnic lunch!

Danijel & Silje

picnic Katy

Seriously. Look at how nice.

Did you know a sandwich could be beautiful?

Something was funny, apparently!*

Next, we baked (okay, Silje baked and I watched) dark bread! Culinary Katy intends to do this when she gets home, but Lazy Katy may stop her. We'll see who wins in the end.

After our dinner of cauliflower soup and fresh-from-the-oven bread, we had some of the most famous/traditional chocolate in Norway! The slogan says "a little bit of Norway."

a house near Silje's

houses on the way to the subway stop

architecture in West Oslo

same

In Frogner park, there are a ton of statues by Vigeland, a 20th century sculptor. The sculptures all reflect different human relationships and interactions.

See all those people laying in the sun on the left hand side? After I took these pictures, I joined them. It was lovely.

The Angry Boy, the most famous of all the statues there... not sure why, but okay.

I personally like this one and think it's funny, especially contrasted with the mother-child statue from a few pictures up.

Here you can see a gate with the obelisk behind it.

not the best of the Norwegian pastries I ate, but still good

Then I met up with Silje for a last meal together downtown, and we ate a very traditional Norwegian meal! Meatballs, potatoes, mashed peas, brown sauce, lingonberries, and traditional flat bread. Delish, and quite hearty!

I had a really great experience in Oslo. I mean, yes, it's a great city; I especially liked the easily accessible green spaces and real nature, as well as the beaches on the islands/peninsula. The real reason I had such a great experience, however, is Silje! I loved getting to see her life, meet her boyfriend and some of her friends, and learn a bit more about Norway from her. We hadn't seen each other in 7 years, and we didn't really know each other extremely well in Quebec, either. It could have been just pleasant, but instead it was fantastic! I really enjoyed her company, and she made me feel right at home. She was so kind and generous with me, unnecessarily so (originally I was just planning to see her for coffee!), but I appreciated it so much. I enjoyed "re-getting" to know her. We're hoping to keep in touch more often, and we discussed her and Danijel taking an American roadtrip and stopping in Fort Worth as well as me coming back to Norway someday to see the magnificent fjords in the west of Norway. A huge takk (thank you) to Silje for being the best hostess!

*These are Danijel's pictures he took with his awesome camera, they're not mine!