Early rising European explorers

The first time I felt like a European resident was after driving a mere three-and-a-half hours to Oslo, Norway, this weekend from our home in Sweden.

We left our apartment at 5 a.m. Saturday, and because we're in Sweden during summer, the sun was brightly shining in the sky. This departure was one of our first compromises as a married couple, deciding on a middle point between 4 a.m. and 6 a.m. If you know us, then you'll also know which one of us picked each time.

Absolutely nothing is open at 5 a.m., and the earliest thing to open is McDonald's (in some locations) at 7 a.m. Almost everything else doesn't open until 9 or 10 a.m. and is closed by 8 p.m. This is Europe, a place where America's "when I want something I can have it now" philosophy doesn't apply. If you want to go to the bank, for example, you better get there between 11 a.m. and 2 p.m.  (or 14.00, as we more commonly say here). Otherwise, you have to schedule an appointment.

Multiple radio stations at this hour play a continuous babbling brook sound, or the same song is playing on six stations in a row. Must bring our own music on the next trip.

Oslo has a population of 500,000 people, which makes it the largest city in Norway. Compare this to Dallas' 1.3 million (or 6.45 million for the metro area), and it's only the ninth-largest city in the USA. But this is the life of a northern/Scandinavian dweller. Sweden has a mere 9 million people for the entire country.

Oslo feels very similar to our Swedish home, just on a larger scale. The town square has an Apotek (pharmacy), H&M, O'Leary's bar and many other businesses we have. The words are in some ways only slightly altered, such as to say thanks in Norwegian is takk, and in Swedish it's tack.

Vigelandsparken (Vigeland Sculpture Park) in Oslo

Since Oslo is next to the sea, we naturally visited several museums dedicated to exploring the waters, including a Viking ship museum. Our favorite part of the trip was getting to go inside the Fram, the strongest wooden vessel that has sailed further north and further south than any other surface vessel in the world.

We also enjoyed the Nobel Peace Center, which was a nice continuation of our visit last weekend to Alfred Nobel's home in Karlskoga, Sweden. We both spent a good 2 hours learning about all the South African Peace Prize winners and the exhibit about the most recent winner, President Obama.

We're now planning our slightly delayed honeymoon to Barcelona in mid-August before my school starts. Thanks to Ryanair, we'll fly there for $100 USD each. Right now, we're looking for a good hotel to stay in and other activities to do. If anyone has any ideas, please let us know.

Vad heter du? and overcoming inhibitions

Last night we watched the World Cup at a local bar called Pitcher's with some of Russell's co-workers.

The Swedish natives asked about our Swedish language lessons, which I had finished only two, one-hour sessions at that point. After telling them I only knew the alfabetet, siffror (numbers) and names of en familj, they were still willing to practice with us. I was a little reserved and didn't take advantage of it as much as I should, and now I regret it.

Learning a new language, especially when you're surrounded by people who speak it perfectly, is almost like running naked through the park because every mistake is exposed. This is difficult for an editor who is used to constantly hearing and seeing other mistakes in the English language.

But of course, if you don't practice, especially in the beginning, then you're not going to get better. I may only know things like Jag heter Angela (my name is Angela) and Hur många syskon har du? (How many siblings do you have?), but with every day and every lesson, I improve. This reminds me of a phrase a true Indian yogi told me to repeat every morning: "I get better and better every day. Thank you, Lord."

Here's to many confused expressions to come...and then clarification!

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Sweden in photos: Week 1

I've offically been a Swedish resident for one week and married for two weeks. As I continue to reflect on these major but wonderful life changes, below is a small glimpse of the sights I've seen in this beautiful country thus far.

Standing next to some of the many flowers blooming during Sweden's pleasant summer

Cut flowers delivered by my wonderful new husband ( or man in Swedish -- easy to remember, no?)

The entrance to the university I'll work on a master's degree in global journalism starting in late August

Fountain at the university

A beautiful river runs through our new city

One of the squares in our new town's center

The city has a castle in it where the mayor lives.

Last weekend we visited the home where Alfred Nobel lived the last three years of his life. Next to this home was a weapons museum. We learned about the Nobel Peace Prize and weapons, all for the same ticket price.

Cardboard curtains and other minimalistic lessons

Our second week of marriage could be described as stereotypical if we hadn't moved to a new country.

As our belongings continue the voyage across the Atlantic, we must make do with an air mattress, a few plates and cookware Russell borrowed from work, and other basic necessities.

Air must be added to the mattress sometime in the middle of each night as we both slowly sink in the middle. Last night, though, we resorted to one of us sleeping on a bed roll on the floor and the other on the air mattress so we can get some somewhat untinterrupted sleep. Not so great for a newlywed couple.

The primitive curtains we created to block out the sun, which sets around midnight and rises again at about 4 a.m. in the summer, have evolved as the week progressed. First, we placed the bed roll in front of our bedroom window, but this still let in plenty of light. Then, Russell had the idea to hang two pairs of his jeans, place two throw pillows on each side of the window and then have the bed roll covering the middle. Better, yes, but still the light seeped its way in. And so, Russell came up with what he called his "best idea yet": using flattened cardboard boxes to cover the majority of the windows, but still leaving the jeans, throw pillows and bed roll. This was a true success!

We must work with what we have as we try to patiently wait for those double-sided curtains, our new bed and other wonderful things to ship from the USA. Russell, as he picked up some of the few possessions we have around the apartment, said it's going to be a little sad when everything gets here because we'll then lose the simplicity we've become used to this week.

As for my reaction to Sweden? Everything is still settling in, especially as we recover from jet lag, but so far, I have a more-than-positive view of my surroundings. More to come on this soon. I won't leave as many gaps between posts as I have recently, but I'm sure you all understand getting married and moving to a foreign country were taking most of my time. The Swedish adventure begins!

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