Breaking Out of the ISS Bubble: Adventure in Trondheim

I was fortunate to be invited to my friend Ane’s house and lucky that I had this weekend free to go and visit! Ane studied at the University of Minnesota in the spring of 2009. Over winter break of my freshman year, I received word from Housing and Residential Life that Ane would be my new roommate after my roommate from fall semester transferred to the University of South Dakota. However, before arriving to campus, Ane was switched to a different dormitory. All the same, Ane came over to visit my residence hall and we met up in Chicago over spring break that year. When I learned that I would be coming to Oslo this summer, I got in touch with Ane to see if she knew of any good places to visit. At the beginning of July, she messaged me to see if I would be interested in coming to visit her. After seeing that ticket prices weren’t too expensive, I decided to go to Trondheim, and I have to say it was well worth it! I am very glad I got to experience Norwegian life, instead of just life as part of ISS. Here are my stories from the weekend.

Typically when I buy tickets to travel places, I do round trip tickets on one mode of transportation. Matt convinced me to take the train one way and fly the other way. I took the train up on Friday evening and flew back on Sunday afternoon. The train, run by NSB, while crowded, was not packed in Komfort (Comfort) class. I shared the car with about seven other people who all got off before Trondheim. This car, unlike others, had wi-fi, free coffee and tea, and best of all, air conditioning, which was much needed that day as it was very hot. I fell asleep about 30 minutes in and took a two-hour nap. When I woke up, it was a bit too cold in the car. However, I would highly recommend traveling in this class of car as it is not too much more expensive, the seats are comfortable, and it has many nice amenities. I was glad I had the nap as the train ended up having to travel more slowly than expected due to the extreme heat and the possibility of buckling the tracks. One interesting note about the train was the use of the phrase “Uff-da” – a little reminder of Minnesota – on the barf bags.

Ane picked me up from the train station and was waiting for me on the platform to pick me up. The train was supposed to arrive at 10:40 PM but didn’t make it to Trondheim until 12:20 AM on Saturday; I was surprised and appreciative that her mom stayed up to greet me upon my arrival at their house in Hundhamaren, which is just outside Trondheim. After reassuring them I wasn’t hungry, Ane and I agreed on a time to get up and went to bed.

The view out the room I slept in was amazing, with views overlooking Trondheimsfjorden (Trondheim’s Fjord). It was great getting to wake up and wander out onto a balcony to see the view. I had delicious homemade focaccia bread and crackers all made by Ane, with cheese, butter, and homemade jam for breakfast in the morning. This was my first surprise of many: the cheese slicers are really interesting and shaped like a spatula – you pull the tool over the cheese and you get perfect slices. After the usual boring Studenterhjem food, I found the spread of food amazingly delicious. We drove into Trondheim, parked, and wandered over to Bakklandet, a neighborhood of old timber buildings, originally the homes of the working class. Now it is the location of boutiques, cafes, and art galleries. After wandering through there, we headed up to the Kristiansten fortress. Built in 1681, it helped repel invading Swedish forces when they tried attacking in 1718. The fortress, like Akershus in Oslo, was occupied by German forces in World War II and was also used as a place of execution for members of the Norwegian Resistance.

  

As we headed back down the hill on our way to Nidaros Cathedral, I got to see the bicycle lift in progress. The hill is 130 meters high and is virtually impossible to bike up. The lift works by letting the cyclist put their foot on a metal plate that allows them to then roll up the hill with their bicycle. I think it’s pretty cool and would be interesting in a place like Ithaca, New York or San Francisco, California to help encourage biking. On another biking note, they have a lot of bike paths and Ane said that there are more than there were a few years ago. Along with the bike paths, they have increased the tolls from the surrounding towns into Trondheim. However, I’m not sure how fair the toll increases are as taking the bus is expensive and biking may be challenging in wintertime.

We arrived at Nidaros and bought a combined ticket to explore the Cathedral, the Archbishop’s Palace Museum, and to see the Royal Regalia. As it was the opening of St. Olav’s Festival in Trondheim, we got to Nidaros just in time to see it before it closed for evening events. Nidaros is the largest, most decorative, and oldest cathedral in Northern Europe. Work on the cathedral began around 1070 in memory of St. Olav, and was completed in 1300. However, it has been damaged by fire in 1327 and 1531 and some parts were not rebuilt until the 1900s. You can see the different styles of architecture from section to section. It has two organs, one from Wagner, built in 1738-40 and restored in 1993-94. There is stained glass throughout the cathedral including a rose window and it is, like most other cathedrals, quite incredible. It’s also full of history – besides holding the remains of St. Olav, there are two flags from World War II, one taken by the king of Norway during his exile and brought back at the end of the war and the other from the British ship that helped free Trondheim. Nidaros was used for Norwegian coronation ceremonies and is now used for benediction ceremonies (coronations were written out of the Constitution), the last one being in 1991. Photography was not allowed inside the cathedral so you’ll just have to enjoy these pictures from outside and go see the inside yourself. 🙂

We then went into the Archbishop’s Palace Museum, which provided us with more history of the Cathedral. When the museum was being built, they did an excavation of the area and incorporated the excavated artifacts into the museum, representing about one thousand years of history. One of my most favorite stops was to see the royal regalia. Again, no pictures were allowed, so you’ll have to take my word for how splendid the crown jewels are (or go yourself!). In the square formed by the walls of the Archbishop’s Palace, St. Olav’s Festival had its main stage and medieval market. I think it is a cool use of the old square.

From there, we headed to lunch, back in Bakklandet. Being very hungry, I was super indecisive about where to go. We ended up at Kalas & Canasta. Unlike the numerous options at most U.S. restaurants, the menu only had about six options. We both chose the roast beef sandwich. While good, there was a bit too much sauce, making the open-faced sandwich quite messy. From there we wandered back through town, visiting the local library, which used to be a church and then the city hall. When it was being redeveloped as a library, human remains were rediscovered. The front part of the library is now a museum with more history of the area (skeleton picture). We stopped at two stores so I could buy presents for Matt, my parents, and my sister, helped by ideas I got from my time being more “Norwegian” in Trondheim and ideas from Ane. We left town to go to the local university’s botanical garden (museum grounds are the second picture). It has (what I think is) a large collection of rhododendrons, which have special meaning for my dad’s family as my grandfather bred them for many years. Other than that, though, it isn’t as beautiful as the gardens at Ane’s family’s house (third picture below).

We headed back to her house for a few hours before going out for a late dinner at Egon in Tyholttårnet (Tyholt Tower). This tower is a a 124 meter high telecommunications and radio tower completed in 1985 and holds a rotating restaurant at 74 meters (243 ft). Egon is a Norwegian chain restaurant that is a lot like TGI Fridays or Ruby Tuesdays. We both had ribeye steaks with roasted potatoes, lettuce, and seasonal vegetables. I learned from Ane that it’s actually not appropriate to ask for a doggy bag in Norway unless you have pizza or something, so I made sure to eat all my food, while also enjoying the views of Tronheim and the surrounding area.

   

Ane and I spent the night sitting around, first outside looking over the ocean, then inside when it was too cold, discussing Norwegian life, dating (or lack thereof) in rural Norway, her time in Minnesota, and differences in college education between the U.S. and Norway. It was interesting to hear how grades in Norway are based on one or two tests and a few papers, but hardly ever include participation as part of the grade. In Minnesota, while taking low-level college classes, she was required to participate and there were pop-quizzes, incorporating more components into the final grade. However, she found it strange that she needed to remember detailed facts, such as the date something was founded, as that was more like Norwegian high school. In Norway, college classes are used to teach students how to learn, as oftentimes people won’t learn all they need in college and learn more about a job while on the job. This way of thinking can provide for more innovation as it exercises the human brain (as opposed to fact memorization).

During our hangout session, I tried some Aquavit Linie, a strong (40%) potato-based liquor from Scandinavia, flavored with caraway and star anise. It’s called Linie because it is stored on a ship and crosses the equator twice; it is said that the four-month sea journey, with changes in heat and humidity, gives it its smooth finish. Compared to other hard alcohols, I would agree with that assessment, though it is quite strong. This liquor is usually only had over the holidays, but I was lucky enough that Ane gave me the opportunity to try a taste.

I also had a chance to try cloudberries, which I had never heard of before. According to Ane, when you find a strawberry patch or a blueberry patch, you tell your friends where to find them. However, if you find a cloudberry patch, your friends do not expect you to tell them where you found them. Ane’s mother received a jar of cloudberry jam from a friend when I was there and I got to try the jam plain and over ice cream. I think part of the reason why they are so tasty is because they are a luxury item – hard to find and expensive to buy. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rubus_chamaemorus#mediaviewer/File:Homemade_cloudberry_jam.jpg)

We slept in until 10 AM but started off our day with a hearty breakfast of smoked salmon, another kind of salmon that would typically be eaten with dinner, smoked reindeer heart, more of the focaccia bread and crackers, cheese, and a fruit smoothie. Due to the wonderful weather, we ate outside in the garden.

 

After our breakfast, we headed into Trondheim to visit the Royal Residence, Stiftsgården. This was quite smaller than the Royal Palace in Oslo in terms both size and splendor, though it is much nicer than the average wealthy person’s house. There are a few noticeable cracks in the walls and ceiling due to its age. It was originally built for a wealthy widow, Cecilie Christine Schøller, in the 1770s, although it is thought that she never lived in the building. It has been used as a place to host the Norwegian Royal Family since the late 1700s, housed the regional governor, and has only exclusively housed the Royal Family since the early 1900s. It was predominately used to host the Norwegian King before and after the coronation ceremony (now, the benediction ceremony). The Royal Family visits about once a year now, while they visited less frequently before the 1900s when the King of Norway was also the King of Sweden. One of the rooms is incredibly pink and furnished in a Parisian way, designed for Queen Maud who had originally been a British princess and missed home. I feel very lucky that I was able to visit two of the five major royal residences open for summer tours during my time in Norway.

We then visited the Nordenfjeldske Kunstindustrimuseet in Trondheim, which is a Museum of Decorative Arts and Design. This was different than the Kunstindustrimuseet in Oslo, hosting various specific exhibits rather than general exhibits on Norwegian design. The major exhibit was called “Vanity Fair,” showcasing the fashion design work by Ove Harder Finseth. There was even a collection of wedding dresses. The dresses were gorgeous and it was interesting getting to see these. It rivaled seeing some of the royal outfits at the Museum of Decorative Arts and Design in Oslo.

We only had about three more hours before my flight so we headed back toward the house, stopping off at a beach on our way. While the beach is part of the Trondheimsfjord, it is connected to the Norwegian Sea, which is connected to the Atlantic Ocean. My feet have now been on the other side of the Atlantic! It was a gorgeous day and there were lots of people out at the beach; if we had more time, I definitely would have gone for a swim in spite of the jellyfish. Once back at the house, we had fish soup (which I surprisingly liked) and more ice cream with cloudberries and strawberries for dessert. While eating, I got to look through a book on national outfits from across Norway. Called bunads, these outfits vary from region to region and are a great part of the national heritage in Norway. These are worn for National Day and sometimes to Norwegian weddings. A bride can even wear her bunad with a bridal crown for her wedding. I like the sense of community and nationalism that these costumes create. (more on bunads: http://mylittlenorway.com/2009/05/bunad-norwegian-traditional-costumes/. Ane’s bunad is like the one in the dancing photo or here: http://mylittlenorway.com/wp-content/gallery/northern_norway_bunad/nordland-blue.jpg).

After lunch, I grabbed my stuff and we headed off to the airport, first stopping in Hell. Yes, Hell. Ane’s mother told me a story about a man who was born in Hell, immigrated to America, and caused quite a stir when his obituary read that he was born in Hell. In Norwegian, though, hell means successful or lucky. Their word for the English “hell” is actually helvete. The train station is especially interesting as the place where goods are stored and exported is called Hell: Gods Expedition in Norwegian – which in English has a completely different meaning.

We arrived at the airport half-an-hour before takeoff, which I guess is more than enough time in Norway for domestic travel. Ane helped me automatically check in, which gave me my boarding pass and baggage tag. I didn’t have to go up to a counter or anything; I put the tag on my bag myself and just dropped it off. After saying goodbye to Ane and my wonderful weekend in Trondheim, I went to the security line. They only checked my ticket, not my ID, which I found surprising. I didn’t even have to take off my shoes! The whole check in and security process took under ten minutes. What was even more impressive to me was the fact that they had a machine of people to press a button to show whether they were very happy, happy, unhappy, or very unhappy with the security check process. I bet TSA would not like the response they get from people going through U.S. security checks, although the U.S. security process makes me feel more secure than what I went through in Norway.

Overall, I had a wonderful trip to Trondheim and am grateful that I got to break out of the ISS bubble and experience Norwegian life. A huge thanks to Ane and her family for hosting me!