Vacation on the coast

Here are a few pictures from my vacation at my sister's summer place on the south coast of Norway. Starting with the morning mist just before sun-rise at 4:50am. Five minutes later that sight was gone and the sun was up.
We spent quite a bit of time outside, on the water and in the water :-), enjoying the beautiful weather and the beauty of the coastal area there. Boaters were out most of the time, and many stayed overnight in their boats or in tents on the tiny islands. One night we did the same. We "celebrated" the 4th of July with camp-fire, grilling, sleeping in a tent (yes, I got a little sleep), and the next morning a cold refreshing dip in the ocean next to where we had our tent. The last picture is from the sun-set where we anchored the boat that night. The guys slept in the boat (my brother-in-law and their son). One of the best vacations I have ever had! I am so thankful for that refreshing time.

Guests

The last couple of days I had two guests - Belinda and Honey, her dog. He loved the bed! We had a really good time, catching up on life, talking, laughing, eating, and going for walks. Amazingly enough, my little abode was big enough for all of us. We went for a walk on a little nature trail by the river, and met up with a swan family. They weren't too enthused about Honey, but decided not to swim away, either. Pretty cool.
Otherwise I tend to my duties at the school, watering and taking care of the house-plants, and keeping the flowerbeds outside in decent shape. It could be a big job, but I have been told it does not have to be perfect, and I can do a little at a time, limiting the work to just a few hours a week. I am thrilled to have this as my work, it allows me to set my own hours, and I also get to dig in the dirt and be outside in the sun. If I want a week off, I can just let my supervisor know, and some of the school staff will take over. All that to say it is quite flexible, and it gives me time to do other things also. Which is what I am doing today :-)

My home for a few weeks

Here is a couple of pictures from Sagavoll, Gvarv, where I am staying for a few weeks. My little apartment is in the left part of the white house. It is only a short distance from the river. I have made it a "mission" to explore different paths and areas of the town, and I have already tried out some placed I did not know existed.

A little comment about my first post a couple of days ago: The pictures came in the opposite order of what I had intended, so read the blog with that in mind :-)

It is good to be here, mosquitoes and all…

June in Norway

It has already been over 2 weeks since I got here now. I had many questions in my mind about what the lay-out of this summer would be, and yet I experienced much peace about it at the same time, knowing that this is where I am supposed to be right now.

The first couple of days I spent at my sister's place in Minnesund. Her house is only 30 min. north of the airport, and she is always very willing to come and pick me up there. Personalized taxi service - what a blessing! We had a good time visiting.

The first week-end we drove to Setesdal to attend our niece's Confirmation. That is a big event here in Norway, and in this region a very colorful and festive looking one also. I enjoyed being able to spend this time with my family over here, as I throughout the years have not been able to be here for most of the significant family events. Oh, and the desserts! My sister Rønnaug told me they had 19 different cakes/desserts for the party! And about 40 guests. We had left-overs for several days afterwards, and not much craving for cakes for a while after the week-end! But they were really good.
The nature in that part of the country is very pretty, and taking advantage of the prepared trails in the hills is something almost everybody does, me included. The fresh air, the good smells of the mountains and woods, it is all so healthy and refreshing. And paired with good company and good talks it does not get much better.

Back to the lowlands by bus, I am now stationed at Sagavoll, Gvarv, in the heart of Telemark, where I used to live as a teen-ager. It is a Christian boarding school, "Folkehøyskole", for students who have finished High-shcool and have not started college yet. In the summer they have conferences here periodically, so there are people here all summer. I have a small efficiency-apartment here, just enough to be comfortable. In exchange for the room I help out with some practical work, tending to all the plants, indoor and outdoor. Just what I had wished to be able to do. It is only a few hours work every week, and no work on week-ends. I can set my own hours, and come and go as I want. I really feel this whole arrangement is a gift. The people are great, friendly and nice to be around, and I have even seen some familiar faces from old times… (It is a long time since I lived here!) An added bonus is a quiet room with a piano, a nice place to spend some time in the evenings, when most of the other workers have gone home for the night.

This is the beginning of my reporting, this blog was created tonight. There will be more later, I will tell you about my little cabin then.