So, hi everyone! I know it’s been 3 days since I landed in Oslo, but I’ve been really busy! SO, now, I actually have time to sit down and write everything out.

Let’s start from Thursday morning, January 5, 2017.

Knowing that I was about to embark on a 6 month-long journey in less than 12 hours, I couldn’t sleep a wink and instead spent time with my brother driving around town, as a sort of last hurrah, together. Around 1:30 am I received an email from my airlines saying that my 6:00 am flight had been cancelled due to the inclement weather (snow storm!). I was so scared that everything was going to go wrong and that I would not make it to the meet and greet on January 6th. Luckily, I realized that I’m a “grown up” now and am capable of fixing my own problems without breaking down in hysterics or calling my parents about solutions every minute. Hence, I called the airlines and was able to have my journey re-routed. My original flight plan would have taken me from Reno to San Francisco, San Francisco to Frankfurt, Frankfurt to Oslo. The new itinerary would be taking me from Reno to Denver, Denver to Washington D.C., D.C. to Frankfurt, Frankfurt to Oslo. This new plan was going to have me arrive 4 hours earlier than the original plan so I was exceptionally excited. Relieved that everything was going to be alright, and under my own steam too, I tried to get some sleep, which did not happen.

Thinking that everything was alright, my family woke up around 4 am to get ready to send me off. Something that I did not take into account when departing from my house was a) the snowy road conditions, b) the earlier flight time of 5:45 am instead of 6:00 am, and c) the traffic of people trying to get to work. All these factors lead me to arrive just minutes late of the doors closing on the flight I was supposed to take to Colorado. ARGH!

From here, my dad and I talked to the airlines agent who was able to get me on a different itinerary to Oslo. This new plan was going to take me from Reno to Chicago, Chicago to Munich, Munich to Oslo. Thankfully, the first flight out was leaving at 8:15 am, and since I was already at the airport, I said my goodbyes to my family right then and there and went in to await my flight.

Of course, that wouldn’t be the end of the story if it was a nightmare, now would it? Nope! Due to the icy condition the plane’s wheels were stuck to the tarmac. These needed to be defrosted before the plane would be able to go anywhere. Then, the plane exterior needed to be defrosted. Midway through the defrosting process, the machinery that was spreading the defrosting solution all over the plane, ran out of the solution. Which, needing to be refilled, took an inordinate amount of time. After the machine was refilled, the rest of the plane was defrosted. But, that’s not the end of it. The plane needed to be covered in anti-frost solution, so nothing would freeze up at 30,000 feet in the air, which would not be good for me or anyone on that flight! This whole process took 2 hours.

Anxious to get the heck out of dodge, the plane was finally taxied out and we were then able to make our way toward the runway, where we soon took off.

Arriving in Chicago, I double-checked my tickets and realized that I had 15 minutes to make it to my connecting flight! If you’ve ever been to O’Hare International Airport, then you know my struggles when I say I had to make it from the end of Terminal 3 to the end of Terminal 1. I know there is a small tram-like thing that circles around on the outside, but I had so little time to think, didn’t know where the transport was, and I knew that I needed to eat something before taking off on the 9 and a half hour flight to Munich, that i just basically fast walked/ran to my flight. But, this is me we’re talking about so it doesn’t just end there. I, for some reason, thought that I needed to head to gate C10, but when I got there, there was no one in the sitting/waiting area. Imagine my panic thinking that I had missed my flight! Looking at the flight board, I realized that my plane was boarding at gate C19, which was in the other wing of Terminal 1! Running to that gate I was able to make it before they closed the door on the flight. Phew!

All out of breath, carrying a McDonald’s bag full of greasy food, carrying my grossly overweight, but still managing to escape the scrutiny of the hawk-eyed attendants so as not to have to check my bags, I headed to my seat. Taking my seat, the only thing that is on my mind is taking off my heavy snow boots and eating my McDouble burger with fries. The kids sitting next to me are of course a little exuberant, prompting the mother of the children to switch seats with me. I complied, because even after the struggles of my day, I’m not going to be that asshole that doesn’t want to give up my seat for anyone, even if it keeps a mother from her children. So, switching seats with her, and lugging half my life with me to the other side of the plane, I plopped down into my seat and prayed for the blissful embrace of sleep. Of course that didn’t happen right away.

On the bright side, I met an awesome girl in the seat next to me who was going to go study abroad like me, but in Verona, Italy! We exchanged contacts and even hung out in the Munich airport together while waiting for our respective flights.

The only reason I needed to arrive on Friday before 4 pm, was to pick up my housing keys so I had a place to stay for the night. Not only was it after sunset that I arrived in Oslo, I was snowing and I had luggage to tug around. Slightly freaking out that I was going to freeze to death on my first night alone and abroad, I called my mom. Just knowing that I was able to call her was a godsend and calmed my nerves like nothing can. Waiting for my bag forever on the carousel, I soon realized that my bag was never going to come out and in fact had not even left Munich! I file a form with the Lufthansa airlines and hoped my bag to be delivered to me in a speedy manner. Of course, I didn’t know which building or room I would be staying in the Sogn Student Village, Sogn Studentbolig, so I just gave the airlines my general address and hoped they would be able to deliver it to me and not just leave it out somewhere on the building grounds.

Luckily, having just switched over from AT&T to T-Mobile, I had access to unlimited data and text while abroad, hence I was able to contact my friend, and little, to pick up my house keys for me before the office closed. Having that aspect of my worries figured out, I then had to figure out how to even get to my place. I had to figure out how to buy a train ticket to get from the airport to the Oslo Central Station. From there I had to buy a transport card to take the metro from Central Station to Ullevål Stadion. Having never used public city transportation before, I took the wrong T-bane line. But, quick thinking, after discovering my mistake, I got off at the next stop and made my way onto the correct line and got off at the stop I needed to disembark on. From there, I asked direction from two boys who didn’t know where Sogn Studentby was at first, but after describing it to them, they were able to point me in the right direction.

My little found me on my way to the village and helped my woe-begotten form by carrying my obscenely heavy bags for me; all the way up the small mountain to my room, which just happened to be at the top of the hill, on the seventh floor!

Finally finding peace and comfort, in the knowledge that I had successfully made it to my destination, even though life threw me curveball after curveball, I dumped everything I had on me and went to meet new students around he village. Going home at the end of the night, I hopped into bed and passed out from sheer exhaustion.

And that concludes my travel and arrival in Oslo, Norway!

Fun fact: Sogn Student Village used to be the Olympic Village that housed the Olympians of the 1952 Winter Olympics.