Røros.

I was talking with one of my friends earlier and we decided: Røros is the quintessential Norwegian town. It's the type of place that you really have to see to believe because it is so perfect and picturesque...  It is a copper mining town centered along the river Røa.  Even though mining ceased in the 70's, the town still makes it's living off the mines through tourism.  For example, there is a winter festival in mid February that brings in around 80,000 visitors to the small town!  I really wish we could have stayed at least one more day so we could visit the artisan shops and absorb some of the town's perfection! I mean, they don't even have on duty police Friday through Sunday... there is that little crime!

Below is a picture of the church we sang in: it is the fourth largest church in all of Norway! The inside is gorgeous as well and apparently the acoustics were right on... it really is such a privilege to sing in these amazing cathedrals!

Røros Cathedral. You can tell it's a copper mining town because of the two crossed mining picks and the Venus symbol (for copper).  Notice: no cross (on a church!) 

A lovely house with the industrial waste piles in the background.

I cannot get over the colors and the thatch on the roofs!!!!

Notice: the car in the background... people actually live here!

After the concert, I changed into street clothes and walked downtown with two friends to find a bar.  We ended up walking into this fairly nice establishment with a well stocked bar and local beer and wine!  They even had Fernet Branca!!! So, naturally I had to have some =)  I not only opened the bottle, I opened the box the bottle was in lol.... guess it's not as popular here as in Cordoba!  A gentleman also purchased our group a traditional Norwegian drink: "Aquavit" (pronounced AKA-VEET  (aca-awesome!) vit for life and aqua for water).  He had been at our concert earlier in the evening and thoroughly enjoyed our songs... I felt like a professional musician! Except, we were paid in alcohol... I guess that was ok though =)

Now we are in Trondheim.  We will attend church at the Nidaros Cathedral tomorrow and then sing at Our Lady's Church in the evening.

Nidaros Cathedral... WHOA!

More soon.

Cheers!

Hannah

Oslo day 3.

Thursday, May 23, 2013:

Our third and final day in Oslo was our free day.  I woke up and went for a run with Anna... It was so much fun seeing Oslo wake up.  We ran by the river, then found a park, then got lost... but we ended up making our way back in a circle!  I love getting lost in cities!

After having a leisurely morning, we got ready and went downtown... Sadly, the Munch Museum was closed, but we did get to see the Opera House, City Hall, Parliament, Akershus Fortress, the Resistance Museum, and the Botanical Gardens.  It was a very successful day overall!  We also sat for a time at a cafe and people watched while sipping espresso... it felt right!

The Opera House:

Connor and Anna! The two lovely ladies I spent my free day with.
The opera house is in the background.

The lobby of the opera house... We are showing this design to the architects of the new music building on Whitworth's campus (just kidding...!)

On top of the opera house! It's the only one in the world were people can walk on the roof!

The view from the opera house

A view of the water...

The Fortress:

The fortress wall!

I mean, if this is a Norwegian custom...! #translationproblems

even more fortress...!

The cannons and flag

The Resistance Museum:

This was an incredibly powerful museum. It showed the resistance army when Hitler took over Norway in WWII.

The Resistance Museum

Guns.

One of the shell casings for a bomb...

I can't believe I didn't get a picture of this, but my favourite part about this museum was the spy-gear.  There were multiple micro dots, camera film in the bottom of shoes, listening devices in the legs of sofas... it was so great!
City Hall:

City Hall!

A Post Box... I had to look around for Dr. Who in case the Tardis' chameleon circuit started working again...

Inside City Hall.  It was like a museum!

Botanical Gardens:

After another meal at the Turkish restaurant, we walked around Oslo's Botanical Gardens.  So lovely! And such a great way to end my time in the city.  

A Rhododendron; looks like home!

This crew is awesome!!!

Stunning.

Now we're headed north to Roros and Trondheim!


Cheers!
Hannah

Norway. days 1&2: Oslo.

Oslo, Norway. (This is going to be a long post with lots of pictures!  Disclaimer: I am still getting used to my camera; sorry to all of the photographers out there who are privy to viewing these pictures.)

Tuesday, May 21, 2013: Arrival.

When we arrived in Oslo, we went directly to the Vigelandsparken Sculpture Park.  All of the sculptures are by the same artist, Gustav Vigeland.

The sculptures were really magnificent; below are two of my favourites.

it's all so green!

After the sculpture park, we went back to the hotel to prepare for dinner... we ended up going to a Turkish restaurant that was incredible! I am becoming more and more excited for Turkey!

The next day was full of Museums!

Wednesday, May 22, 2013:

We started our day at the <Vikingskipshiset> the Viking Ship Museum.  There were two fully intact ships and many other artifacts from Viking life.  It was amazing to see the art and carvings of a society that so often is characterized by its violence.  Also, fun fact: the Vikings did not wear helmets with horns!

This is where I was taking pictures while I was creeping on a Spanish language tour... haha!

After the Viking museum, we made our way to and open air museum called the <Norsk Folkmuseum>.       It was filled with old buildings from all across Norway from many different time periods.  Below is an old church.  My favorite thing about this church- besides its structure- was its lighting.  Except for minute holes at the top of the building, there room was not lit when it was in use.  This design was purposeful so that when people entered the church, it would take time for their eyes to adjust and this was supposed to prepare them for worship.  I love this concept of intentionally established focus.

An authentic <kirke> or church

I found my [new] home in this museum... sorry y'all, not coming home ;)

My dream house.

typical Norway... can it get any more lovely?!

The Fram Museum- http://www.frammuseum.no/

This ship and the explorers/expeditions were great to learn about!  The Fram is a polar ship made famous in the late 19th and early 20th centuries for exploring both the North and South Poles,

After the Fram Museum, we crossed the street to the Kon Tiki exhibit.  It was awesome to see the actual rafts Thor Heyerdahl and his crew constructed to first cross the Pacific with Kon Tiki and then cross the Atlantic with Ra II.

Kon Tiki

Ra II

 In the evening, we set up in the Cathedral where we sang... it was stunning and the acoustics were incredible.

Tomorrow we're headed to Roros for a concert... I'll write more soon about our free day in Oslo!

Cheers!
Hannah

Graduation!

Well, I am a graduate of Whitworth University! Whoa, four years went by way too quickly...  I feel as if I know less now than I did even last year... haha whoops!  But they keep telling me it's a sign of "wisdom" whatever that means =)

I am so thankful my immediate family was able to come for graduation along with my grandma and aunt... It was wonderful to see them and celebrate with them... it was also really difficult to say goodbye for a year...

gosh, we are just so good looking!

The family!

My cap!

The Whitworth Choir performing at Commencement 

And now, I am in Oslo, Norway! I am extremely jet lagged and fatigued, but dinner is in ten minutes so I better sign off!  I'll post pics from that tomorrow!

Cheers,

Hannah

Be her.

This is my goal for traveling through Norway and for living in Istanbul. 

source: http://goldfishkiss.com/

My Life in Countdowns... and Miss Representation

I finish my last final of university tomorrow, graduate in four days, fly to Norway in five, and move to Istanbul in 18... This is insanity! But I am excited!

On another note, 

http://www.missrepresentation.org/

This is one of my favourite non-profits.  The site says, "MissRepresentation.org is a non-profit social action campaign and media organization established to shift people’s consciousness, inspire individual and community action, and ultimately transform culture so everyone, regardless of gender, age or circumstance can fulfill their potential."

That shameless plug for Miss Representation aside, here is one of its latest stories about the character, Merida, from Disney's Brave (2012).

The original Merida, on the right, was an independent princess who valued her culture and archery over looks and dresses... What the heck happened?

source: Disney
Check out one of the news stories about the incident here:http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/movies/moviesnow/la-et-mn-disney-merida-makeover-brave-20130515,0,5062947.story
Nicole Sperling of the LA Times  writes, "Disney has no intention of abandoning its 'sexier' version of the Scottish archer. The modified Merida was created specifically to welcome the character into the company's princess collection. And according to a Disney representative on Wednesday, the image of Merida that sparked this maelstrom is part of a limited run of products including backpacks and pajamas."
It's disheartening that a character so celebrated for her spirit, attitude, and overall aversion to glitz and glam would be changed so drastically as to alienate her from her own personality.  That Disney wants to memorialize Merida as something she is not is sad.  This is not the message I want anyone to internalize... especially not children and those who looked up to Merida as an example of a strong girl/woman.

encouragement.

Fair Trade: Mata Traders

http://www.matatraders.com/

Mata Traders is one of my new obsessions!  I haven't purchased clothes for almost eight months because I have been trying to be more intentional about my global footprint (aka NOT allowing myself to be apart of the sweatshop market) and more intentional about stewardship of the earth and my resources... However, I will be graduating in 18 days and I wanted a graduation dress....... so, the search began... I was looking for a fair trade clothing and found this beautiful gem of a dress:

The website says... "Mata products are original designs handmade in India and Nepal by women’s cooperatives and artisan groups that practice fair trade principles. This means that our producers are paid a livable wage in safe and fair conditions, and do their work at home and in small workshops rather than factories.  Services like on-site day-care, medical check-ups, and over-time pay are offered."

Awesome. Super Awesome.