My roommates in the dorm were not as respectful as the previous night's. A group of people came in around 11:30 p.m., after everyone was already asleep. They turned on the light, which I would expect because they needed to see, but then they stood there talking in loud voices. If you are sleeping in a room with other people and everyone is already asleep, you need to be quiet when you come in. They could have taken their conversation to the hallway where they wouldn't have disturbed anyone. I had no idea what they were saying because the were speaking in another language, but someone in the dorm got pissed at them and started yelling at them. Occasionally they used some English, so she was yelling at them about not being respectful. Finally, everything either quieted down or I passed out. I kept waking up every couple of hours because I was afraid I would miss my bus. My alarm was set for 4 a.m., but when I woke up at 3:30 I decided to go ahead and get up. There was no reason to allow my alarm to go off and wake up the dorm. Although, those people that came in at 11:30 deserved it, but it would have woken up the nice quiet people also. I went down to the lobby to wait for my bus, because it didn't come until 4:33. About 15 minutes before my bus was supposed to come I went outside to the bus stop across the street. It was raining, but it was close enough that I wasn't too worried about it. I got to the bus stop, waited awhile and realized I was at the wrong bus stop. By the time I got to the correct bus stop it was 20 minutes later and the bus was gone. I looked at the schedule and couldn't find the information about the bus I was supposed to be on, so I had no idea when it was coming again. I went back to the hostel to use their wifi to find another bus. Of course, by this time I was soaked and someone forgot to pack their umbrella so all I had was a light jacket to protect me. At the hostel I found another bus that went to the train station, so I walked to the that bus stop. The problem is that their are 2 stops with the same name, so I didn't know if I was at the correct one. The train I had to be on left at 6 a.m. I looked at the schedule at the bus stop and didn't see anything about the night bus on it. So I decided to go to the other bus stop, which was close. But, surprise!, I got lost. So I was wondering around the dark streets at 5 o'clock in the morning in the rain and I decided it wasn't worth it. I saw a sign that said Oslo Taxi with a number and I called it. A taxi showed up, and I took it to the train station. I think the taxi driver to took me the long way, but at that point I didn't care. It cost me about $30 but it was worth it. At the train station I wondered around looking for a place to buy my ticket. I finally found a self service ticket machine, so I tried to buy my ticket there. I didn't have any more kronor so I tried to use my debit card. The machine wouldn't take it. I think it is because European cards have a chip in them, but American cards don't. Luckily I was able to find an ATM and withdraw some cash. I got my ticket, found the train and settled in for the ride to Rygge.
At 8:15 am the check in counter opened and I checked in, went through Security and got to my gate. The Pringles didn't fill me up and I was still hungry. I still had some kronor left from when I went to the ATM so I counted my money and bought a water, yogurt, and 2 donuts. I went back to my seat and starting eating them. As a I was sitting there I heard someone calling me. I looked around and it was the lady at the food counter. She wanted to know if the paper she was holding was my boarding pass. It was! I ran over there and she said that Ryanair charges 500 kronor to replace it, that is about $80! I got on the plane, landed at Ciampino, and got on a Terravision bus to Termini Station in Rome. I got to the station, bought a train ticket and went to find the metro. I am looking at the stops, and on of them in the Victor Emmanuel stop. That monument is closer to my apartment than the Colosseum stop. So I decided to go to Victor Emmanuel so I could find out where the metro entrance is. I went there, and it is nowhere near the monument. I couldn't find the monument. So once again I was lost, but this time in Rome. And smart me decided not to bring a map of Rome with me, because I wouldn't need it in Norway. So I start taking random turns and somehow end up at Termini station. I had to buy another metro ticket because you can only use it once, and this time I went to the Colosseum stop. I then walked the 20-30 minute walk back to my apartment. I am so glad to be back! I took a shower and then tried to make a burger. I went to turn on the stove, and the lighter didn't work. I gave up and just had some gelato I still had in the freezer. I told my roommates my public transportation adventures and they couldn't believe what happened to me. Lauren said she would have called API from the train station and had them come pick her up. Why didn't I think of that? Of course, with my luck they wouldn't have a car. Olivia said she couldn't believe that I just kept going. She felt really bad for me, so she said I needed something to brighten my day. She got out her box of brownie mix and attempted to make me brownies. She didn't have vegetable oil, so she used olive oil. We also don't have an oven pan, so she used a stove pot. We don't have measuring cups, so she guessed on how much water to add. The brownie batter was very liquid, so she added the frosting. She also guessed on what temperature to put it on. The brownies were in the oven for at least an hour and they still didn't cook. So we ended up just eating the batter out of the pot. I love my roommate!
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Actually, sleeping in a hostel was not that bad. It reminded me a lot of camp. I slept in a big room with about 15 bunk beds. By the time I got there, most of the beds had already been taken, so I got a top bunk close to the door. This is not a favored spot because when people leave, you can hear the door open and the light from the hallway shines in. A difference from camp that I noticed was that it was dead silent. No one was talking, because we didn't know each other and didn't have to spend a week together. So I claimed my bed, put my bedding on, and climbed the ladder. I had left my shoes on the floor so I wouldn't get the bed dirty, but the ladder hurt the bottoms of my feet. I don't remember it hurting that bad when I was in camp! I slept through the night, and woke up around 8 a.m. I finally decided it was time to get out of bed to go exploring. So, as quietly as I could I grabbed my backpack, snuck down the ladder, put on my shoes, and went to the door. The problem with the door is that you have to hit a button on the wall to get it to unlock, and it was dark in the room because of the black-out curtains. So I am feeling around for this button, and I think I have found it. I press it, and the lights come on! When they came on, I saw that there was another button right besides it, so I turned off the lights, hit the correct button, and ran out. I went to the bathroom, and while I was washing my hands 3 tired looking girls came in. I think they were from my dorm. Oops! I left the hostel to start my day. My original plan had been to walk to my first destination, but my feet were still killing me from yesterday. And right across the street was a bus stop with a lot of people waiting at it. This had to mean a bus was coming soon. My Oslo Pass is good for 24 hours and includes public transportation. So I join the other people at the bus stop, and I am digging around in my backpack for my pass. I couldn't find it, and the bus was coming! I didn't know if I was supposed to show it to the bus driver so I just decided to get another bus. They only problem was that I didn't know when another bus was coming because I couldn't read the bus schedule (it was set up weird). Right after the bus left I found my pass.
Ways Norway is not like Europe: 1. No cobblestone 2. Lots of space 3. No small alleys 4. Parking lots 5. Everyone has a car 6. No water fountains 7. Doesn't smell
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June 2022
AuthorThese are details from my adventures around the world. |