Good day everyone,
I've been feeling a bit of writers block so have gotten totally behind on all of my adventures. Things have really been super busy and great the past month though. I have been very fortunate to have spent time with my family and traveled to some beautiful places. I'm just going to do several posts with my different trips so that this isn't one huge post.
My visit with Pa and Laurie was absolutely perfect. We had a lot of good chats and laughs and made lots of memories. Since I last posted about our travels around Edinburgh we went to Tromso, Norway. It is a beautiful little city nestled between some mountains in the Arctic Circle. We stayed at the Viking Hotel which had the nicest people working there. It included a traditional Norwegian breakfast of muesli, salmon, meat, cheese, bread, jams, and caviar in a tube. At first I didn't think I would really enjoy the breakfast, but it turned out to be really filling and tasty. Some of the best strawberry jam I've ever had.
Retail prices in Norway were about the same as in the states, but the food was ridiculously expensive in US dollars. The Norway Kroner was 5x great than the dollar, so when the menu had main courses for 300 Kroner, that meant it was $60. We arrived in the evening so after we got checked in we walked to a restaurant. It was pretty fancy and had this special, small menu. Laurie and I went ahead and ordered a main course and Pa just ordered the mushroom soup. He was expecting it to be creamy and a nice big bowl like we would have in the states. Well... the meek little waiter came over and set a bowl down that had what looked like dried mushrooms and chicken on the bottom, then told him that he ordered the soup, and poured a dark broth on top from a tea pot thingy! You should've seen Pa's face. Goodness it was funny. Definitely not what we were expecting. The story is much better in person, but this is something I never want to forget.
Our other food experiences were about normal so nothing exciting to tell about that.
The main purpose of our trip was to go see the Aurora Borealis/Northern Lights. Apparently while we were having the delightful dining experience detailed above the Aurora was so bright they could see it in the city, but we had no idea it was going on. So we went on a 6 hour Lights tour with a company that takes you to the best places on the island to see it. Unfortunately we had a not super active night. Solar flares cause the particles to bounce around and create the light and it goes in cycles. When it was showing in the city it was because there had just been a flare, so it had calmed down a bit 2 days later when we went looking for it. However, we did get to see it appear 3 times. The last time was the best, it was moving really fast and lasted about a min (sounds short, but it was good). It was bright green and changing forms.. it was the coolest thing. Can't imagine what its like to see it for longer. 2 minutes of Northern Lights over a period of 6 hours really isn't that great... BUT, when that last wave occurred and we could really see it, I got this great feeling..its really hard to explain. It was like a calming sensation, and inspirational. Afterwards it made me realize that Earth is the greatest artist, humans can't begin to capture the beauty Earth holds. I'm sure everyone has different feelings and experiences with the Aurora, but I can tell you, it is totally worth seeing, even if only for a minute. Put it on your bucket list.
The rest of the trip consisted of going to the Planetarium and acting like kids, Polaria aquarium and watching the seals, walking on lots of ice, going to a midnight concert at the Arctic Cathedral, and playing cards. It was such a lovely weekend.
I just don't know how I got so lucky to have such amazing and inspiring people in my life. I am truly blessed and so grateful for all they have done for me. I could relive this trip and their time in Edinburgh over and over. Definitely will be going back to Norway--when I get lots of money to cover the food bill--to see more areas cause it was stunning.
Take it easy, and let me know if you ever make it to see the Northern Lights and what kind of feeling you got!
With thoughts of Norway,
Alyssa
Wednesday, 28 November 2012
Wednesday, 14 November 2012
True Friends
Hey Hey,
It is so endearing to me that I can be thousands of miles away from my friends and know that I can still count on them and that they count on me. Several times I have had friends pop in on Skype and ask me to talk to them because they had an issue or were having a bad day. By the end of the conversation they are saying "thank you so much!" and yet they don't know that they are actually helping me. It makes me feel so good to know my friends trust me to this extent. Especially when they could talk to their other friends who are right beside them. I've been let down by many people in my short life, and it is just such a secure feeling to know I actually have best friends, who are and will be there for. If any of you are reading this, thank you so much for relying on me and know that I love talking to you no matter the situation! Find true friends that bring out the good in you... makes life so much better.
Have a fantastic day!
Sincerely,
Alyssa
It is so endearing to me that I can be thousands of miles away from my friends and know that I can still count on them and that they count on me. Several times I have had friends pop in on Skype and ask me to talk to them because they had an issue or were having a bad day. By the end of the conversation they are saying "thank you so much!" and yet they don't know that they are actually helping me. It makes me feel so good to know my friends trust me to this extent. Especially when they could talk to their other friends who are right beside them. I've been let down by many people in my short life, and it is just such a secure feeling to know I actually have best friends, who are and will be there for. If any of you are reading this, thank you so much for relying on me and know that I love talking to you no matter the situation! Find true friends that bring out the good in you... makes life so much better.
Have a fantastic day!
Sincerely,
Alyssa
Wednesday, 7 November 2012
US Election 2012
Happy end of campaigning day!
I watched the election results on BBC (British Broadcasting Corporation) which was a really interesting experience. It was so neat to see both sides presented in a non-biased way and to hear what other countries think when they look at the USA. They had some American political analysts in the room to talk about the key states for each party and where they thought it would go. They had reporters in all of the swing states talking to the locals to try to get an idea of how many were voting Romney or Obama.
The most interesting part of watching this was hearing how the perceive the politics in the US. They kept saying how 'polarized' we are and how divided. How it was going to be such a close race because you just didn't know who was going to pull through and get the voters out in the key swing states. They even categorized the voters based on party politics. Said that Obama was going to pull the vote from the African Americans, Hispanics, and young people and Romney was going to pull the white, predominately male vote. So it just depended on who would go out and vote as to who would win this election. I think it is so sad that not only are our politics so divided but that we are now segmenting the beliefs of each party into race. I know the issues of the Civil Rights movement are still at work in some peoples minds but over all I feel that we have overcome that ignorant mentality and have moved on toward acceptance of ALL people. So the fact that our politics are seen as holding sway in particular races just makes me re-think where we stand as a country. We are divided into the rich and the poor. The majority and the minority. Male and Female. Young and Old. Nothing in between. I think it's so sad. There should be more to "The greatest nation on Earth" than a huge divide among its politics and citizens. We definitely shouldn't let race get thrown into the divide of politics, even if there is a pattern among those voters. It will just add more borders and barriers for people to cross when they disagree about something. We do not need any more of these barriers, we need to break barriers and see that everyone is human and has multiple things in common. If the people who are leading our country would realize this then we would probably actually move 'forward' as a country instead of remain stagnant.
All I have to say is we need a stronger 3rd party. I know there are supporters out there, we just haven't mobilized. The strong parties and media make us feel like our vote doesn't count unless its Democratic or Republican and that is certainly not the case. The only reason they are big and strong is because they get funding. This was the most expensive campaign in history, and Gary Johnson couldn't get enough money to make his views known like Obama and Romney could. So lets throw all of that aside and just talk to one another about the issues and educate on what is really going on in Congress. Look at what each party stands for so that we can have an educated vote. Perhaps people will see that we need someone who is in the middle of this battlefield is what is best for this country. If we were all to rally together and show there is huge section of the population that prefers a Libertarian view then they will have to listen. Particularly college students! If we start now showing that we are the future voters and we don't like all this party politics then we will see real change in future elections.I hope in 4 years people will be more educated on philosophies like those of Ron Paul and Gary Johnson. If people open their ears they might find they like what they hear. America was founded on reform...why have we become complacent and forgotten the citizens are the ones that change things?
Well this wasn't supposed to be a political rant, but seems I got ahead of myself a bit. Overall I just wanted to make the point that Europe as a whole sees America as a highly polarized country. Also, a majority of people in a variety of European countries prefer Obama. I know, why should they care? Well because the president controls foreign policy. So if other countries respect us more as a country for having Obama as President then that is a plus. And for those of you upset about Obama winning just remember the House remains Republican to oppose his propositions. Soooo here is to another 4 years of turmoil and no compromise. And on a final side note, if the Republicans would've voted for Ron Paul to be the presidential candidate, then maybe we would have a Republican president. Can't wait to see what 2016 has in store! Also, I suggest to get your news from BBC every now and then, an outside perspective is good.
Again, I apologize for the rant, thought about deleting it, but I'm going to leave and hope it inspires some people. =)
Be proud to be an American and hope that bi-partisanship will come out during the next 4 years.
United we stand, Divided we fall,
Alyssa
I watched the election results on BBC (British Broadcasting Corporation) which was a really interesting experience. It was so neat to see both sides presented in a non-biased way and to hear what other countries think when they look at the USA. They had some American political analysts in the room to talk about the key states for each party and where they thought it would go. They had reporters in all of the swing states talking to the locals to try to get an idea of how many were voting Romney or Obama.
The most interesting part of watching this was hearing how the perceive the politics in the US. They kept saying how 'polarized' we are and how divided. How it was going to be such a close race because you just didn't know who was going to pull through and get the voters out in the key swing states. They even categorized the voters based on party politics. Said that Obama was going to pull the vote from the African Americans, Hispanics, and young people and Romney was going to pull the white, predominately male vote. So it just depended on who would go out and vote as to who would win this election. I think it is so sad that not only are our politics so divided but that we are now segmenting the beliefs of each party into race. I know the issues of the Civil Rights movement are still at work in some peoples minds but over all I feel that we have overcome that ignorant mentality and have moved on toward acceptance of ALL people. So the fact that our politics are seen as holding sway in particular races just makes me re-think where we stand as a country. We are divided into the rich and the poor. The majority and the minority. Male and Female. Young and Old. Nothing in between. I think it's so sad. There should be more to "The greatest nation on Earth" than a huge divide among its politics and citizens. We definitely shouldn't let race get thrown into the divide of politics, even if there is a pattern among those voters. It will just add more borders and barriers for people to cross when they disagree about something. We do not need any more of these barriers, we need to break barriers and see that everyone is human and has multiple things in common. If the people who are leading our country would realize this then we would probably actually move 'forward' as a country instead of remain stagnant.
All I have to say is we need a stronger 3rd party. I know there are supporters out there, we just haven't mobilized. The strong parties and media make us feel like our vote doesn't count unless its Democratic or Republican and that is certainly not the case. The only reason they are big and strong is because they get funding. This was the most expensive campaign in history, and Gary Johnson couldn't get enough money to make his views known like Obama and Romney could. So lets throw all of that aside and just talk to one another about the issues and educate on what is really going on in Congress. Look at what each party stands for so that we can have an educated vote. Perhaps people will see that we need someone who is in the middle of this battlefield is what is best for this country. If we were all to rally together and show there is huge section of the population that prefers a Libertarian view then they will have to listen. Particularly college students! If we start now showing that we are the future voters and we don't like all this party politics then we will see real change in future elections.I hope in 4 years people will be more educated on philosophies like those of Ron Paul and Gary Johnson. If people open their ears they might find they like what they hear. America was founded on reform...why have we become complacent and forgotten the citizens are the ones that change things?
Well this wasn't supposed to be a political rant, but seems I got ahead of myself a bit. Overall I just wanted to make the point that Europe as a whole sees America as a highly polarized country. Also, a majority of people in a variety of European countries prefer Obama. I know, why should they care? Well because the president controls foreign policy. So if other countries respect us more as a country for having Obama as President then that is a plus. And for those of you upset about Obama winning just remember the House remains Republican to oppose his propositions. Soooo here is to another 4 years of turmoil and no compromise. And on a final side note, if the Republicans would've voted for Ron Paul to be the presidential candidate, then maybe we would have a Republican president. Can't wait to see what 2016 has in store! Also, I suggest to get your news from BBC every now and then, an outside perspective is good.
Again, I apologize for the rant, thought about deleting it, but I'm going to leave and hope it inspires some people. =)
Be proud to be an American and hope that bi-partisanship will come out during the next 4 years.
United we stand, Divided we fall,
Alyssa
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