Velkommen til Trondheim

its times like these.


I miss Trondheim, Bakklandet, my host "family" and the ISFiT crazies.

Gjetost

Mid-term frenzy
i still have 3 mid terms coming up. the first one in 12 hours and i'm not even half way through preparing for them. AND i'm still blogging. zomg. but my consumer behavior book is lying right next to my laptop and i'm catching a few sentences here and there. LOL (:

the jet lagging is kinda crazy. i've been sleeping around 5-6am the past 3 days, which explains the 2 classes that i've missed.. but it's not for lack of trying! i tried going to bed around 1 yest but i just tossed and turn for like an hour or so. gave up, got up and read till 6 before i started feeling slightly drowsy. wasn't really expecting this since i was only away for 2 weeks but shittttt.

anyway, i'm already missing the friends i made there and... the snow. haha. alexandra, kristofer and well, basically everyone who's scandinavian thinks i'm completely nuts to miss the snow. haha. but i've only experienced it for 2 weeks, not 2 years so i think i'm entitled to miss it! hehe.

but on a more serious note, ISFiT was probably one of the best experiences i've ever had. meeting people from conflict areas like iran, israel and countries like armenia, bahrain, russia, chile.. it was just, such an eye opener. attending the peace prize ceremony and learning about the western sahara conflict also made me realize how sheltered i've been. the best parts were of course the plenary sessions with hans blix, bharati, flemming rose, betty williams which were thought provoking and inspiring.
but beyond that, the friendships i've made are the ones that i hope to keep for many many years to come. such crazy, intelligent and fun people. hopefully we'll get to have our own little ISFiT gathering sometime soon in some part of the world. haha. positivity, right (: i think trygve was spot on, when he said that this was only the beginning (:

oh how i misssssss trondheim so. and BALLS that i didn't get to sneak to sweden for a few days. hehe.

alright, with that said, i should tryyyy to be more focus if i wanna do well. LOL. back to consumer behavior!

ha det bra!

Grace

Coffee.
so it's currently 2:36am. i should be really tired but i'm not quite ready for bed yet. it feels pretty unreal still, that i'm gonna be leaving for home later tonight. it's a pity to have to go when i'm just starting to get used to the new friends, the weather's turning nice and i can already recognize many of the streets.

i cannot begin to describe how much i've learnt from this festival. and i shall not attempt at this moment when my brain has been much addled by alcohol. haha. but despite all the knowledge that i've come to gain and the great experience that i've had, i feel an awful disappointment at something that has yet to be done.

i wish i had the courage to say something. but everyone tells me, you've done enough. and even though i've constantly told myself that it was never gonna happen, i think at the back of my mind, i was always wishing and praying fervently for a... surprise. miracle. haha. but i suppose there are many sayings that go along the line of wishes being for fools. so, even though i really really don't want to, i have to keep my promise to myself. that since this fell through, when i leave norway tomorrow, i leave this behind once and for all as well. in scotty's words, 'good riddance.'

Hilsen Fra Trondheim

Normalcy
just got back from skiing! haha. it was ..... interesting. lol. i didn't ski so much. it was more of snowball fights and 'sleigh rides'. the snowball fights were super funnnn (: there were a lot of kids there as well. and they were so little but so awesome! they have absolutely no fear and they're really pro on their lil skis and just zooming down them hills!





anyway, this festival has really been quite an experience thus far. i've met so many new people, heard so many different thoughts and opinions on important issues that i honestly, never bothered to think much about. the plenary sessions that we have almost every evening is also an eye opener.
we had the danish journalist flemming rose to speak to us on the freedom of speech last evening and i thought he was really quite awesome. it was a controversial topic and with a relatively large group of islamics in the house, the atmosphere was a fairly emotional one with random shouts of outburst. many did not agree with him and felt that he lacked the tact and sensitivity that should have been shown. but i thought he defended his stand well and made it very clear how things were seen from his side and the intentions that went behind the publication of the cartoons.

i believe the whole idea of freedom of speech is a double edged sword. if you agree that everyone should have the right to speak their minds, then you should also be prepared to hear things that you don't like. every action has its consequences and i agreed with flemming when he said that while everyone also has the right to feel offended, that does not mean you have the right to express your disagreement through violence. people feel offended everyday but this does not mean they go around destroying things/people/places all the time. that's where the issue of tolerance comes in. but to be honest, i do find myself sitting on the fence a lot. haha. while i do strongly believe in sensitivity and being tactful, it's a bit of a paradox to encourage freedom of speech and yet insist on self-censorship by not saying things that others might deem to be offensive.

oh anyway i'm currently living with 4 norwegian girls and they are super awesome and just so nice to me (: we made pizza the first night i arrived and i'm gonna attempt to cook a chinese meal for them tomorrow night (: we live in the most charming part of Trondheim, the Bakklandet. It is the part of town where wooden houses and cafes line the streets (: I have come to realize that i've been really lazy with my camera.. lol. it's just kinda troublesome to lug my bulky camera around places and snap snap snap. soo.. i haven't really taken a lot of pictures which i know is a real pity but i will be better with it!! haha. i'm also really starting to get used to the snow and i can walk pretty fast now without slipping. lol. i can also find my way around town relatively well! hahah (:

alright, i skipped plenary session tonight so i could complete my online quiz for biz policy. sighs. SO, i better get to it.

ha det bra!