Insert pun about March and marching...

I was going to say "spring has sprung!" in my next entry, so soon after the winter wonderland post I just did, but...after a week and a half of very spring-like warm days, it has turned into winter again! Turns out Norway can be like Minnesota, where it never just gradually becomes spring again. Winter and spring like to spar with each other here too. It snowed all day today, and sideways! I actually biked in it, because in order to get all the way from campus to town where my Norwegian class is, from another class that always ends about five minutes late, I need my bike. It's a lovely bike I got for free, which I always try to say only positive things about in its presence because it's actually quite the opposite of "lovely". At least the tires are good for snow! There wasn't much snow on the ground though, just difficult to bike through when it blows right into your face.

I have been extra busy this semester, and I'm still debating whether I should drop a class. It's a lot to have 5 classes plus trying to prepare for my master's thesis, which may or may not be in Tanzania. And now I am on the International Student Union Board, which takes up some time that I didn't want to give away...but there was a need so I volunteered. We have fun campus events to try to integrate Norwegians and Internationals, so far with mixed success.

New this semester we have two Danish guys who moved into the vacant rooms in our flat. I call them our Danish Invasion. DI for short? Anyway, I was surprised that they can speak Danish to my Norwegian flatmates who in turn respond in Norwegian, and it works as long as they are patient and speak more slowly. I knew that about Swedish and Norwegian, but I thought Danish was more different. In writing it is more similar to Norwegian. It is really interesting to watch, but I never get to do it for long because they switch to English quickly when I'm around.

They are great guys. Really funny and not so shy like some Norwegians I've met. I tried making their type of rye bread, with not much success...but I will try again. They also sell the Danish kind of pickled herring at the store, made with a yellow curry. Very odd, and the only indigenously Danish aspect of that is the crazy idea to combine curry spices into pickled herring. It's actually really tasty, on crackers or the Danish rye bread.

I haven't taken any pictures lately, sadly. Once the weather gets nice I hope to rectify that, but I should also go somewhere more interesting than here.

That's all for now--hopefully more before two months pass!