Walmart

Wal-Mart. The store that has everything. Unfortunately, there are no Wal-Marts in Norway, but that just means I have to make up for lost time and shopping. We do have Ikea in Norway, so at least I can go there whenever I need to get any type of furniture. But it would be nice to have a Wal-Mart - one stop for everything. And when I say Wal-Mart, I'm talking about the Super Wal-Mart that is a grocery store, clothes store, bedding store, toy store, electronic store, pharmacy; an everything-in-one. I also just recently learned that you can by rifles there, which sounds a little unsafe to me. But that just proves that Wal-Mart has everything.

Wal-Mart Supercenter: All-in-one

wal-mart supercenter by Dystopos is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 3.0 Unported License.


I can stay in Wal-Mart all day, just because it is so big and there is so much stuff. I went there a few days ago to get a few things for my dorm including food and bedsheets. It is so easy to stay in there forever - I went there yesterday just to pick up a few things and managed to stay there for an hour! 

I wish we had there were Wal-Marts in Norway so I wouldn't have to go on a long and treacherous trek to 10 different stores when I could, effectively, just visit one. The closest things to Wal-Mart in Norway that I can think of is the mall, Kvadrat, in my hometown. And that's just a load of hassle with going back and forth from store to store with stairs and loops and bridges.

In conclusion, Wal-Mart should come to Norway. Or at least Target should.

A Norwegian in America

Just as an introduction, I am from Norway. Although I am half American and was born in Houston, I am Norwegian. Lived there on and off til I was 5, then moved back when I was 8 and have lived there ever since. To help you get a feel for Norway, it is part of Scandinavia, along with Sweden and Denmark. Along with free healthcare, increased average lifespan, better standard of life, unnecessary taxes, and expensive cost of living, Norway has some unique traditions. One of these is to wear the national costume on May 17th, Norwegian Independence Day. Everyone goes into town to watch the parade, wave the Norwegian flag, and eat ice cream.

17. mai: Norwegian Independence Day

17. mai by Linn Williams is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.

An other tradition in Norway is that for a month during Spring, starting around mid April and ending May 17th, every senior wears either red or blue overalls. This, in Norwegian, is called Russ. It is basically a month long party. 

Russ Baptist

Russ Baptism by Linn Williams is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.




The initiation ceremony is the first day of Russ, and everyone gets beer poured over their head. This is called the baptism, and the "priest" gives everyone nicknames to write on their hats. There is a list of activities the Russ can do to get knots such as eating a bag of marshmallows in 5 minutes or running across a bridge naked. There are also organized events for Russ to attend and party. The one I attended was right by my house and was filled with concerts, people, lots and lots of music, and rides.  Coming from Norway, the States is very different. The legal drinking age is 21, compared to 18 in Norway, and there are a lot more police here. I will be documenting my transition from the Norwegian culture to the American culture, and you can read about it here.