Since my last post, I have traveled to Denmark, Sweden, Greece and Italy. Many of these places I have only seen in pictures, movies and TV, and prior to this semester, did not know if I would ever have the chance to visit. As a result of canceled classes, I found myself with a four-day weekend and nothing, in particular, to do with it, so I spontaneously decided to book a flight to Copenhagen, Denmark, a place I had wanted to visit due to its reputation as one of the happiest and most sustainable cities in the world.

This was also my first time traveling alone, a prospect that both worried and excited me. All of my plans were up to me, which both meant that I didn’t have anyone to disagree with, but also had to come up with the entire agenda myself. Throughout this solo experience, I learned a few key things:

1. The art of redirection. Many times I had a loose plan for what I was going to do or see, then would start toward that direction, find something else interesting that caught my eye, then redirect my plan to take a look at the new thing.
2. The efficiency of being alone. On my first day, I managed to see almost all of the “main” attractions in the city, from the Little Mermaid statue to the Royal areas and Black Diamond Library. This surprised me, as I was expecting to have a lot fewer opportunities to see some of the more distant attractions, and is the main reason I was able to take the train across the bridge and spend a day in Sweden.
3. How to interact with strangers and ask for help. Many times, I found myself confused about how to buy a metro ticket, which track a train would be arriving at or even how to interact with the people I met in the hostel. However, just overcoming my natural shyness, asking for help or just starting a conversation was a great first place to start, and I actually made a few friends along the way.

In Norway, spring break is replaced by Easter break, meaning it was the perfect opportunity to cross some iconic places off my bucket list. From the start, I knew this would be a great chance to see some of the historic and cultural icons in Europe, such as the Parthenon in Greece and the Colosseum in Rome. So that is exactly what I did.

I started my week-long trip by visiting Norway’s capital of Oslo (almost a rite of passage for my flatmates), where I saw a version of Munch’s famous Scream painting, visited an extremely relaxing sauna and enjoyed traditional Norwegian food. Then, I dropped down to Athens, Greece, where I met up with my brother, saw the ancient sites, enjoyed a few of the many rooftop terraces, relaxed on an island beach and ate some of the best food I’ve ever had. The atmosphere of Greece is vastly different from Norway, and it was a great experience to see the different lifestyles and cultures across Europe.

After this, I rounded out my week by visiting Rome, where I saw all of the famous locations, relaxed by the Tiber and even attended a Good Friday service led by the Pope. While I had not explicitly planned for this, it was a truly unique experience being in one of the most important religious places on the weekend of Easter, with both the attitude of reverence and packed crowds of people. However, on the morning of Easter, I packed up my bag and headed back home to Bergen, where my flatmates celebrated with a phenomenal Easter Monday brunch.

Reflecting on this trip, and coming back home to such a great welcome has solidified how much this time has impacted me. To use Andy Scott’s words, “I wish there was a way to know you were in the good old days before you actually left them.” The thing is, I know for a fact that I am currently living in the “good old days,” but it is still extremely difficult to think about leaving them. Each time I have an unforgettable journey, once-in-a-lifetime experience, breathtaking view or deeply meaningful discussion, I am both grateful for the moment and sad because I realize moments like these are fleeting. However, equally so, these moments are so impactful because they do not last, and thus we keep them in our memory so strongly. Therefore, we must live in these moments to truly cherish the memories they will create.