Throughout this week, I was asked to go to the British International School of Stavanger (BISS) and substitute teach. While at BISS, I had the privilege of meeting and interacting with many students from all over the world. Many of the students spoke at least three languages. Americans are commonly impressed when someone has the ability to speak more than one language, let alone three or more. The principal and I also got together for some music shopping. We're nearly set for the school year to begin this August as BISS will then officially have a music program! This will be an experience of a lifetime. This post is my longest thus far. Throughout this blog post you'll visit a confirmation party, fisherman's memorial, areas of Stavanger, a mountain hike, and even a car show (who would have thought).
Kristine's cousin Øystein had a confirmation party awhile
back. He picked a great theme!
One day, he wishes to live in America
to become a police officer.
The decorations were sent from America.
Typically Norwegians don't have themes for their
confirmation parties but Øystein thought an American
theme would be great to have.
His favorite car manufacturer is Pontiac. The
logo was used as a table seating card.
He likes Pontiac so much that he has
one from Germany.
This was the main seating area.
Every now and then I take random walks.
I took a walk around the East side of the
island and found this old foundation. It
was clear to see where a door had once been.
I'm not sure what the building was used for.
While walking around I came up to this cabin.
As you see the ocean is just down the hill from
the cabin. THIS is my idea of great cabin location.
It's in the middle of nowhere, lots of wide open space,
and of course, it's near the water. I would love to
one day have a place like this.
Haugesund had a car show the other day that Bjørn
and I attended. It wasn't just a car show, but an American
car show.
This is my dads favorite car. I had to take picture.
I'm not at all into cars but it was still
fun seeing so many American classical
cars in Norway of all places.
Corvette line (mostly)
This was a neat truck!
This is the inside of a "Viking" van.
This person put a lot of work into this Viking van.
I'm not sure why it was at an American car show.
Haugesund AMCAR is the name of this group who
put on the car show.
These next photos are from the fishermans memorial located on the island we live on...
I spoke briefly of this on my blog two summers
ago.
A map of the general area.
No reason for some of these photos other than I
thought it was fun to play photographer.
All around the coast of Norway and the islands
there are small communities living just near the
ocean just like this one.
This is the list of names of the fisherman who lost
their life out at sea.
I don't know what this means. Maybe
it's an old fashioned lighthouse or
a model of one.
This cross is also near the memorial.
These next photos take place in Stavanger...
Walking around Stavanger one day I came across
this building. I'm not sure what it is but the
building next to it is the Stavanger Music Conservatory.
I would like to be friends with the people there.
Heading toward the downtown area.
This is the Stavanger concert hall.
As you can see, it's located on the water. It fairly new
actually.
Sidenote: I got in contact with a man from Bolder
Colorado who lives in Stavanger. For many years
he was a percussionist in the Stavanger Symphony
Orchestra. He works in a church now but it's still
great to connect with people in the music field,
especially when they're from America and live in
Norway.
This is old Stavanger, or gamle Stavanger as it's
known to the Norwegians.
There are many small curved roads
through the Old Stavanger neighborhood.
Old Stavanger was first developed in the 17th
century. Many cottages were used for housing
sailors and traders years ago. This area was also
subject to the invasion of the Germans during
WWII. It received a lot of damage but the city
decided to initiate conservation and rehabilitation
acts to the area. Now it is required for the owners
to upkeep their property to certain standards.
Smack-dab in the middle of Old Stavanger was this
building.
It costs a lot to live in this area.
While walking through these streets, you'll see
stones that were once used as housing foundation.
Downtown Stavanger, like many cities, is a lot
of fun to wander around.
I imagine I pass a lot of things that would be
interesting to learn more about. One of the first
actings I plan to take after moving to Stavanger
is to get a private tour.
This is an interesting street. For English speakers,
it's known as "The colorful street". Back in the day,
a hairdresser decided this street needed have be more
unique. So overtime, each building was painting
a different color. The buildings are made of shops,
cafe's, and bars, with some apartments on the upper
floors.
This is the Valberg tower. The sun prevented me
from getting a proper picture. This tower was
built in 1850 and used as the primary watchtower
for Stavanger. The primary duty was for the person
inside the tower to watch for fires.
This picture was taken from the other side of the
Valberg watch tower.
This is the side view of the Stavanger Cathedral.
Despite the construction, it's a fascinating building.
It was built around the year 1100. It's gothic in style.
Sidenote: Norwegians are known for being reserved people, especially in comparison with loud, outgoing, and sometimes obnoxious Americans. One thing I truly miss about America is the social aspect of meeting strangers. Some of the most memorable conversations I've had in my life have been with complete strangers. In Norway, strangers don't talk to one another, it just doesn't happen. I have tried in the past and scared people away as a result.
After I took the picture of the Stavanger Cathedral, two Norwegians came up to me and asked if they could talk to me. I was excited for this opportunity and gladly said yes. They wanted to interview me about my thoughts concerning online dating. I don't know anything about online dating but since talking with strangers in Norway has never happened to me before, I offered my wisdom (or lack of) of online dating. We spoke for a few minutes and went about our business. Sometimes it's the smallest things that make my day.
The next few photos were taken downtown and have no explanation.
The building to the right is actually a Burger King.
Sverd i Fjell
Located a few miles from downtown
Stavanger is the Sverd i fjell which
means sword in mountain.
Three giant swords stand over 10 yards
high. They represent the battle of Hafrsfjord.
that took place in year 872 when King Harald
Fairhair gathered Norway under one crown.
The largest sword represents the victorious
Harald while the smaller two represent the
defeated kings. The monument also represents
peace, since the swords are placed in solid rock,
which means they will never be removed.
The next few pictures are of or about my school.
This is the British International School of Stavanger.
This is the daycare and kindergarten located across
the street from the main school building.
BISS has three student body sections. Daycare
up to kindergarten, Primary school which are
ages 6-11, and then Middle Years Program (MYP)
with students aging from 11-16. I will be MYP teaching
students, which is my prefered age to instruct.
Parents can send their children to BISS starting at
1 1/2 years old. They have also just created a "college"
which isn't a college that Americans would think of.
It's the next level of school that's common in the
Norwegian school system. These students are 16-19
years old. As of now, there are 8 students who plan
to attend the "college". It's not a lot but it's only the
first year this type of schooling is being offered.
Behind the school are a few soccer fields. I was
asked to substitute for a number of teachers this
week which included the gym teacher. Every now
and then I would take gym class outside for a quick
game of soccer. I joined in a few times and it reminded
me of how fun it is to play soccer.
They also have a sand volleyball court.
Behind the school is a small forest with a
trail that is well maintained. It goes around
the sports area.
They have an outdoor ping pong table.
AND! A giant outdoor chess board.
How cool is that???
It's hard to see but on the left you can see the BISS
building. The yellow building to the right is the
Gausel Public School.
They're really close together and play each other
in sports.
I did some exploring around Gausel and found this
marina.
It's expensive but maybe one day I'll have a nice
fishing boat to place around this area.
There are also some houses near this area that
would be fun to live in.
Everybody should check on Hinna!
Hinna Park located on the southern end of the
Stavanger Community.
I first discovered Hinna Park while viewing a
potential apartment to live in which is located here.
For me, going to Hinna is like entering the future.
Everything appears well maintained and new.
Like almost every community, it's located near the water.
Take a look at some of these pictures. There isn't
much to say or explain.
If flying cars existed in Norway, this
would be the place.
I'm pretty sure this is what the future looks like.
The next pictures are of a hike I took with Kristine's cousin Eirik.
Stavanger has a large body of water to the west
of the city. The water eventually comes to an
end which creates the fjord.
We hiked a mountain on the other side of the fjord.
This pictures illustrates the end of the fjord.
Almost to the top!
I wasn't paying attention for
this picture. You can see
Stavanger on the other side of
the fjord.
This was a small lake behind the mountain.
Kristine's cousin Eirik.
Lots of people took advantage of the nice weather.
This is a picture I found online. Ok!
So we hiked a mountain west of Stavanger.
It was on the other side of the fjord
that "cuts" in the mainland on this
photo.
This is a screenshot picture I took
with my phone. I hope this gives
everyone a better idea of where I live
and where I will be living shortly. On
the map, look for Kopervik. It's on the left
side. Kopervik is a city on the island I live on.
To get to Stavanger I drove through 3 tunnels
and take a ferry. It's difficult to travel around
on the west coast of Norway. This map
hopefully gives you a better idea of the uniqueness
of living on the west coast of Norway in comparison
to the rest of the world.
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