norway – Darkk Horse Travel

Norway: Returning To My Family’s Roots

Published on April 27, 2019April 27, 2019 by Emilee2 Comments

I’ve always wanted to go to Norway. It’s the part of my heritage on my mom’s side that I’m the most connected with mainly because that side of my family NEVER stops talking about it. We’re very proudly Scandinavian and I think it was growing up around that mentality that made me want to visit this place so bad.

And now here I am.

The last couple a days have been a jet-lag blur, but today some clarity finally started to break through. I took my time getting ready this morning and finally made my way over to the Oslo Opera House around noon. The building reminded me a lot of the Titanic Museum in Northern Ireland mainly because it too is shaped like an iceberg, and it was also just really nice to sit by the ocean during the few moments of blissful sun.

The opera house was also the starting place for my walking tour, which I booked through Airbnb Experiences. Airbnb is currently one of my favorite places to find experiences in cities because it matches you with actual professionals in the space you’re hoping to enjoy (with the exception of Riga, Latvia which didn’t have any experiences available…sadness). In the past, this was how I found my hat making experience in London, Yoga in Paris, and my most picture famous experience: Royal Day Out. For this trip I have an travel journal class scheduled for tomorrow, in addition to my walking tour today and a photo shoot in London the very last day of my trip.

The tour today was two hours and walked around the city throughout it’s historic center and on to City Hall. The walk was super lovely even though my legs are dying because I’ve been sat behind a desk for way too long (by the end of this trip I fully intend on having power thighs again…especially since I’m walking 5-10 miles each day). The best value of the walking tour, though, was having a Norwegian native I could talk to. I loved the knowledge of my host and she peaked my interest about my own family enough for me to start asking my mom more questions. It turns out that our family DOES have census records that were shoved into a box somewhere that tell the exact Norwegian city my great-grandpa was born in.

I won’t have time to visit it this trip, but you KNOW I’ll be going there in the future. Another fun thing I learned today was that the traditional dresses/suits you see in Norway are very specific to cities/regions. VERY specific. As in, you can actually get in trouble if you wear one that’s not where you’re from. I’m so glad I found this out because I’ve been wanting to make a traditional dress from Norway for about four years and I haven’t had the information of which style I should make. Well. Guess what guys? Now that I know the city I know exactly what design is ours, and I couldn’t be more excited.

It’s crazy, but the design that is specific to our region is EXACTLY what I would have chosen if I had all of the Bunad designs lined up: Classic with a whole lot of extra.

Another really amazing part of my walking tour was getting to see the building that Norwegians emigrated to the U.S. from back in late 19th, early 20th, century. It’s still there. It was pretty crazy to think that over 100 years ago my great-grandfather (who shares my birthday, by the way) was more than likely standing at that building where I was standing. And it’s even MORE crazy to think a journey I took in half a day took him weeks, landing in a country that changed his last name and told him to “Go West Young Man!”

Our family made enough of a living in the U.S. but I know that there wouldn’t have been enough money to even consider returning to Norway for a visit. Especially not with his nine children. Yeah, NINE. I wonder if he ever wanted to come back? Probably. As far as I can tell the only reason to leave Norway during that time was because there wasn’t anything for people to do here and the country was dismally poor. But to leave your home and everything you know is not easy (as I know in a way less permanent way by moving to France) and I’m sure there were moments where coming back to visit was something he wanted more than anything.

It’s so odd to be so intimately connected to a place that I had never been before, but that’s one of the reasons I’ve wanted to make visiting places like Ireland, England, Scotland, Denmark, Germany, and now Norway, a priority. I’ve said it before, but visiting the places your family is genetically tied to does something to you. It awakens something. And it’s really hard to explain I guess unless you’ve experienced it, but my sincere wish is that we never forget our roots…because where we’re from matters. And it’s a more intricate part of who we are than I think any of us realize.

Tomorrow: The Viking Museum + Touring the Fjords + A travel journal class!

La Prochaine Aventure//The Next Adventure

Published on March 24, 2014April 9, 2014 by EmileeLeave a comment

Traveling is addictive. Before I even step on a plane I have plans for a hundred more places I want to visit. It is my firm belief that everyone should have a bucket list, so here are some of the top places I want to visit before I drop dead.

1. Morocco: “Here’s Looking at you kid.” I’ve wanted to go to Morocco for as long as I can remember and not only because Casablanca is my second favorite movie of all time. I absolutely love the mixture that is represented within Morocco. It’s basically a mixture of three of my favorite cultures: French, African and Arabic.

2. Camino de Santiago (France/Spain): I’m so excited to do this! This trip is one of the few that I’m insistent on doing with someone, however, which is the main reason it’s being saved (although, I can’t wait!).

3. Norway: This fits under the category of “Places I’m ethnically from”. I’m a big believer that knowledge is power, and the best way to know yourself is by exploring your heritage. I’m going to try to get this and Denmark checked off my list of places I’ve been while I’m living in France.

4. Denmark: Same as above, this is my heritage and I’m extremely excited to get to explore this beautiful country.

5. Egypt: Honestly, I think Egypt is one of the most interesting places on the planet. I’m a HUGE history nerd, so going to this country is an absolute must for me. I won’t go into details about how obsessed I was growing up, just that I may or may not have dressed up as Cleopatra more than 5 times in my life.

6. Germany: I’m part German, so I really want to go visit Germany. This trip will also probably be with someone, because it’s not a country that I’m at all familiar with, but I think it’s going to be amazing.

7. Ghana: Two of the five kids I nanny are from Ghana, and I would love to see the country that has become so close to my heart while looking after them! I’ve fallen in love with Ghanaian culture by being surrounded by two amazing boys who have stolen my heart. I can’t wait until I get to adventure to their home country, someday.

8. Italy: One word: Calcio.

Another word for translation: Football.

And one more for Americans: Soccer.

9. South Africa: Is it wrong to want to go somewhere just because of the accents? No? Good. Because that’s one of the main reasons I want to go to South Africa. I have a friend from South Africa and I absolutely love just listening to her talk, which probably is weird for her, but South African accents are my absolute favorite (right next to Irish and Scottish).

10.Latvia: The only country in Eastern Europe, I’ve wanted to go here for a while now. I think the country is so beautiful, and Latvian is one of my favorite languages to listen to (even though I can’t understand one word of what they’re saying).

Also: This is one of my new favorite songs. So beautiful.

The Adventures That Never Happened

Published on March 21, 2014March 21, 2014 by Emilee2 Comments

Writing in London, England — Scribbling in London, England

Traveling doesn’t always “just happen.” Sometimes, life gets in the way. Plans change; the ‘rug’ gets pulled out from under your feet. And while posting solely about positive experiences is fun, and makes my life look beautifully airbrushed, it’s not realistic.

The facts are: sometimes I feel like God’s directions for my life are like a GPS that drives you into a lake, instead of to your destination. There are times when I’ve wanted so badly to go somewhere that I sat on my bed crying. Times I’ve been tugged in one direction, and then detoured a different way – my soul feeling whip-lashed.

But when this happens, I challenge myself to change my perspective. Yes, maybe the road turned out to be a roundabout, and that’s really frustrating when I thought I was going somewhere new.

But, sometimes, God uses déjà-vu situations to remind us of his promises before he takes us to bigger and better things.

Like, when I was picking a university to transfer to. I thought of applying to so many schools in so many amazing places (London, Norway, Tennessee) that when I got into my first pick I was elated. But, as quickly as they had been made, plans changed just weeks before school started, and I ended up at a university in my hometown of Seattle, instead. I was so upset that I didn’t get to go somewhere new or exotic. But, looking back now, I realize that I was placed exactly where I needed to be, to grow into the person I am now.

An ongoing lesson I’m learning is that there aren’t really “wrong” paths. When you come to a crossroads, sometimes you just have to trust that you’re following the GPS, and take a chance. Life is filled with different decisions, learning experiences, mistakes and successes – and, sometimes, making the decision to take a step forward is the hardest part. Especially if the answer to where to go next isn’t even on your radar.

For instance, when I was trying to decided where to move after living in California, I didn’t sleep for weeks. I had no idea what direction to head in. But, as the deadline neared, Georgia kept popping in my mind. Finally, I decided to visit my family there (people I barely knew), and the minute I bought the plane ticket, I had complete peace from all the anxiety I had been experiencing.

The whole time I had been freaking out about whether to move back to Seattle or stay in California, the answer was actually to do neither. Visiting my family, at that time, was exactly where I needed to be. Eventually I did come back to Seattle, but it was important for me to pick up a few life tools on the way. Learning to value family (no matter how estranged) and the beauty of my heritage, was a lesson I needed to realize before I could move forward in my life here.

Sometimes, the longest detours are the most direct routes to the future successes we have awaiting us on the horizon.

I’ve known my entire life that I wanted to go to the UK/Ireland (when I was 10 I BEGGED my mom to take me to Riverdance to feed my addiction – which she did), but it took me FOUR TRIES to actually get there. Not because I wasn’t putting forth effort, believe me I was, but because life consistently just didn’t allow me to go.

On my way back from India, I thought about running away the entire time I was stuck in the Heathrow airport (layover). My 18 year old self felt so drawn to the UK, and it broke my heart when I boarded the US bound plane, after being so close.

The next year, after I graduated, I immediately started thinking about how I could get to the UK/Ireland. Every year, for three years I had people say they would go with me, only to pull out last minute. It was the most frustrating experience to repeatedly have to shelve my plans to travel. But, ultimately, I valued my trip so much more when I actually got the chance to go. And, in addition, I was empowered by striking out on my own to get there.

Sometime it takes a while to get where we want to go. And sometimes we never get there at all.

When I was in high school there was a church trip to Uruguay that I wanted to go on more than anything. I worked my butt off to raise the funds, and even started learning Spanish (which I hated). Everything in my mind said to go. But, when it came down to it, my family decided I couldn’t. I was devastated. But, you know what? From that experience, I learned how to work toward something that I passionately cared about. I learned to apply myself, and that work ethic has carried over as I continue to dream of traveling.

Sometimes, life is unexpected.

When I look back and see all the things I’ve been able to do, the memories are so much sweeter because of the failures I’ve had in contrast. It’s a lesson that’s unpopular to learn, but failure is not inherently bad. It means that you aspired to something greater than what you had. You dared to dream bigger than yourself, and think outside the box. And, from where I’m standing, that is nothing to be ashamed of but, rather, commended.

So, risk big! Dare to dream and don’t be discouraged if you fall flat on your face. No one is born inherently successful, it takes time, energy and commitment to what you love.

To borrow some favorite lyrics from a hometown boy:

The greats weren’t great because at birth they could paint, the greats were great because they paint a lot. -Macklemore