Thailand, finally: First Days

The flight and waiting was long, but we finally got to Bangkok around 1500 local time on Thursday.
Lars' father Tormod picked us up by car, and not long later we were met by Lars' mother Ellen. Tormod then popped a champagne bottle and apple cake with ice cream was served! A real nice Norwegian(/French) welcome :)

Since Thursday we have already seen and done some stuff. Friday me and Lars bicycled all around Jomtien and Pattaya all day, and also visited a Buddha Hill where you can overlook both towns (if all the trees around were cut). My first impression was that this country is very chaotic and has a lot going on in the streets at the same time. You can probably get a whiplash trying to see everything and everywhere.

Over the weekend we have spent time with Lars' parents. We've eaten good Thai food in various places (pictures of the deliciousnesses will come when I have some) - we have visited crazy Walking St. in Pattaya and seen too much for my eyes and psyche (that being the life of certain ladyboys and prostitutes), getting to know quite a different world than where I'm from, - I have witnessed the differences in the country between the rich and poor, as well as seen a bit of religion (more Chinese than Thai actually), - and we've ridden on elephants!

Other than that I have so far understood that it's much cheaper here than I first anticipated. I do not know what I will spend 10 grand on here, except blowing of some of it on a upcoming scuba-diving licence (which I absolutely can't wait for!)

Oh yes, we also visited a place where a giant golden Buddha was placed on a great mountain wall. Picture says it all.

That's it for now. Three days down and so many to go! This upcoming week we will meet some friends from Trondheim and hang out with them.

So long.

- vic -

Time to fly

It is finally time to leave Trondheim for new adventures. As I write I am on the plane from Trondheim to Gatwick airport in London. I figured I might as well write an update up here since this really isn't a place to do much else but sleep.

I think I see a ship all the way down there..
Imagine if we just dropped down, right now.

This weekend I finished up packing early so that I would have time to spend with my dear Lars before I left. I'm happy we got a lot of time together, because our goodbyes when I was getting into the bus earlier today to the airport was quick and brutal, I think. I'm also glad that it's only 3,5 weeks before he will be here with me.

We've been busy finishing the stairway-room and now it is almost as good as done.

The wall-colour is called Macchiato. It's made the room very calm and it makes me feel like reading a book, sitting on top of the stairs.

We have further plans for the room; we're going to decorate the walls with paintings, photographs and other decorating objects we find. I'd really like The Cucú clock from Diamantini & Domeniconi (without the coo-coo. That would just be annoying in that tiny apartment!). Also on top of the stairs there are two doors; one to the loft and one to a small storage. We want to paint the door to the loft in a pale blue that compliments the Macchiato tone. The door to the storage is very old and it has deep profiles, so on this one I'd like to lay a flower-print wallpaper on the two big profiles, in pale beige with green, blue and red tones. I think when we are done with all that, the room will be complete.

I continue my writing after a looong day travelling. I met my mom in Gatwick and then we took a train to Southampton, which arrived quite fast I think. My first thoughts about this city is that it is a very nice place, and the atmosphere seems very similar to Trondheim, a place that has really grown on me over the last two couple of years.

Me and my mom checked in at Premier Inn, a hotel that is right by the school I'm going to attend, (Southampton Solent University). We went there first to unpack and relax of course, then later we went out to eat and of course landed in a sushi restaurant. (It wad actually a Japanese restaurant, but we had to have sushi!!) We ended up eating a buffet; sooo much good stuff, as you see in the pictures:

This is just the beginning. Later on we had hot dishes, green tea and rosé wine on top! Loved it all!

That is it for my one-way journey to the (big) UK for now. Tomorrow apartment viewings await; hopefully we'll have a deal by the end of the day!

- vic -

I've started packing...

Only 6 more days before I leave for the UK - it's surreal.

I've been packing a little, because as I've mentioned, my mom is coming with me. She will take some of my stuff in her bag, but she is travelling from our home in Sykkylven - that is why I'm packing to send a small back to her this week.

This is just the beginning, because as you can see, I have a little folder right there on the floor with lists of what I need to pack. What you see is only one list. I have three. This room will eventually pile up with clothes, shoes, electronics, make-up and all sorts of goods and chattels. Can't wait for the chaos.

I have three folder with lists, diplomas, insurance-documents, travel information and other important documents, so i'd say I'm pretty organized, but I still feel like I'm not ready to move _at all_.

As the days go by I don't really do much now that most things are in order before take-off. I spend a lot of quality time with Lars and I see my friends. Marianne is back in town so we've hung out a bit, and tomorrow (thursday) we're going to have a homemade sushi-night at another friend's place. We're also gonna invite our former interior design teacher and some other girls. I've never made homemade-sushi, so I expect it will be an interesting experience.

Yesterday, myself and Lars met up with Runa, Magnus and Torgeir (from the road trip in the US), and Torgeir's girlfriend Ida. We ate some real restaurant made sushi, at Kyoto once again (the best place in Trondheim for sushi). It was really nice to catch up with Runa - I haven't seen her for a long while!

What a great group of people, and great food. Unfortunately Lars turned out a little weird in this picture! He's not weird usually, you know, only sometimes :) (I just noticed he actually looks like he's got a shiner, but no - 

it's not!)

Today I'm going to do a little work in the stairway room here. We've done some remodeling by taking away some old wall panel and we've put on a layer of wall covering to fix the wall behind the late panel, which was a little cracked after removing it. 

Now we want to paint the room and I honestly haven't had any ideas for what we should do with it since the living room downstairs has beige and grey tones, the stairs have an ugly green tone, and the loft is kind of white/black. I want the whole apartment to have a unified whole, and so what we've decided is to go for a safe (...) brown/beige tone in the stairway room, and then add colour in details, like the door to the loft, carpets and so on. I think it will be very pretty when it gets done. 

So until next time,

- vic -

The clock is ticking..

Well hello again! Time flies and it is now down to about two weeks _only_ before I leave for the UK! It is craaazy!

The living-situation has changed a bit; we are now three girls instead of two! The newcomer Unni will also attend Southampton Solent University, and she will be studying the same as Torun - Graphical Design.

The three of us have been looking for apartments lately, and I'll sure tell you; it's hard to find some place that meets our criteria. Not that we have so many; only that we wish for a decent and contemporary place, where we will, after all, spend the whole of a year!

I've booked us some viewings for the 14th of September, and if we are in luck we will have a apartment by the end of that day! Oh wouldn't that be Great!

I realize now that time really goes by so awfully quickly, and I feel like I have to make the most out of it together with Lars. I have only one day left at the restaurant, so at least that won't keep us apart these last days.

I am very excited though, because Lars has already booked a flight to come visit in October, and he will be with me in Southampton from the 7th to the 11th! I can't say now that I can't wait since I got him right here with me at the moment, but it will be so nice to have him over! He will come with me to school since it's not only weekend when he will be there, and I am looking forward to spending time with him in small and short, vacation-like times.

There will be only a two week space after my mom leaves before Lars comes over. Then when he leaves, another two weeks and Therese will pay me a visit! (And with her comes two tickets to a particular Katy B concert in Bristol!! Oh my god I'm really looking forward to that one!)

While the clock is ticking I have been spending some great time here in Trondheim with my friends. Therese was here and we hung out a lot. I miss the time we spent for hours looking into Mac screens at school and our occasional strolls for a coffee in our breaks.

I was also on a little blueberry-trip out in the woods with the girl that lives downstairs here, Elin, and her friend. They found many blueberries; I didn't, and ended up with Cow-/Fox-berries.

On our way down back home we met four beautiful and nice horses that were enjoying the sun. Of course we had to stop to cuddle, and we stayed for about 20 minutes! Oh adore!

This is becoming a extremely long post, so I'm going to quit before you start to snore!

Speaks,

- vic -

A quick update on Southampton.

Sooo my mom and I have decided that she will go with me to Southampton to help me move. That way I won't have to move to a whole other country, All by my self. Hopefully, if I don't find a place to live before we get there, we will spend the week she's there with me to find a place.

I have actually gotten to know this girl from here who will be attending Graphical Design at Solent, and we figured we should try to find a apartment together. That is very nice I think, because I find comfort and safety thinking about living with someone from Norway, and not a Complete British stranger..

Mom has bought flight tickets for us both; her's from 13th to 20th of September, and mine from the 13th, one way... That's kind of crazy..

I finally got my unconditional letter from Solent University, so I won't be ripping my hair out as I thought I was going to, waiting for it. I also got my first official timetable! It's basically induction to the school; workshops, meeting future fellow students and doing a introduction project. I start the 19th of September and already the 20th we are going to London on a excursion! Woho I'm digging it!

The friend of mine that I said I called to confirm my result in my previous blog entry, Marianne; she is also going to the UK this fall and will be studying in London, at London Metropolitan! I'm so excited that she is going too, and hopefully I will get to see her when I go on the excursion with school. Here's a piece of her work, and you can see more on her blog Honestly Design .
I'm so proud of her, and her work is so amazing. I'll probably update you on how she, as well as myself, is doing. The furnitures are from Dare Studio.

Until next time.

- vic -