I went to Norway for 17 days at the end of June 2019, and it’s the first trip I remember really clearly. We stayed with my dad’s friends in Asker, just outside Oslo, in a comfy townhouse right by the train station. They had two daughters—one a little older than me and one quite a bit older—and they made me feel like part of the family. We bounced on the trampoline for what felt like hours and had long dinners where I listened to the grown-ups talk about the world.
Most days we took the train into Oslo to explore. The Munch Museum was a huge highlight because I got to see The Scream in person after learning about it in art class. Seeing the brushstrokes up close made it feel way more intense than any picture in a book.
We also visited Vigeland Park, which is filled with stone sculptures that are… unusual. Looking back, they’re even weirder than I realized at the time, but that’s what made them memorable. At the Viking Ship Museum I saw an actual recovered longship and tried to imagine crossing the North Sea in something so open—England, Iceland, even Greenland! There was also a nearby modern art museum that I liked, which balanced out all the history with something fresh.
The biggest adventure was flying up to the Lofoten Islands. We stayed in one of the classic red rorbuer (fishermen’s cabins) in Svolvær. Because it was the summer solstice and we were above the Arctic Circle, the sun never set—just looped around the sky. It was brisk and windy even in early summer. We drove around the islands to see the wild landscapes and took a boat into craggy inlets to watch sea eagles and other wildlife. It looked primeval and untouched.
Even though Norway is an easy place to travel, staying with a family made it feel more real. I learned a lot about everyday life—trains, food, school, routines—and it helped me understand a different culture from the inside, not just from museums and guidebooks.