2014 - oktober november desember

It hasn't been my happiest, luckiest or awesomest year, but I ain't the person to focus on bad things, so I'll say I have had fun. 2014 has been good to me, although it could have been better. I have been lonely and insecure and lost a couple of friends I thought I'd never loose, but I also made dreams come true, met lovely new people and discovered new places. It's ok.

So, here's to the good things of the last (and definitely shittiest) part of the year:


^
In October, I started to feel at home in my little home / enjoyed the long and pretty Indian summer / got a residence permit! / sold (and ate) more froyo / got slowly addicted to Northern-African food / had two more friends visiting and loved showing them around / had a lovely evening with some Instagram-girls / ended up celebrating Halloween with a rabbit in the tram home.


^
In November, I was allowed to leave Norway again, so I immediately visited Copenhagen and Southern Sweden / fell in love with Lund and Malmö / got to meet up with (what felt like) so many friends! / saw penguins! / was happy to go back to Oslo! / bought myself some presents / went for long walks / posted a contact announcement for friends and got lovely responses! / very happily boarded a plane home to the Netherlands! / visited Utrecht, Eindhoven, Venlo, Hema, Rotterdam and Antwerpen / loved being able to talk to strangers without being "the strange one" / felt home for the first time in a long time.


^
In December, I enjoyed some more days at home-home / was more excited to go back to Oslo than I expected! / had the loveliest Sinterklaas celebration! / found my inner nerd (?) when going to a Sound of Music-karaoke and a Nintendo night (in one week) / went for long walks (as usual) / was so happy to finally see snow again! / sold froyo and read magazines at work / felt more Christmassy then ever with attending the Sunturns Christmas concert, baking pepperkaker and having the biggest Christmas meal / won't be celebrating New Year's Eve alone.

Let's be honest: in the last part of the year I realized that I didn't have as many friends in Oslo as I thought and actually felt really lonely and sad, especially when I besides got an inflammation in my wrist and couldn't write or do whatever. Work became more and more uninspiring and there were few social events to look forward to. Things became better when I decided I HAD TO be more social and although it's still hard with me being so insecure about my Norwegian and simply not knowing much people, it's going better and better. I mean: December was great compared to October and November (in Oslo, when not having visitors)

- and in 2015, things will continue to be better.
Happy New Year, lovelies. Thank you for reading, thank you for commenting. See you next year.

2014 - juli august september

It hasn't been my happiest, luckiest or awesomest year, but I ain't the person to focus on bad things, so I'll say I have had fun. 2014 has been good to me, although it could have been better. I have been lonely and insecure and lost a couple of friends I thought I'd never loose, but I also made dreams come true, met lovely new people and discovered new places. It's ok.

Here's the 3rd part of the year, mostly spent in the everlasting (so it seemed...) Norwegian summer:


^
In July, I officially became a master in journalism! and celebrated with macarons in the park / went for so many walks and bike rides through Oslo / still saw all the games of the Dutch soccer team / went to Trænafestivalen in the north, where we walked around in bare legs and dresses and where I finally saw Den Svenska Björnstammen (a.o.) live! / started writing a weekly column! / got lovely visitors from the Netherlands / swam in the river / (finally) visited the Norwegian folk museum / got a job!


^
In August, I boarded a plane to the Netherlands, to celebrate my dad turning 65 and my parents being married for 40 years! / started my visit off with frietjes and a kaassoufflé at the airport / bought everything I wanted at Hema / was surprisingly excited to go back to Oslo (but a little sad as well) / started my job in the frozen yogurt-store! / ate more froyo than ever / was so lucky to be able and stay at Kaja's place as long as I was homeless / enjoyed all the blue skies / did a big Dutch-Norwegian translation! / made (two) new friends / finally finally finally found a place to live!


^
In September, I sold (and ate) more froyo / turned 25! / celebrated my birthday with my parents visiting (and eating the best portobello burger ever)! / stayed in an AirBnB-home for the first time / moved into my own room! and finally got to unpack my bags! / got along well with my two flatmates / finally got to play frisbee golf / got another friend visiting / spent the last days of the month having a last barbecue of the year (!) and finally buying a bed.

Let's stay honest: not having an own place to live caused a lot of stress and trouble, resulting in being tired all the time and spending every free second searching for a place, instead of trying to be social and meet people. I felt a little lonely, but luckily had visits from friends from the Netherlands to look forward to all the time (which was nice, but also 'escaping the truth')...

2014 - 4월 mei juni

It hasn't been my happiest, luckiest or awesomest year, but I ain't the person to focus on bad things, so I'll just say I have had fun (but could have had more). 2014 has been good to me (but could have been better). I have been lonely and insecure and lost friends I thought I'd never loose, but I also made dreams come true, met lovely new people and discovered new places.

After the first three months, here's the second first half:


^
In April, I was in Korea! and Hong Kong! / fell completely in love with Seoul and especially with Hongdae / also visited Suwon, Busan and Gyeongju, in the south of South Korea / saw lots of old friends again (after 3-4 years!), some who I studied with in Trondheim and some who were exchange students in Groningen / ate LOTS of good food / met so many nice people / smiled basically all the time / visited cherry blossom festivals / sang so much karaoke / loved life and everything and everyone a lot.


^
In May, I spent a last lovely day in Seoul / was happy to be back home / was super motivated to write on my thesis / took a break off thesis writing and went for a hike in the south / celebrated 17. mai, Norway's national day, in Rotterdam / finished (!) my MA-thesis / visited Brussels and Ghent and handed in my thesis (!) / drew my parents / boarded a plane to Oslo.


^
In June, I found myself a place to live in Oslo for the summer / went on a safari in the Netherlands / enjoyed the oranjekoorts (World Cup madness) so much (!) / ate fancy desserts in Nijmegen / visited Venlo and Groningen and Breda and said goodbye to the Netherlands for now / drank awesome (cheap) beer with some of my favorite Belgians in Brussels, after defending my thesis / boarded a plane to Oslo again / moved to Oslo (!).

Let's stay honest: these months were, without a doubt, my favorite ones of the year. I spent so much time with favorite people, two of my biggest dreams (visiting Korea + moving to Oslo) came true and I didn't know it yet, but I also finished studying.

2014 - januari februari maart

It hasn't been my happiest, luckiest or awesomest year, but I ain't the person to focus on bad things, so I'll just say I have had fun (but could have had more). 2014 has been good to me (but could have been better). I have been lonely and insecure and lost friends I thought I'd never loose, but I also made dreams come true, met lovely new people and discovered new places.

So, here's to the good things, the first little bit of the year - the rest will follow soon:


^
In January, I lived back at my parents' between fields and cows / wrote my last exam ever (!) / visited Brussels* and Ghent, Groningen* and Utrecht / saw all my friends in my two old hometowns* / enjoyed the free bits of Eurosonic / started on my MA-thesis / drew a girl who liked my drawings / started teaching Norwegian again / finally got my eyes checked.


^
In February, I got (pretty) glasses and suddenly saw so much more / also got a new iPhone with awesome camera / was asked to illustrate a children's book (!) / wrote a lot and saw my thesis grow so much / went for long walks almost daily / gave myself some lovely days off (in Utrecht, in Nijmegen, at home) / kept up on letter writing / welcomed a (very) early spring.


^
In March, I continued with the long walks (which obviously is the best thing about living on the country side!) / celebrated carnaval / visited Ikea and Primark, Eindhoven and Maastricht and Venlo / saw my favorite exhibition of the year: the Anti Winter Depression Show / wrote a whole lot more on my MA-thesis AND almost finished it (!) / took some last days off before going to Korea (!) because I worked so hard and the weather was perfect / loved living at homehome more than ever.

Let's stay honest: the first months of the year were quite good, except for the fact that I didn't live close to my friends. And writing a thesis 24/7 doesn't only make you feel smart, but is frustrating too... But hey, 2014 started as good as it could, I guess.

instanovember

November was the first month I was in Oslo without visitors and the first month I was allowed to finally leave the country again. It started off more sad and lonely than ever, but I guess I made a lot of (social) progress, although I'm the happiest now at home.



1 - I went to Denmark (Copenhagen) and Sweden (Lund, Malmö, Göteborg) and this is what I brought back to Oslo.
2 - I was busy translating, writing, wrapping presents and selling yogurt almost all month (and I loved it).
3 - It's so easy to fall in love with (autumn) Utrecht over and over again ❤
4 - And I even paid a quick visit to Belgium / Antwerp, to eat the loveliest lunch (and drink good cappuccino ánd hot chocolate).

& more.

(trying to) Oslove

Oslo. The nature will always be my favorite thing about the city - and the fact that you can see mountains almost everywhere and always (but that maybe counts as nature, too). It's been good to be back. Oslo finally feels (a little bit) like home, although I'm mostly working and don't know that many people to do fun things with. But

• I deleted the Facebook + Messenger app from my phone, so I'll enjoy walking around (by myself) way more than when checking what's happening at home / what I'm missing out on (even though it never really feels that way, as I love being here);

• I wrote a contact announcement to find friends in Oslo. And yes, I felt both embarrassed and proud, but I got lovely responses;

• I have nice plans for when I come back to Oslo again, which almost makes me wish I wouldn't go home. (Hey, kidding!)

So yes, I'm going home-home first! Home to celebrate Sinterklaas, see my friends, my favorite cities, visit my favorite shops, eat all my favorite food and talk Dutch until I've used all the words I know at least once. Aaaaaaaaah, I can. not. wait.

the southern north, v

Göteborg. Somehow I've been in Göteborg several times, but I've never really seen the city. That's why I made sure to (not just visit the penguins and) actually walk a bit around this time, too. Here's what I enjoyed most:

- the cute little yellow hot dog stand at Mariaplan (which also serves vegetarian burgers!) (and extra strong mustard ♡).
- the variation between big (looking) and cute little streets, especially around Ekelundsgatan / Kunsgatan / Vallgatan.
- Vallgatan, as it has all my favorite Swedish (interior) shops: Lagerhaus, Granit and DesignTorget.
- the old Haga area.
- but absolutely also the more vintage and hip Långgatorna-area.
- fika (tea/coffee + cake) at Two Little Birds.
- the view from Alvborgsbron.
- and did I mention PENGUINS in the public park yet?!?!?!?

the southern north, iv

Göteborg. ♡♡♡ There are penguins in the public park in Göteborg. ♡♡♡ We watched them for a while to then go back home and watch this awesome penguin advert. But oh, imagine living in a city where you can go visit penguins every day. ♡♡♡♡♡

the southern north, iii

Malmö. Sweden's third city isn't the best in cute houses, but gave me this "everything is possible!"-feeling which might just be the best feeling in the world. As if I'd almost be able to just stay, rent an apartment and write a book or two. (!!) Malmö is much more than the Turning Torso, ghetto-like flat areas and (awesome) falafel stores. Despite it not being so pretty, I'd say putting Malmö on your to-visit list is sort of a must. I mean, you can even swim inside in the sea?! And you can

- visit the world's oldest public park, Folkets park.
- go for a (long) walk next to the sea, while looking at both thé Øresund bridge and Copenhagen.
- eat weekend brunch (or cakes or normal lunch) at lovely Chez Madame.
- leave the city center a little bit and walk towards Davidshallsgatan, to find the cutest (vintage) stores.
- buy godis candy at a shop called Gottelisa, with the most sweets in one place I've ever seen.
- actually eat some awesome falafel, f.ex. at Jalla Jalla.
(- try to understand proper Skånska, if you'd like a challenge.)

the southern north, ii

Lund. It took 15 minutes to cross the bridge, leave Denmark and arrive in Sweden and 15 more to arrive Lund, a cute student city. I was lucky to have Linnéa show me around, which made it really easy to fall a little bit in love with Lund. You can easily see the whole city in (half) a day and will find nice places just by walking around yourself as well, but make sure to

- eat a cardamom (!) bun at St: Jakobs Stenugnsbageri ♡
- visit the Arken book shop, right next to the cathedral, if you like (Moomin) postcards.
- check out the (free) art exhibitions, as Lund seems to have a great museum culture! Lunds Konsthall, f.ex.
- go to an actual Hummus restaurant, right in front of the central station.

the southern north, i

Copenhagen. I got my residence permit, which also means I'm finally allowed to leave Norway again (!), which is why I boarded the first plane to the southern North, to Copenhagen. The last time I was there (2009) I absolutely loved it, but this time I was a little disappointed - maybe because everyone loves it that much? To me, it's (too) big and feels (too much) like the Netherlands or basically one big city. I did like the flatness, the bikes and the cute streets, though. And I absolutely recommend:

- walking through Nørrebro, visiting the cute (art) shops and cafés and maybe even picnicing between some graves?
- spending as least time as possible at Nyhavn, but secretly take a quick look nonetheless.
- brunching. (I went to Paludan Bogcafé, which both looked awesome + served an awesome brunch.)
- breakfast (or coffee and cake) at Kompa'9.

instoktober

1 - i finally got a bed and some things up the wall; this room feels like home now.
2 - hei autumn, you're pretty ♡.
3 - and Damstredet, you're pretty too ♡.
4 - i'm having quite a hard time with making my string pocket look the way i'd like it to look, but i guess i'm satisfied for now.

& more.

instaseptember

1 - "home office".
2 - i visited Retrolykke Kaffebar (and loved it).
3 - i visited Retrolykke Kaffebar two times (and still loved it)
4 - autumn is here! Combining summer shoes and autumn cardigans might be one of my favorite things.

& more.

Søndag mandag tirsdag onsdag torsdag fredag

Vijf keer ben ik hier nu wakker geworden, ik heb één keer ontbeten in onze geniaal mooie binnentuin, ben één keer naar de Ikea geweest en heb één keer geprobeerd naar de Ikea te gaan, maar er nooit gekomen. En ik heb één keer mijn huisgenootje gesmst of hij nog thuis kwam omdat die leuke plant die ik kocht wel 's werelds grootste spin (oké, 3-4 cm) met zich meebracht en ik niet durfde te slapen. Het is fijn hier.

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I woke up here five times so far, had breakfast in our super beautiful backyard once, went to Ikea once and tried going to Ikea but never got there another time. And I texted my housemate once to ask if he'd come home that night or not, because the pretty plant I bought obviously was home to the world's biggest spider and I didn't dare going to sleep. I like this place.

Life is better when papa + mama are less than 1238 km away.

Papa en mama kwamen op bezoek. Bijna zes hele dagen had ik om hun de stad te laten zien. Zes dagen om samen thee te drinken, Draumur te eten, door mooie straatjes te wandelen, aan het fjord te zitten, schattige huisjes op de foto te zetten en samen te koken en lachen en lezen in het prachtige Airbnb-appartement waar we sliepen - super centraal en bovendien goedkoper en (veel) gezelliger dan het voordeligste hotel.

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My parents visited. I had almost six complete days to show them the city. Six days to drink tea together, eat Draumur, walk through pretty streets, watch the fjord, take photos of cute houses and cook and laugh and read together in the absolutely wonderful Airbnb-appartment we stayed at - the location couldn't have been better and besides it was both cheaper and (much) cozier than the cheapest hotel in town.



Hoewel Oslo eigenlijk maar klein is, stikt het van de fijne winkeltjes en straatjes en cafeetjes. Best lastig nog om dat allemaal in een paar dagen te proppen en zelfs die zes die we hadden bleek niet genoeg om alles te laten zien, wat ook niet erg is natuurlijk. Ik vind het juist wel leuk om van tevoren na te denken wat iemand extra leuk te vinden en precies die plekjes te laten zien. Zo had ik met papa en mama veel wandelrondjes in m'n hoofd, door Telthusbakken en langs de rivier, langs het fjord, enzo. En ik vond dat ze de (enorm grote, goedkope) havermoutkoekjes moesten eten van Kaffebrenneriet.

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Oslo is such a small city, but completely packed with lovely shops and streets and cafés, which still makes it pretty hard to show everything in just a couple of days. Even six days turned out to not be enough, but that's not that big of a problem in the end. I actually like thinking about the things someone would like to see when visiting Oslo and show my visitors exactly that. It was mostly walks I had in mind for my parents, through Telthusbakken, next to the river and fjord, etc. And I wanted them to try Kaffebrenneriets (huge, cheap) oatmeal cookies.



Ik vroeg ze wat ze zelf nu eigenlijk het leukste vonden, welke drie dingen ze kunnen aanraden.

Mama:
1. "Het park met die beelden", ofwel Vigelandsparken.
2. Van St. Hanshaugen, via Telthusbakken en Mathallen, langs Akerselva naar Grünerløkka wandelen.
3. Het jaren '60, '70-cafeetje in Grünerløkka, Retrolykke kaffebar.

Papa:
1. Langs de rivier wandelen, van Frysja naar Grünerløkka.
2. Het Bislettstadion, waar Nederland in 1952 voor het eerst Olympische Wintermedailles behaalde.
3. "Het straatje omlaag met de leuke Noorse huisjes", Telthusbakken.



When they were back home, I asked them what they liked best about Oslo and if they had recommendations. They had.

Mom:
1. "The park with the statues", known as Vigelandsparken.
2. Walking from St. Hanshaugen, through Telthusbakken and Mathallen, next to Akerselva towards Grünerløkka.
3. The sixties/seventies-coffee house in Grünerløkka, Retrolykke kaffebar.

Dad:
1. Walking next to the river, from Frysja to Grünerløkka.
2. Bislett stadion, a former speed skating rink which was used during the Winter Olympics of 1952.
3. "The downhill street with the cute Norwegian houses", Telthusbakken.

:)

25

Hiep hiep hoera, gisteren was ik jarig! Nu ben ik 25.

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Yesterday was my birthday, I'm 25 now.



24 werd ik op een brancard op Vlieland (niks ernstigs!) en vierde ik vervolgens met een lange treinreis en taart. De rest van het jaar bouwde eigenlijk op die aftrap voort: het jaar was sloom en duurde lang, zonder echt erge redenen en gelukkig nog altijd met genoeg fijns. Zo liep ik stage bij Columbus Magazine, studeerde af als Master in de Journalistiek, had fijne dagen in Rotterdam en een fantastische maand in Korea. En ik verhuisde natuurlijk naar Oslo, vond een baan en een kamer (en tel nu af tot ik erin kan, nog 5 nachtjes).

Op mijn 25e hoop ik dat Oslo als thuis gaat voelen, dat ik toffe artikelen publiceer en mijn camera en blog minder laat verstoffen. Let's go!

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I turned 24 on an ambulance stretcher on the Dutch island of Vlieland (nothing bad!) and celebrated afterwards with a long train ride and cake. The rest of the year continued like that: it took a long time, without big reasons to feel sad and luckily enough to be happy about, too. I did an internship at one of the biggest Dutch travel magazines, graduated as a Master in Journalism, enjoyed Rotterdam and obviously that amazing month in Korea. And I moved to Oslo, got a job and a place to live (and count down the days until I can move in, only 5 left).

Being 25, I hope I will start calling Oslo home, publish articles and not forget about my camera and blog that much. Let's go!

instaugust

1 - in the beginning of the month i was home in the Netherlands for a bit and enjoyed it SO MUCH.
2 - back in Oslo, the light was pretty.
3 - i'm standing behind a topping bar stuffed with sweets 9 hours a day, so i guess it's normal i can't always resist?
4 - sweets(, a summer dress and autumn cardigan) also help when i have big translations to do.

August wasn't easy, living in three different homes that weren't my own, starting a new job and basically looking for a new place to live 24/7. i hope that will be over in September, i hope i'll take proper photos again and i hope i'll meet more people.

& more.

i'm a froyo girl now

Oslo. in the beginning of the month i started working in a cute little frozen yogurt-store here in Oslo. i work almost full-time, talk a whole lot of Norwegian and there hasn't been a single customer that didn't understand what i was saying, which makes me feel a little proud. i'm glad to be earning money and i'm glad i got a job that isn't washing dishes or packing orders like most foreigners apparently get to do here first. i get to choose the music and eat a yoghurt a day. my recommendations:

- natural froyo + cruesli + cashew nuts + pineapple + white chocolate + kokos
- natural froyo + cruesli + cashew nuts + mango + brownie.

instajuly

1 - in the beginning of July, I FINISHED MY MASTERS DEGREE and celebrated with macarons and a book in the park.
2 - like i said: Telthusbakken is my favorite street in Oslo, especially when the grumpy cat is at home.
3 - this is my favorite graffiti piece in Oslo, so far.
4 - and this is the second selfie i've ever uploaded to instagram, to celebrate a 1000 (!!) followers. hurray!

July was a good month, in the end.
(i also got a job! which means i'll be staying in Oslo!)

& more.

they say the grass is always greener on the other side

i miss home more than i thought i would, starting a new life is harder than i expected it to be and i'm definitely not always as strong and positive as i might seem to be. days and especially evenings have been so empty, i've cried so much (without having a real reason) and sometimes i wish i wouldn't be as much as a "let's try!"-girl as i am - but mostly i'm glad i am.

and actually: the grass (and much more) is pretty green in Oslo, too.

❊ Telthusbakken is the cutest street in town
❊ Kaffebrenneriet is on almost every corner, but they have delicious (ice)coffee + scones + bread > picnic!
❊ the houses in Frogner are the prettiest houses (and Loes fits in so well).

(i'm having a job interview next week i'm pitching the loveliest articles i've found a new place to live and also the in-between-place i'm looking for seems to work out my Norwegian goes super well i'm slowly managing to even be funny in Norwegian i write a weekly column and get awesome feedback people are nice i think i'm staying at least five more months hurra)

houses by the sea

(some more phone photos, i'm sorry)



Træna. although i like sleeping in a tent from time to time, talking to strangers and music (always), i'm no real festival girl. "not doing anything" is really not my cup of tea, so even when i've been dancing until late past midnight the night before, i'm usually bright awake at 7. so i went for walks on the island and saw the prettiest houses while most people still were asleep.

also: i've always been dreaming about living in a yellow house... but i now obviously need one in TWO different yellows. ♡