2022 Post-Norway Reflections (First international trip since the pandemic started!)
Photo credit: David Bryan, Bergen, Norway October 2022
The world is just so. damn. big.
Some of you saw my earlier post questioning if I should continue learning Norwegian now that I no longer have the trip ahead of me, and theoretically wouldn’t return there—as there are so many lands yet to visit.
It has been just a week since I returned from an incredibly wonderful trip—one that turned out to feel like a really good, long vacation.
A mere 96 hours on Norwegian soil that felt twice that.
I guess I got my money’s worth.
The other night, just for post-trip reminiscent kicks, I found myself researching the country, and stumbled upon a site making a case for the 10 best places to visit there.
This got me looking at a map of the country. (I LOVE maps.)
Then at Kayak flight prices as well.
Again—just for kicks.
After telling friends and family the last week that “I’ve DONE Norway and don’t need to go back,” . . . maybe I already DO want to go back???
But I can’t.
The world is just too immense, and there are too many options.
I love stepping outside of my comfort zone. Thus craving something novel once again.
Among countless adventures and experiences I’ll always remember, on one occasion I’ve been lost and confused driving in a foreign country—but somehow managed to keep a semblance of peace and serenity, and a sense of adventure. I had never experienced that before! And for me, that’s living. It’s a chance to feel something wholly unique, possessing no basis for comparison in the “living life” category. It's a stepping away from monotony and doldrums.
Isn’t that what our laughably short existence in this . . . whatever . . . should be about? It’s a shame there isn’t a way for all of humanity to have that feeling on a regular basis. There would probably be no war if we could all just wander the world freely to have incredible and interesting new experiences in remote and diverse lands, each with its own unique ways of dealing with this silly little thing we call life.
On the menu today, folks . . . the same as everyday!
Unique architecture.
Stunning landscapes.
Meteorological diversity.
Olfactory pleasures.
Culinary cuisines.
Linguistic soundscapes.
Exotic flora and fauna.
Scintillating street art.
Novel musical sounds.
Historic epicenters.
Dare to dream of possessing such a palette for one’s daily existence! Imagine a world in which we—tantamount to grains of sand on a beach stretching further than one can conceive—could all constantly experience such diversity and wonder.
But we’re too busy feeding the machine of modernity, and eschewing our roots—be they nomadic or native. Currency is king—and, in this culture at least, that good ole Protestant work ethic reigns supreme. (It is notorious, it crush you like a jelly bean. 
)
)Why aren’t there numerous, easily accessible careers for travelers (not tourists—BIG difference), where one can just travel perennially to new places and produce some kind of quantifiable research summary to justify the expense? It could be about any of the subjects on the “menu” above—as there are many audiences interested in various aspects of what the world has to offer. I mean, geez, that’s what they make us do as early as Elementary school—pick a country and do some kind of report. FFS, if you’re going to teach that, then figure out a way to professionally implement it for those who are really taken with the subject matter!
Otherwise, why bother? Instead, why not spend that time and those resources teaching kids how to balance a budget or learn about taxes. Give classes in meditation so that they know how to keep their S#*@ together when doing some stupid daily task like going to the DMV or buying freaking bread. Enlighten us early about the perils of love and heartbreak. Teach us early warning signs of addiction.
PLEASE FIGURE OUT A WAY TO MAKE THIS A LEGITIMATE CAREER PATH, YE PURSE HOLDERS AND STRING-PULLERS! YOU OWE IT TO THE CHILDREN IN US, FOR THE COUNTLESS HOURS WHICH YOU SUBJECTED US TO LEARNING ABOUT THE PLACES SOME OF US WOULD NOW GLADLY VISIT AT THE DROP OF A HAT.
If we had both the necessary time and money.
So. Yeah. I’ve rekindled my love affair with travel after a 3 year pandemic hiatus. And I’d go back to Norway in a heartbeat—and soon—if I knew that I wasn’t then going to miss out on some other incredible destination due simply to temporal or financial constraints.
In the meantime though, so my remarks here aren’t misconstrued, I’ve started a brand new job and am REALLY liking it so far. I think I finally found a good fit!! I just wish I could travel constantly some how, some way. The pandemic really ate a part of my soul for 2 1/2 years. Maybe that’s why this short trip didn’t feel depleted or diminished. It was just as long as it needed to be.
Maybe I can talk my new employer into regularly sending me abroad for language immersion programs, so I can communicate with tourists who visit our building. It IS a major church on 5th Avenue right smack in the middle of NYC, after all. Maybe I can convince them to establish ‘cultural ambassador’ or ‘chief interpreting officer’ as a new position there. LOL
Anyway, no real “report” for this trip, as far as “what I did” and “where I went.” I’ll let the photos below speak for themselves. BUT - I will say, if you’re ever in Bergen, go to Bryggeloftet & Stuene for dinner. Treat yourself. Definitely order the fisksuppe, it’s supposedly the best in town. I guarantee anything else you order will equally wow. (As I was leaving, I was awash with fragrances from the meals set down at the table beside me, making me wish I had an appetite for a full meal at that point.)
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