10/5/09
The bus ride to Stockholm from Oslo was only 8 hours long, LONG but time seemed to fly today which was a major advantage, it didn't seem that long at all actually. I rather enjoy the scenic landscape of Sweden, it's full of trees, trees, TREES everywhere, oh and farmland. All in all, Scandinavia is really reminiscent of upstate New York, especially central NY state, where I'm from. It is said that the east coast of North America, especially New England, was fused together with Scandinavia far before the land split millions and millions of years ago. Now I see why it's so similar.
I'm glad that I satisfied my goals and ambitions to reach Scandinavia, especially Norway. I had a lot of fun there, met some great people (Halvard & Bo - endless thanks) and saw some very intriguing sites. I regret that I passed up the opportunity to see Gustav Vigeland's sculpture park, I'll be back again someday and I know it's not going anywhere.
Also I had three ideas on my mind that I've been juggling: Go to London and see Ulver play on Friday the 9th, or go to Bergen, Norway for a few days, or go to Stockholm directly after Oslo. It was hard to decide and after much deliberation I had to settle on the most reasonable choice - go to Stockholm and experience Sweden more so than I did in Malmö that one day last week when I went with Michal Glinka. Ulver will be playing again in Athens, Greece next month in November and I will DEFINITELY be going to see that, I wouldn't miss it for the world. Plus I had already planned to go to Greece and Italy by the end of November.
By the end of November I must make the choice of whether I want to apply for a Visa (work and living permit) to live in Europe and work, or if I want to return to America. In all honesty, I really don't want to return to America just yet. I have goals and ambitions that I must fulfill here and earning more money in Europe in the countries that have a higher salary/minimum wage will prove beneficial for when I decide to return to the states. If my money starts to run out fairly soon then I will also decide whether I want to volunteer my time on a farm again, this time someplace warm, in exchange for free food and housing.
I'm 28 years old and I still have a lot to learn.
ps: I've also learned that staying at backpacker hostels are the most economically efficient means of saving money and meeting people who are doing the same exact thing that I'm doing, living free and seeing the world ! I am basically spending $30 USD a night in a room with 12 people, complete strangers with opportunity to make friends and possibly music partners! wooT wooT !
