What a day! I thought I would use my telemark bus pass and took a trip to Skien to visit the Husfliden, where they sell bunads. My goal was to try on a couple different styles I like to see which one would look best on my body. The west telemark was by far the winner. However, I still think I will get it made at the bunad shop, Almankås, in Bø because they quoted me a lower price, it's an 8 minute walk vs. an hour long bus ride and the ladies in Bø were willing to let me choose different embroideries and colors while the people at the Husflid wouldn't let me change a thing. Ridiculous. After trying on the bunad I wandered through a couple shops eventually deciding to take a bus to Porsgrunn, the neighboring city to, to check out the Fretex (Salvation Army). When I got on the bus I handed the driver my card and she said something really fast in Norwegian that I didn't understand. I finally asked her if she could say it in English but that made her more upset. She told me to just sit down so I reverently found a seat. This translated to me that my card didn't work on local buses and only the express buses. So when I was done perusing at the Fretex I just started walking. I couldn't find a bus terminal anywhere. The website for the transit would list terminal names but not addresses for me to search so I could walk there. It was a bit frustrating. I decided to walk back to Skien to the bus terminal is been dropped off at earlier in the day. Walking enabled me to get some exercise and see things I would have otherwise missed. When I got back to Skien I explored some antique shops, but my tired feet soon led me back to the bus terminal where I ended up making a new friend. His name is Muhammad and he is 19. He is originally from Afghanistan but moved to Norway two years ago so my Norwegian was almost as good as his. We chatted for about 40 minutes as we waited for our bus, and since his English was not that great we got to speak mostly in Norwegian. This was so great for me! I find it much easier to talk with nonnative speakers. While we were chatting I discovered that when I present my bus card I have to show my receipt from purchasing it to show how long it's good for, which explains why the bus driver earlier was so surly. Finally the bus came and 1.4 hours later I was home, laying on my bed exhausted from the day and glad that I'd gone out and explored. On Wednesday my international marketing class is taking an overnight trip to Kvitseid and Vrådal so look forward to hearing about that! Also, if you have questions about anything here, suggestions on where to visit, or wanna see pictures of stuff please do not hesitate to ask!
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AuthorMy name is Bonney, and I am a student at Pacific Lutheran University. This year I will be studying abroad in Bø i Telemark, Norway. Archives
May 2015
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