Category Archives: cross-cultural living

cross-cultural living, friends

Good Question…

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Sitting around sipping coffee and chatting, we fielded questions from our local friend, just as we always do. She loves to ask questions. A lot of questions. And we are happy to share with her. We have come a long way with our relationship over the past year.

Not totally related, but we have been
working on feeding our physical selves
better. I’ve tried lots of new recipes. Last
week we enjoyed homemade black bean
burgers on homemade whole wheat rolls.

She asked about our level of comfort here. About Zack’s recent trip to the states. We talked about our kids. And about language learning. Lots of different topics, as well as questions about our work.

And then she asked it. A question no one has asked in the fourteen months since we came here.


Are you being fed?

Of course she wasn’t talking about food. She wasn’t trying to make sure we had enough money for groceries. No, our sweet friend wanted to know if we were getting what we needed spiritually.

Thankfully, we have found various ways to get spiritual nourishment. But what a thoughtful question. One we were grateful to hear. One I probably should ask more often to teachers, pastors, mentors.
And maybe even myself from time to time. Am I taking time to make sure I’m receiving nourishment? What good am I to my family, friends and others if I am weak?
And what about you? Are you being fed spiritually?

 

cross-cultural living, What's it like

Architectural Digest: Sandefjord Edition

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We’ve had a number of people ask us what houses look like here in Norway. So on Sunday, we went for a walking tour of our neighborhood to show you a little of what we see around us.Architectural style can vary from fylke (county) to fylke. And of course, styles and methods change with time as well.

We live in Vestfold fylke, and while most of the homes around us have a similar style (more akin to the home where we live, a 2-story built around 1897), it is not hard to find some variety as well. And it doesn’t take more than a stroll to the next street north of us to see what we’re talking about. Go up the hill and take a left, and you just might feel like you’re walking through a very random issue of an architecture magazine.

This is the first we come to as we begin to turn off our street. An interesting house – very large – and a mix of stone and mortar. It looks impressive at night!

This style of home is fairly ordinary here: particularly the white with black roof combo. It must be nice to have that garage in the back!

When my mom and step-dad visited last year, they couldn’t get over the fact that much of Norway is rock. And what do you do when you want to build and there are rocks in the way? Just work around them, as was the case with this home.

Here is another angle of the house built on the rock. Reminds me of a parable in the Bible (you can read it HERE),

While most areas remain consistent in architectural style, this particular street really does exhibit a wide range of eras and materials. This structure appears to be at least two apartments (not at all uncommon: many homes here are multi-family homes), and was obviously built more recently than many of their neighbors.

Every time Zack and I walk past this house, it reminds us of Doc Brown’s house in Back to the Future. Great Scott!

It’s hard to see here, but I really like this modern home built on the hill.

Here, you can see how the houses are built regardless of elevation. They keep going up!

In another month or two, you won’t be able to see this one for all of the trees.

Zack and I like this one a lot. It has a bit of a German/alpine feel to me.

And the green roof here is fun.

You can occasionally spots a house with a grass roof. We don’t see them often in our area, but did see a little playhouse with one.

Finally, this one is on a different street. But we think the dragons are interesting – definitely has an Asian feel to it!

Do you see anything similar to homes where you live? Which one is your favorite?

cross-cultural living

Så søt!

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Have you ever seen anything cuter? I don’t think it’s possible. Love his little furrowed brow 🙂 And hoping I won’t have to wait too long to hold this sweet little man for the first time!Happy two week birthday to our sweet little nephew!

cross-cultural living, Norway

Cost of Living

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A report was recently released, ranking the world’s most expensive cities to live in. And Oslo – our country’s capital (just north of where we live) – comes in at number four.

Read the report HERE

When we moved to Vancouver, we experienced sticker shock. Everything seemed so expensive. Vancouver is North America’s most expensive city. But after a month or so, we learned where to shop, which brands were the most affordable, and how to join customer reward programs.

And then we arrived in Norway. Sticker shock all over again.

But there are a few things to keep in mind..

  1. Our cost of living was low in the states.
  2. I was a coupon queen. I spent a couple of hours each week with my binder of coupons, scissors, sale ads, and a couple of really good websites. I’ve found some discount programs here, but not the same.
  3. A different currency can throw your brain for a loop! Currently, the exchange rate is about 5.95 Norwegian kroner (nok) to 1 US dollar (USD). So just looking at the prices initially was a bit shocking. Imagine a pack of pasta that might cost the equivalent of $1.80 – but you see 10.90.
  4. Import products are strictly regulated in Norway, and heavily taxed. Most things in the stores are local products, and most are also a very high quality.
  5. Restaurants seem especially expensive. But this is not an eat-out/restaurant culture like our home culture was.
  6. Prices are all-inclusive: the price you see already includes tax.
  7. Prices are higher, but wages are higher as well.
And again, after a while you learn where to shop, what the locals buy, and how to find discounts. You stop converting every price to US dollars, and begin recognizing a good deal when you see one.

EXTREME EXAMPLES

Of course we get funny and interesting reactions every time someone comes to visit us. Here are some extreme examples, things we like to show visitors just for shock value.
  • 79 nok ($13 usd) for a small box of pop-tarts [And no, we don’t buy those!]
  • $4 – 5 usd for a loaf of bread [But it is good, fresh bread, without junk in it] [And this is one reason why I make my own bread!]
  • 4000 nok ($725 usd) for a KitchenA!d stand mixer [Wish I could have brought mine with me]
  • $27 for a large cheese pizza [Yes, we buy these sometimes – and they are so good!]
  • Is that basic bicycle almost $500?” [You learn to take care of your things like these and make them last a long time.]

And just for fun, here is an interesting table from that report, showing some commonly purchased items, and what they cost in US dollars. How do prices in your city stack up to these?

Source: Worldwide Cost of Living 2013
cross-cultural living, Day-to-Day

School Again

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After passing our level 2 language evaluations in November, Zack and I decided to take a short break from language school. It allowed us to rest our brains a bit, and do some practical application.We’ve spent time with friends, in the city, and in various meetings and church services. We’ve learned that we can understand a lot of what is said around us. But we also know we are still a long where from where we need to be when it comes to speaking in everyday conversation.

So it is back-to-school time for us! One year ago this week, we were just beginning our first language course. We knew almost nothing. It is exciting to see how much can be learned in just a year. Can’t wait to see what the next year holds.

Our goal is to take the level 3 evaluations around the beginning of next year. If those go well, we can say ‘ha det bra’ (good-bye) to full-time language school, and spend more time with the city and people we’ve grown to love so much!

cross-cultural living, Language

Language Confused: Tire Dilemma

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Here in Norway, we have two sets of tires for our cars: summer tires and winter tires. We have almost no storage space here, other than one closet outside of our front door (yes, one closet in our entire house – that’s a lot different from where we lived in the US). So, like many here, we have to take the extra tires to a tire storage facility.Literally, a tire hotel. It’s also where you can buy tires. But basically, you pay to store them and to have them changed out twice a year.

So we’re there, waiting on the guy who’s doing the paperwork. Another guy walks up to me and asks if he could help me.

Here’s the thing I’ve mentioned before: you typically rehearse dialogue before completing a task. Well, we’d already used all of that dialogue with the other guy, so I’d kind of filed it away.

And in my haste to answer him, instead of saying I’m here about tire storage, I tell him that “I am a tire hotel.”

cross-cultural living, What's it like

What happens when you squeeze a fish?

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FISH OIL.Part of our morning routine right now includes a dose of Tran. English speakers would probably know it better as cod liver oil. It is especially important to ensure we get an adequate amount of Vitamin D, when we aren’t able to get enough from the sun. Tran is a great source of Vitamin D and Omega-3.

The ‘norm’ is to take tran in any month whose name has an R in it (Norwegian and English month names are similar enough that it’s the same months in either language).

So every morning, we start our day with a dose of fish oil. Lemon flavored fish oil. And don’t our faces say it all?

(photo taken Oct 2013, when we first started taking tran)

(In actuality, it is not terrible. But I also don’t find myself wanting any extra after I’ve had my dose!)

cross-cultural living, stories, Thankful

The Newest Little Boy Dove

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Look at those cheeks, and those sweet little fingers
– so precious!

He’s here!

We are so excited for Josh & Savannah (Zack’s brother & his wife). Their first child, a healthy and beautiful baby boy, was born March 5 at 3:33 PM EST.

It’s hard to believe Zack’s baby brother is a daddy now!

Everyone is doing well, and we are so thankful for this new little life!

I prayed for this child, and God gave me what I asked for.
And now I have dedicated him to God. He’s dedicated to God for life.
1 Samuel 1:27-28
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Denne gutten var det jeg ba om, og Herren har gitt meg det jeg ba ham om.
Nå gir jeg ham tilbake til Herren for hele hans levetid. Han skal tilhøre Herren.
Første Samuelsbok 1.27-28
celebrate, cross-cultural living

A New Baby Dove… our nephew/cousin is on his way!!

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We are excited and anxious in Norway!
Zack’s brother and his wife are expecting their first baby. The boys are so excited about their new baby cousin. And I’m excited that Zack was able to make it to Georgia for the birth of his nephew (and a little jealous!).
Josh and Savannah will go to the hospital tonight, and we are praying that Ben Curtis will make his safe and healthy entry into the world sometime tomorrow.
Please join us in praying for this new little man, and for Savannah. Hooray for another Dove boy!
cross-cultural living

Ex-pat living: Easy things aren’t so easy

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In the US, a trip to the salon was easy. Even relaxing.Paying at the grocery store didn’t require any special thought.

A trip to the bakery was something I wouldn’t think twice about. Other than the fact that we didn’t really have a lot of bakeries.

But when you’re an ex-pat, the simple tasks can be difficult. Stressful. Exhausting.

You think about what you need to do. Location. Best time of day. You think about what you need to say to accomplish your task. Will it require everyday talk, or perhaps some special vocabulary you haven’t learned yet? What might the other person say back to you?

And if/when you accomplish what you set out to do, there is definitely a greater sense of accomplishment. An enthusiasm for getting the desired result. And maybe a little bit of pride when you’re able to complete it all without switching to English.

Earlier today, I arrived home from the salon. Mentally drained from a 40-minute conversation with the stylist. Proud that we didn’t once switch to English. And excited that I got the cut that I wanted. It’s a good feeling to be able to do normal things.

Time will make them easier. And the emotional ups and downs will give way to the ‘no big deal’ attitude.

But for now, we’re still excited when we are able to successfully take care of the little things.

Today, the salon. Tomorrow, the world!