Fjords? Brown cheese? Brisk temperatures? Velkommen til Norge! AATF-Indiana Vice President, Kate Spanke, shares an update on her family’s time abroad so far.
For the 2024-25 school year, my spouse accepted a Fulbright Grant in Norway. My son and I (quelle chance!) get to follow along. While Jeff is roving about, teaching about American culture, I have been filling my days with different types of Norwegian and French culture. Oslo is a unique city and hard to compare to other places I’ve been. It’s on the water, but without skyscrapers, and very colorful and near to nature, in a way that’s all its own. It’s not well-known for its architecture, yet there are some really creative new buildings. It’s not well-known for its food, yet good restaurants of all kinds abound. While it is very expensive, they pride themselves on paying everyone living wages throughout the economy, so it’s hard to complain even about that. There is public art nearly everywhere, and a very full calendar of music and events to enjoy.
It is, of course, well-known for its weather. Locals enjoy complaining about it but they also are always prepared with ample rain gear. Even the preschoolers are required to bring weather gear and are often seen wearing adorable matching ensembles. We have honestly quite enjoyed a respite from the heat. It’s currently about 30 degrees cooler than Indiana, so it actually does feel like fall. The rainy days are thankfully interspersed with plenty of sunny ones. I will report back on our take on the winter, however!
Some of our highlights so far include day trip hikes around the region, the excellent cinnamon roll selection, crisscrossing the city on the many buses, trains, and trams, the packed-lunch culture, and seeing the Northern Lights from our apartment. We have tried “brunost,” the Norwegian brown cheese: my husband gives it a very enthusiastic five star review, while my son and I are more like a three. Its taste is hard to describe, a slightly sweet flavor with caramel notes, yet a tang of goat cheese. It’s quite nice with a bit of jam on a hearty crispbread, or sandwiched in a waffle. We are also looking forward to an upcoming trip to Bergen by train, and hopefully some more time in Europe.
For me personally, it has been so meaningful to find a francophone community here. There is an active Alliance Française, where just a few weeks ago I listened to a lecture on Théâtre de Guignol. Patisseries and boulangeries abound. We live near the Institut Français and the Ambassade de France. And finally, there is a French school that is partnered in the Norwegian school system: the Lycée Français René Cassin d’Oslo. I am hoping to substitute teach there, but as of now, I am still waiting on contracts, ID numbers, bank accounts, and the like. (Bonjour, la bureaucratie!) I’m filled with enormous empathy for anyone who has had to move abroad, by choice or fleeing persecution or war. It has been humbling to exist here for eight weeks in a liminal space, without full access to things like library cards, bank accounts, and even an official account to save my metro pass. Thankfully, we have access to our American bank accounts (and libraries!) for the time being.
I’m still reflecting on what all of this means for our time here and what we will take away from it. In the meantime, if you’re interested in following our adventures, I’m sharing more on Instagram: @twoteachersin_norway. A bientôt!
AATF Indiana 
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