Guest Blogger: Meet Tina from Norway!

Hi everyone! 

My name is Tina and I'm from Lørenskog, Norway. I study business with a concentration in management and HR here at PLU. Choosing the right school for your major isn't always easy and it definitely wasn’t for me. Some of the reasons why I chose PLU was because it is a small school and has small class sizes, amazing people as well as all the wonderful places that Washington state has to offer. I've always known that I wanted to study in the states, and PLU is ranked one of the best business schools in the Pacific North West. I noticed right away that our professors are very eager for us to succeed and do everything they can for us to learn both in and outside the classroom. They want to prepare us for the market in 10-20 years, not only what is happening in the world right now. The business curriculum is mostly designed around soft skills, meaning how we build insight inquiries, how we're able to connect the dots.

I had never been to Washington state before, so I was surprised to see how much it felt like home. The nature is very similar and there are lots of Scandinavian stores around the state! My school is located in Tacoma, which is only 30-40 minutes from both Seattle and Bellevue and only 3 hours from Canada. We have beautiful mountains here, like Mt. Rainier. Here you can go skiing, walk in gorgeous nature or walk around the national park. A little over 3 hours northeast is a small place called Leavenworth. This place is a Bavarian-styled village built in the Cascade mountains. On the west coast we have a well known beach called La Push, this is where several movies have been made but the most known one would be the Twilight movies. I've been to most of these places already, and they are all places I would love to show my family when they come to visit me! 

For me studying in the states has been amazing! I have gotten so many new friends from both all over the country and the world. I celebrated thanksgiving for the first time and that was so much fun! I went with one of my friends to their hometown in Nebraska and I got to experience a D1 football game for the first time and see a whole new and very different state! D
uring Christmas I got to see a good friend in New York, and during summer break I went home with one of the girls to her home in Hawaii. So the experiences and memories we create here are so much bigger than just the state your school is located in! PLU also has many Scandinavian students, the school is founded by Norwegian immigrants and we have some professors who speak Norwegian. This is always fun and it helps you stay connected to home. Some advice I would give to you who might think of coming to PLU, just do it! I'm so happy I did and so will you!

~ Tina

May 17th - What does Norway's independence day look like?

Hey guys, it's Silje! 

I hope you're all hanging in there, and finish off strong during dead week. Personally, it has been a hectic few weeks with school and although it is kind of bitter-sweet that my first year at PLU is coming to an end, I am looking forward to summer and what next semester has to offer (hopefully in-person classes)! 

At the end of April, I went back home to Norway to finish the rest of the semester there. This means that I got back home in time for Norway's independence day, otherwise known as May 17th (syttende mai)! Due to Covid-19 restrictions this year and last year, the recent celebrations have not exactly been traditional. For May 17th I did an Instagram-stories takeover on the PLU international account (@pluintl) to show how my friends, family, and I celebrate - if you're interested in watching, it's saved on our account as a highlight! There were only a few traditions that I was able to do this year, so I wanted to tell you guys about how May 17th would be celebrated pre-covid. 

“Skrangletog” - noisy parade

The day starts bright and early at 7.00am when the noisy parade walks around the neighborhoods. 

This is a tradition that almost every city in Norway participates in, where the whole goal is to make as 

much noise as you possibly can to wake everyone up. This is a huge thing for kids - I would know since 

that was my favorite part of May 17th when I was a kid. Just to get a representation of how noisy this is, 

I found a video on YouTube of a classic "skrangletog" which you can watch here.

Champagne breakfast

This is exactly what it sounds like! Champagne breakfast is typically a tradition between friends, where we meet around 8-10am to eat breakfast with each other, like eggs, bacon, different spreads and drink champagne before we get going for the rest of the day.

Bunad

On May 17th, people wear the nicest clothes they own. For a lot of Norwegians, their nicest piece of clothing would be their bunad. This is a national dress/suit that usually represents where they are from. For example, I am from Telemark and we have a bunad that is unique to our area. I, unfortunately, do not have a bunad yet, but I have been saving up for one for the past few years and are purchasing it this year! It is a big process to get this custom-made, but a bunad will last you for a lifetime. Here is a picture from May 17th this year (at champagne breakfast) - Pictured are Julie, Susann, me, and Aurora. They all have bunads specific to where they/their families come from. Mine will be similar to Aurora's bunad on the right, the Telemark bunad.

School parades

At noon is when the local school parades start walking. Students from grades 1-10 walk as their families watch. The schools also host games like corn holes and sack jumping, as well as there are food stands that serve hot dogs, ice creams, soda, cakes made by the local families, and snacks. I always enjoy going over to my school to see my old teachers, say hi to old classmates, and watch my younger family members walk in the parade that I used to walk in.

Citizen-parade

At 5pm, the citizen parade starts walking around the cities of Norway. It sounds like all we do is walk/watch parades, which is kind of true! The citizen parade is huge, with different schools, clubs, sportsclubs and organizations walk together. This includes this year's high school seniors who are graduating. They all wear senior overalls that they have stickers/drawings on to make them custom and unique. This has been a tradition for multiple decades and it is a fun way to celebrate your graduation. For seniors, May 17th is all about partying!

Dinner/BBQ

After the parades, people usually get together with their families and/or friends to eat dinner. A lot of people BBQ and sit outside if the weather allows for it, while some people meet out at restaurants to eat there. Those traditions are all individual, but my family is typically barbecuing with aunts, uncles and cousins. And of course, there are desserts. 

And that is pretty much it. I wouldn't say that it is anything crazy, but traditions are always sacred to any family/country! May 17th is actually one of my favorite holidays here in Norway because you really see a pride in your country, and it seems like that there are no strangers this day - we all smile, greet each other and say Happy Birthday to each other (independence day is considered Norway's birthday). The past two years have been different due to covid and a lot of celebrations were cancelled to limit gatherings, so I have not been able to see nor attend a parade these past couple of times. I am hopeful that May 17th of 2022 will be back to normal! 

I'll end with wishing you all good luck with finals, and have a great summer! Cant wait to see you all again on campus next semester :) 

- Silje