Norway. Never a country that I thought I was going to visit when I first explored studying abroad. When I met my cousin from Norway as a senior in high school, my mind changed completely. Coming to Germany this fall, my main goal was to find a time that I could cross the sea and make it to the very long country to meet my extended family for the first time. After some coordination, we got it to work. And I could not have asked for anything more. To describe the scenery in a blog does not do it justice. There are utterly no words that I could type that could remotely get you to understand the euphoric state of mind I was in the entire weekend. If you want a truly humbling experience, take some time and travel to the most beautiful place on earth… Norway.

Our roadtrip through the mountains

The water was so blue and clear… tasted great!

Matt and I overlooking the mountains

One of the many waterfalls along the trip

Now my family I can talk about. I was extremely nervous and overwhelmed when we pulled back into the driveway after our two day roadtrip to find about 15 family members standing there. So many people came up to me to shake my hand; they all introduced themselves, but Norwegian names are very difficult to pronounce! After going inside, we had dinner and talked for hours. I was so blessed to know that this many family members wanted to meet me. They were all so kind and engaging. I couldn’t have asked for anything more. There is nothing better than coming home from the most beautiful scenery to meet the most beautiful people. I hope now that I can go back to Norway since I cannot imagine living without these family connections in this gorgeous country.

All of my wonderful Norwegian family

One of the most memorable experiences was meeting my cousin’s girlfriend’s son, Leander. He was almost 3 years old, and we bonded because we didn’t need language. After a few hours of playing with Buzz Lightyear and Lego planes, we became the best of friends. He learned my name right away and came to give me a big hug before he had to go home to bed. On Sunday, we all had lunch together and then had to say goodbye. As we both pulled out of the driveway in different vehicles, Stein (my cousin) stopped the car because Leander was crying. Tor (my other cousin) pulled up alongside to see what was wrong, and Leander felt like he hadn’t said enough goodbyes to me. That was enough to almost make me cry.

I love my family. Hopefully one day I will be making the long trek back to Norway to experience even more of the country and even more family dinners.

This past weekend my boyfriend Matt and I had plans to travel to Norway to visit my family, most of whom I have never met before. I was so excited and thrilled for this experience, I cannot even put into words the anticipation I was feeling the days leading up to our departure. Our flight left from Berlin at 21:25 meaning we should probably get there a few hours earlier. Unfortunately, the train times were not very accommodating to us; the only connection we could make left from Reutlingen at 13:07 and would eventually (after 4 transfers) bring us into Berlin Tegel Airport at 20:25. That is exactly one hour… cutting it close. Trains in Germany are also supposed to run on time though – they are good with discipline and orderliness here, so there shouldn’t have been a problem.

Wrong.

Our third train came into the station approximately 15 minutes late. There was only a 13 minute layover between transfers, so Matt and I both thought we missed our next connection. By the grace of luck, the train we had to catch to Hannover was also 5 minutes late. Thankfully we got on, and all was well.

Wrong again. Although the train left only 5 minutes delayed, it came into Hannover a full 25 minutes past the time it was supposed to arrive. No planning could have prevented this, and we missed our last connection to Berlin. The next train would get us in at 20:45 to the Berlin Spandau station with a subway and a bus to catch after that before we would arrive at Tegel. I don’t know about you, but the time did not look favorable. Therefore, I was in tears on this last leg of the trip. The entire time I was sitting on the train I kept praying to God in every way I knew how to get us to the airport in time. I was literally rehearsing the Lord’s Prayer, the Nicene Creed, and the prayer I say before nighttime and meals. Anything that I could do to plead, I was doing.

A stranger sat down next to Matt. He was German and spoke very little English making the lively conversation that much more entertaining between Matt and him. Neither could get their point across absolutely clearly. I had a moment where I thought that maybe he was the angel God sent to us, and he would somehow help us get to our flight in time. However, I was still crabby and tear filled, so I let Matt carry on the conversation. Sure enough, when it was time for us to leave, the stranger stood up and shook both of our hands and wished us luck on catching our flight and the rest of our travels. Nice man.

To make matters more spectacular, he continued to hand Matt 20 Euros and refused to take it back. Matt and I just stared at each other in disbelief. The stranger went back to his seat, and we never saw him again. This 20 Euros was just enough for us to take a taxi, the total ride costing 18 Euros. If we would have walked to the S Bahn, we would have gone the wrong way with my poor directions. We still had to sprint through the airport and past security, but we made it. We got to the airport 5 minutes before the Oslo flight started boarding (it was also running a little late).

Without this stranger’s aide, we would most likely have not made it in time. Matt and I both teared up again on the shuttle bus to our plane because we just couldn’t believe it. If this isn’t God’s work, I have no idea what is. There truly are angels among us every where we go. I feel so blessed and so lucky to have shared paths with this man and wish I knew his name to thank him. God helped us get to our flight and have the most wonderful weekend of my life. It was just a glimpse of His beauty that was glaringly obvious throughout the rest of the weekend. I thank God for that man, and I will always believe he was an angel.

I’ll begin with pictures from a busy, modern Frankfurt and an enticing, beautiful Dresden.

Following the Sunday morning church bells

Modern Frankfurt

Love in Frankfurt

After Berlin, Frankfurt, and Dresden the last couple of weeks, I was ready to stay in one place for more than five days.  I, along with several others, chose to stay back in Reutlingen this past weekend.  I cannot describe what happiness it brings me to be able to have laundry completed, my room “cloroxed,” letters written and mailed, etc.  For the past week or so, I have had such an intense desire to feel put together, for I haven’t really felt that since I arrived in Germany.  For me, feeling put together usually entails cleanliness and productiveness.  I’m happy to say, my weekend has been just that and more!

Beyond my accomplished “to-do lists” for this weekend, though, is the grace and heart warming moments I experienced.  The nature surrounding Reutlingen University is absolutely breathtaking.  This weekend, I woke up early each morning to go for a long run amongst the Swabian Alps.  When trying to convey the beautiful nature that exists in my “backyard”, I am simply at a loss for words.  Even though the pictures don’t quite do it justice, I’ll let them speak for themselves.

Returning from these runs always leave me feeling so fulfilled.  But, I was especially uplifted when I checked my mailbox Friday morning and found a surprise from a sweet, loved one.  A little friend of mine by the name of Kyle (age 8), sent me a precious paper friend, by the name of Flat Stanley. Having never heard of this before, I read the description:

“Our class read a story called Flat Stanley by Jeff Brown.  A big bulletin board fell on Stanley and made him flat.  In the story, he travels to different places around the world.  We each made our own flat person (mine is in this envelope) and we need you to show him/her around your area.  he/she is very fragile, as you can see, so please take good care of him/her.  Please dress Flat Stanley in clothes that are appropriate to where you live.  Please take pictures with him/her in interesting places in your are and send any souvenirs or brochures back with him/her.”

And I thought that I was filled with joy while taking my run!  Let me tell you, this paper Flat Stanley completely warmed my heart.  My adorable Kylie thought of me, even hundreds of thousands of miles away.  Just picturing her precious face when Flat Stanley returns to her with pictures from all over Germany is a priceless, beautiful thought.  I bet that she will have the best Flat Stanley story in her class, and at that age we all remember just how important that was.  So, I began my photo shoot with Flat Stanley this weekend:

You don’t always have to be visiting the most phenomenally beautiful cathedral in Dresden or the amazing architecture in Frankfurt to experience such pleasant moments; it can be as close as your backyard or as inexpensive as a paper doll.