You'll get tired from travelling...

especially if you're almost 2 meters tall the body doesn't really like travelling by planes. One of the reasons why I prefer trains is because it is comfortable, and you won't fall 30.000 feet when there's an engine problem. I left Lena's appartment at 10 in the morning almost two days ago. The travel was supposed to take 26 hours, but ended up taking 28 hours. Not too bad. The only plane being late was the one going from Nairobi to Lusaka and Lilongwe. It was a quite dramatic trip, maybe most of all because I am terrified of flying. It is one of the few things I am actually really afraid of doing. Anyway, I will come back to the drama very soon.

The first flight with KLM was a flight I already has done sometimes before. From Trondheim to Amsterdam. I had almost five hours in Schiphol, but decided to not go to the city of Amsterdam. To be honest, I didn't really do anything except buying some crappy fast food that I regretted afterwards. The rest of the trip was with Kenya Airways, and I must say that nothing except the name of the airline and the colours of the clothes of the personnel made it different from flying with KLM. Maybe a little bit better service. This was a painful flight, lasting for 8 hours. It was really warm and of course the only airline that has seats that is perfect for big bodies like mine is Widerøe, so I was not able to sleep at all. It didn't make it better that I had to sit between two people. I survived it, but not without drama. One guy went crazy on the plane, and the personnel had to jump on him and throw him to the floor. I guess he was drunk, and this is another good reason to ban alcohol on flights. I don't know his nationality, but he was definetely European, and I guess he's having some big problems now. The security personnel at the airport in Nairobi picked him up, and either he got a big fine, or had to go to the local police. Let's just say that I am happy to not be him.

Anyway, the last flight was ok, but I didn't know that we had to go to Lusaka first. At least I got to see the airport in Lusaka from the plane, but nothing more. We landed in Lilongwe about one hour late, and then the security check and issuing of visas was quite straightforward but a little bit slow. The driver from the hostel had to wait for me for two hours, but she was smiling when I met her, so I guess it didn't matter too much.

I am now sitting at the hostel in Lilongwe. The Mufasa Backpack Lodge. It's a really nice hostel, and I got a nice sleep lasting for at least 12 hours. The clock here is approaching 8 in the morning, and everybody is already up, so I guess it is about time to go have a look at the city. I got to see a little bit yesterday, but it is really chaotic and one of the girls I am sharing room with told me that I should not spend too much time in Lilongwe, but rather do the other things I planned like Cape Maclear and Zomba. I have my bed here for 4 nights... But I have some things I need to do here, like going to the Zambian consulate, so I guess I can make the best out of these days.

I will try to take some pictures for my next post.

Ø

Leaving Norway very soon

Now it is only 12 hours until I go to Værnes. The first flight will be to Amsterdam where I will have 5 hours. I may go for a short trip to the city, but most likely not. From Amsterdam I will fly with Kenya Airways to Nairobi and further on to Lilongwe. In 36 hours I will be in Malawi, the country I have been wishing to go to for a very long time.

Am I nervous? Yes, of course. I haven't planned anything for my time in Malawi except where to sleep the first four nights. I guess I will just follow my instincts, and do things when they appear interesting, after speaking to local people or other travellers.

As you can see, this is my shortest blog post. I am actually quite busy. I guess you will hear from me in a couple of days. If not, don't worry:)

Love from Øyvind

Sleep deprivations and the pain of driving for too long

It is not as bad as it sounds. I was able to sleep quite well last night at my sister's place. Anyway, this is something that tend to happen everytime I am going for long travels, so I won't blame it on the anti-malaria drug. I did barely sleep the last two nights before travelling down to Trondheim. I left Soltun at 8:30, much later than planned due to this sleep deprivation. I woke up at 2 o'clock on Wednesday, and couldn't sleep until around 5. So, you can surely say that experience of driving was painful. However, I made it, and I drove as safely as you could expect from a guy that once was given a ticket for speeding, and now is paranoid about photo boxes and driving like a "Sonntagsfahrer", as one of my German friends says...

I actually say the same photo box that took the beautiful picture of me almost two years ago. We're still not friends, but now I am driving way below the speed limit.

My check list for the coming trip is getting smaller every day. I bought my new Mosquito net, a new Malawi & Zambia Lonely Planet book, and a lot of other things I may need while travelling. Not much more that I need to fix now. I am almost ready to go. This makes room andd time for a lot of social activities, and today I met three friends. The schedule for the next days says that I am quite busy. The downside for you, my patient and loyal readers, is that I will not update the blog before Sunday or Monday, but please feel free to continue reading and comment on my articles and tell me what you want me to write about.

Trondheim

Tomorrow morning, I will leave Evenskjer to go to my second hometown. The city of big mustaches, the city of Dahl's, the city of the football team that I don't remember the name of, the city of the best bar and pubs that this country can offer, the city with the best Platekompaniet in the world, the city that I love more than any other. I kind of love and hate Svolvær at the same time, but never hated Trondheim...

It's a city in which I spent 9 whole years of my life, and it was sad and strange to leave Trondheim after spending so much time there. I guess at some point I will have to return. It's the place where I am happy to say that most of my real friends live or will live (there are some exceptions, and you know who you are). It's the place where my sister lives, and I love her very much. So, now I finally said this online. You should smile now little sister...

I haven't planned much for the days in Trondheim, but I have to go buy a mosquito net, deliver some stuff to Camilla, and then I hope there will be time for a small gathering of some people at Mikrobryggeriet. Come on guys, I know you like beer. I also hope to spend some time at platekompaniet, and possibly watch a movie at the cinema, maybe even go up to the Uni to just get the feeling of being home.

What is really strange is that I don't have many photos of Trondheim. I have lots of photos from social gatherings, but almost no pictures of the city. Seems like I have a job to do this summer. Anyway, I can show you some not very good photos, and you can try to imagine that it is hundred times more beautiful than on the photos...


Photo taken from Festninga, in the direction of my old appartment.


Photo taken from the Old Bridge


Finally, a photo of the most impressive church in Norway, Nidarosdomen.

Looking forward to seeing you...

The problem of packing too early

I suffer from a disorder. Most of you should know it, but it's not something I talk about all the time. A lot of the time, but not all the time. Let me tell you more about it. Before I travel, I have to check at least 15 times that I turned off the oven, that I turned off the lights, that I unconnected all electric cables. During travels I am checking on my wallet and other valuables all the time. Let us say every 5 minutes or so. Well, I may be overestimating my problem a little bit now, but it was more than anything to get your attention. I am obsessed with having some sort of control over my own life, but I am not a control freak. At least I think I'm not. I am quite good at relaxing too. That should be proof enough, and I guess my former students could verify that I don't have control all the time.

Anyway, what happened this time was that I started to pack too early. Now it has been about a week since I packed, because I went to Lofoten last Tuesday. So what is the problem? Now I don't even remember what I packed, and with my disorder I have to have some sort of control. Thus meaning that I will unpack today, and check that I have all the important things that I need to bring to Africa. You should think that I guy that has been to 41 countries and travels every time he has the chance of doing so, knows what to bring. However, now you know that I have no control at all. I have a really small backpack that I can put 60 liters of clothes and other necessities in, but it is only half full. I probably told you before that the most important thing I learned from being mugged in Venezuela, is that you really don't even need half of the things you think at the start of the travel. So, the consequence of the mugging is that I now travel too light. Haha, what a paradox.

The only way to keep my head mentally stable before going to Trondheim on Wednesday, is to do the packing all over again...

Respect?

Lately, a lot of people have told me that they think travelling to Africa is bold, and that they have a lot of respect for me. Other people tell me that I have to be really careful and they are afraid that something may happen. Then I wonder, why does travelling to Africa sound so exotic to them? It's just a normal vacation, even though it may not be the most common choice of destination. I have contacts and friends who grew up in some of those countries, I have many friends who has been in these parts of Africa. I just want to explore the world, and if doing it means visiting some countries that people have not even heard about, they should study the map. That's just my opinion. I knew the capitals and most important cities of those countries when I was ten years old, and I always wanted to go to Malawi and Uganda for no obvious reason...

To those of you that didn't know this about me, and it can't be that many, I still find the Atlas the most interesting and best book ever written or drawn. I don't know how many of these type of books that I own, but I always have one available so that I can look in it, and dream about travelling to a new destination.

Now the African Adventure is approaching quickly, and I feel a little bit more stressed every day. Tomorrow will be a big day. My final Cholera drinking vaccine thing is going down my throat, and I have to take my anti-malaria drug for the second time. Like I told you before, I don't think many of the side effects of the mediaction applies to me, and that makes me happy. However, the few beer I had yesterday made this day a painful experience. I hope it was just because of the beer and not because of the anti-malaria drug.

I will probably go back home to Evenskjer tomorrow, and leave for Trondheim on Tuesday or Wednesday. I am hoping for some nice days in Trondheim with my sister and some good friends. I really have a lot to do. Can't just have fun. Needs to buy the mosquito net and a new guide book for Malawi and Zambia. The Lonely Planet Malawi book that I already have is terribly outdated as I bought it in 2001.

Finally, I want to challenge you!!! What do you want me to write about? It is probably not that many of you that actually read this blog, but if anyone does, please let me know what you find interesting to hear about. I hope I can give you exactly what you want. I also promise to put some more pictures here when I have reliable internet access at some of the places I am going.

Love from Big Bear <3

12 days left...

and I can tell you that I didn't notice any serious side effects of the anti-malaria drug yet. However, I could tell immediately that the medicine was much stronger than any other medication that I usually takes, but those who knows me know that I would get high if I take more than 2 paracetamol... I was feeling dizzy the whole Sunday and I got a small headache on Monday, so I decided that there will not be any major travelling on Sundays, and no alcohol. This goes for the next 14 weeks.

I am currently in Svolvær, and we have beautiful weather. It's a great place this time of year, but I know that it will be even better in August, so I know I will experience the best days of the summer back home. I booked my hostel for the days in Lilongwe already. I will stay at the Mufasa Backpacker Lodge, and it looks okay by the information I found online. They even offered to come and pick me up at the airport, something that eases the first day in Africa.

I don't know much about what I will do in Malawi yet, but I guess I will find out when I talk to people at the hostel. Thoko has not responded to my email yet, but I know that I will meet Ephraim in Zambia. That's cool. Good to have some contacts while travelling. I will also contact Stephen at Nuru in Nairobi during this weekend.

Yesterday, I tried to find out whether I can avoid the 36-48 hour bus trip from Lusaka to Dar Es Salaam, and rather fly to Nairobi, Kilimanjaro or Dar, but there is something wrong with Kenya Airways' website. Will try again later, but it won't be a disaster to spend two days in a bus...

I am sorry that I will not be able to update the blog every day, but I will do my best to keep you informed:)

Big Hug!