As a student majoring in Nordic Studies at Luther College in Decorah, Iowa, one of the “requirements” was to spend a semester in Norway. I have ‘requirements’ in quotes, because it was more of a golden opportunity, as I had longed for a Norwegian experience for as long as I could remember. After taking three years of Norwegian languages classes and a myriad of Nordic culture classes, I decided it was time to go abroad during my senior year.

In my hunt to determine where I wanted to study in Norway, I landed on Trondheim for a couple different reasons. First, I would be attending NTNU: Norwegian University of Science and Technology, known to native speakers as Norges teknisk-naturvitenskapelige universitet. NTNU is the largest university in Norway and coming from a small private liberal arts college, I liked the idea of having a totally opposite, new experience. Additionally, it was a school that not many students at Luther before me had attended. The notion that my time there would be new in many regards intrigued me.

Because this wasn’t one of the usual universities that Luther was used to dealing with, I was given the opportunity to research the classes they offered and pick my courses, which was then approved by the head of our Nordic Studies department for reciprocal school credit. I ended up with a Norwegian history course, a science class on climate change, and a pop culture and music course. NTNU has a strong exchange program, so they offer many classes in English.

Before we even started classes, I could tell NTNU was fabulous. They put on an orientation event for all the exchange students, which of course featured delicious Norwegian waffles. They also had multi-day orientation festivities for all, which included a large pop concert on the campus lawn, introductions to school clubs, and a speech from the rektor.

Not only did I enjoy life at NTNU, but I also loved Trondheim as a city. In my opinion, it was a perfect mix of historical and contemporary Norway. You can walk along the 18th century preserved Bakklandet neighborhood, visit the beautiful Nidaros Cathedral, or catch a concert at Byscenen concert hall. The city was also extremely walkable and had a very convenient busing system that I often used to and from classes. Regarding food, the seafood in Trondheim was deliciously fresh and hard to beat. Additionally, Kvikk Lunsj, a Norwegian chocolate bar, became a daily staple in my diet. Perhaps the most refreshing aspect of Trondheim and Norway in general was just how active people were outside, regardless of the weather.

Another very positive aspect of my semester abroad in Norway was the ease and ability to travel domestically. I was fortunate enough to spend time not only in Trondheim, but also Bergen, Oslo, Lillehammer, Stavanger, Skudeneshavn, Strand, Slidre, Ålesund, and Tromsø.

As with any new place, there is always a learning curve or some level of culture shock. For me, it was burning a frozen pizza because the stove did not get up to 350 degrees Fahrenheit, so I turned it up as high as it could go; I quickly came to learn that the stove was in Celsius. There was also an incident where I accidentally set off an alarm at a campus building as the door unlock switch was right underneath a very promising large green button. Green means go, right? Apparently not. It meant security alarm.

To say the least, my semester in Trondheim was full of learning and growth, both as a student and as a person. I would highly recommend a semester abroad for the new experiences and world views it offers. It’s already on my bucket list to return to the place that holds so many great memories.