I wrote in my previous post how I wanted to tell you what my experience has been so far living in Oslo. It is completely different than anywhere I have lived before in my life. Now, I haven’t moved around that much but this is officially the fourth country I have lived in as an adult and it’s been the hardest to get used to. Let me tell you why.
First off, I want to start by saying that Norway is truly a beautiful country. The nature and the city is stunning. I love spending time here, however for me it’s more so the weather and the dark that makes it difficult for me to be able to truly enjoy what this place has to offer. Let me explain. I lived in NYC and hated the long and cold winters. One of the main reasons I moved to Barcelona was because of the sun and the long days. The fact that in January it’s 17 degrees Celsius is unreal.
I knew that it can be warm during the winter in Barcelona but you know when you go on vacation to a Caribbean island for example, it’s like one of those, “I’m here for two weeks and this place is just in my mind for the two weeks but then after once I get back to reality, it doesn’t seem real that actual people live there all year round.” Maybe I’m just the idiot here, very probable, and didn’t ever think about it. Once I spent my first winter in BCN, which by the way it really does get cold there during the winter months, I was shocked that it can be January, the sun doesn’t set until 18:00, and everyone is out and about because it’s still sunny… every. single. day. It’s amazing. In NYC, in January, the sun rose at 7:00 and set at 17:00. Still a short day but it was bearable. Now in Oslo, the sun rises at around 8:45 and sets at 16:00. That is a short day, really, really short. Something I am not used to at all. And most days, it does snow. So it’s cold, snowy, and dark. Again, I’m not trying to say this country is horrible, don’t come here, run away. Absolutely not. But I need to make a point, especially for someone who does suffer from even slight seasonal depression, I did not see it coming. I didn’t think it was going to effect me this badly but oh shit was I wrong.
There are ways to go around it though. There is always a way. Taking long walks during the day and especially going hiking on the weekends does wonders. Some advice that I can give for anyone who is struggling with living in a new country is to get out of the house. Force yourself if you have to and really get to know the place that you are now living in. It makes such a difference to start to feel like it’s your home when you know the area that you live in. You find your favorite shops, bakeries, stores that you actually need to buy supplies or food. It makes it so much better when you begin to find your way around and even better when you don’t need to be glued to Google Maps to do it. Another reason I suggest to really get out of the house is also finding the beauty in the place that you chose to live. I spend my first two months in Barcelona alone for most of the time. I would spend hours after work walking around getting lost in the winding streets but it was the best experience. When I look back at those first few months, that’s what really got me going, the excitement of discovering.
Back to Oslo. Exploring the city and nature is the best experience so far. I love walking through the snowy forests here it’s really beautiful. However, the weather was not the only culture shock. I’m from NYC and then going to BCN it was a similar experience. People are really open. In Oslo, the culture is different. I read about it in blogs before I came here but I figured, nah this is total bullshit. They didn’t try! That’s the problem. No, it wasn’t. People in Oslo are more closed than other cultures. Again, not judging here just stating my experience. The culture here is that most people who are Norwegian have made their friends in middle or high school and have stuck with them as lifetime friends. Which in reality is quite amazing and impressive. I don’t speak to more than half of my childhood friends for the fact that we just grew apart. It’s admirable that they were loyal and made sure to do the work to keep the friendships intact. Hence why they don’t really go looking for new company. Which can make it a bit difficult for a newcomer like me. The one thing I have to say is that you need to respect other people’s cultures even if you don’t like it. You know the saying, “You don’t like it you can just leave…” No one is forcing me here so I can’t get upset. It can be quite disappointing I won’t lie, but it’s something that I know I will have to work up to. Find another way to meet people, maybe other foreigners like myself.
The last serious culture shock is how difficult it can be to find work even if you speak English. The two main languages in this country are Norwegian and English. Although it would seem that being a native English speaker would help open more doors for me, it does not. You need to speak Norwegian unless you work for a startup company that is international and the office language is English. Of course it’s not impossible, but if you expect to land in Norway with a job waiting for you, you are wrong.
Now to dealing with the anxiety of this all. It’s not easy. I started this blog to be honest and not bullshit any of you who are reading this. I had a few serious moments of complete meltdowns. I would just start crying and wouldn’t be able to stop the panic in my head of how lost I felt in this new place. Why am I here? Why am I doing this? What is the point? In the end I had to wait for my brain to calm down. Let myself feel the stress and panic because the more I pushed it away the worse it got. Sometimes you just have to let it take over for a moment and then gather yourself after. It’s okay. It doesn’t mean you failed. It just means you had a moment of weakness, we all do. I definitely do. I hate it, I get pissed off with myself, I’m embarrassed, and it makes me feel like a giant child. But one of my closest friends told me, “You’re biggest problem is that you judge yourself SO much. Chill out and let it go. Relax.” I always tell them it’s easier said than done but they are right. Just chill out. It’s okay. After a long week of work you want to just relax on the couch and watch an episode, that doesn’t make you a lazy bum. It means you need a physical break. Mentally that can happen to. Never allowing yourself to cry or just feel like shit doesn’t work. You need to let it go.
Comment down below if these types of articles help at all. If there are any questions please let me know, I would love to answer. Again I am not a professional, just another anxious person trying to get through it all.
Till next time! I hope you have a great mental day! 🙂
Photo Credit: Tobias Bjørkli from Pexels.com, Instagram: @tobias.bjorkli