My last couple of days in the US, and my first couple of days in Oslo!

My last few days in America were a bit random! The original plan was to first meet up with Tom, and then we were going to go and meet Gabby and her boyfriend somewhere to go camping. But because it was the busy summer period, we struggled to find anywhere to go camping. I should have foreseen this because I was finding it difficult to even find hostel rooms to stay in- which is why I moved around so much in the last few days before meeting up with Tom. So in the end, it didn't work out with the camping plans, and I never got to meet up with Gabby again, which is a bit sad! But I am sure I will see her again soon, on either one of our travel adventures!

Instead of going camping, Tom and I drove to San Diego, where he grew up. I got to meet his Mum, which was really awesome, and I also go to meet Shakey, his little dog! I loved Shakey of course, and cuddling him reminded me of my beloved Millsumberg back at home (I miss her so much!).

I really liked San Diego, it has the best weather and is a really beautiful place- I can't wait to get back there. I am really happy I got to see where Tom grew up and it was nice to meet his Mum who was a very warm and welcoming person.

On the first day in San Diego, Tom and I went to the San Diego Zoo, which was a really cool experience! The Zoo was huge and had heaps of animals to see. It was open late, which was cool because we got to see the animals at night. It was also nice to ride the gondola when it was dark because we could see San Diego city all lit up in the distance. 

I think it is funny that I walked through the entire Zoo without taking any photos- except for the one of Tom in a 'plank' position on the escalator (as seen in the above photo)...way more interesting than any photos of monkeys or elephants I could have taken...?

The Zoo also sold alcohol, and after a few large beers, we were ready to go out! We met up with a couple of Tom's friends and went to a few pubs. I drank too much, as I usually do when I am with Tom, and can't remember too much of the night, besides the fact that I had fun!

The next morning, Tom and I were really hung over. After having breakfast with Tom's friends we went back to his Mum's house and had a huge sleep. We slept for too long though, and had to drive back to Hollywood really late. Tom was so tired and hung over that I made him stay at the hostel in Hollywood for the night. The next morning I had to say goodbye to Tom for the last time of the trip. It was hard to do, because this time I didn't know when I would see him again...but hopefully it won't be too long!!! I miss that boy already!

After he left, I had some time to kill before I got picked up to go to the airport...So I went to my favourite diner and had a big American-style vanilla milkshake with cream and a cherry on top! It was the most delicious thing I have ever had! Worth every calorie! ;)

I went to the airport with Daniel- the shuttle bus driver I had made friends with a couple of days before. Once again, we had some free time so we went and had lunch together, which was really nice.

Afterwards, Daniel dropped me to the airport... and the worst 24 hours of travelling of my life began!!! I have never liked planes or airports, but have never really been one to complain and usually just chill out and see it all as something that has to be done when travelling. But my trip from the US to Oslo was AWFUL! First I had to sit on a 10 hour flight to London, Heathrow. This was ok, besides the fact that I was seated next to three screaming toddlers, meaning that I had to watch movies the entire flight just so I wouldn't have to listen to them. This was annoying, but it didn't bother me too much. What DID bother me was my 7 hour stop-over in Heathrow airport. I was exhausted from not being able to sleep on the plane, there was nowhere comfortable for me to sleep, the airport was packed and it was hard to find a seat, and WORST OF ALL...no free wifi provided. WHAT THE HELL!??!? It's Heathrow airport! One of the biggest airports in the world! I just couldn't believe that there was no wifi! After about 4 hours I gave in and ended up paying for some, just because I was so bored.

The only good thing about Heathrow Airport- a giant phone advertisement displaying Yoda 

When I finally arrived in Oslo, I was delirious! I can hardly remember what I did when I got to the airport, but somehow I caught a train to somewhere and finally met up with Malin! I remember seeing her and feeling so relieved! I have not seen her in 3 years- since the Bali trip where I first met her! After quickly going to get some food, we went back to her apartment. I must have got a little bit of adrenaline in the excitement of seeing Malin, because I managed to stay up talking with her for a couple of hours. After that I slept all night, woke up at 10:00am to go to the shops with Malin before she went to work, and then decided I would have a little nap to make myself feel better. 7 hours later I woke up! I spent my entire first day of Oslo in bed! This made me feel a bit guilty, but I obviously needed the sleep! Plus, I have 3 weeks here, so plenty of time to make up for it! When I did finally leave the house, I went to find Malin at her work. She works at the most amazing cafe, which is also a florist so it looks really pretty. I cant pronounce what the cafe is called- but here is the business card!

The next day, I was able to get up at a reasonable time. I went for a long run, did some exploring, bought some groceries and made a salad. It is verrrrryyy expensive here- I bought salad ingredients, 6 eggs, some green tea, some oats and a half-loaf of bread and it cost me $65 Australian...EEEK! Looks like I will definitely need to get a little job by the time I get to the UK! I didn't mind spending money on groceries though, it felt good to make some food in a kitchen and not have to eat out. It also felt amazing to go for a run- something I hadn't done for a week or so.

Malin's neighbourhood- Frognerveiem- SO PRETTY!

A little school-outing of kids- every single one of them had blonde hair! I'm going to blend right in here in Oslo!

I am so excited to be here- and even more excited to spend time with Malin! We have a big weekend planned so I'm sure I will have a lot to post by Monday! :) Bye for now!