Greetings from Norway!

Today is Thursday, and it is our second day in Norway.

We arrived here yesterday after a long trip from DC. Flight over was fine, but long, and then we had a layover in Frankfurt that was much better than expected because Daddy sweet-talked us into the Lufthansa business lounge. We had snacks and a short nap there, and used their free wi-fi. Thanks, Lufthansa!

When we arrived in Oslo, the ambassador met us at baggage claim (!) along with his driver and security detail. His car was parked in one of those 15-minute parking spots that you always see but don't dare park in. So lovely. We arrived here at the ambassador's residence after about a 45-minute drive through rural Norway. The house is enormous, and quite nice. We have our own floor, basically, with a huge room for me and Daddy and a cute room for the girls where they sleep in little beds carved out from the wall. Very Norwegian.

I took a nap and then we went to a reception downstairs for Fulbright Scholars. It took me about 15 minutes to identify the three Brown students in the room (one was a current Fulbright and the other two work in Oslo (both former Fulbrights)). We had a Brown love-fest until the party ended, which it did quite promptly, because that's how things happen here in Norway.

Then we walked around a park nearby that is very beautiful, and full of statues by a famous sculptor in Norway who makes nude sculptures of people. Lots of them. It was late – after 9 – but the sun was just setting and we got some gorgeous pictures. Late night for the girls but our time is all off.

This morning, Daddy had meetings downtown and the girls and I had a slooow start because they did NOT want to get up. I finally got them up and out, and we took a bus to a folk museum nearby that has reproductions of old Norwegian farmhouses, houses, silversmiths, etc. The best part was a building that had reconstructions of apartments in Oslo in the 1900s, 1940s, 1960s and 1970s. I loved that.

Next we took a ferry to City Hall downtown to meet Daddy. We checked out City Hall, where the Nobel Prizes are awarded, and then took a 2-hour boat tour to see the fjords and some summer homes of Oslo residents. Very pretty, if a bit soporific. We returned to the residence via a tram through a pretty, residential area. Then we had dinner here with the Ambassador and his wife, and another couple who are visiting. Funny: the Ambassador was on the Harvard Law Review, and his certificate in his office from the Law Review is signed by Grampy, who was treasurer at the time! Daddy saw it today.

The girls are having fun, though they were a bit cranky this morning due to the jet lag. They've been enjoying some games I brought for them – UNO and ASAP – and are both doing some reading. Tomorrow we are here in Oslo til the afternoon, and then we take a ferry boat overnight to Copenhagen. It's supposed to be a "party boat" -not sure what that means but it doesn't sound good.

Here are some pics from the trip so far: