No, I live in Hoyvík

A tragic, tragic thing happened at the beginning of this week - ok, it wasn't tragic, but it was a little sad. I was switched out of my dear French class. I guess the maximum number of students that can be in a class is 26, and I was number 27. I had the choice of Spanish or German, so I chose Spanish since it seems easier to learn in another language I don't speak very well - Faroese. I figured it wouldn't be so bad, since I know how to count to ten in Spanish and my sister back home speaks it fairly well, so I can always email her if I have a question. Wrong. My Spanish teacher is very nice, but she clearly does not understand the common exchange student.

She involved me in the class discussion, which I appreciated. She started asking everyone in the class "De dónde eres?" and the students would reply, "Soy de ...". I could figure out that she was asking, "Where do you come from/live?" and the students were saying "I live in ...". So when she got to me, I replied with "Soy de Hoyvík". Then in Faroese that I couldn't understand, she asked me, "If you are from Hoyvík, why don't you speak Faroese?" I looked at her blankly and then she asked me in English. I said, "That's where I live now". She told me that I had to say Minnesota, because that's where I "come from". Since I have been here, I have always said Hoyvík unless someone asked me where I lived in America. I don't think she quite understands that it's hard for me to tell Spanish from Faroese, given that I don't know either language very well. When they are spoken so fast and back and forth, it's kind of hard to differentiate between them. She is constantly asking me questions in both, and then speaks in slow English when I can't understand. I won't lie, it's quite irritating.

Remember what I said about a fellow exchange student always being around the corner? The old AFS student who went to Italy last year, Jón, is also in my Spanish class. When we had a little break, he explained to me that he knows how it feels when the teacher asks a question, or how some teachers just don't get exchange students. We both laughed off the awkwardness, and I continued trying to learn Spanish.

I had been told that some teachers can be difficult with exchange students, and now I have experienced it first hand. Rotary has taught me to handle these situations in a mature way, so I hope that is what I can learn to do from my Spanish class more so than learning to speak Spanish.

Adiós!
Katie

Wasps and Failure to be on Time

Hey Øll,
I realized today that I've only shared my big, important events. Life is also very different here, so I will take a little bit of my time to share with you some of the quirks of the Faroes -

• People are always late. Maybe it's the relaxed part of the culture, but I have discovered that you should never show up on time. To anything. You'll always be early.
• Almost everyone drives a stick-shift. Almost everyone is bad at driving a stick-shift. Almost every time I see a car stop at an intersection in town, the car will roll backwards before it moves forward. 
• Decimals are written with a comma instead of a period. This is too confusing, and I refuse to adapt to this small part of the culture. I will read them like that, but I can't write them like that. 
• Recently, the Faroe Islands have attracted wasps. Three wasps in particular seem to hang out at the bus stop in the center of Tórshavn - one that I go to almost every day. Sometimes I'll see people abruptly get up from the bench and run to the other bench, and then back again. I have been one of these people, but I still have to laugh.
• Speaking of the bus systems, I have had a difficult time figuring out how it works. There have been many times where I've sat on the bus almost the entire hour and a half route around Tórshavn before realizing I'm on the wrong bus and that I should probably get off and switch. 
• Teenagers here stay out until 7am on the weekends, just walking around town. I personally can't be awake as the sun is coming up or I will lose my head, so I am always leaving earlier than everyone else - maybe this ties in with everyone always being late. 
• Everyone peels their own potatoes at dinner. I can officially say I know how to peel a potato with a fork and a knife.
• The Faroese eat a LOT of potatoes. I have learned to like them, but I'm slowly getting sick of them... 
• I tried whale. It wasn't good, but I tried it.

Among many other quirks, life is very different! But in a good way. This country has a lot of character, and I am just loving it. That's all for now!

Enjoying a beautiful evening in Tórshavn!

Hav ein gódan dag! 

Katie 

Yellow Post-it Notes

Today was my first day of school in the Faroe Islands! Technically, yesterday was my first, but it only lasted two hours and it was just to introduce us to our class and tour the school. The schools in the Faroe Islands are set up much differently than the schools in America. Everyone calls it "college". There are two main directions to choose from - the science/math direction or the language direction. At first, I was placed in the science/math direction in the Biology class. Another thing that is different - you basically have one class of about 23 people that you stay with for most of the classes. The teachers just move from room to room. When I found out that I would have no art class in the Biology direction, I talked to the school's guidance counselor to see if something could be done. Art is my favorite subject, and I figured it was the only class that I would be able to fully understand. Once I got it switched, the guidance counselor gave me a post it note with the letter "E" on it. She literally just sat me down in a classroom, so I still don't know if I am in the science/math direction or the language direction...

I'm going to guess that I am in the language direction, because today I had to choose a language class. Of all the many language classes there were, I chose French. The class is the first level of French, which I have already taken back in the states. Since I already know everything in the class, I figured it would be easier to learn in Faroese and maybe even help me pick up a little bit of Faroese as well. On another note, my French teacher was hilarious. I have only had one class with him, but he spoke to us in French the entire time and exuberantly said "BONJOUR!" to each one of us and shook our hands in our seats. He speaks with a great French accent and exciting enthusiasm - it's so wonderful! It's also refreshing that I'm not the only one who can't understand what he is saying.

The rest of my teachers are all very kind and accommodating. They usually make sure I know what is going on when I need to. My chemistry teacher had the suggestion that we have a stack of yellow post-it notes in the classroom, so the students can all label things in Faroese to help me learn. Everyone loved the idea, and I did as well! It will be kind of funny, but a really good way to learn. All the students in my class are very friendly, and always make sure I know what is happening. I can't understand anything. Anything. Sometimes I pretend I'm at Hogwarts, and everyone is speaking parseltounge. And I really want to learn parseltounge. I am hoping the language will become easier to understand within a few weeks and I won't be so lost, but for now I will try my best and doodle in my notebook when my brain starts to hurt. Overall - it was a great first day of school!

On Thursday night, each class goes camping out in front of the school (on top of an old Tuberculosis burial ground when almost half of Hoyvík died). So my class and I will pitch a tent and stay over night at school! Then we have Friday off to go home and SLEEP.

Farvæl!!!
Katie

At Lara Føroyskt - To Learn Faroese

To be completely honest, I went into my year with the intention of getting by without learning Faroese. I figured it's a language that I'm never going to use again, and everyone speaks English anyways - so what's the point?

Here's the point - I can't understand sh** that anyone says. It makes me feel bad that people have to go out of their way to speak English so that I can understand and be included in the conversation. I am in THEIR country, and I need to learn to speak their language. Within two days of being here, I made the decision that I will learn to speak, write, read and understand Faroese. I want to understand. I don't want to spend my year constantly asking people to speak English.

So, over the past week I have learned to count to ten. I have learned how to greet people, and how to form a few sentences. I know some words here and there - for example, "ganga" means walk - but I'm sure my vocabulary will continue to grow. My host family has been excellent at helping me learn. They speak slowly and repeat what they said in english afterwards. I find that the more I speak Faroese to my host sisters, the more they speak English to me. It's a unique exchange, but all of us get to learn from it. My sisters are both great at telling me how to say certain things in Faroese. Sometimes I say the wrong thing, but we all get a good laugh from it. :) My whole host family is so patient and helpful as I learn, and I couldn't be happier about it!

We visited Bergtóra's sister and her family the other day for dinner. Among many other children, her sister has a four or five year old daughter, who was very giggly and absolutely adorable. She asked Bergtóra if I could count to ten in Faroese, so I did. The shy smile on her face warmed my heart! She then counted to ten in English, and buried her face in her mom's lap after. She was just so cute! It was a moment to remember, that's for sure!

Mirjam, my rotary counselor, has also set me up with an old rotarian man named Eilif. He is about 80 years old and has offered to teach me how to learn Faroese! A few times a week I meet up with him at his house in Tórshavn. He is very sweet, and incredibly generous in helping me learn!

My goal is to be able to understand most of what people are saying in three months.

Farvæl, everybody.

Katie

To the North Atlantic and Beyond

I have been here less than a week and have already gotten to see a part of Faroese culture that most Faroese get to see only once in their lifetime, or not at all.

Here is a little Faroese tale for you - About 500 years ago, there was a little village called Skard on one of the northern most islands - Kunoy. The village consisted only of six houses, with one man in each house. Like most villages in the Faroes back then, the women and children depended on the men to go out to the ocean and bring back fish to survive. About 100 years ago, the six men went out and never came back. So, the women and children had no choice but to abandon their village and move to a different part of the islands. 

Because Skard is so difficult to get to, not many people go there. However on Wednesday, a group of about 450 people decided to make the 10km trek out to Skard for a memorial and to enjoy the absolutely incredible landscapes. I was fortunate enough to be one of these people! Bergtóra's mother, her husband, Karin, Beinta and I all went together. 1km into the hike, we lost Bergtóra's mother and her husband, so it was just the three of us walking. Because it rains so often in the Faroes, the water flows down the side of the mountains creating streams that run into the ocean. We had to cross many of them - Mom, thank you for forcing me to bring my hiking boots. My backpacking skills came in handy.  It became quite the endeavor, but it was well worth it at the end! The landscape was so amazing, I had to slap myself across the face to make sure it wasn't a dream. I still can't believe it. All that was left of the village were stone foundations embedded into the side of the mountain. There was some sort of memorial ceremony. I could barley understand what was going on, but there were some things I was certain of. Everyone there was proud to be Faroese. The joy in everyone's voices was astounding as they sang Faroese folk songs in honor of the six fisherman that were lost at see one hundred years ago. It was quite the experience!

While at Skard, the five of us ate lunch on the mountain as we watched the memorial. Bergtóra's mother had a traditional Faroese food called "skerpikjøt" - dried mutton on homemade bread. After we had finished eating, she pulled out wet wipes for each of us. As well as Beinta and Karin, I couldn't stop laughing and smiling - my grandma does the exact same thing. It gave me a sense of familiarity that made my day. 

On our way back from Skard, we took a boat. Getting down to the ocean to board the boat was quite the adventure! Picture this: 450 people waiting to scale down a cliff to the ocean using a rope. It was difficult for some, but the way everyone helped each other was beautiful. Soon enough, we were safely on the boat.

Hiking across with mountain with Karin (left)  and Beinta (right).

Tons of people gathered at Skard!

The classic picture with the home country flag. 

- Kind of cool that this flag has now been at opposite ends of the world - Thanks, Avery -

Sitting on the side of a mountain eating skerpikjøt. It doesn't get more Faroese than that.

A hearty group of people making their way to the boats!

Beinta (middle), Karin (right) and I on the boat.

It was a day filled with adventure and culture, and one I will not soon forget. I was so fortunate to be able to go to Skard, and I may never make it back to that beautiful place. 

Tú alfagra land mítt!

Katie 

A Great Family and a Gorgeous Country

Hallo friends and family!

It has been two days since I arrived in the Faroes, and I will tell you that I absolutely love it. I haven't seen much of the world, but if I had to choose the most beautiful place on earth, it would be the Faroe Islands. Whenever I walk outside I keep anticipating a hobbit to pop out and walk around, or some fairies to fly through the air. It feels like a fairytale.

My host family is also so incredible! I couldn't have gotten luckier. They live in a part of Tórshavn called Hoyvík - similar to a neighborhood in the states. Right in front of my house is a body of water - kind of like a pond - but it is actually an old reservoir of fresh water from the very first settlers in the Faroe Islands. When it was built, it was located a long ways away from the town, but now that Tórshavn has grown it is right outside my house! There is a nice path that goes around the reservoir and halfway around the path is Mirjam's house!

This is the reservoir! The black house is Mirjam's house. 

My host family is a lovely family of four. My host mom's name is Bergtóra, my host dad's name is Ragnar and I have two twin host sisters named Beinta and Karin - they are each 12 years old. They also have a little terrier named Sasja - such a sweetheart! I am so thankful to have such a great host family. It has only been two days and I already feel so comfortable in their home. They have already taught me so much, and I believe they will begin speaking to me in Faroese soon! 

The past two days have been packed full of activities! Yesterday was my first full day here. In the morning, Bergtóra, Beinta and I went for a walk down by the ocean with Sasja and Stina - a lively golden retriever they were babysitting. We also walked past the school I will start on Monday. The walk from the school to the ocean only takes 10 minutes! It was great to finally see the ocean. 

The view of Tórshavn on our walk.

Some sheep on our walk.

Sasja (back) and Stina (front).

After our walk, I went to visit Mirjam over at her house to say hello and discuss school next week. Her and some of her family ended up taking me to see the end of a whale killing in a village about 25 minutes away! I understand that the whale killing is a sensitive topic to some, but it is a huge part of the culture in the Faroes. One hundred years ago, the people absolutely depended on the whale catch to survive. Over the years they have reformed rules and regulations about this, so now the whales are killed extremely fast and completely painless. It is the only way it can be done. I only caught the end of a small one, but it was fascinating to watch and hear about. I have pictures, but I will not post them as they are sensitive.

Last night I got to watch reruns of what is called the "Island Games" with my host family. The Island Games happen every other year. This year they were in June, and they were held in Bermuda! The games consist of 24 different island countries competing - Faroe Islands, Greenland, Bermuda, etc - very similar to the olympics. The games in which the Faroe Islands placed in the top three were shown on the Faroese television. At the beginning, the youngest player of each country had a bottle of ocean water from their country and they each dumped theirs into a boat. Then the games started! Although they were very fun to watch, I still think the Faroes should be able to compete in the real olympics. Right now, they have to compete under Denmark. 

This morning, Ragnar, Beinta, Karin, Sasja and I packed up some sandwiches and coffee and drove up to the old radar station on a mountain - the view is what people go to see. Unfortunately, it was much too foggy to see anything in the mountains today so we just enjoyed the fresh air and our sandwiches! The radar station on the Faroe Islands was very important during the Cold War. Here is a video Ragnar showed me before we left - 

The video is by "kovboy film" - check them out on YouTube when you get the chance. They have many other great videos of the Faroes.

Too foggy to see - but still beautiful!

It became a beautiful day once we came down from the mountain! That's the thing about the Faroes - you never know when and how the weather will change. You can have absolutely no visibility and then seconds later you will be able to see the ocean for miles and miles. Downtown Tòrshavn was one of the most charming places I have ever been - and I can't wait to go back. 

A gorgeous day in downtown Tórshavn.

The old part of Tórshavn - from the 1500's!

Tórshavn

Ok. That should be enough reading for all of you. :)

Farvæl! 

Katie

Danish Sausages and Atlantic Air

AH! I have officially arrived to the Faroe Islands after many exhausting hours of travel. Part of my flight schedule meant having to sit in the Copenhagen airport for 7 hours to wait for the plane to take me to the Faroe's. Abby - who I had flown from Minneapolis to Copenhagen with - had to catch a plane to her host town in Denmark around the same time. We were both thinking we had to sit in the airport for hours and hours, with Copenhagen just out of our reach only 10 minutes away! 

I was very fortunate to be emailing my Rotary counselor in the Faroe's, Mirjam, who's mother-in-law was in downtown Copenhagen! She rode the train to the airport, picked us up, and the three of us spent three hours walking around Copenhagen (with our carry-on luggage, of course...). Mirjam's mother-in-law's name was Henni - such a sweet lady! She bought us Danish sausages, showed us the Queen's castle, took us by the riverboats and street vendors, and introduced us to her granddaughter  We had a lovely time. It turns out that she lives not too far from my house! 

A traditional Danish sausage! 

One of the Queen's guards

Copenhagen by the canal!

I can't begin to describe how many bike's there were!

After our adventure out in Copenhagen, Henni returned us to the airport and I got ready to bored my Atlantic Airway's flight to the FAROE ISLANDS! By this time... I was exhausted. I caught myself falling asleep with my mouth open while waiting to board to plane. When it was time to board, a woman with a pink rain jacket and a Scandinavian accent said on the phone, "Yes, yes, now back to the cold Faroe's!" I caught myself smiling a little - I really don't like 90 degree weather. I struggled to keep my eye's open during the two hour flight, but I do remember that the meal was salmon. :) Yay! Once I felt the plane descending, I instantly sat up and grabbed my camera out of my backpack. 

I just about cried tears of joy when I saw this. 

It was a shockingly smooth flight and landing into Vagar. I waited for my luggage, and my host family (minus the second sister, who will be coming home shortly) was waiting for me after the baggage claim with some much needed hugs. The drive home took about 45 minutes, and I'm fairly certain my jaw was dropped in awe the whole time. What a beautiful country! I'm so lucky. 

I don't have much time, but more pictures and stories to come about my first night and day with my host  family.

Farvæl,
Katie

Adventure's in Air Travel - MSP to Copenhagen

Góoan morgun from the Copenhagen airport, everybody!

Where do I begin? The past few days have been full of difficult, emotional, beautiful goodbye's and farewell's. I've discovered that leaving places and people you have become close to can be very hard, but I wouldn't want it any other way. Difficult goodbye's come from close and special relationships with people, and leaving Northfield has helped me form one of my goals for my exchange: I hope that saying goodbye to the Faroe Islands will be just as difficult, if not more so than saying goodbye to Northfield. 

I made my last goodbye at the airport this morning - or was it yesterday? - and it was by far the quickest - surprisingly enough. My emotions of detachment from my parents were quickly overpowered by excitement. My adventure had FINALLY begun! I made it onto my first flight with very little hiccups. I met up with two other girls in my district country group going to Denmark (Abby and Elle), although unfortunately we didn't get to sit by each other on the plane. My first flight took me to Amsterdam. 8 HOURS! The plane was packed full of different cultures, ages, accents, and conversations. I settled in fast and watched the movie "42", which I was very excited to see in the movie selections! 

The greatest thing that happened to me on my flight to Amsterdam, and possibly all day? A simple five minute conversation with a stranger. About four hours into the flight, I got up to use the restroom. As I was waiting in line, a scraggly, unshaven, middle aged English man with a heavy accent looked at me from his seat and said "I see you finally figured out how to recline your seat." (I guess he had seen my 15 minute struggle at the beginning of the flight - I ended up having to ask the flight attendant). I laughed, embarrassed for myself, and looked forward in the line. He asked me where I was headed, and I told him I was going to be an exchange student in the Faroe Islands. He said something that really caught my attention, "You know, most American's don't have passports, because they don't need them. They think that everything they need is right there in the US. I'm glad you know better, and you are only 16." He also asked me what I wanted to do when I grow up. I told him I didn't know, but I brought my camera along and that could be a start. I had to interrupt our conversation because it was my turn to use the restroom. When I walked out, I told him it was nice talking to him. He reached out his hand and said "Even though you don't know what you want to do, you are off to a great start. Best of luck to you." We shook hands, and I returned to my seat. It was a simple conversation, but quite possibly one of the most memorable conversations I've ever had. 

I have always wished for a connection like that with an absolute stranger. I still don't know his name.

Rotary Youth Exchange, I already love you. And I'm not even to my final destination.

Hav ein góoan dag,

Katie