Short visit to Norway

Booooo!! (did you get scared now?)

When writing this I'm on the plain to Norway. I'm going back to teach nlp for a couple of days at NLP Centeret. I guess I'm missing out on all the halloween parties tonight (Oct. 31st). Well, I kind of get a small taste of it as even the airplane is decorated with skeletons, spiders and spider nets.

I've got myself an apartment along the stars in Hollywood which is one of LA's most famous neighborhoods, and I'm starting to adjust to life in Los Angeles. It's not really all that hard to get used to the sun and warmth...














Los Angeles is a highly entertaining city, with several distinct neighborhoods offering a wide range of experiences. In LA you can really keep yourself busy having a good time at the beach, hiking in the hills, visiting top-notch galleries and museums, checking out bands, watching obscure films that no one else in the country gets to see, shopping at cool local boutiques, and eating delicious, healthy food. I haven't got to explore much of the neighbourhood yet so I guess I have an exciting time ahead of me. Asgeir and myself are also planning a trip to San Fransisco. I got to see a lot of the US when traveling with Doug Swenson, but there are still some more cities and states I want to go while I'm overseas.

I've become good friends with my new old car. It's nice to be independent and be able to get around easily. The downside is that I spend hours in the LA-traffic every day. It's crazy. LA is really spread out. In fact, Los Angeles has often been described as more of a collection of small towns connected by a freeway than a proper city. That line from the movie Clueless "everywhere in LA takes 20 minutes!" (...or more) is pretty true -at least at rush hour and when you get lost (which I do from time to time if I haven't brought Asgeirs GPS navigator with me). Well, I just got a new auto stereo installed and I'm planning to keep myself busy listening to audio books, self development programs and a spanish course (I'll speak fluid spanish within a month or two if I'll be driving as much back and forth as I have done so far). I love my Altima, but I also miss my bike!! Even though LA is a place where people tend to be healthy and into fitness the amount of time I spend on exercise has reduced drastically. Other than a Sunday walk in the park and my morning yoga I'm actually not moving very much at all. After returning from the tour with Doug I've been a little tired of yoga. I've been giving myself some slack for a while, but when returning to LA I'm seriously getting back into my daily yoga practice so that I can live up to my own standards. There are also plenty of bike trails, hikes (there's some nice parks quite close to where I live), and climbs to keep outdoor enthusiasts like me happy.














Back in LA I'm also looking forward to go out dancing. I know there's plenty of good places to go for both salsa, tango and lindy. I'm also checking out possible places to go ballroom dancing. It's dance socials every night so there's really no excuse. I just have to find a way to combine the social dancing (read: late nights) with my morning yoga (I find it best to do my practice in the morning). I also want to take some tango lessons with Asgeir. I already do the tango, but I could need to develop a better technique.

In addition to the laidback lifestyle that comes with living in a city on the beach that sees sun most of the year, Los Angeles has a surprising number of cultural goings-on outside of the film industry. There are dozens of theaters and as a resident of Hollywood I feel it's my duty to go to the movies once in a while. I guess I have a peak at what you might get the opportunity to see next year... There are several cinemas here showing a lot of good movies. Now I'm looking forward to watch "Casino Royale" (James Bond) and "The Fastfood Nation" (based on the book) that is coming up next month. Talking about food... the kiosks at the cinemas sell super-sized pop corn baskets and the seats are equipped with a cup holder that fits an XXL coca cola...! It kind of makes me wonder if the americans already have forgotten about "Super-size me"... I always bring a raw-food chocolate bar when I go to the movies. It's even better than the norwegian Melkesjokolade with it's slogan "et lite stykke Norge" (eng.: a little piece of Norway - though the factory has been bought up by an American company now...).

Overall I'm doing very good in LA. I feel happy! :-) The only thing stressing me here is to find a way to get a visa. Maybe I should go back to school or find a rich client (read: sponsor) that really value my work. If any of you have any tips and advice please share them with me. When coming back to LA I'll have another 90 days to sort out a way...

Happy halloween!

Caïla