Norway and Sweden
An Extremely Long and Stressful Journey
I felt like I received a deal of a lifetime $323 flight from JFK (NYC) to Oslo, Norway for $323 roundtrip in Delta’s main cabin with a stop in Amsterdam. I have been interested in visiting the Scandinavian countries for so long. All the beauty, snow, and nature were always on my list of places to visit. And of course, seeing the Northern Lights! I booked the flight right away and was joined by my friend who was coming from Los Angeles. She had never seen snow before in her life. So, her being able to see snow in February in Norway as her first time, was absolutely going to be a special moment!
With detailed planning, I prepared not just to see Norway but also Sweden! Since they are neighboring countries, it would be easy to take a quick flight to another Scandinavian country. So, with that idea confirmed. I kept planning out this short but amazing trip. We had a week to really immerse ourselves in the experience and culture. So, the game plan was to arrive in Oslo and take an SAS flight like Bardufoss Airport, which is in Northern Norway. Then, take another flight back to Oslo to take another flight from Oslo to Stockholm then back to Oslo on the last day to then take our journey home, which included 2 additional flights for me. If you think that was a lot, then you are absolutely correct! This trip was about to be the most stressful but inspiring trip of my lifetime.
The day came to leave on February 28th, so I made my way from South NJ To JFK Airport and was ready for this long but exciting adventure! My flight was departing at 7:30 pm and I arrived less than 2 hours before my flight since I have Pre-TSA and Global Entry 😊. Well, time goes by and it’s almost 7:30 pm and we still aren’t on the aircraft. Stressing, I went up to the front desk because I knew I had a short layover for a little more than an hour in Amsterdam. Something I should have known to not do especially coming from late as always JFK. The extremely nice customer care agent said I would make it with no problem. Well, we finally started boarding, so I was hopeful. But, of course, with my luck, this wasn’t the case. Delta had us wait on the plane because they needed to take out and reload checked bags. So, I was DOOMED and knew I wouldn’t make my connecting flight. I always try to be positive, but this wasn’t looking good at all. Finally, we were up in the air and I was stressing because my friend and I planned the timing and flights together to arrive together for our last flight to Bardufoss. As I watched not only the TV in front of me, I was also watching the time on my phone. When we finally arrived in Amsterdam, I literally just missed my flight by 2 minutes. GONE! So, I was stuck at Schiphol Airport for about 3 hours until my next flight. Which meant I was going to miss my last flight from Oslo to Bardufoss. So, I had to reschedule that for their last flight of the night. Once I finally got to Oslo, I had an additional 4-hour wait until I was able to get on my last flight. Finally, the time arrived and I was on the flight to North Norway.
It was freezing and extremely cold. On top of the coldness, the wind was blowing like I never heard or seen before. By the time I got on the plane, it was snowing. Once up in the air, this 45-minute flight became the worst flight experience I have ever been on. The plane was swaying back and forth and kept dibbing. I paid for the quick Wi-Fi because I really felt like it was going to go down. Terrified I was texting my family and friend that was waiting for me. That 45-minute flight felt like a lifetime. But, we landed and everyone let a loud sigh. I finally made it off my last flight and was ready to take one more bus to get closer to the hotel. While on the shuttle bus, I had to figure out a way to get picked up by a 3rd party to be taken to the hotel. While this was all going on, I was extremely exhausted. By the time I arrived at our hotel, it was past midnight and I was utterly exhausted. But, I made it! I didn’t really record anything, I have that habit of not doing it when things go left, but I promised myself after this trip that I would record everything. The good and the bad! So, if you're watching my YouTube video for this blog, I didn’t record any of this, so I figured to write in detail about my experience haha 😊.
I tried my hardest to stay up and see the Northern Lights, but I knew it was a long shot since it was cloudy and snowing. So, I took a shower and went straight to bed. My first and only full day at our beautiful hotel and I wanted to do everything in the area. But, unfortunately, most of the activities were sold out since the hotel told us it was a popular time. For the first time, I didn’t plan more ahead of time but they have been sold out for over a month on that one particular day. So, we walked to breakfast and I got to experience my friend's first snowfall! We ate well, relaxed, and played in the snow all day long. The landscape was gorgeous and breathtaking. When night came around, it was still cloudy and snowy. I was starting to lose hope of seeing the Northern Lights, but we kept looking out the window. Being hopeful and three hours later we finally saw the Northern Lights! It was so bright on one side of the sky when we saw them! It was quick and short, but we saw them! Beautiful snow and Northern Lights, we couldn’t ask for anything better. We finally fell asleep around 3 a.m. and had to be up at 7 a.m. for breakfast to then just leave to go back to their airport to go back to Oslo to jump on another flight to Stockholm. Yes, I was still exhausted on my day prior to flights, but it had to be done! While landing in Sweden, it was a breeze with no passport control, that we were able to just walk right out to our Uber to rush into our Stockholm hotel, which was right in the heart of everything. We made it to Sweden!
The first night in Stockholm was meant to eat dinner, plan more things out, and go to sleep. While we were staying in the Hilton, we had access to their lounge. While we ate and drank to really honestly talk about life, I noticed all the stares beginning to form by others. Norway I noticed a little bit, but everyone was extremely nice. Sweden, I felt a little off and noticed the difference. But, went back to our room to relax and get ready for a very busy next day! The next day, we walked about Stockholm and went to a few cafes including the popular Cafe Schweizer! We had our first “FIKA”, which is "to have coffee" or “a coffee break”, but it's about so much more than that. Fika in Sweden is when you sit with your family, friends, or colleagues, and take a coffee or tea, often with something sweet on the side (Nordic Visitor).
We did more sightseeing including museums and galleries. Sweden is an absolutely beautiful country and Stockholm is no different. The architecture was certainly different than I had ever seen before. The three days we were in Stockholm were full of history, walking, and “fika’s”. Even though it was cold and windy, we still had a great time! But, the people weren’t as friendly as I assumed they would be. I heard Sweden especially Stockholm is known to be black and LGBTQ+ friendly, but honestly in my opinion and feelings, I don't agree. As a biracial woman, I am always researching and making sure the locations I am visiting are safe for myself and anyone who is traveling with me. My friend is also a black woman and we both agreed the stares were getting ridiculous. Listen, we are both born and raised in America, so we are used to the bullshit, but just dealing with it in another country, gets to be even more ridiculous. But, we made our time in Stockholm and honestly not everyone was that way. We did meet people at the hotel who were kind and people in the street who smiled at us. But, 6/10, we were getting looked at in a manner of confusion or disgust. Well, probably my last time going to Sweden LOL.
Last full day, we took another flight back to Oslo to spend time in the city. We left Stockholm on an early flight and booked a nice room that was literally around the corner from the Oslo Opera House. We took the train from the Oslo airport to Stockholm Central. Honestly, I was so overflight, buses, and trains at this point! I was LOL. Finally, made it to our room after a flight, a train, and a 10-minute walk later! We took showers and went straight out. We walked as much as we could, including seeing the Oslo Opera House. While we explored the city, we talked about how this trip had been. How exhausting but blessed we were to finally see two Scandinavian countries! Honestly, this trip was extremely rewarding and it was a great time to see my friend! Our week trip ended on a high note while we just sipped wine and looked at the night sky. The next day it was time to leave and I had to catch a flight from Oslo to Amsterdam to New York, to go back down to South New Jersey. I was nervous that I would miss my layover or my flight would be delayed. But, everything ran smoothly and I was able to get home at a reasonable time.
Goodbye Norway and Sweden!
-Brianna Noelle xo
