Today I just do not want to be where I am at. Today is one of those days that being an expat sucks, big time.
How can the first warm (17oC/63oF) day in Oslo after a (way too) long Winter feel so shitty? When there are finally birds chirping, plants sprouting and flowers beginning to bloom?
Well, I think I have taken Norway well, not much complaining about the country (despite some that sneak in here and there) and no big low. Big low being the times when you doubt yourself for the decision to move to the place, when you cannot see the positives around you and choose to focus on the negatives. But now I finally hit the low... But at least I think I can blame it on 3 main reasons:
1) Having 7 days left in Oslo to find an apartment in which to move into on May 1st. This means browsing the only website available for anyone willing to rent something furnished out for 2 months and then visiting them and realizing that this is going to be much harder than I first expected. Today I went to see this apartment. It is in a great location and although I was hoping for a private bathroom I went on to see it. As I went into the building my stomach flipped... the place was like a super old hotel that had not seen renovations for the last 50 years (at least). The room was minuscule and the whole building smelled of stale cigarettes. Pass!
The next apartment seemed more promising, including an own bathroom... but the place is smaller than A.'s bathroom in Paris! The furniture is all small, which makes the pics look good and the place look larger... but there is definitely no space for even a bed! And the apartment trash dumpsters are right outside the window... Just in case you think that I am being cheap, I have searched for apartments from €550/USD1200 (the room mentioned above) up to €1800/USD2500. Oslo is definitely a renters market...
2) I am tired of getting all types of information in Norwegian. I understand this is the language of the country, but hey, please send me the mail you know I need to read either as a) an email (which allows google translate to save me) or b) in English. Or just give me the phone number to a person that speaks English... This website gives an idea about how interested they are in serving English speaking customers. And in the same lines... I have 3 tax returns to fill out: one for the USA, one for Brazil and finally a Norwegian one as well...
3) Too much to do. This is not news, but when the apartment bomb exploded on my head I could definitely have used a little time off to look for alternatives. The time I take off work to do this is precious and I'm sure I will have to work my a** off some other time to make up for it.
Not good... not good...
How can the first warm (17oC/63oF) day in Oslo after a (way too) long Winter feel so shitty? When there are finally birds chirping, plants sprouting and flowers beginning to bloom?
Well, I think I have taken Norway well, not much complaining about the country (despite some that sneak in here and there) and no big low. Big low being the times when you doubt yourself for the decision to move to the place, when you cannot see the positives around you and choose to focus on the negatives. But now I finally hit the low... But at least I think I can blame it on 3 main reasons:
1) Having 7 days left in Oslo to find an apartment in which to move into on May 1st. This means browsing the only website available for anyone willing to rent something furnished out for 2 months and then visiting them and realizing that this is going to be much harder than I first expected. Today I went to see this apartment. It is in a great location and although I was hoping for a private bathroom I went on to see it. As I went into the building my stomach flipped... the place was like a super old hotel that had not seen renovations for the last 50 years (at least). The room was minuscule and the whole building smelled of stale cigarettes. Pass!
The next apartment seemed more promising, including an own bathroom... but the place is smaller than A.'s bathroom in Paris! The furniture is all small, which makes the pics look good and the place look larger... but there is definitely no space for even a bed! And the apartment trash dumpsters are right outside the window... Just in case you think that I am being cheap, I have searched for apartments from €550/USD1200 (the room mentioned above) up to €1800/USD2500. Oslo is definitely a renters market...
2) I am tired of getting all types of information in Norwegian. I understand this is the language of the country, but hey, please send me the mail you know I need to read either as a) an email (which allows google translate to save me) or b) in English. Or just give me the phone number to a person that speaks English... This website gives an idea about how interested they are in serving English speaking customers. And in the same lines... I have 3 tax returns to fill out: one for the USA, one for Brazil and finally a Norwegian one as well...
3) Too much to do. This is not news, but when the apartment bomb exploded on my head I could definitely have used a little time off to look for alternatives. The time I take off work to do this is precious and I'm sure I will have to work my a** off some other time to make up for it.
Not good... not good...
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