goodbye for now, but not for good

I think I've been avoiding writing.  The most obvious reason is I was all consumed with the culmination of my master studies by wrapping up my thesis which was completed and submitted June 20th- wahooo!  I'm a master! 

But, I think I was also avoiding this entry because it means this whole wonderful experience of studies and life in Norway is coming to an end.... for now.  I don't know what the future holds and I know I will return.  Soon.  Norway has a piece of my heart. 

There's so much I'd like to share about my time here but I feel I'll never express it properly.  Perhaps I will start trying as I process.  But, for right now I'm enjoying my last day in Bergen.  The sun was shining for my last goodbye and I had a chance to see a few friends for coffee as well as get a mountain run in today.  There's nothing like Bergen on a sunny day.  It's truly one of the prettiest cities- a quaint European town with green mountains that run to the sea. 

I also had the chance to do a little recording with a friend from Cafe Opera jam session.  I hope you enjoy our work from a few hours this evening.  Thanks David!

And, with that I say 'skal' with my last Hansa beer.

Bergen and the wonderful people I've met during my time here- you have a piece of my heart.

San Diego- I'm coming home and there's no place sweeter.

skal og vi ses,

lisa liv

A whirlwind of a few weeks

The end of the semester always seems to be this way: a whirlwind that doesn’t stop.  It’s a combination of studying for finals, saying goodbye to friends and enjoying the beauties of Bergen.  Additionally, Bergen comes alive and there are so many things one wants to enjoy.  

Fortunately the days are long so there’s still time to enjoy bbqs in the park and hikes in the mountains on top of school work.  This photo was taken just before midnight this past weekend.

Last week was Norway’s national day, ‘Syttende Mai’, the 17^th of May.  There’s a parade throughout downtown and many people attend in their traditional dress- a bunad- which are really beautiful.  Each area or region has it's own design.  It's fun to see the different colors and influences.  Bunads, flags, hotdogs and ice cream- it’s a great day to experience here.  Hip hip hoorah!

Earlier last week NHH hosted the BEEER conference- the Bergen Economics of Energy and the Environment Research Conference- for two days.  The attendees and presenters were generally researchers from Scandinavian universities as well as a keynote speaker from Resources for the Future in Washington, DC.  I was invited to attend and it was all very interesting on a range of topics from  different policy instrument effects to new technologies as well as pricing and market power in electricity markets just to name a few.  There was also a last minute cancellation by a speaker so they asked me to present on algae.  Wow!  I can now say I've presented at a research conference :)  Tres cool.

And, as if all of this were not enough to keep a gal distracted from writing her thesis and looking for jobs, Bergen is having some of the most wonderful weather.  It’s so difficult to stay inside!  Today I allowed myself a little break from work, and we had a BBQ and jumped in the sea.  It feels like summer!

Also, for the music lovers, ‘NattJazz’, or a week long jazz fest, is going on nightly in Bergen.  Below are some of the awesome wood creations around town right now.

I finally got into the sea for the first time yesterday and was feeling so invigorated I felt like joining some crazy kids in some jumping off the roof.  Yup, that's me!

Back to thesis, thesis, thesis, thesis.........

hugs,

lisa

go go algae!

Here's a great piece from the local San Diego CBS station on algae biofuel.  I'm thrilled for friends at SIO and Sapphire Energy.  Yea 'green crude'!!

nearing the finish line,

lisa liv

happy birthday John Muir

and thanks for your work on forest preservation!

thinking of Yosemite,

lisa liv 

biomimicry... it's for the birds

Actually, biomimicry is a really cool notion- we can learn and work on solving human problems by examining nature and its models, systems and processes.  And, birds flight is a good example of how we realized the feat of air travel.  

I'm attending a seminar at school this week, 'Environmental Responsibility: The role of NGOs and large organizations.'  Yesterday we had a presentation from Bellona and today was a gentleman from Friends of the Earth Norway.  It's pretty neat to see how they work, who they work with and the projects they are involved in.

One of Bellona's projects is The Sahara Forest Project and you can check it out here.  Sahara.... forest?!  I know, interesting stuff!

Our Friends of the Earth Norway presenter showed this video, and I thought it was something fun and inspiring to share.  It is, in large part, about biomimicry.  As we discussed in class, there are some other considerations not covered like costs.  But, overall I think Michael Pawlyn presents some cool concepts and out-of-the-box thinking that, to me, makes a lot of sense.  This is one thing I love about what I'm studying- there is so much amazing research going on with innovative and revolutionary ways to capture and use energy.  Support R&D, research will blow your mind.

If I could mimic something bio, what would I mimic? Hmmmmm.  What about you?

hugs,

lisa liv

I'm still a girls girl

Dear blog reader,

I do, indeed, post a lot of stories about great hikes and weekends in the mountains.  And, I am loving my time in the mountains of Norway.  But, I'm still a girls girl and love pretty colors, baubles, clothes, and the like too.  I have less disposable income to indulge myself these days and am shedding material possessions by moving around (this is a whole other story about breaking bad purchasing habits and learning to do more with less which has all been very positive... I'm sure my father is scratching his head about my claims as he passes my bedroom in San Diego teaming with 'stuff'.. but, I digress). So, I thought I would share something that came through my inbox which is rather groovy and eco-friendly.  Staple another dream to the dream board for me for when I'm gainfully employed and decorating my own place again.  In the meantime, go forth and enjoy if you are in the market for some new adirondacks. 

god natt!

lisa liv 

falling to the earth....

... this is how one of my friends captioned the photo on facebook and I rather liked it.  A few days ago Bea, Vale, Stephan and I took advantage of a few hours of sunshine and hiked one of the seven mountains around Bergen- Løvstakken.  It was a bit of an adventure... indeed, such is life!... and we had some fun with jumping photos at top.  We also brought a little 'one time grill' and grilled hot dogs for lunch before heading down.  Yum!

Vale, Lisa and Bea
Photo credit: Stephan Duffner

looking towards Bergen city center- Bea, Lisa and Vale
Photo credit: Stephan Duffner

Stephan!  aka Charlie hiking with the 3 Angles
Photo credit: Vale on Stephan's camera 

Pølse (hot dogs) time!
Photo credit: Stephan Duffner 

Fun fun in the sun.

Thank you Stephan for all the great photos!

your sunny gal,

lisa liv 

another good, full and satisfying week

Ahhh Sunday.  Sunday tends to be my catch-up day in the sense it's when I skype home to Mom and Dad and maybe with friend... do some chores... ya know, kind of a normal Sunday.  And, I realize it's becoming my blogging day :)  I truly intend to blog during the week as well but I've been having rather full weeks.  And, for that I am thankful!  Life away from San Diego continues to be full of a good mix of life's offerings.

Tuesday some friends and I went to the two-for-one movie night at the kino (movies) because that's the only night students can possibly afford to go :)  We saw 'The Hunger Games' for 55 NOK a piece and a current conversion rates that's about $10.  Imagine what full fair is.. yikes!

Wednesday was 'Lamb-pot' dinner with my flatmates from last semester, and Thursday night I ventured out to play Cafe Opera's jam session.  Below is Cafe Opera.  It's almost starting to feel like Lestat's or Java Joe's to me (for all you San Diego friends).  A little music time is good for the soul.  It's part of me.  Sometimes I can't get songs out of my head however hard I try.  And, that's no good... thesis is priority for the next two months!  So, I figured the best way to get the music out of my head was to play it, right?  The best part about Cafe Opera is that the opening jam band always sits in.  So, I almost always have a backing band.  Fun!  

Cafe Opera. Bergen, Norway

Fortunately, the weekends have been providing nice weather so we've been able to enjoy some of Bergen's beauty.  Last weekend was a BBQ in the park at sunset with some friends after lacrosse practice and a run in the mountains. 

photo credit: Stephan Duffner 

This week is Easter break and Norwegians all head to the mountains.  I might get there for a day too but mostly I'm in Bergen continuing to work away.

Today has been a true fool from the month of April.  It's currently snowing but we also had rain and sunshine today.  Ohhhh Bergen.

klem,

lisa liv 

various and sundry.... quite a week

Ohlala I'm behind on things I've been wanting to share.  This last week was quite full and wrapped up with a weekend of sunshine.  I feel like a new woman!  Just what I needed!

Wednesday was quite a day and rather unexpected.

A Norwegian friend of mine, Egil, invited me to attend a 'meet-up' of BMUG: Business Model User Group workshop on Wednesday night.  It's a entrepreneurial oriented group and a mix of business people and IT app programmers.  We had some presentations about facebook and apps to begin... in Norwegian of course!  But, the best part was I actually understood a fair amount of the first presentation.  Yea!  The women spoke at a good pace and had a rather straight dialect which is helpful.  The second presenter had a pretty heavy dialect so I was outta luck.  It's all good.  Then we were presented with a business plan template, a new app idea, split into groups and set off for 30 minutes or so.  We reconvened and present our plan ideas.  I was chosen to present for our group ... somehow I always get roped into that :P  And, as I've mentioned before, Norwegians speak very good English so it was no problem to be involved.  I really appreciate this because it's been a great way to meet new people.  Overall it was a great night and I hope to take part in their future events.

Previous to the BMUG meet-up, I happened upon a royal spotting.  I was coming home from school, there was some commotion around Bryggen and I had heard Prince Charles and Camilla were in town.  I had a little time to linger and no sooner had I walked up than they walked out of a store front.  I kid you not.  Maybe 20 feet away... one of the perks of living in a town of 200,000.  Wild!  And, they were accompanied by King Harald and Queen Sonja of Norway. 

Prince Charles and Queen Sonja
source: Bergens Tidende

Thus, quite a day on Wednesday and the week finished out strong.

I was fortunate to be invited to dinner on my friend Marius's boat with Trine, Christine and Kenneth on Thursday.  Good fun laughing and sharing stories.  And, Friday was sunset beers at 'the boathouse'. Always good company at the boathouse.  The photo below was taken from the deck there the weekend before.  I post it to show you the fantastic location and my good fortune that the 3 guys that live there have extended me an open invitation.  Ah yes, and, Sunday waffles in the sun with this view= la vida.  Jealous yet?  Just remember this sight is rare, most of the time it's overcast and rainy.  My flatmate put it well- if Bergen had this weather consistently, it would be the San Diego of Norway. True!

Pictures from my sunny weekend this weekend coming soon....

riding on my sunshine high,

lisa liv 

no joke

overcast, rain, overcast, rain..... that's life in Bergen for the past month. Oh yes, with one day of amazing sun about 2 weeks ago.  Who's ready for hibernation?!  Meeeeeeee.  Here's the forecast for the next week:

seriously seeking sunshine,

lisa liv

parlay

Parlay, I like how that word rolls off the tongue.  Random, I know. 

Last semester I was invited to be one of the 4 inaugural 'bloggers' on the NHH student blog.  So, I parlayed my experience from my personal blog into a slightly more professional blogging gig.  Fancy.  The blog just went live last week so I'll be blogging from there on and off before I complete my studies in June.  Click on the image below to check out the new NHH student blog:

Update:  there were NO northern lights last Friday.  Bummer!  It was still fun to think about.  The quest continues.

Last weekend kicked off 'Uken' at NHH which is a 3 week long festival of music concerts and events.  As you can imagine, there's a fair amount of beverage consumption involved but it's also quite a school spirit and community oriented event. 

There is a 'actors' group of 10 NHH economics students who write, stage and put on a show which is a collection of sketches as one of the Uken events.  It's a competitive audition process and a big time commitment for the semester.  My flatmate from last semester, Knut Anders, was selected as an actor so we all went to support him and enjoy the show last Saturday evening.  Yes, it was in Norwegian, but I got the gist and was VERY impressed with the performance level.  And, there was plenty of singing and dancing for this ol' musical theater gal to be loving it.  There's a whole crew of student volunteers doing all the behind-the-scenes work and the show was quite professional.  This is a super fun memory I will have from my NHH days.  Here's a few photos to give you an idea of the show (note- I only wish I skills and camera enough to take these photos!).

I'm hoping we shake the rain soon.  It's been overcast and drizzling for weeks!

raindrops keep falling on my head,

lisa liv

northern lights....

... there's a chance there will be some tonight in Bergen.  Sooooo excited!!  I'm not holding my breath, but some chance is better than no chance. 

My friend, Marius, lives on a boat just off gamle Bergen (old Bergen) and is having me and a couple of other people over for dinner tonight.  I know, I'm pinching myself.  Salmon dinner on a boat on the west coast of Norway with the potential of seeing northern lights?!  Thank you, thank you, thank you to the powers of the universe, you are so good to me.

fingers crossed,

lisa liv

KONY 2012

I'm bursting with pride right now. 

A little trip down memory lane.... I was very involved in musical theater growing up, and back in high school I was in Christian Youth Theater's (CYT) San Diego central production of 'Beauty and the Beast'.  The show was great fun in large part to a stellar and jovial cast, crew and leadership.  The director of the show was Jason Russell.  Jason and I both ended up at USC where I was studying business/marketing/cinema-tv and he was studying film making.  We were both in the Greek system so our paths crossed here and there and it was fun to joke about old times, etc.

Jason and two other young film makers fresh out of USC ended up on a film making adventure to Africa.  While there they stumbled upon child soldiers in Joseph Kony's child army in Uganda as well as the children that walk far distances to 'safe houses' every night so they are not abducted in their sleep and forced into this rebel army.  The filmmakers were beyond shocked and made a moving piece, Invisible Children.'  They also felt called to launch a movement to spread the word about the injustice. The movement quickly grew and has now spread around the world.

I can truly say this as I sit in my room in Bergen, Norway and my Norwegian friend, Marius, facebooks me the link to the latest Invisible Children film, KONY2012, saying it's worth every minute of watching.  Woah!   

I couldn't be more proud of and happy for my friends from San Diego, CA who have started a movement which is now buzzing around the world.  Bravo Jason and Invisible Children supporters!!

KONY2012 is the next installment and I encourage you to watch it here.  Check out the movement and get involved.

www.KONY2012.com

buzzing and feeling inspired,

lisa liv

love me some ocean power

If you know me, you know I'm a surfer girl.  If you don't know me, nice to meet you and check back to my posts from last summer ... you can read all about my summer as a surf instructor and my unfortunate run in with a sting ray.

Sooo, it's probably no surprise that I love the notion of energy from the ocean.  Maybe because I've had my fair share of feeling the wrath of seemingly little waves?  Let me assure you, there's some power in those things!  In any event, I've always been a little perplexed we don't hear more about ocean systems, wave or tidal, to capture energy.  I understand, ocean conditions are rough and tough on machinery, etc.  So, it was neat to read this from the Department of Energy (click here for the full story):

As part of the Roosevelt Island Tidal Energy project, 30 turbines are being installed along the strait that connects the Long Island Sound with the Atlantic Ocean in the New York Harbor. The project, led by Verdant Power, Inc., is the first ever commercially licensed tidal energy project in the United States..... the turbines will create enough energy to power 9,500 homes.   

dreaming of waves,

lisa liv

ps. thank you facebook friends of Southern California for insisting on posting photos of the insane 80 degree weather yesterday.  I was just happy it wasn't raining in Bergen but you had to go and rub it in, didn't you? ;) love, me

Bergen love around the world

Sweet Genna and Camille thinking of me from 'Bergen' in San Francisco last weekend.  Rachel also sent me a photo from this street when she was in SF last fall.  I'm going to have to find it next time I'm in that city!

Another rainy day in Bergen, Norway.  But, I knew that was part of the deal :)  All the better to focus on my thesis, right?  Right. 

klem,

lisa liv

algae news!

Yesterday The White House announced the Department of Energy plans to invest $14 million to make transportation fuels out of algae.  As President Obama said, ' That means greater energy security' and a 'stronger economy'. 

hugs from your Alice in the Algae Wonderland,

lisa liv

source:

http://www.businessweek.com/news/2012-02-23/u-s-to-invest-14-million-for-algae-biofuels-white-house-says.html

A little music for your Friday

Hello from the library at NHH!  I thought I'd switch up the media for a friday post and share a live track of a Bruce Springsteen cover I played at a show last summer.  I was invited to open for 'Thunder Road', an awesome Spingsteen tribute band, at the Belly Up in San Diego and this was one of the two Boss covers I played.  Some intoxicated lady from Jersey told me she loved it later in the evening.  Nice!

A little lisa o music for you. It's downloadable if you like.  Enjoy!

happy friday,

lisa liv

Småbruket Weekend

/Småbruket/: the farm

/Små/: small

/Bruket/: consumption, farm, agriculture, factory 

I love how the Norwegian language puts words together to make new words.

This last weekend I was lucky to be invited to the NHH cabin in Kvamskogen.

/Kvam/: hollow

/Skogen/: forest

Here are a few fun photos from a weekend filled with snow (seriously, we are talking a good foot of new powder over the two days we were there), beautiful Norwegian mountains, cross-country skiing, games and fire time in the cabin.  And, of course, good food, drink and excellent company.

photo by Andrea Boyco

photo by Andrea Boyco

photo by Andrea Boyco

And, now, back to the books! 

warm hugs,

lisa liv 

Back to B-Town, My Second Home

Aside from fighting some gnarly jet lag, it's great to be back in Bergen.  My body won't let me fall asleep so I just ran 7 miles, took a hot shower and am working on a generous glass of wine.  Come on home remedy!  Until then, I'm all yours.

I arrived in Bergen on Thursday afternoon and it looked much like this picture which I took from my flat in December just before heading home for the holidays.  Yup, from 70 degree sunshine in San Diego to this.  I wouldn't have it any other way.

Thursday evening some NHH masters friends were having a gathering a few blocks away.  Many of these friends were abroad last semester so it's great to have them back and many living close to me in 'sentrum'.  One of these is dear friend Bea who I got to visit in Paris last December.  Ahhhh Paris!

Fondue with Bea!

Notre Dame.. went to mass on Sunday for advent



Cite Universitaire- where Bea lived for the semester,,, rough life

Le Tower Eiffel

Back to Thursday night- I left the pre-party since it had been a long day of travel.  I'm so darn responsible :P  I swung by Cafe Opera to say hi to all the 'jam session' friends which was fun.  Then, upon arriving home, my fabulous flatmates, Bjornar and Kenneth, from last semester (I'm in a new flat this semester- sublet each semester) had texted they had a beer waiting for me.  Ugh!  How can a gal say no?!  So, like any responsible person, I promptly walked my way back out to meet up.  I love that I can walk everywhere in Sentrum- it's awesome!  So, Thursday night was a wonderful night of reconnecting.

A big thanks to all my wonderful friends in SoCal who made the winter break at home truly wonderful.  And, thank you mother nature for providing some insane weather.

Up next- a very full week at school.  And, I think I'm headed off to a cabin next week for some friend time and cross-country skiing.. so excited!! 

hugs from the great north!

lisa liv

48 hours...

.... until I'm up-up- and away back to lovely Bergen, Noway.  I've been enjoying a nice extended stay in San Diego while starting work on my thesis.  As mentioned I'm looking at algae as a biofuel source.  And The Algal Biofuel Organization (ABO) just launched AllAboutAlgae.com (click on it to head to the site).  Cool!  It's a nice little intro to everything algae.  Enjoy!

More posts about life in Norway soon, I promise.  I've been laying low at 'Garza', the family home.  A big thank you to all the wonderful friends I've been able to see while I've been in SoCal.  You've been a real highlight.  And, thank you sunshine for being so abundant.  I've soaked you up and stored you for the next few months in Bergen.

back to packing,

lisa liv

ps. weather looks good to go in all my connecting cities- Chicago and Copenhagen.

pps. i checked my seats and I have all isle seats, score! 

Thesis: Day 4

Hello Dear Readers! 

Well, best laid plans.. I was hoping to blog daily on the thesis front but I’ve botched that.  It’s all good, I’m hopeful once I’m in the thesis groove I’ll be blogging more.

The last few days I’ve been slightly waylaid.  Yesterday was my Dad’s birthday- Gratulerer med dagen Dad!  And, the day before I had an opportunity to go to the Museum of Photographic Arts in Balboa Park (one of my favorite places in SD!) with a friend.  The MOPA has a super exhibit right now- ‘Infinite Balance: Artists and the Environment.’ Seeing is believing, and I highly recommend checking out the exhibit for some good visuals of what man is doing to our natural environment.

On to some reading.  Tomorrow I'm meeting with a contact to learn about the performance properties of algal biodiesel.  I'll let you know what I find out.

Cheers!

lisa liv  

Thesis: Day 1

Here we go... the final semester and the big show.  It's time to write THE THESIS. I can't say I've ever done anything like this in my life.  I'm feeling excited/nervous/intrigued/anxious/empowered/etc.  Overall, it's a very good thing.

As a little overview, I've decided to look at algae as a biofuel source.  It all started last summer 2011.  I felt like Alice in Wonderland falling down the algal biofuel rabbit hole.  You read it here first (or maybe you already knew this)- algae is a very exciting liquid fuel alternative to petroleum.  I plan on documenting my research so if you stick with me, you'll learn along with me over the next few months.

I've been ramping up to writing my thesis and laid some good groundwork.  But, I consider this my first official day of the semester and of working on my thesis.  I met with Greg Mitchell from Scripps Institution of Oceanography (SIO) to hash through some good thoughts and directions for the thesis.  He's a rock-star researcher and great guy to boot.  He's all about empowering and motivating students.  It's really neat to have people so eager to help. 

So, that's day 1: met with a Prof and got some good ideas that I can run with to flesh out.  I see lots of reading within the next few days but I'll keep you up to date.  I'm going to get very familiar with this muck in the next 5 months.

happy new year to you!

lisa

ps. sorry for the absence.  I was fortunate to get to Paris to visit some friends at the beginning of December and then it was a whirlwind of moving to a new flat in Bergen, home for the holidays, holidays and some relax time here and there.  The fall semester was absolutely fantastic and I look forward to what the year holds.