My Love Letter to Norway

17 Reasons

Image by Dean Moriarty from Pixabay.

Having lived in Norway for 5 or 6 years (you sort of lose count after a while) I learned a great deal not only about the Scandinavian way of life but especially about myself.

I would have never imagined that a country in Europe could be so culturally different than my own. One really needs to experience things in life to be able to actually know them.

Living in Norway was deeply enriching for me at all levels. It allowed me to see parts of me that otherwise would have taken years or decades to come across, or maybe I wouldn’t even have seen them at all throughout a lifetime. So, my gratitude to Norway transcends words.

Today I would like to take a moment to point out some of the things I love about this country that was my home and that will always be on my heart. Well, in fact Norway is and always will be a part of me.

1 — Safety

Norway is one of the safest lands in the world. No wonder that even though Norwegians travel and live abroad, they generally come back to Norway. The same with foreigners, many ex-pats who experience living in Norway end up staying for good. This is related both to safety and also with richness (which we’ll talk about further ahead). The sense of safety one gets from a rich land (in the way societies are organized nowadays), from a land that lives in peace, from a land where everybody is equal and has equal opportunities, from a land where everybody is treated with respect, from a land where everybody has more than enough, so everybody is free to go on the streets without constantly facing a huge contrast, is immense.

Safety is one of our most basic needs so living in a land that naturally provides it in the way the society is structured is such a relief that it’s not easy to let go of. Thank you, Norway, for helping me realize what it feels like to be truly safe!

2 — Calm

Norway is a very peaceful land. That is obvious not only in the way people talk and behave but also in the way the services are organized or how the general rhythm flows. That calm brings an overall sense of serenity. It’s almost like finally one can breathe deeply and just be. One doesn’t have to rush from one thing to the other or multitask, one can…