Looong story short...

This summer was long and intense for me. A lot of things has changed, new flat, new friends. Now it's time for a short summary of what has happened and a preview of what is goinng to happen.

After finishing the semester in Norway I went to Oslo with Gosia to spend there the Constitution Day and simply visit the city. Oslo is currently at the top of my favourite places. 

Once I unpacked my luggage and got over the bureaucracy at the uni, I went on another trip. London and Matt this time. Unfortunately, I didn't get the chance to steal a heart of prince Harry.

June and July were dedicated to AIESEC Szczecin volunteers from around the world. So many lovely people, so much time together... I often miss them - they made my summer special.

Apart from that I managed to take part in two wonderful music festivals: Woodstock and Jarocin.

 

August was pretty calm month. I finally had time to take a deep breath. September appeared to be quite busy: lots of things to prepare before new academic year. Even though I managed to go on road trip with friends. Berlin, Prague, mountains. Perfect!

Just few months and so many great memories. And what now? 

Now is going to be spectacular! It's a right time for another adventure. For the next 6 months I'll be on an exchange, Erasmus+, in Leipzig, Germany. I'm here for less then a week and already have lots of stories to tell. 

What can be better than having fun with wonderful people from all parts of the world in a marvellous city. Keep your fingers crossed for my bachelor degree! 

I am the Queen of the Fjord

Some time ago I went to the shore with Gosia to take some pictures. I must admit it - the effect is better than I expected. Gosia is really good photographer and even though she prefers to capture landscapes, she did a great job :) 

IMPORTANT: To get in the mood I advise you to listen to a song called If I Had a Heart by Fever Ray. Or watch Vikings.

Ok, so if anyone is interested: standing with your bare feet on the cold rock is not the most pleasant thing to do. But for art's sake... 

Photoshop level? Gimp! :)

Buuuuut....

Perfect time for a pedicure!

 'The shop is closed today'

 'There's no Wi-Fi'

 'You remember that girl who pissed you off?'

Our noisy company

'What time is it, Dawg? It's time for a switcheroo!' - that means now I'm a photographer :) 

 Beautiful Gosia :3

 Slavic girl!

All rights reserved by Małgorzata Chylak

Addicted to Laziness?

When I hear 'Internet-related risks' I immediately think about addictions, cyberbulling or child pornography. Those are basic problems of our modern society, but not the only. There is plenty of issues that are somehow ignored, because of insufficient social relevance. However, as the time passes I notice that the small complications have grown to a huge scale.

A wise woman said once...

(www.meetville.com)

Laziness is called the Mother of IInventions. This is very accurate since our minds are programmed to always look for better, faster and more comfortable solution. From the very beginning of mankind humans were looking for easier way out. It is better to preserve food than hunting all the time. Travelling by foot is not as convenient as riding a horse. If you put something on your feet it is easier to walk on bumpy ground...

That is how we get to the 21st century. We have numerous new technologies: PCs, laptops, mobiles and lots of other devices. And of course we have the Internet. Today's world simply relies on it in many different ways. The Internet entered every sphere of our lives, no longer it is only about sharing information or entertaintment. It is about remembering. 

I have read amazing article called 'The junkformation age. Is the Internet making us lazy?'. It points out everything I have lately noticed in myself. I do not remember anything and it is hard for me to find a topic for conversation (a REAL topic - not plot of 'Vikings'  or funny pictures of cats). Everything I need to know is in my phone or computer - all I need to keep in mind are passwords. Why should I learn history if I can google it? Wait a second, oh yes, Shakira was born in Colombia. I forgot my friend's birthday date - I will just check it on Facebook. 

It is terrifying and, when you think more about it, kind of irritating. But still, it is so convenient that almost no one is strong enough to forego such privilege. 

Procrastination - the musical

Along with the Internet comes procrastination - you are distracted by so many things, so many apps and websites that you forget about your work and duties. And the more apps and social platforms you use, the more addictive it becomes. My phone is cluttered with applications: Facebook, Snapchat, WhatsApp... I have separate application to measure how much water I drink daily. I do not need to remember my timetable - there is an app for this. I even have one especially to watch over my menstruation. It is insane. But again, so convenient.

So many apps, so little time...

(http://hackedtime.com/)

I do not know how we will ever deal with this problem. Probably someone will invent a tool for that. Oh dear, it already happened. StayFocusd is a browser extension that limits the time you can spend on certain websites, such as Facebook. It is supposed to increase your productivity. In my case it only irritated me so I turned it off. Well.... 

I wonder how many people have similar problem. Is it already a phenomena on a global scale? Feel free to tell me what you think!

Further reading: 

Does the Internet Make You Dumber?

The Google Effect

Regards,

Agata

What's up? Trondheim, Poland and back to Norway...

SBTRKT on my mind today.

This song kind of fits the topic. In the middle of March I went to Poland with Gosia. On our way to the airport we spend some time in Trondheim, one of the biggest cities in Norway. After all, it's not that big when compared to Szczecin, but in our case it was an advantage. We had to walk everywhere with our luggage, but since Trondheim is quite small we could reach almost everything that is worth seeing. 

Here are some photos of me taken by Gosia:

In the evening we were so tired that we couldn't wait to go to the Vaernes airport. After the landing we took a bus to Kołobrzeg and that's where Gosia's parents were waiting for her.

It was so unreal for me to be in Poland, because I felt as if I have never left :) So I continued my journey, got into the train and watched familiar views. With every minute I was closer to my home.

I don't know how Norwegian is that, but it's mine favourite custom I've learned here: taking shoes off :p

Finally, I was in Płoty! So I just had to walk for next half an hour to get to my village - that's the price when you want to surprise your family... I left the train at 4:58 in the morning and after two minutes, before I even left the station, all lights went off. There was only one lamp in the city that was on! And believe me, it was dark as hell!

I was walking with my heavy backpack and even heavier suitcase through the completely dark city. There was no people, there was no cars, only me. When I got to my place, the sun was rising.

 The first to greet me was my dog. Then I woke up my mom and sister and I really loved their reaction. They were talking with me and sleeping at the same time :) That was the end of my journey, home - at last! So I climbed to the bed with them and slept for many hours.

Next three weeks were full of meeting with friends, parties and lazy days in front of the TV. So many great moments! 

But time flies very fast when you enjoy it and I had to get back to Nesna. But it's also very fun! After the gathering all international students took part in International Coffee Hour, where students and teachers had a chance to try traditional food from different countries. On Friday we had a party in our small group and yesterday some of us went to the local church to take part in Norwegian wedding and baptism. It's the springtime so there is a lot of possibilities ahead of us in the near future!