Blog | Marla Goes North

top of page

Hjem
Velkommen + Om
Blogg
Services
Contact
More

Use tab to navigate through the menu items.

All Posts

Ingen innlegg er publisert på dette språket ennå

Når innlegg er publisert, vil du se dem her.

✨ H e l l o 2 0 2 5 ✨

✨ H e l l o 2 0 2 5 ✨

‘Stillness. One of the doors into the temple.’
.
.
.
#norway #geilo #visitgeilo #stillness #maryoliver

‘Stillness. One of the doors into the temple.’
.
.
.
#norway #geilo #visitgeilo #stillness #maryoliver

Minneapolis > Denver > Miami > Oslo > Bergen > Skånevik.

It’s good to be back. 🇳🇴

Minneapolis > Denver > Miami > Oslo > Bergen > Skånevik.

It’s good to be back. 🇳🇴

Farewell for now, Wisconsin.✌🏼

Neste: St. Paul, Minnesota til jeg flyr til Norge 1. november. 🇳🇴♥️

Farewell for now, Wisconsin.✌🏼

Neste: St. Paul, Minnesota til jeg flyr til Norge 1. november. 🇳��🇴♥️

“And all at once, summer collapsed into fall.”

- Oscar Wilde
.
.
.

What began as 3 months stateside has now been whittled down to just over 3 weeks.

I’ll be in the Madison area for the next week, back to my cabin in the Driftless area for about 5 days, then off to spend a little time in the Twin Cities before I fly back to Norway on November 1st.

When I’m in Norway, I’ll be bouncing between Bergen, Geilo and Ål. I’ll be there for at least 3 months (with a side trip to the Canary Islands in December!), and am not sure of my plans after January. One possibility is a return to the Balkans, but I’m leaving it open for now.

I’ve got a one-way ticket, so 🤷‍♀️?

It’s been great to connect with friends and family while I’ve been back. And if we talked about meeting up and I didn’t get back to you, please reach out to remind me! I promise I’m doing my best to get around to folks, but the time, it goes by oh-so-quickly…

“And all at once, summer collapsed into fall.”

- Oscar Wilde
.
.
.

What began as 3 months stateside has now been whittled down to just over 3 weeks.

I’ll be in the Madison area for the next week, back to my cabin in the Driftless area for about 5 days, then off to spend a little time in the Twin Cities before I fly back to Norway on November 1st.

When I’m in Norway, I’ll be bouncing between Bergen, Geilo and Ål. I’ll be there for at least 3 months (with a side trip to the Canary Islands in December!), and am not sure of my plans after January. One possibility is a return to the Balkans, but I’m leaving it open for now.

I’ve got a one-way ticket, so 🤷‍♀️?

It’s been great to connect with friends and family while I’ve been back. And if we talked about meeting up and I didn’t get back to you, please reach out to remind me! I promise I’m doing my best to get around to folks, but the time, it goes by oh-so-quickly…

Thank you for the birthday greetings. It sure means a lot to this now 44-year-old. The day was quite eventful, depending on your definition of an 'event':

I made it to the Ferryville Cheese Store in time to pick up the last copy of the @nytimes.

I saw my elementary school phy ed teacher.

I read from 'Devotions' by Mary Oliver (my favorite poet) and watched the birds outside my cabin. There's a hummingbird who's been zipping by regularly, along with a pair of cardinals and a woodpecker.

I reflected on a conversation I had recently with someone from my childhood. I presumed they held certain beliefs.

I was wrong.

The things we discover when we actually talk to each other.

I bought a weekend pass to @boatsandbluegrass.

I went through photos from the last few months, and had almost forgotten about these, taken on July 28, a few days before leaving Norway.

I thought about the repeated refrains of nature.

And in the evening, I had a bonfire.

Grateful for another trip around the sun.

Thank you for the birthday greetings. It sure means a lot to this now 44-year-old. The day was quite eventful, depending on your definition of an 'event':

I made it to the Ferryville Cheese Store in time to pick up the last copy of the @nytimes.

I saw my elementary school phy ed teacher.

I read from 'Devotions' by Mary Oliver (my favorite poet) and watched the birds outside my cabin. There's a hummingbird who's been zipping by regularly, along with a pair of cardinals and a woodpecker.

I reflected on a conversation I had recently with someone from my childhood. I presumed they held certain beliefs.

I was wrong.

The things we discover when we actually talk to each other.

I bought a weekend pass to @boatsandbluegrass.

I went through photos from the last few months, and had almost forgotten about these, taken on July 28, a few days before leaving Norway.

I thought about the repeated refrains of nature.

And in the evening, I had a bonfire.

Grateful for another trip around the sun.

You can take the girl out of the country…

Glad to be back at my sweet little cabin on three acres, in the place where my roots run deep.

I’ll be stateside for the next few months, bouncing between western Wisconsin/northeast Iowa and Madison, continuing my work with @driftlessintegrativepsychiatry and catching up with friends and family.

Then I’ll be headed back to Norway in November.

If you’d like to get together ‘irl’, send me a message (it’s weird to be contained in this social media box 🥴).

Tonight’s soundtrack, as I await Perseid: Grand Ole Opry, a cacophony of crickets and the snap + crackle of the fire.
🎶🦗🔥💫

You can take the girl out of the country…

Glad to be back at my sweet little cabin on three acres, in the place where my roots run deep.

I’ll be stateside for the next few months, bouncing between western Wisconsin/northeast Iowa and Madison, continuing my work with @driftlessintegrativepsychiatry and catching up with friends and family.

Then I’ll be headed back to Norway in November.

If you’d like to get together ‘irl’, send me a message (it’s weird to be contained in this social media box 🥴).

Tonight’s soundtrack, as I await Perseid: Grand Ole Opry, a cacophony of crickets and the snap + crackle of the fire.
🎶🦗🔥💫

España ~ Julio 2023
.
.
.
#donostia #sansebastian #basquecountry #sandart #fuckvox

España ~ Julio 2023
.
.
.
#donostia #sansebastian #basquecountry #sandart #fuckvox

#simplicity #minimalism #lessismore 🤍

#simplicity #minimalism #lessismore 🤍

B E R G E N 💙

B E R G E N 💙

Gratulerer med dagen! 🇳🇴♥️🥳

#syttendemai #hipphipphurra #Bergen #Norway

Gratulerer med dagen! 🇳🇴♥️🥳

#syttendemai #hipphipphurra #Bergen #Norway

Hello from sunny Tirana. 🏙️☀️

It’s hard to believe I’m just a few weeks away from wrapping up four months in the Balkans. I’ve been soaking it all in, learning as much as I can about the complex history of this area while steering clear of U.S. embassies.

For the remainder of April, I’ll be visiting North Macedonia, Kosovo and exploring at least one more corner of Albania.

In the first part of May I’ll go back to Croatia, and from there I’ll go to Norway (staying in Bergen to start), where I’ll be based until the end of July.

In August, I’ll be back in the U.S./Wisconsin at least for a few months, bouncing between Madison and my cabin in the Driftless region.

I look forward to seeing familiar faces in the coming months!🤘💛✨
.
.
.
📸 Rando from around Tirana 🇦🇱

Hello from sunny Tirana. 🏙️☀️

It’s hard to believe I’m just a few weeks away from wrapping up four months in the Balkans. I’ve been soaking it all in, learning as much as I can about the complex history of this area while steering clear of U.S. embassies.

For the remainder of April, I’ll be visiting North Macedonia, Kosovo and exploring at least one more corner of Albania.

In the first part of May I’ll go back to Croatia, and from there I’ll go to Norway (staying in Bergen to start), where I’ll be based until the end of July.

In August, I’ll be back in the U.S./Wisconsin at least for a few months, bouncing between Madison and my cabin in the Driftless region.

I look forward to seeing familiar faces in the coming months!🤘💛✨
.
.
.
📸 Rando from around Tirana 🇦🇱

Scenes from Kotor. 🇲🇪

#kotor #kotormontenegro #montenegro #travelkotor #travelmontenegro #montenegrocats #kotorcats #bayofkotor #kotorbay #kotoroldtown

Scenes from Kotor. 🇲🇪

#kotor #kotormontenegro #montenegro #travelkotor #travelmontenegro #montenegrocats #kotorcats #bayofkotor #kotorbay #kotoroldtown

Open wounds still left in the streets of Sarajevo are visible as blood-like stains known as Sarajevo Roses.

During the Siege of Sarajevo, from 1992 to 1995, tens of thousands of grenades fell on the city, leaving many deep marks behind. Over the 44-month Siege, more than 11,000 people were killed and 50,000 wounded; nearly half of the casualties were civilians, including approximately 1,500 children.

The grenades that struck the asphalt left characteristic marks that resemble a flower. After the war, these “flowers” were filled with red resin, in recognition of the horror Sarajevans endured during the longest-running siege of any city in modern history.

There are around 200 Sarajevo roses all around the city (although the number is decreasing with new construction). They were made in places where at least three persons died during the Siege of Sarajevo.

67 people were killed at this site alone.

#sarajevo #sarajevorose #sarajevoroses #bosniaandherzegovina🇧🇦

Open wounds still left in the streets of Sarajevo are visible as blood-like stains known as Sarajevo Roses.

During the Siege of Sarajevo, from 1992 to 1995, tens of thousands of grenades fell on the city, leaving many deep marks behind. Over the 44-month Siege, more than 11,000 people were killed and 50,000 wounded; nearly half of the casualties were civilians, including approximately 1,500 children.

The grenades that struck the asphalt left characteristic marks that resemble a flower. After the war, these “flowers” were filled with red resin, in recognition of the horror Sarajevans endured during the longest-running siege of any city in modern history.

There are around 200 Sarajevo roses all around the city (although the number is decreasing with new construction). They were made in places where at least three persons died during the Siege of Sarajevo.

67 people were killed at this site alone.

#sarajevo #sarajevorose #sarajevoroses #bosniaandherzegovina🇧🇦

#Balkans: Day 1/37.

#Balkans: Day 1/37.

@driftlesscottage ~ De Soto, Wisconsin

@driftlesscottage ~ De Soto, Wisconsin

After a year in Norway, I’m back in the states and it’s weird and wonderful and foreign and familiar all at once.

I don’t know how long I’ll be stateside, but possibly through the end of the year. While I’m in the U.S., I’m not exactly sure yet when I’ll be here, or there, or anywhere.

So far, I’ve been spending October visiting family, giving my cabin some love, getting reacquainted with my vinyl collection and watching the leaves change.

That feels about right for right now.

After a year in Norway, I’m back in the states and it’s weird and wonderful and foreign and familiar all at once.

I don’t know how long I’ll be stateside, but possibly through the end of the year. While I’m in the U.S., I’m not exactly sure yet when I’ll be here, or there, or anywhere.

So far, I’ve been spending October visiting family, giving my cabin some love, getting reacquainted with my vinyl collection and watching the leaves change.

That feels about right for right now.

Time to hit the beach. 🇮🇨✌️😎

Time to hit the beach. 🇮🇨✌️😎

“…and all at once, summer collapsed into fall.” - Oscar Wilde

“…and all at once, summer collapsed into fall.” - Oscar Wilde

Kicking off a weeklong adventure with family! 🇳🇴

Bergen ➡️ Sogn og Fjordane ➡️ Ålesund ➡️ Geiranger

Kicking off a weeklong adventure with family! 🇳🇴

Bergen ➡️ Sogn og Fjordane ➡️ Ålesund ➡️ Geiranger

It’s spring cleaning time at @hakkesetstolen, to prepare for the upcoming tourist season.

The melting snow is revealing hiking trails that extend in every direction, and soon I’ll be fishing for trout in nearby lakes and locating the right trees for my hammock. 🥾🎣

But winter’s grip is tight here.

Today it was snowing, so I built a fire, sipped solbærtoddies (hot black currant juice) and listened to Willie’s Roadhouse (@siriusxm). Next week looks sunny and bright, just in time for Syttende Mai (17 May, Norway’s Constitution Day). 🇳🇴☀️

+ a few photos I took of a hare last week. Their coat is all white in the winter, but changing to brown for spring/summer. I’ve been hoping to get some better photos, but they like to show up when my camera is far out of reach.

Life is good here on the mountain. 🏔

It’s spring cleaning time at @hakkesetstolen, to prepare for the upcoming tourist season.

The melting snow is revealing hiking trails that extend in every direction, and soon I’ll be fishing for trout in nearby lakes and locating the right trees for my hammock. 🥾🎣

But winter’s grip is tight here.

Today it was snowing, so I built a fire, sipped solbærtoddies (hot black currant juice) and listened to Willie’s Roadhouse (@siriusxm). Next week looks sunny and bright, just in time for Syttende Mai (17 May, Norway’s Constitution Day). 🇳🇴☀️

+ a few photos I took of a hare last week. Their coat is all white in the winter, but changing to brown for spring/summer. I’ve been hoping to get some better photos, but they like to show up when my camera is far out of reach.

Life is good here on the mountain. 🏔

I’d flown in and out, taken a bus through, and spent one night in a quarantine hotel when I arrived in September, but had never truly spent time in Oslo.

As a gift to myself for successfully securing my residence permit and to celebrate seven months in Norway, I’m here for three days, soaking up this beautiful city. I spent the morning at Vigeland Sculpture Park, and just bought myself peonies at the corner flower shop. 🌸

I am fully embracing this dose of city life, before I head back to the mountains. At @hakkesetstolen, we’ll be shifting out of the ski season, and into the summer tourist season.

I’ve been piecing together my next blog post and look forward to sharing it at marlagoesnorth.com.

#oslo #visitoslo #vigelandsparken #vigelandsculpturepark #visitnorway #majorstuen #frognerparken

I’d flown in and out, taken a bus through, and spent one night in a quarantine hotel when I arrived in September, but had never truly spent time in Oslo.

As a gift to myself for successfully securing my residence permit and to celebrate seven months in Norway, I’m here for three days, soaking up this beautiful city. I spent the morning at Vigeland Sculpture Park, and just bought myself peonies at the corner flower shop. 🌸

I am fully embracing this dose of city life, before I head back to the mountains. At @hakkesetstolen, we’ll be shifting out of the ski season, and into the summer tourist season.

I’ve been piecing together my next blog post and look forward to sharing it at marlagoesnorth.com.

#oslo #visitoslo #vigelandsparken #vigelandsculpturepark #visitnorway #majorstuen #frognerparken

🏔VELKOMMEN TIL FJELLS🏔

I am excited to share that, after a 4-month application process, an excruciating waiting game, and a paperwork blizzard, my residence permit has been approved, and I will be living and working in Norway for the next six months!

As a Communications and Outreach Specialist at a traditional mountain lodge called Hakkesetstølen Fjellstugu og Hytter (@hakkesetstolen), I will be utilizing various communication tools in order to increase visitors to Hakkesetstølen and to help tell the story of this small, family-owned business located in Geilo, Norway.

Geilo is a vibrant mountain village located between Norway's two largest cities, Oslo and Bergen, in a traditional region of the country called Hallingdal. This popular ski destination is a stop on the Bergen Line, the train route between Oslo and Bergen, known as one of Europe's most beautiful train journeys.

More at marlagoesnorth.com (link in bio).

#visitnorway #norway #visitgeilo #geilo #hakkesetstolen #hallingdal

🏔VELKOMMEN TIL FJELLS🏔

I am excited to share that, after a 4-month application process, an excruciating waiting game, and a paperwork blizzard, my residence permit has been approved, and I will be living and working in Norway for the next six months!

As a Communications and Outreach Specialist at a traditional mountain lodge called Hakkesetstølen Fjellstugu og Hytter (@hakkesetstolen), I will be utilizing various communication tools in order to increase visitors to Hakkesetstølen and to help tell the story of this small, family-owned business located in Geilo, Norway.

Geilo is a vibrant mountain village located between Norway's two largest cities, Oslo and Bergen, in a traditional region of the country called Hallingdal. This popular ski destination is a stop on the Bergen Line, the train route between Oslo and Bergen, known as one of Europe's most beautiful train journeys.

More at marlagoesnorth.com (link in bio).

#visitnorway #norway #visitgeilo #geilo #hakkesetstolen #hallingdal

God morgen fra #Bergen. 🇳🇴

God morgen fra #Bergen. 🇳🇴

Lihkku Beivviin! 🎉

February 6 is Sámi National Day, a communal day for celebrating the culture and heritage of the Sámi, the indigenous people of the high north regions of Norway, Sweden, Finland and Russia.

On this date in 1917, Sámi people from all Nordic countries came together for their first meeting, to discuss common issues and challenges that went beyond their nation states’ borders, and to work together to find mutual solutions.

The Sámi people have had a very long and often tumultuous history in Norway, but there has been a significant shift towards the celebration of the Sámi as a rich part of Norwegian and world culture and history.

I learned so much in the process of compiling this post, and am excited to share it.

#SámiNationalDay 🇳🇴🇸🇪🇫🇮🇷🇺

www.marlagoesnorth.com/sami (link in bio).

Lihkku Beivviin! 🎉

February 6 is Sámi National Day, a communal day for celebrating the culture and heritage of the Sámi, the indigenous people of the high north regions of Norway, Sweden, Finland and Russia.

On this date in 1917, Sámi people from all Nordic countries came together for their first meeting, to discuss common issues and challenges that went beyond their nation states’ borders, and to work together to find mutual solutions.

The Sámi people have had a very long and often tumultuous history in Norway, but there has been a significant shift towards the celebration of the Sámi as a rich part of Norwegian and world culture and history.

I learned so much in the process of compiling this post, and am excited to share it.

#SámiNationalDay 🇳🇴🇸🇪🇫🇮🇷🇺

www.marlagoesnorth.com/sami (link in bio).

Today I biked out to see “Sverd i fjell”, a monument created in 1983 to commemorate the Battle of Hafrsfjord, which took place in 872 and reunited the whole of Norway under the crown of King Harald.

The swords stand over 30 feet tall and are sculpted to look like traditional viking sabers.

Today I biked out to see “Sverd i fjell”, a monument created in 1983 to commemorate the Battle of Hafrsfjord, which took place in 872 and reunited the whole of Norway under the crown of King Harald.

The swords stand over 30 feet tall and are sculpted to look like traditional viking sabers.

Tilegnet menn og kvinner av Norsk ætt som har bidratt til a bygge Amerika.

Dedicated to the men and women of Norwegian blood who have contributed to the building of America.

🇳🇴🇺🇸

Tilegnet menn og kvinner av Norsk ætt som har bidratt til a bygge Amerika.

Dedicated to the men and women of Norwegian blood who have contributed to the building of America.

🇳🇴🇺🇸

I’d like to introduce you to Helge, the man depicted in this mural.

Helge, despite being unable to read, has been continuously employed through an organization called Attende (@attende_as) for more than 25 years. Attende specializes in finding strengths where others see weaknesses, and they gave Helge a job that nobody could do better than him – shredding documents containing sensitive information.

This stunning mural was a project for ‘Social Inclusion Through Street Art’, that aims to inspire action and change. It was completed in 2017 by internationally renowned Australian-born street artist Sam Bates (aka ‘Smug’: @smugone), known for his photorealistic murals created entirely freehand, using aerosol cans alone.

In Smug's IG post about the project (3rd row center of his account), you learn that Helge is a huge Beatles fan and that the number of actual pencils he carries in his pocket needed to be ‘drastically reduced’ for the painting! There’s also a video that discusses the project.

“Overlooking the entrance to Kannik Middle School in Stavanger, Helge stands as a symbol for how everyone has an important role to play in our society.”

#stavanger #stavangerstreetart #smugstreetart

I’d like to introduce you to Helge, the man depicted in this mural.

Helge, despite being unable to read, has been continuously employed through an organization called Attende (@attende_as) for more than 25 years. Attende specializes in finding strengths where others see weaknesses, and they gave Helge a job that nobody could do better than him – shredding documents containing sensitive information.

This stunning mural was a project for ‘Social Inclusion Through Street Art’, that aims to inspire action and change. It was completed in 2017 by internationally renowned Australian-born street artist Sam Bates (aka ‘Smug’: @smugone), known for his photorealistic murals created entirely freehand, using aerosol cans alone.

In Smug's IG post about the project (3rd row center of his account), you learn that Helge is a huge Beatles fan and that the number of actual pencils he carries in his pocket needed to be ‘drastically reduced’ for the painting! There’s also a video that discusses the project.

“Overlooking the entrance to Kannik Middle School in Stavanger, Helge stands as a symbol for how everyone has an important role to play in our society.”

#stavanger #stavangerstreetart #smugstreetart

.pro-gallery-wix-wrapper {display: block !important;} .pro-gallery-wix-wrapper .gallery-item-container {opacity: 1 !important; display: block !important;}

Om meg

Reisende, musikkfan, naturelsker, samfunnsbygger.

Født og oppvokst i Wisconsin, USA, kan du for øyeblikket finne meg som bor, jobber og spiste for mange vafler på Geilo, Norge.

Bli med på min e-postliste

E-post

Takk for at du abonnerer!

© 2023 av Going Places. Stolt opprettet med Wix.com

bottom of page