Reflections on Scandinavia

Emery Bell ’25 | St. Michael, Minnesota
Majors: International Business with a concentration in Regional Studies: Latin America, Spanish
Minor: Chinese

May 5, 2025

We are off to Norway and Sweden! This morning we all stacked our suitcases, grabbed our coffees, and piled into the two coach buses to Minneapolis. Excitement and anxiety filled the “animal” bus (the more rowdy of the two buses) as we all checked for our passports and compared the weights of our bags — hopefully they are all under 50 lbs. I waved to my family and friends who came up for graduation yesterday through the bus window as we started our long drive to the Minneapolis airport.

I am so overjoyed to be on this trip.

May 6, 2025

After a seven-hour time change, a bus ride, and two plane rides, we made it to Stockholm, Sweden! On our second flight, we ate our first Swedish meal — a cheese sandwich on rye bread. Lots of the buildings have a traditional Nordic style, tall gables with wooden framing. We visited the Vasa Museum, which featured an ENORMOUS ship built in 1628. The warship sat under water for over 300 years but was lifted up and restored to sit in the museum today. I am so overjoyed to be on this trip. So far, everything is so beautiful and the residents are so kind. A few of us visited a café for lunch. I had a coffee and a slice of carrot cake, which were both very delicious — I will continue writing about the beautiful scenery and the food and drinks I try.

We ended the day back at our hotel in Stockholm. We had a delicious three-course meal with basil mascarpone and tomato bread, salmon, and hollandaise with steamed veggies, baked potatoes, and a white chocolate mousse with blueberries.

Tomorrow we have some free time in the morning, so a group of us plan to go shopping or check out the botanical gardens nearby.
 

May 7, 2025

This morning, a group of us went to some shops around Stockholm. We went into a hat shop that had very fancy sun hats and cashmere winter hats. We also found a thrift store where we bought some knickknacks. I found a handmade plant pot!

After shopping, the whole choir got on the bus to Uppsala to sing our concert in a beautiful cathedral. Before the concert, we ate lunch at a little restaurant in Uppsala. We ate gnocchi potato pasta with fresh basil and parmesan sauce. Something super cool that happened on our way to Uppsala was that Luci found out she has been accepted as a Fulbright Scholar! She will start teaching English to students in Bulgaria when we get back.

Our concert venue was so beautiful — the reverb in the church was SO long, which made our sound echo for seconds across the enormous space! Now, we are enjoying some soup, salmon, and an amaretto cream dessert. Tonight we are going to the sauna!
 

May 8, 2025

Today was another great day in Stockholm! This morning, a group of us got on the city bus to visit the ABBA museum! We saw so many beautiful flowers on our way there — even my favorites: bell flowers! There were so many cool exhibits at the museum. We saw some of the original costumes and props ABBA used in concerts and music videos. We also got to perform on stage while a video projected recordings of ABBA. I ended up buying a postcard for my best friend back in Moorhead. After the museum, some of us split off to go shopping while others went to more museums. I walked around “old town” with a group. We visited some shops, including a couple of candy stores. One of the candy stores was ALL black licorice — yuck! I understand some people like it, but I couldn't believe there was a whole candy store dedicated to it.

After shopping, we sang our concert in a beautiful Catholic church. Someone in the audience announced the new pope in between our songs, which was something I’ve never experienced.

Elena showed us her new sweater as well, which makes me super excited for Oslo!

After our concert, I went to dinner with some friends. We picked a traditional Swedish restaurant. I had the best noqui I have ever tasted! We stopped at a little shop on our walk back to the hotel to buy some Swedish candy … since we didn’t buy any at the black licorice store. :) My roommate Josephine went to an ice bar tonight with Tabby and Hailey. It was a bar made completely of ice with beautiful sculptures and carvings. She said it was super fun! I’m so excited for our journey tomorrow. Tomorrow is my birthday, and I will be meeting my friend Jacob in Oslo!
 

May 9, 2025

Today is my birthday! We got up early this morning to fly to Oslo. While we waited for our flight, Grace, Luci, and I bought Swedish candies. There were all kinds of fudge and gummies. There was something called a salt candy. It was really just a salty gumdrop, which I thought was super gross. We got on the plane, and Josephine and I sat in the very back. The flight attendant wished me a happy birthday and gave me a candy bar.

Oslo was much bigger than Stockholm. We went on a city tour when we learned the city was split into two parts — before the fire, which was traditional Nordic-style architecture, and after the fire, which was all industrial buildings like Minneapolis that were built after half of the city burned down. We also visited an art park called Frogner Park. It was full of sculptures by Gustav Vigeland. His sculptures depicted the circle of life, beauty within nature and people.

After our city tour, we arrived at our hotel and then went to dinner. I found a little place that served tiny plates of food in a circus-themed restaurant. There were sculptures of lions and monkeys and horses everywhere, and everything looked like it belonged in a circus tent! There was also a drink called “purple rain.” I thought that was cool, especially after hearing “Purple Rain” playing outside a shop in Stockholm before. I was able to meet up with my friend Jacob for dinner too, so overall this was an AMAZING birthday!
 

May 10, 2025

Today was another great day in Oslo. This morning after breakfast, Grace, Luci, and I walked around the square just to enjoy the sun. Then, we all took a bus to the church where we were going to sing with the Schola Cantorum choir. The churches have been absolutely beautiful so far on this trip.

There was a little market next to the church so, before rehearsal, a couple of us walked around and bought a strawberry rhubarb slushie. It was very tasty. Then we sang our concert. Wow! Schola Cantorum was so talented! Their songs were beautiful. We also sang well, so it was a good day. The choir also wore their traditional Nordic clothing, which we learned is only worn during special occasions. Everyone’s clothing had beautiful embroidered flowers and patterns. Some had matching headbands and hats.

After the concert, we headed to Max for dinner. It was a burger place. There were veggie burgers there, so I was super excited. I’m surprised by how many pescatarian options have been available in Sweden and Norway so far. After eating, a group of us walked up the outside of the opera house to take pictures of the city from the rooftop — it was BEAUTIFUL. The sunset was so pretty and the Ferris wheel lit up the sky. We were told the Ferris wheel was built to hide the “ugliest building in Norway.” I’ve really been getting my steps in on this tour, and it feels wonderful! I can’t wait for more sightseeing and city-exploring tomorrow.

 The crowd did something we only heard rumors about.

May 11, 2025

Today we arrived in Lillehammer. The first stop we made was at a “glass church.” There were ruins of a stone church completely encapsulated by an A-frame glass structure. The inside of the glass A-frame echoed immensely. We listened to our guide sing some traditional chants before we sang a few selections from our tour rep. She had a beautiful, clear voice and told us a bit about the ruins and what the church supposedly looked like before being destroyed.

Outside the A-frame, there were lots of trees and a rocky shoreline by the water. I took some pictures there before we left for the second church of the day. This church was smaller than others we visited, but still very beautiful with pretty wood everywhere. We sang our concert with a tenor/bass choir who expressed they were extremely excited to have us. They sang so sweetly and loudly and applauded for us, which made us all feel very welcome. After we finished singing, the crowd did something we only heard rumors about in Norwegian culture — all the audience members started clapping in unison, signifying they wanted to hear more. So, after singing “Beautiful Savior,” we sang “Advent Motet.” This was a very special concert for me, not for any particular reason other than it just felt really special to sing for such wonderful, gracious people. For dinner, we had more salmon! I love salmon, so this trip has been awesome for me.

After dinner, I sat down with Luci to write a devo with her. Our devos are devotional speeches said before each concert by a choir member. Luci and I will be saying one together on the second-to-last concert for this trip. What a way to end our senior year!
 

May 12, 2025

Today was our travel day. We spent the day on a scenic train and ferry boat. The views of the mountains were absolutely breathtaking. The trees on the mountainsides were vibrant green, and waterfalls flowed through so many different crevasses. The sky was bright blue to match the beautifully clear water. Seagulls glided above the ferry boat, and everyone was smiling at the beautiful scenery. This was easily the best place to take pictures.

My favorite part of the nature scenery, besides the waterfalls and trees, were the little multicolored houses tucked into the valleys and mountainsides. They looked like little dollhouses in the distance. I’m just filled with joy today. It was so special to share smiles and excitement about the beauty of Norway with such close friends.

May 13, 2025

Today was another beautiful day in Norway. We were in the city of Bergen, which was probably my favorite city so far.

We went on a tour of the city and found out that, a while back, the city was central for cod fishing and rope making. After the tour, we had lunch at a fish market. Some of the foods at the market were different from what I’m used to — moose meat burgers, reindeer hotdogs, whale jerky, and whale burgers. I didn’t try any of the meat other than the whale jerky. It was just very salty. After the market, we walked over to the church where we sang another beautiful concert. It seems like every time we sing, we get a little more connected to one another. This concert was especially moving for me because Luci and I gave our first (and last) devo. This was also the last concert we said devos at, so it was a special way to end our senior year.

Also, we sang at E. Greig’s home!
 

May 14, 2025

Last concert day! We set off to Stavanger today on two ferry boats! Each boat was massive — they fit our two coach buses, three cargo trucks, and about 10 other cars. The ferries also had food courts. People could buy sandwiches, hot dogs, pop, candy, coffee, and even waffles.

I know I said Bergen was my favorite city, but I really like Stavanger. There were tons of little shops around town — I bought art supplies and a hair ribbon from a local art shop. After shopping, we sang our last concert this year. It was so special. The church was painted all yellow with yellow-stained glass. So when the sun shone in, everything looked golden. The concert was filled with joy and tears. It was bittersweet hugging all my close friends after singing our whole set — plus “The Innocence” and “Ave Generosa.” I also shed a tear when putting my robe away for the very last time. I won’t wear it ever again … but that’s OK because someone new to The Concordia Choir will!
 

May 15, 2025

Today was our last free day and it was amazing! We climbed Pulpit Rock — a two-hour hike up, two-hour hike down. It was sunny and beautiful. I got to hike with my little friend group — Luci, Tabby, and Grace. Halfway through the hike, on the way back, Tabby and I swam in a lake too — it was freezing!

We saw some breathtaking views and took beautiful pictures. I made it through the entire hike without falling … but then I rolled my ankle in the parking lot. Sad day. After the hike, we had our final dinner of the trip. Everyone ate steak and potatoes with arugula salad. I ate swordfish and collard greens. It was delicious! We had lemon yogurt ice cream and mini rhubarb pies for dessert.

A group of us wanted more ice cream on the way to the hotel, so we stopped at a 7-11. While eating our ice cream, a swarm of seagulls landed on us and stole Josephine’s ice cream bar! We giggled and decided we should ride electric scooters around town to get over the loss of Josephine’s ice cream. After that, we played cribbage and garbage in the hotel lobby and finished packing to go home tomorrow morning.

^{Published December 2025}