Michi Photostory

Two weeks ago, my husband told me that he had an event on June 10 and he was inviting us to come with him, okay daw yung event na yun. The day before the event, I told him that we would not go with him, ang dami ko pa gagawin na chores sa bahay. I need to finish it before going to Pangasinan. Maulan pa, so siya na lang. 

But he insisted that we should come, i-Google ko daw ang “Manila Mini Maker Faire” so I searched for it and according to their website, “Maker Faire is a gathering of fascinating, curious people who enjoy learning and who love sharing what they can do. From engineers to artists to scientists to crafters, Maker Faire is a venue for these “makers” to show hobbies, experiments, and projects. We call it the Greatest Show (& Tell) on Earth — a family-friendly showcase of invention, creativity, and resourcefulness.” 

I also watched the video on Mind Museum page, and when I saw that there are inventions, I let my son go with him because next year, they will have a Robotics subject na. At least now, he will get an idea. So last Saturday, they went to the Mind Museum to attend the Manila Mini Maker Faire.


There is no entrance fee, so according to my husband, ang haba daw ng pila sa registration. My husband and son stayed there for almost 5 hours, and I was glad that my son enjoyed the event. Let me share the photos of the activities that he tried.

Airplane from tissue roll

And because of that event, my husband took home 2 Free Mind Museum tickets. Yey!

There are several activities and attractions that you can do in Røros depending on the season and your preferences. I have researched the different activities that we wanted to do but unfortunately, it was not available during our visit and some activities need a reservation which I did not know.


So we ended up visiting a museum. The town Røros is a World Heritage site so if you want to know more about the rich history of it, you can visit the different museums. There are 7 museums that you can choose from and each museum has a fee so we just chose Smelthytta Rørosmuseet  or Smelthytta Røros Museum because that is the nearest museum from our holiday apartment.

1. Smelthytta
2. Olavsgruva
3. Bergstadvandring
4. Doktortjønna
5. Sleggveien
6. Bygningsvernsenteret
7. Besøkssenter Nasjonalpark Femundsmarka

Smelthytta’s building is built on the top of the ruins of Røros Copperworks last smelter which was burned in the year 1975. It is a museum where you can see different exhibitions related to Røros Copperworks’ history, 19th-century clothing and how the mining society and people who lived here developed.

Watch the video here

Entrance Fee 

Adult NOK100
Student and Senior NOK80
Kids below 16 (with adult) FREE

I like to buy a souvenir kaya lang ang mahal. :)

Once you enter the museum, you will see a cafe and souvenir shop. There is an egg painting activity for the kids but unfortunately, they ran out of eggs already so no painting activity for my son. But the staff gave him a piece of paper, a word hunt game that he needs to finish in order to receive a prize. It is a nice idea so kids will enjoy the museum.


There is an English guided tour at 3PM but we did not wait for it because we don’t want to be late for our 4:30PM train ride back to Trondheim. Thanks to the free use of Audioguides that gives us the information that we need. You can choose Norwegian, English. German or French language.


We did not waste our time and we started exploring the museum.



What I like about this museum is, aside from photos, they also have video clippings where you can see the transformation of the town. I just hope there is English subtitle of the video.





I also love the diorama or models of the mines, smelteries and technical installations that were used before. Most of the models are moving, it is like watching a mini skit.




The museum is very informative, it gives you more information on how they produce copper and I bet you it is not that easy. So if you are going to Røros, don’t forget to include a visit to the Museum in your itinerary, your NOK100 is worth it.


By the way, my son finished the word hunt game with the help of the guardians (lol) and the prize is two unique stones. :)

A few days ago, my mom was asking me if I already blogged about our Røros trip and I said no, hindi pa tapos but I posted a video on my YouTube Channel. Honestly, after our summer vacation, I don’t know how and where to start my Summer in Norway series. I have 5000+ photos in my album and it is really hard to choose photos.

I don’t know how travel blogger do it because it is really an effort to blog about the experience sa dami ng pictures. Hehehe! But don’t worry, matatapos ko rin yan series na yan so I can start our Iceland trip series too.

Moving on, I mentioned in my previous post that I’m nursing colds and cough and as far as I know bawal ang sweets sa may ubo. So I’ve been drinking tea with honey these past few days to calm my cough. Pero I can’t control myself so I still I ate chocolate again yesterday, ang hirap magpigil kung nakikita mo chocolate pagbukas mo ng fridge. Hehehe!

But you know what, I just read an article that, “The Best Cure for a Cough May Actually Be Chocolate”.  According to the article, chocolate can calm coughs because the theobromine suppresses coughs better than codeine. Cocoa also relieves irritation or inflammation. Oh di ba, nagpigil pa ko, pwede naman pala. Read more about it here.



Anyway, when we went to Norway, my sister gave me pasalubong from Sweden. When I saw the brand of the chocolate, I immediately remembered that a reader commented in one of my posts that Marabou is almost similar to Freia chocolates. My husband ate the Marabou Japp and he said okay lang ang taste.

It was only yesterday that I tried the chocolates, yes, inuwi ko pa siya sa Pinas. Hehehe! I ate the Marabou Mjőlk Choklad or Milk Chocolate. True enough, the taste is close enough to Freia but a little bit sweet. I’m happy to add this chocolate in my IKEA list. I always see this in IKEA but I only buy the IKEA chocolate but since Marabou chocolate taste is close to Freia, pwede na ito.

P.S.

Freia KVIKK LUNSJ is a Norwegian chocolate, it is similar to popular KitKat chocolate.


PEZ is a brand name of peppermint candy from Austria. I'm not familiar with this candy so I have to Google it because I don't know how to put the candy in the free pocket dispensers. Since my son is not fond of candy, I'm the one who tried this. hehehe! Now, wala na ko refill na candy. :(

Just when I thought that I could already blog every day because my son would be back to school but I’ve been nursing a cold and cough since Monday evening so I really took the time to rest. I still have colds and cough and hopefully, I will be healed soon. 

Well, what happened this past week.

Flu Vaccine 

We had the flu vaccine last weekend and a few days before the vaccine, we already informed my son about it. I’m not sure if my son has a “needle phobia” but he really dislikes injections. Just the thought of a vaccine makes him cry. It’s our dilemma every year, agaw-eksena talaga. But I’m happy to say that he is improving na, he still cried but at least hindi na mega cry and hindi na pumipiglas. I hope next year, he can conquer his fear. 

Back to School

I envy those kids who are still on vacation because we’re back to school last Monday. Ang hirap gumising ng 5AM again. Waah! Parang ang bilis lang kasi, til first week of April ang end of school year namin then pasok na agad ng June 5. Good thing we went home one week before school starts or else, good luck sa jetlag and preparation for school. 

Birthday at Vikings 

Because of the vaccine and back-to-school preparation, we just had a simple birthday celebration of my husband’s birthday. We just went to Vikings to take advantage of the free birthday buffet. I already blogged about this before so I will just tell the few changes that I’ve noticed. 

Read: Lunch at Vikings at SM BF

We were there past 12NN and we’re glad that there is an available table for us. I informed them that we are going to availof  the birthday promo so they just asked for my husband’s ID. Then we started our feast, we don’t really eat a lot so lugi talaga kami sa buffet kaya it is better if may discount or promo. Sharing with you, my plate. 



They also gave us a soup. Wala nito dati. 

After several minutes, I saw the staff gathered together, they were holding cakes and banners for the birthday celebrant. Then they started to sing “Happy Birthday” while distributing the cake to all the birthday celebrants. So it is a different experience compared to our last visit, before kasi per table ang sing and dance nila. Now, isahan kanta na lang and they still go to your table to take your picture. Which is okay for me para mas mabilis din. I remember eating in two buffet restaurants, nakauwi na lang kami wala kami cake or greetings (birthday promo din). 

Improving ang complimentary cake kaso hindi sinindihan. hehehe!

If you are traveling a long haul flight, usually you will have a layover and you will experience airport hopping. During our trip to Norway; we had 2 layovers, one in Bangkok and one is Oslo. 

Read: Glimpse of Suvarnabhumi Airport

Oslo Airport is the main international airport of Norway. It is located in Gardermoen, Oslo which is the capital of Norway and considered the most populous city in the country. Compared to other airports, Oslo Airport is not that big but it is one of the busiest airports in Europe, it connects 31 domestic flights and 128 international flights. 


From Oslo Airport, we had a connecting flight to Trondheim (domestic flight). So we picked up our luggage, checked in, and pass the security check again. This is really stressful especially if you only have a few hours before your connecting flight. After our experienced, I was thinking not to have a layover in Oslo again if ever we will go back to Norway. More story on this post. 




So if you are coming from an international flight and you still have a domestic flight, you really need to claim and check in your luggage again. But when we went home, our luggage went straight to Manila. #stressfree

What I like about Oslo Airport are 

1. Transferring to your connecting flight is not difficult. We did not have a hard time looking for the gate. 





2. When we passed the Passport Control, the IO advised us to go back 2 hours before the flight since we have nothing to do after we passed the Passport Control. 

Update: June 2019

After Passport Control, I was surprised because they already have Duty Free Shop where you can do your last-minute shopping while waiting for your boarding gate to open. If you feel hungry or thirsty there is Street Eats where you can eat and drink. 



And because of that, we were able to eat lunch and buy pasalubong before going to the boarding gate.

3. Free wifi for 2 hours. This is very important if you have a kid in tow. 

On our way back to Manila, we have 5 hours layover, I did not explore the airport anymore because I have 3 handcarry, nakakatamad mag-ikot. So we are thankful for the free wifi, we have something to do while waiting for our boarding time. 


By the way, we found this airplane slide beside the boarding gate when we traveled from Oslo to Trondheim.

4. Commuting is not a problem because you can ride a taxi, bus or train. There is a train station just outside the arrival area so traveling to and from the airport is not difficult. We rode the train from Oslo Lufthavn to Elverum Station. My husband took the train from Oslo Central Station to Oslo Lufthavn, travel time is 23 minutes. 


5. If you have an early flight or late arrival and you need a place, don't worry because there are two hotels that you can choose from. Radisson Blu and Park Inn by Radisson are two hotels that are just in front of Oslo Gardermoen Airport. We stayed at Radisson Blu Hotel because we don't want to miss our flight. 

Read: Radisson Oslo Airport Hotel Review

Hello. It’s been two weeks since the last time I updated this blog. I just have no time to blog because I was busy packing and unpacking for our Iceland trip and of course, Philippines. Yes, after two months, summer in Norway is already over and we’re back in the Philippines.


It took me a while to fight my jetlag and adjust to the warm weather. Now, I’m busy preparing for the coming school year and I’m not yet so ready. Good luck to me.

 Anyway, before going back to the Philippines, my husband asked me if I’m excited to go home and I said no. No, because… 

1. I like the cold weather and fresh air of Norway. 
2. I don’t iron clothes in Norway because we always wear a jacket. I dislike this chore. The only time that I ironed clothes was when we were going to Iceland. 
3. I will miss the dishwasher of my mom. Ang dali ng buhay pag may dishwasher. 
4. I will miss the food, especially salmon, cake and ice cream. 
5. I will miss the nature. 
6. I will miss the water, yung hindi na bibili ng mineral water because I can drink water from the faucet. 
7. Going back home means vacation is really over, as in back to school na kami.
8. I was so scared of flying back home because this was the first time that my son and I would travel without hubby or companion. First na, long haul flight pa, so napaparanoid talaga ko.

But of course, I also miss my husband, it’s been 5 weeks and for the record, this is the longest time that we’ve been away from each other. He always teases me na “Malnourished” na daw siya at wala na siya tagaluto. Hehehe! Well, two weeks lang naman niya na feel na wala kami sa bahay because he was also out of the country for three consecutive weeks. 

As I mentioned, I was so nervous flying back home and I really prayed hard that everything would be okay. Our flight was really tiring because we’d been traveling for 3 days. 

Thursday Reykjavik Iceland to Trondheim Norway 
Friday Trondheim Norway to Oslo Norway 
            Oslo Norway to Bangkok Thailand.
Saturday Bangkok Thailand to Manila Philippines 

We arrived from Iceland last Thursday and we went straight to Radisson Blu Hotel since we had an early flight the following day. My mom booked this hotel last April. I already blogged about this hotel because my husband stayed here too but I will share my personal experience on a separate post.

Read: Radisson Blu Hotel in Trondheim Norway


Even though the hotel was just a few steps away from the airport I was thankful that my mom accompanied us at the hotel and airport. I have two luggage and 3 hand-carry and I can’t rely on my son. 

Trondheim Airport 

My husband did the online check-in so we have the middle seat, as per my request. Ayaw ko kasi mag-excuse or may mag-excuse pa if we need to go to the lavatory. Check-in was easy and wala din pila sa security check. Thank God! This is one thing that I dislike in traveling, ang dami security check. Nakakapagod maglabas at magbalik ng gamit. I already instructed my son kung paano kami sa security check and make sure na mauna siya para abangan gamit namin sa dulo. 


We were two hours early for our flight and I could not connect to the free wifi. I’m not sure kung dahil nagamit ko na ba siya kahapon and wala pa 24hrs. We rode SAS airplane, with no complimentary food and drinks.

Oslo Airport

My husband went home first so he was able to take photos of the landmarks that I needed to remember so going to the next boarding gate was not a problem. The Immigration Officer advised us not to enter yet and to be back 2 hours before our flight because there was nothing to see inside. 

Read: Glimpse of Oslo Airport


We had 5 hours layover in Oslo, so we bought pasalubong and ate lunch at Fiskeriet Seafood. I just ordered Fish and Chips NOK169 and NOK35 for bottled Coke. 


We rode Thai Airways from Oslo to Bangkok, I was happy because our flight was only 10 hours compared to our Bangkok to Oslo which is 11 hours and 30 minutes. My dilemma is I could not sleep again, waah! I really appreciate the flight entertainment and they have a list of new movies.





Bangkok Airport


Upon arrival to Bangkok Airport, ramdam ko na ang init. I was happy that we arrived early because I had enough time to transfer to our next boarding gate. But when I checked the information, “delayed” agad ang nabasa ko. So from 1 hour and 25 minutes layover to 3 hours. Security check was smooth, with no long lines. 

We rode Thai Airways again. 



When I heard the announcement “I do apologize, we could not land yet because of air traffic and we’re at number 11…” ramdam ko na nasa Pinas na ko. Nasa ere pa lang, traffic na. Hehehe!

Finally, we were home and I was so thankful for the smooth flight. Achievement unlock, yehey! Nakabiyahe na kami ng malayo.

Read: Trip to Norway