Very low key off day in Oslo. Slept in until my 12:30 PM alarm, and then went to lunch at Godt Bod with Ane and the group, then spent about 2 more hours in a couple of great bookstores looking for a “how to learn Norwegian” book, but ended up enthralled with books about the world’s most interesting cities – and the world’s 500 top travel spots ranked. I had to pinch myself when I saw the top 3 were Angkor Wat, Great Barrier Reef, and Machu Picchu.

I made my way back to the hotel, and we all headed out for dinner with Brita just 100 meters from our hotel at Lucky Bird where we had chicken, BBQ, and sides all served family style.

After dinner all of us but Jeff went out for drinks (Jeff went to a movie theater). Here we ran into Kristian the cameraman who was out with 4 buddies, and later Jan Kenneth (JK). I had a great conversation with Kristian . He mentioned how grateful the post production folks are/will be with me giving them a shout out. He used to be on that side and considering what a thankless job it is and out of sight – it’s good to be appreciated. I always want to show my appreciation for those who make the machine run and may not otherwise be recognized – so mission accomplished – glad to know they feel the love.

I also mentioned something to Kristian that I was thinking about yesterday. My dream has always been to be on The Amazing Race – that’d be the coolest ever – BUT – given what I’ve experienced so far, it’s hard to imagine The Amazing Race being better than this. The incredible meals every day, the off days, and more importantly the group dynamic whereby we’re all in this together. It’s not adversarial – sure we make teams, but they change every week. We’re genuinely all pulling for each other and it sucks to see people go. I think these thoughts crept in because I’m pretty sure filming of The Amazing Race lasts 34-36 days (*written after the fact now that I’m home with internet access, it looks like it typically only lasts 21-29 days per https://www.quora.com/How-many-days-does-The-Amazing-Race-take-start-to-finish*). With the troll I secure over 36 days of total travel. It’s unreal – like being granted something even better than your dream come true.

Richard bought the first round, and I got the second – having immunity for the upcoming week it’s the least I could do. We stayed out late, and I just got back to the hotel. Filming at TV Norge’s studio tomorrow!

 

Today’s Title Inspiration: