Unsolved Mystery: Ottoman Fever = Mono

The title is quite the downer but it’s true, I got the kissing disease. While most people got it in high school, I am the late bloomer getting it in graduate school. Even more troubling, or maybe gross, is the symptoms developed when I was on vacation with my brother. (Joking – I must have got it at least a month before.) Norwegians aren’t big on the test for mono here so all we know is my liver works, meaning I don’t have any major problems, and I have all the clinical symptoms for mono. Bummer.
My physical well-being may be less than awesome but everything else is going pretty well. Since my last blog, I’ve been in Berlin, London, southern Spain, and now Bergen. Berlin proved to be fun as it always is. I got some time to catch up with some friends; show an American friend from Hungary, Brennan, around town; and shake my money maker at the Shakira concert. Shakira still rocks my world.
London was also cool. I took a class at the Child Health Institute in Public Health and Nutrition. The courses there, while super expensive, were worth every penny. The teaching was also excellent. I didn’t have a bunch of time to hang out because I had a major paper due and lots of class. But, I did get to touch base with a long lost friend from high school, Kalen. We had a couple sleepovers complete with girl talk and chocolate chip cookies. That’s the life.
There was also a guest appearance by my buddy Bryan (triathlon club friend) and his girlfriend Tracey. We went to two shows: Blue Man Group and Les Miserables. I now understand the hype about both of them (shows and the Bryan and Tracey duo). We also went to Oxford for me to find a boyfriend in a sweater vest – I mean see the campus. Would you believe that it only snowed once in the two weeks I was there? Talk about luck.
Spain was awesome as it always was. I met up with Adrian, he extended the Euro cycling tour, and a friend that I met in Chile – Leif. The three of us had what we like officially call “big sunglass day”. You’ll see those pictures below. Adrian left on Monday and I went to the pueblo where Leif teaches English. He lives in Jerez de los Caballeros a town of about 10,000. I think Leif got an extra amount of respect from his students from having a blondie amiga. I do what I can to help a friend’s career. What can I say? Leif and I also did some touring around the extremadura and the south of Spain. I finally had tapas for the first time. $1.50 for a beer and a snack – count me in.
Now I am taking classes in Bergen, aka Bellingham in Norway, for the next five weeks. (See contact address below.) I have four weeks to get well and the last week to frantically write papers and keep job searching. Then I’ll be done with my course work and will be looking for the dreaded j-o-b. No, it’s not really dreaded; it’s just that the search takes awhile. As a final note, I would like to apologize that my Valentines didn’t make it in the mail on time. I’ll be writing them once I’m better again. Thus, it will be doubly exciting to get a valentine because it will be a surprise and you will know that I am feeling better.

Paige Beckley
Haukelandsbakken 45 C110
5009 Bergen
Norway