On Memphis Tennessee

Between Bergen and flying to Harstad, we had one evening back in Oslo. We stayed with Norvald’s younger brother, Per Ivar, and his family. The first thing we did on our way back from the airport was stop by their stables! They have two horses that Per Ivar and his daughter Silje train for trotting races. One is named Restless Miss Sophie and the other is named Memphis Tennessee. To Monisha’s delight, Memphis took quite a liking to her according to Per Ivar and Silje. She actually got to hop on his back and go for a short ride. Silje forgot that he gets a little spooked by noises; they usually use horse earplugs and earmuffs when they ride him. When Monisha got on, his ears were bare. So as soon as she walked him out, he was a little jumpy. Silje and Per Ivar were impressed that Monisha actually stayed on; they said many would have fallen. Monisha’s only ridden a horse on a saddle once when she was little. So it was scary, but still totally delightful.

 

Back at the house, Ann Kristin had prepared an unbelievable meal. First was this Greek feta appetized: baked feta with olive oil, thinly slice peppers and onions, chili powder, and basil. She said she learned it from a chef in Greece…or Cypress…she’s had it in both places. The main course was a creamy bacon and chicken curry over rice. And on the side, salad with their specialty dressing. After dinner, Per Ivar made us a Norwegian specialty drink: Karsk (also called Coffee Doctor). It’s a high alcohol content (96%) moonshine mixed into coffee.

 

They have this little chihuahua jack russel terrier mix puppy named Jax. Neither of us are usually particularly excited about tiny dogs, but Jax was awesome. He loved people, loved playing with a ball, and was one of the funniest little pups. Apparently he (and all their previous, similar dogs) are quite…fond of their enormous cat that’s significantly bigger than Jax himself.

It was too short of a stay with their family; we had such a wonderful evening with them and would have loved to spend more time there. But we only had an evening and a very early morning before our flight to Harstad. Maybe we’ll get to stay with them another night before we leave Oslo.