Oslo

The most expensive city in the world certainly lives up to its repuation. To give you some idea of the prices in Oslo, an entrée at any normal sit-down restaurant ranges from 150-250NKK, with prices much higher at fancy places. The conversion rate makes that $25-$42 (€19-€31). Crazy!! Supermarket prices are far more reasonable, but still highly inflated compared to American norms.

The city resembles a modern, brand-obsessed population, with TGI Friday's, McDonald's, and Burger King lining the streets. I stumbled upon an abundance of juice shops and espresso cafes and bars, just as you would expect in a country's capital. And the fearless pigeons were as obnoxious as they are in Manhattan. 

Oslo has the honor of presenting the Nobel Peace Prize each year. Alfred Nobel gave them this responsibility before Norway had independence. Now it's slightly strange that Stockholm presents all the other prizes, while Oslo presents its prize, especially because they're bestowed on the same day: December 12th, when Alfred passed away. The Peace Prize is given in the City Hall, adorned with an astronomical clock:

Henry Ibsen is a native of Oslo, and they honor him with a statue outside his museum:

Oslo also has incredible beaches, and the weather wasn't frigid, as I expected from the North Sea. Some people on the beach said it was 19 degrees (Celsius). I couldn't remember the conversion, so I just went in. It wasn't too bad in the water, but it was far nicer on the sand :)  

Their new opera house has a gradually sloped roof that reaches all the way to the ground!  So locals and tourists alike climb up to the top to watch the sunset and enjoy the peaceful water and the views of the city:

Oslo has many popular pedestrian streets, one of which starts with the guy below. Not sure who he is, but he sits right in the center of the city, across from the parliament building:

 

Oslo is surprisingly small. The total population is less than a million, and tourists aren't attracted in roves, due to the high prices. So it's quiet even in summer. Nonetheless, the locals all flock to enjoy the parks, lounging on blankets and grilling some dinner, soaking up all the rays before the sun disappears for the winter. 

"Put them in fear, Lord, that the nations may know they are but men." ~ Psalm 9

Stockholm

Stockholm is a lovely city of large islands, easily accessible by a handful of major bridges. The old town, Gamla Stan, is one of the smaller islands, completely surrounded by the rest of the city. My rolling suitcase on its cobblestone alleyways announced my presence to everyone in town. Oh well. In the middle of Gamla Stan, there's this large sculpture of the Europe-wide legend of King George slaying the dragon:

I bought a meal of Swedish meatballs from a small café, sold by a nice Russian lady who hardly spoke English. After some miscommunication due to the language barrier, she lamented that she only speaks Russian, Spanish, and Swedish but not English. Spanish?! She married a Cuban man many years ago and Sweden is one of the few places in the world where they can live together. The embargoes almost prohibited their relationship, but Sweden had no problem with it. So we continued in Spanish and all was better. Strangely, I've heard as much Spanish in Scandinavia as in the Bronx. Apparently, Spanish tourists really like to go North for holiday. I don't blame them - it's beautiful! 

Stockholm has successfully turned a national embarrassment into one of its greatest tourist attractions. In 1648, the Vasa ship sank on its maiden voyage. They had some proportion problems, so it sunk nearly instantly. Rather than sail the seas, it sat in the salty North Sea for over 300 years, preserved almost completely. Now it sits at the Vasa Museum. By an engineering feat, they excavated the entire ship from its resting place in 1961 and restored it. It's huge: 7 decks, 64 guns, and countless sculptures, including one of King David and his harp! It's pretty epic. Below is the royal seal of the King of Sweden:

Stockholm is just as expensive as Denmark, which limits their tourist attractiveness. But it's quite picturesque and definitely worth a visit. Swedish is quite close to Norwegian, and not far from German. But they all speak incredibly perfect English... except the Russian lady who sells meatballs ;)

"O Lord, our Lord, How excellent is Your name in all the earth!"  ~ Psalm 8

Copenhagen

Where is the world's oldest amusement park, from 1583?  Yup, just outside Copenhagen, Denmark. And the second oldest amusement park, Tivoli Gardens, opened in 1843, is located directly across from the Copenhagen Town Hall. The Danes must enjoy their amusement. I slightly regret not getting a danish from the Danish, but at an average price of $7 per pastry, I couldn't bring myself to it. Everything is quite expensive. The cheapest, small-sized latte to-go costs $4.50, and it's nearly impossible to find something cheap to eat for less than $8.

Copenhagen is a beautiful city, and not too large. very easy to see on foot or bicycle. Founded by Warrior Bishop Absalom in the 1200s, Copenhagen began to grow in population when it was only the mid-point town between two large cities. Danes wanted the convenience of being close to both cities, so they started to settle right in the middle. For the past few decades, the city has been home to a unique "green light district," a community of hippies, called Christiania, where limitless forms of marijuana are sold in a street market. The three rules of Christiania are no pictures,  have fun, and don't run. It's very popular among tourists. The strangest part is that weed is illegal in Denmark. Still not sure how that works out.  In addition to the hippies, Copenhagen also hosts beautiful architecture, a tourism industry from the cruise ships, and some beautiful canals. In Danish, Copenhagen means Merchant's Harbor. Some even consider it to be the Venice of the North, but Copenhagen doesn't have the same love for life as the Mediterraneans. 

Copenhagen has lots of statues and churches:

Here's the famous Little Mermaid statue, from Hans Christian Andersen's story:

And from the top of the 400 steps on the tower of the Church of Our Savior, you can see the whole city, 360 degrees around!

In general, the Danes like to jog and bicycle. Lots and lots of joggers kept passing me on the sidewalks. The people are all very tall and blonde, and they speak excellent English. Even on the metro, I heard more English than Danish on many rides. I found many Danes to be very helpful and quite friendly people. I highly recommend a visit!

My Reading List

For a while, I've been collecting the titles of books to read in various places. I have been writing them in the back page of my journal. But once the journal is filled, the list gets hidden on a shelf somewhere. I know there's that site GoodReads, which probably has this function, but I don't want to input every book I've read into the site. So, here's a (constantly-changing) list of books I want to read or re-read. I welcome suggestions for other titles!

Funsies:

• Three Musketeers, Alexandre Dumas
• Babbit, Sinclair Lewis
• Til We Have Faces, C.S. Lewis
• Notes from a Small Island, Bill Bryson

Spiritual edification:

• Shadow of the Almighty, Elizabeth Elliot
• Heaven, Randy Alcorn

Career interests:

• The Bottom Billion, Paul Collier
• Born to Raise, Jerold Panas
• Raising of Money, Jim Lord
• Artful Journey, William Sturtevant

Disclaimer: some books on this list I expect to disagree with, but as J.S. Mill said, "He who knows only his own side of the case knows little of that."

Why do you do what you do?

The Creator fashioned humankind with longings for pleasure, possessions, security, and significance. Across time and culture, all humans desire each of these elements. Usually, individuals are motivated more by one specifically, which drives their behavior. The couch potato prefers pleasure, while the Wall Street executive climbs the corporate ladder for significance. What do you seek most?

As God created us with these desires, He also created a path for perfect satisfaction of these desires. Satan seeks to tempt believers to follow unbiblical shortcuts to fulfill these passions. Christians can anticipate negative consequences for disobedience and positive rewards for obedience. This is roughly the same as the way good employers reward overachieving employees with bonuses and perks and terminate underachieving workers, except with God's perfect justice. 

The strongest motivators are negative consequences. All Christians will face the Judge on judgment day: "For every idle word men may speak, they will give account of it in the day of judgment" (Matthew 12). Also, "nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of Him to whom we must give account." (Hebrews 4) Scary stuff. We can't avoid it. "For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each of us may receive what is due us for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad." (II Corinthians 5) These verses, detailing the judgment that awaits believers, is the basis of the fear of the Lord. It is downright terrifying to know that I must stand before the living God one day. At this time, He will weigh my thoughts, words, actions, and attitudes. Knowing this, I am strongly motivated to live only for Him. One more: "You, then, why do you judge your brother or sister? Or why do you treat them with contempt? For we will all stand before God’s judgment seat" (Romans 14). Will you regret your choices, stammering before the Throne of God?

Besides fear, there are numerous positive motivators. We, as mere humanfolk, can bring pleasure to the Lord of the Universe. The heroes of the faith, including Enoch, Noah, Abraham, Job, and many others from Hebrews 11, went down in history as men who pleased God. The chapter ends by saying that these are men "of whom the world was not worthy." Sounds like a life motto to me. Not only this, but we can bring glory to God through our actions. "Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven" (Matthew 5). I seek to let my light shine so that others see how great God is. The Westminster Catechism claims that man's chief end is to glorify God. Furthermore, there are personal benefits to obedience, which God promises to us. These are the means by which God expects us to satisfy our lifelong desires of pleasure, possessions, security, and significance. "And whatever you do, do it heartily, as to the Lord and not to men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance; for you serve the Lord Christ" (Colossians 3).

God promises rewards to those who serve Him. Not only that, we believers are commanded to amass these eternal riches: “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal; but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal" (Matthew 6). That sounds like a command from God. Often, people will tell me that seeking to please God to receive rewards is wrong. I challenge them to provide a Biblical case for that argument. The Scriptures are quite clear that believers should seek and expect rewards in heaven. As a perfectly just Lord, He will richly reward us in heaven for our daily self-denial to follow Him. Once again, in Hebrews 11, God says that "without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him." Before we can please God, we must believe that He rewards those who diligently seek Him. These rewards are not only stored up in heaven, but they are often given to faithful believers on earth too. Hopefully this belief encourages you to pursue Him diligently.

James warns believers: "Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says" (James 1). Why would James have to say something so obvious? Would anyone choose to deceive themselves? Sadly, they do. Many Christians know what God expects, but that knowledge does not translate into action. So then, why do believers continue to act in sin, even when they know what God requires? It seems clear that they lack motivation. They ignore the long term consequences, in vain hope that they will disappear. Someday, those believers will wish they could undo their decisions, but we live in a world of no takebacks. Don't fall into the trap. Time will soon reveal those who build with wood, hay, and stubble and those who build with gold, silver, and precious metals. What will your work reveal about you? 

For further reading on the positive side of motivation, I recommend I Corinthians 3:10-13, Hebrews 12:1-2, Psalm 19:1-14, and Malachi 3:10;this sermon: Is Heaven Capitalistic or Communistic?; Randy Alcorn's book Law of Rewards; and the Study Guide to Rewards in the Old and New Testaments.

Studying the Bible

If you really want to know what the Truth says, you must study it for yourself. Most people trust their pastor or favorite Christian author to decide their theology for them. Don't be so gullible. With the existence of hundreds of denominations, surely they are not all right. Necessarily, there are superior and inferior theologies. Which is right?  How do you know?

Modern Christianity emphasizes emotionally-charged worship sessions, sharing and caring small groups, and praying for each other. But the practice of studying the Bible has fallen by the wayside. Many times, a group of Christians meeting together to discuss anything related to faith is considered a Bible study. How sad that the actual studying of the Bible is left primarily to seminary students and pastors. 

But there's hope. Studying the Bible is not as esoteric as it might seem. In the same way that students examine a text closely, you can study the Bible. You can do it on your own or with others. The inductive method is invaluable for helping you to form convictions about what a text means. There are three steps to inductive: observe, interpret, apply. Rather than reading preconceived notions into a text, inductive is the method of tracing the author's argument through a passage.

There are plenty of free materials and guides available.  I can highly recommend the 10 minute video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5VKdea7L6II as an introduction.  You can also check out its paper form http://t.co/OUbIAH3f7i (automatic download). Don't give up before you've even started!

No real student of the Scriptures ever said this is easy. Proverbs 2:1-5 says:

My son, if you receive my words, and treasure my commands within you, so that you incline your ear to wisdom and apply your heart to understanding; yes, if you cry out for discernment, and lift up your voice for understanding, if you seek for her as silver and search for her as for hidden treasures, then you will understand the fear of the Lord, and find the knowledge of God.

God does not want us to stumble around in the dark. As the Master Communicator, He has made His Truth understandable to us, but it does requires some effort. How else can you defend why you believe what you believe?  

Visiting New York City

A friend asked me what to do on a visit to New York City. I've been exploring this city my whole life, and there is so much I've yet to see. However, this post focuses on the centrally-located highlights for short-term tourists. These places are consistent favorites from out-of-town friends, and they're perfect for low budgets and students.  This guide is designed for the summer time. I'll post another for winter, as the time times. Enjoy the Big Apple!!

You will likely want to visit some iconic locations:

• Times Square (On Broadway, from 45th St to 40th) - absolute must-see. It's been photographed millions of times before. Just soak it all in. And try not to get run over by the fast-walking New Yorkers who have no patience with tourists who stop on the sidewalk.
• Metropolitan Museum of Art (81st St and 5th Ave) - huge and fantastic. Be sure to visit the rooftop! There's no way to see it all, so just choose a couple. It's also entirely donations-based, so pay whatever you want (not the $12 they suggest).
• Natural History Museum (79th St and 8th Ave) - if you prefer animals, stories about evolution and want to see a giant whale. Also donations based.
• Chinatown - hundreds of little shops. Everything is cash-only. Good luck finding a bathroom down here. I recommend the bubble tea and the filled buns (baos) that you can get, either sweet or savory. You can also find unusual fruits on the street, including lychee. Beware the smelly fish stands.
• Wall Street - legendary. You can see the Stock Exchange, some old city buildings, the 9/11 memorial, and a whole bunch of business people.  It gets pretty quiet at night. 
• The NY Public Library (5th Ave and 41st), which is another outstanding place to visit. They currently have a children's book exhibit, which is phenomenal. Be sure to climb to the top floor and see the massive reading room!
• My favorite grassy place is Bryant Park. It's right in the middle of the city (40th-42nd Streets, between 5th and 6th Aves), and it includes the NY public library. In summer, the park has tons of free events, which you can find on their website.  You can eat a picnic here.  There's free wifi, an outdoor "reading room", ping pong tables, carousel, fountain, and lots of seats to people-watch ;) 
• Lots of people love Central Park. Honestly, there's nothing terribly special about it, but it's practically the only time we see nature.
• Grand Central Terminal (Park Ave and 42nd), where all the trains come in.  Lots of movies are filmed here. It's huge and beautiful. 
• Walk the Brooklyn Bridge - it's really pretty, especially at night. It's definitely a walk, but it's not too long.
• Walk the Highline Park (top: 30th St and 10th Ave until past 14th St) - raised subway tracks converted to a place for New Yorkers and tourists to hang out and walk around.
• Sit and listen to musicians playing in Washington Square Park (5th Ave and approximately 4th St).  The park is home to a gorgeous archway and countless NYU students. 

• Places to eat: 
• Shake Shack - quality burgers and milkshakes and frozen custards (like ice cream, but better). a handful of locations through the city.  Plus, a super friendly staff.
• Fantastic Thai food, all over the city, if you're into Thai.  I particularly like "Spice", which has like 10 locations, and I love a small place called Noodies (9th Ave and 55th).
• The Meatball Shop - super quality food, vegetarian options too, really fun atmosphere, a couple locations in Manhattan and Brooklyn.
• Maoz Vegetarian - if you don't eat meat, or are in love with falafel, you can get some quality food at good prices.
• Random free things: 
• Pop in the Lindt store for a free chocolate truffle.
• Walk into any Godiva and join their "club", aka give them your email address, and you can get a free truffle every month (starting then).
• Stop in the Chelsea Market - it's an avenue long, completely indoors (i.e. excellent for a rainy day!), filled with bunches of hidden gems. They also offer lots of samples.  Check out the Filling Station for oils, vinegars and salts. Check out the winery for afternoon tastings. 
• Restrooms: Starbucks and McDonalds are the most reliable options. They're everywhere.

The subway is fairly straightforward, so you'll probably want to use it to get around.  You can get a week long unlimited Metro Card for about $30. Otherwise, rides cost $2.50 each, and each subway ride comes with a free bus transfer, within two hours.

There are a hundred other things to do and places to go.  If you only have a day or two, I don't recommend the Statue of Liberty / Ellis Island, nor the Harlem area.  But if you're particularly interested, go for it!  You could certainly go to a Broadway show or see the Philharmonic, Metropolitan Opera or New York City Ballet, if you're not short on funds. Try not to get offended by New Yorkers. We're quite friendly if we start talking, and we very much enjoy giving directions (seriously). Whatever you decide to do, have a blast in the city that never sleeps!