Flekke, a small village with about 200 inhabitants at the Norwegian west coast, is an extraordinary place in many ways. The past two years, which I spent at the Red Cross Nordic United World College in Flekke were extremely shaping for me and capturing them still seems like an overwhelming task.
Many of the moments that I enjoyed the most were spent talking to friends or getting to know people. The art room, with a stunning view across the fjord, was my absolute favorite place on campus. It is a perfect place to chat, to listen to music and to work on artistic projects. I had many inspiring conversations there and sometimes stayed for a whole day. Through art I got a very unique insight into other cultures and other students’ mindsets. I developed an interest in conceptual art during my time at UWC and always find it interesting to study people’s reaction to art pieces. Besides visual art, I was also impressed by the quality and the spirit of the cultural shows at UWC that are regularly organized for the community. There were shows presenting traditions of each continent and also whole theme days for different regions of the world. I am very grateful that I had the chance to live in such a unique international community, and I hope to be able to share some of the experiences I made there with others, too. Sometimes people could heavily disagree with others at UWC, but through discussions, misunderstandings could be cleared up and often a compromise could be found. Solving conflict situations is one of the very valuable skills that are learned whilst living at a UWC. Living together so closely with 4 roommates made me form very strong friendships and it was wonderful getting to know so many different people and stories.
Although I was born and raised in a vibrant city, I think that UWC truly taught me how to become involved and active. Living in Berlin, Germany, I mostly enjoy all the variety of cultural events and concerts that the city has on offer. My free time is often spent in libraries, galleries or just on my bike exploring new parts of the city. In summer I enjoy going for a run in the park and listening to musicians that play concerts outside. I also play the guitar myself, and besides collecting and listening to music, I recently started making music with some of my friends. I am excited about the music scene at Lewis & Clark and in Portland.
Spending time in the stunning Norwegian nature really made me appreciate outdoor life even more. My interest in the environment and sustainability increased enormously during the past two years, once I started living outside a major city. So when it came to choosing Colleges, Lewis & Clark clearly stood out. The environmental effort and strong focus on these fields, makes Lewis & Clark a great fit. Studying in a place that is surrounded by nature, but where the rich cultural life of a city as interesting and young as Portland is easily accessible, presents the perfect mixture of both lifestyles. Likewise the small and engaged community and the range of interesting courses that are offered made me choose Lewis & Clark.
At the moment I am thinking about majoring in Computer Science, because I am interested in software engineering and I would like to learn more about coding and design. I am really looking forward to be a part of the community at Lewis & Clark and am sure there are 4 great years to come!