wow.. is this really happening!?

Today (22.07.2011) around 3:30pm in downtown Oslo was a bomb that went off either outside, or inside the government buildings, more so targeted near the Prime Minister's office. It has not been confirmed yet the exact location of where the blast came from, but it was sure heard miles away. At the time of the explosion I was in a cafe with my Norwegian teacher and some classmates practicing Norwegian, a few miles away, when we heard a very loud "BOOM." At first we thought it was thunder, then we were told shortly after that there had been an explosion downtown. It seemed to be targeted toward important political figures' offices, but it has been confirmed that they were not present in the building at the time of the explosion, and are safe.

I am also SAFE and OK, along with Anders and his family, so don't want any of you guys to worry!!! It's definitely a scary thing though and I am really shaken up. I just can't believe that this is happening right now.. it is a mystery at this point of who did it and why. Norway is one of the safest countries in the world.. this is a HUGE deal. Buildings are still on fire from the explosion, even hours after, and windows of buildings even miles away have been shattered from the pressure and intensity of the bomb. Anders' mother picked me up at the cafe where I was at and we are ALL safe and sound back in Rykkinn, which is a good half hour away from Oslo. We have been watching the news for hours (I can't understand a word they are saying), but I know the seriousness of the event.

All over the Norway news I can see people walking the streets, bloody and injured.. it makes me queasy. There is many people injured from the fallen glass and the explosion itself and 7 people have been confirmed dead, but there will be more to follow. They have said that they know of more dead bodies in the building, but authorities have not confirmed yet how many.. also on an island nearby called Utøya, where a political camp is held every summer, an un-identified man in a police costume open fired on the campers. We were just told that the man has been caught, but many people are wounded.

These attacks don't seem to be just a coincidence.. the government building and a political summer camp?? Someone or some group is attacking the Norwegian government; most likely a terrorist group. It is the first bomb EVER to go off in Norway since the second world war!! The man that was caught on Utøya is rumored to comment that there will be 2 more attacks to follow, but we don't know whether that's true or not.. he also is rumored to be connected to Al-Qaeda, but seems to be Norwegian himself. I really hope that nothing else will happen; it'll be way too much to handle. Here is a link to articles on CNN, being aired in the US:

http://edition.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/europe/07/22/norway.explosion/index.html?hpt=hp_c1

And some pictures I found on Google:


Smoke from the blast over Oslo.


View of some of the aftermath on the streets.


Casualities and injuries adding up..

I still am so shocked and can't believe that this has happened! It is going to take months, most likely, to be able to clean up the mess caused my the explosion downtown. Oslo has become one of my favorite cities in this world, but now for a while I won't be able to enjoy all that is has to offer as well as have a cloud of fear over my head until dots are connected to these tragic events, both in downtown Oslo and on Utøya :(


On a much brighter note.. my knee brace was FINALLY approved by the insurance companies back home and arrived in Norway this afternoon. Now I will be able to be more active in outdoor activities, because I will have the confidence to do more, with its support. The Besseggen hiking trip this weekend is still on, which I am still looking forward in attending.. it's supposed to be cloudy though and under 10° C (under 50° F) at the top, but could be even colder; the conditions are unpredictable, so I will have to make sure that I pack warm clothing and rain gear. We are departing from school at 7:30am tomorrow and will be returning around 11:30pm on Sunday. On Saturday we will be going to the Valdres Folk Museum as well as taking a boat ride over lake Gjende to a cabin in the mountains, called Memurubu, where we will be spending the night. Sunday is when we will hike back over Basseggen, which can take up to 8 hours.

Yesterday, Anders, his mom and myself went exploring in the woods near their home and I got to see a cave carved in the middle of this mountain--it was really neat!! Here is a picture of Kristin and I:



Earlier in the week Anders and I hiked up Solfjellstua again and FINALLY got a picture from the top! It was cloudy, but the pictures still came out nice :)





This week has been the hardest week so far in Norwegian class.. I am absolutely dreading the final exam in 2 weeks. I've had a very "off" week and today has just been a bad day.. I was a little home sick starting in the morning, followed by a really hard Norwegian test and then the attacks in Oslo in the afternoon. I hope that I will have a good time on my hiking trip this weekend and that people remain safe in Oslo..

ANOTHER UPDATE: it has been confirmed that at the moment 20-25 people have been confirmed dead on Utøya, but the news says for us to be prepared for many more. Subway stations have also been closed down because of an un-identified object found. This is sickening!!! I will update more after the weekend though, including how my trip went.. I am praying that no other attacks will occur. May all those that have died RIP <3