Unexpected Souvenir

Norway Mochi

Your friends may have thought it was a little weird that you decided to go to Norway over the summer, but to you, it's totally been worth it. This last week has been the most fun you've ever had alone, but the sad thing is that you are indeed alone.

No one else really wanted to go with you because no one speaks Norwegian, including you. Turns out that wasn't even a problem for you since almost everyone in Norway speaks English as a second language. Some people even speak it better than several native English speakers you know. You had managed to visit some amazing sites, like the beautiful opera house in Oslo, without getting lost because of the help of some friendly natives.

Oslo is a whole different experience in and of itself. You've spent most of your time in the large city, and enjoy its mixture of historic sites and modern wonders. You can see the amazing skyline, full of hulking skyscrapers, from your multistory hotel building, yet take in the wonderfully constructed stone buildings as you stroll through some of the more historic sections of the city. This place is amazing.

You stroll through a quiet street as you reflect on your trip. It really was worth coming, even though you had to do it alone. That's when you come across a cute little café called Flekket Ku (the spotted cow), and decide you're in the mood for a bite to eat. Small silver bells jingle as you push the door of the café open and step inside. It's a little bit colder inside than out, and you shiver slightly at the temperature difference. It doesn't get really hot in Norway, even though it's the middle of summer, so it's actually quite cool inside. 

A warm mug of coffee is starting to sound better to you as you accustom yourself to the cool temperature. You look at the menu behind the counter, but everything's in Norwegian, so you can't figure out what anything is. Words like "latte" and "espresso" are still the same, so you think about maybe getting some random latte and hope for the best.

You step up to the counter when a round, white object catches your attention. It's rather unavoidable actually because it's sitting right in the middle of the counter. You look at the odd object closely, and wonder if it means the café is closed. There isn't anyone else in the café except a tall man with wild blonde hair sitting at a table in the back, so it must be open. You try to move the white object as carefully as you can, but it moves as soon as you touch it.

"Vennligst ikke røre meg (please don't touch me)," the strange object says.

You immediately pull your hands away in surprise. "I-it's talking to me...t-t-this thing...it's talking to me...Oh man, I've really lost it now."

The soft white object turns around and looks at you with dull blue eyes. The sudden appearance of a face on the white thing makes you stop your rambling, and your eyes grow to the size of saucers. All the Norwegian fairytales must have gotten to your head because now you're seeing something straight out of one.

"Vennligst ikke stirre (please don't stare)," the round object says.

"I don't speak Norwegian," you reply automatically. It's something you've had to say a lot this week.

The thing just grunts in response, then turns back around. A small curl that floats off the side of the thing's head bounces as it does so, and you can't help but wonder why it's not actually attached to the white object on the counter. Even with the thing not facing you, you can still see the shiny gold clip attached to the object near its floating curl gleam in the sunlight streaming through the windows.

Suddenly someone appears from the back and hurries toward the counter that the round thing is sitting at. The young man starts talking to the thing in Norwegian, and he appears to be apologizing. You watch the two converse with several different questions bouncing around in your mind. Why isn't the waiter as weirded out as you? What are they talking about? And just what is that thing anyway?