THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, June 14, 1996 TAG: 9606140055
SECTION: DAILY BREAK PAGE: E9 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: By DENISE WATSON, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: 47 lines
THERE'S MUCH for John Bullington to do before taking off for college in Norway this August.
There's hanging out with friends he might not see again, spending time with the girlfriend who might not visit until spring break, soaking up the sun before reaching the land a few snowflakes from the Arctic Circle.
And then there's learning how to actually pronounce the name of the school he'll be attending.
``Val. . . val. I'll spell it - V-A-L-D-R-E-S,'' said John, an Indian River High school senior. ``I'm going over there to study the language and to take my core classes - English, math and stuff - but I do need to learn how to pronounce the name of the school before I get there.''
The 19-year-old decided to apply to the school outside of Oslo shortly after his mom decided to return to her homeland of Norway last year. John could have stayed here with family and friends, but said he couldn't resist the possibilities of living in Europe.
``There will be some culture shock, but I have no grief in going over there,'' John said. ``I am a somewhat amateur skier and the school is next to a ski resort.
``It'll give me a chance to catch up on skiing.''
During his time at Indian River, John has been a member of the orchestra and the chess team, and has excelled in drafting courses. He was recently inducted into the National Vocational Technical Honor Society.
He wants to eventually go into engineering or ``something in the mechanical field,'' but won't make any permanent plans until the end of his first year in Norway.
``If I don't get a full four-year scholarship to a school over there, I'll probably return to the States and go to school here,'' John said. ``Either Tidewater Community College or Old Dominion University.''
Until his plane leaves in August, however, John will be mixing time on the beach with learning more about his soon-to-be home - learning how to convert American dollars to kroners, learning about soccer and skiing, and becoming more handy with the language.
``I can say at least five words - ``aunt,'' ``grandmother,'' ``car,'' ``trolley,'' and ``ice cream','' John said. ``But I need to know a bit more than that.'' ILLUSTRATION: BETH BERGMAN
The Virginian-Pilot
John is looking forward to studying abroad. by CNB