Changes in Latitudes

There is an archipelago west of Bergen where Marius and I drove to today to explore. We went to one of the islands that is called Turøy, and the biggest main island near there is called Sotra. We packed out our lunch picnic style and walked around the island for a couple of hours before settling on a space by the water to sunbathe. The water was WAY too cold for me to get in - a bit colder than Lake Superior. (There are more pictures posted on my facebook page) It was a nice way to enjoy the great weather, and we finished up the day with a barbecue in the park across the street with Knut.

Summer arrived this week in Bergen and I have finished my exams just in time to enjoy it! I have taken a hike up Ulriken everyday this week!

Happy 17th of May! Today is Norway's Constitution Day! We started it off with breakfast with a couple friends (in normal Norwegian style of course - bread, brown cheese, meats and more cheese), followed by a rainy walk to the city for the parade.  The crowds were pretty intense, but not above what I expected for a parade. Some similarities to the American style parade, but still fairly different. They have the politicians (only those in office) walking in the front followed by an old fire truck or two and then the school bands come along with the boy and girl scouts, and at the end of that is the children's parade where every child in Bergen gets to walk with their school. For dinner, Marius and I had pan-seared cod with potatoes, broccoli and carrots - pretty traditional Norwegian food. And dessert was sour cream porridge - which was topped with raisins, a little butter and sugar, and cinnamon. What a nice first 17th of May in Norway! [The children's parade c...

[Can you see all the colorful dots along the main trail? The ants are headed up the ant hill!] [Marius, Knut and Ola on the way up Ulriken] ...EXPLODES with people who look like an army of ants climbing to the top of the ant hill! Marius, Knut, Ola and I took a walk up another side of Ulriken with a "one-time grill" and some buffalo wings, and enjoyed some sunshine on the top on Norway's Labor Day last Tuesday. [The ants are headed up the ant hill, and Bergen's population triples] [BBQ, people-watching and sunshine]

Last weekend we experienced some snow, so we are growing our flowers and a few veggies inside to try to make the most of it. I can't remember what are in the three little cups closest to the window, but you can see that we are regrowing our spring onion and garlic in the other cups. And our pansies are also quite successful in our window greenhouse. 

The national religion of Norway is Christianity, so baptism and confirmation are somewhat big events for a Norwegian kid. Today I was invited to Maja's (pronounced like Maya) confirmation (Marius' little cousin). This  is a normal celebration when you are around 14 or 15 years old. It was quite a cultural experience for me. We began at the church. The women were in all the national costume, called a "bunad," and each region has it's own style. Some men were also dressed in a man's bunad, but this is not so common. It started out with the kids walking down the aisle while "Amazing Grace" was played by the organist and a saxophonist (who was really getting into it - had his eyes closed and swung back and forth -- I giggled a little bit). The service was all in Norwegian and there was no communion. I didn't understand very much, but when each "konfirmat" went up to the alter to be blessed, his/her family members had to stand up. Afterw...