Wow, I never thought I would actually be writing this, but for the past few weeks we have had absolutely beautiful weather here in Bergen. Sorry to all my friends and family in the UK, but March came in like a lamb and is going out like a lamb! We have had wall to wall sunshine most days, with the odd cloudy day in between, and only 18 mm rain or snow since the beginning of the month. Yes, temperatures could have been a tad warmer, hovering around 0 C most of the time, but it is amazing how many nooks and crannies you can find in town, or at the side of the house where you are in the lee. We achieved a very rrespectable 17 C on our balcony yesterday, and even got a bit sunburnt! Time to break out the BBQ?
According to the local newspaper, Bergen is experiencing the driest March in 110 years! We have had 152mm less rain than usual - don't forget, here on the West Coast, life is measured in length and ferocity of rain shower. Most days you stand to get wet at least once when you step outside your front door!
The lack of rain has actually caused problems up on the mountain hillsides around the town, as the dead grass is bone dry, and we have had several fires break out, 32 in fact just this weekend! There is a tradition here that if you go for a long walk at this time of year, you will often light a fire around lunch time and toast sausages to make hot dogs. Unfortunately, it seems as though many of these small bonfires have got out of hand. Others may have been started deliberately. It does seem strange though, to have fire warnings out now when the weather is still bitterly cold.
This clear, dry weather is set to continue, at least until the beginning of April. Hopefully, we can take some of it with us to the UK over Easter!
Dare we even start to hope that we will have a good summer here too for a change?
Click the link to the local paper if you want to seel pictures of burning mountains!
http://www.bt.no/nyheter/lokalt/Lyderhorn-brant-i-seks-timer-2866926.html
A blog about daily life in Bergen, Norway. We moved here in 2010 due to work commitments (my husband's). Now having survived the first winter I feel able to write about the place without too much negativity! it is amazing how a lack of light, freezing temperatures and general horrid weather drain creativity!! I've learnt Norwegian, and work part time - so this really is living in Bergen!
Monday, 25 March 2013
Wednesday, 20 March 2013
Wine boxes - a danger to society!?
As anyone who has travelled to Norway knows, alcohol here is very expensive. A bottle of wine at the Wine Monopoly Store (Vinmonopol) will set you back at least NOK100 (approximately £12) and one can of beer in the supermarket costs NOK24 (approximately £3). Why is it so expensive?
Well Norway has a love hate relationship with alcohol, fuelled by a very strong temperance movement based within the Norwegian church. Drinking in some places and families is almost a taboo subject, and some parts of Norway were ‘dry’ i.e. you couldn’t buy alcohol there until ten years or so ago. The thing is though most Norwegians do like to drink, but only at the weekends, and then many, especially the younger ones ‘go to town’.
As foreigners living here, we have noticed a tendency among our Norwegian friends and colleagues that when there is free booze on the table (i.e. company dinner) most people get absolutely trolleyed! Another thing is when you go to a private party, you bring your own bottle(s). You don’t just give your bottle to the host and hostess and then drink whatever is going! No you drink your own bottle that you have bought along, and that is it! No-one blinks an eyelid if you take it back home with you part drunk!
Wine and spirits are only sold by the Wine Monopoly, a state owned chain of stores which have shops in most main towns – not helpful if you live in a small village 100lm away! You can get a home delivery if you are well organised, but I guess if you started doing that each week the word would soon get around that 'someone has a problem', as you have to pick up the packages at your local postoffice. It says on the Monopoly website that you can get deliveries direct to your door, but I would imagine that is limited to larger towns rather than small villages in the middle of nowhere! Also you have to be over 20 to buy spirits, and over 18 to buy wine and beer. Beer up to 4.7% (lager) can be bought in the supermarket, but not after 9pm on a week day or 6 pm on a Saturday (Sunday closed). The Wine Monopoly is also only open for ‘short hours’ i.e. 10-5 on a week day and 10-3 on Saturday!
So what do most people do? Well Friday is the busiest day of the week for alcohol sales and people tend to buy more than they would actually consume, and yet still manage to have nothing left by the end of the weekend!
There is a Norwegian association, Actis, which supports people who have dependency problems (drugs, alcohol, gambling) and they fear that things are getting worse, as figures show that Norwegians are buying more and more alcohol, especially wine in boxes. Actis thinks, possibly correctly that selling wine in boxes is the worst thing for developing a dependency on alcohol. Why? Well because the covering of the box means that you cannot judge how much you are actually drinking!
You might open the box on Friday evening when you get home from work and have a glass, then have a glass while cooking dinner, then a glass or two while you eat, and maybe a nightcap glass before you go to bed? Before you know it you will have consumed the equivalent of a whole bottle of wine – maybe two bottles if there are two of you! So, with a 3 litre box containing the equivalent of 4 bottles of wine you can see where this is going. Your weekend needs to be a two boxer not a one boxer if you have a partner in crime to assist you with the drinking! Hence the increase in wine box sales!
I cannot imagine that they would stop selling wine in boxes here, but I bet you Norway will be the first country to introduce boxes with a clear measure on the side, so you can see exactly how much you are taking out of the box each time you open the tap. Or maybe they will develop a little alarm LED if you pour more than 2 glasses, loud enough to alert the neighbours and shame you into drinking less!
Link to the Wine Monopoly website if you are interested is www.vinmonopolet.no
Well Norway has a love hate relationship with alcohol, fuelled by a very strong temperance movement based within the Norwegian church. Drinking in some places and families is almost a taboo subject, and some parts of Norway were ‘dry’ i.e. you couldn’t buy alcohol there until ten years or so ago. The thing is though most Norwegians do like to drink, but only at the weekends, and then many, especially the younger ones ‘go to town’.
As foreigners living here, we have noticed a tendency among our Norwegian friends and colleagues that when there is free booze on the table (i.e. company dinner) most people get absolutely trolleyed! Another thing is when you go to a private party, you bring your own bottle(s). You don’t just give your bottle to the host and hostess and then drink whatever is going! No you drink your own bottle that you have bought along, and that is it! No-one blinks an eyelid if you take it back home with you part drunk!
Wine and spirits are only sold by the Wine Monopoly, a state owned chain of stores which have shops in most main towns – not helpful if you live in a small village 100lm away! You can get a home delivery if you are well organised, but I guess if you started doing that each week the word would soon get around that 'someone has a problem', as you have to pick up the packages at your local postoffice. It says on the Monopoly website that you can get deliveries direct to your door, but I would imagine that is limited to larger towns rather than small villages in the middle of nowhere! Also you have to be over 20 to buy spirits, and over 18 to buy wine and beer. Beer up to 4.7% (lager) can be bought in the supermarket, but not after 9pm on a week day or 6 pm on a Saturday (Sunday closed). The Wine Monopoly is also only open for ‘short hours’ i.e. 10-5 on a week day and 10-3 on Saturday!
So what do most people do? Well Friday is the busiest day of the week for alcohol sales and people tend to buy more than they would actually consume, and yet still manage to have nothing left by the end of the weekend!
There is a Norwegian association, Actis, which supports people who have dependency problems (drugs, alcohol, gambling) and they fear that things are getting worse, as figures show that Norwegians are buying more and more alcohol, especially wine in boxes. Actis thinks, possibly correctly that selling wine in boxes is the worst thing for developing a dependency on alcohol. Why? Well because the covering of the box means that you cannot judge how much you are actually drinking!
You might open the box on Friday evening when you get home from work and have a glass, then have a glass while cooking dinner, then a glass or two while you eat, and maybe a nightcap glass before you go to bed? Before you know it you will have consumed the equivalent of a whole bottle of wine – maybe two bottles if there are two of you! So, with a 3 litre box containing the equivalent of 4 bottles of wine you can see where this is going. Your weekend needs to be a two boxer not a one boxer if you have a partner in crime to assist you with the drinking! Hence the increase in wine box sales!
I cannot imagine that they would stop selling wine in boxes here, but I bet you Norway will be the first country to introduce boxes with a clear measure on the side, so you can see exactly how much you are taking out of the box each time you open the tap. Or maybe they will develop a little alarm LED if you pour more than 2 glasses, loud enough to alert the neighbours and shame you into drinking less!
Link to the Wine Monopoly website if you are interested is www.vinmonopolet.no
Friday, 8 March 2013
International Women's Day
8th March 2013 is International Women's Day, and also the centenary of women receiving the right to vote in Norway. The day seems to have passed quietly. A few concerts have been arranged here on the west coast and Oslo is probably doing something similar.
What is more interesting though is the debate that the anniversary appears to have inspired in the newspapers! Author and psychologist Linn Stalsberg has just published a book 'Am I free now?' where she discusses whether what women have so far achieved was really what they were fighting for backi in the 1970's.
Many women in Norway return to work, but do so on a part-time basis. The question is why? Linn S. argues that a hectic lifestyle, climbing the career ladder and taking the brunt of caring for children and maybe older parents, is far to demanding for women to continue working full time - at least whilst children are small and parents are hanging in there! Yet most Norwegians seem to be much better at sharing household chores and taking care of the children than others.
Equality minister Inga Marte Thorkildaen however, thinks it is unhelpful to women in general that so many choose to work part time. You are either 100% engaged in your career, or 100% at home parent! And this in a country where family definitely comes first. Wow - that is quite a statement ror a country where the rights and needs of the individual seem to spercede anything else.
With regard to families for example, you are entitled as a parent amongst other things to take 2 days leave per month to care for a sick child, and that is on top of your own sick leave allowance and holiday (and you will be paid too!). Many HR departments check with staff at the end of the ax year if they have not used their child sick leave quota to see if they will be using it - it's a great way of getting a few more days off work around Christmas!
Also people only work a 37.5 hour week and nurseries are open 7.30-4.30 (as are schools with pre and after school clubs for children up to 10 years old), which limits the working day to circa 8-4, which employers accept. It's a far cry from the long hours many seem to work elsewhere. So, it is easier here for women to work full time and have a family. However, all is not as easy as it seems. Once in school children have nowhere to go in the school holidays so parents can find that they cannot take a family holiday together as they somehow have to cover 6 weeks of school holiday. Of course once you are 10 there is nowhere to go anyway as you are to old for after school clubs. School days are short here so kids are home by 1 pm and your average parent is home by 4.30/5pm. You can question whether the system really does support families. It is great for when the kids are small but not after.
Of course if you have a supportive partner you can usually juggle things, but there are more and more single parent families who must find the whole thing a struggle even in affluent, socially aware Norway!
Now the debate is turning to kindergardens and whether it is good for children aged one year to be placed in such an environment. Some research suggests that the stress levels shown by young children (under 3 years) in kindregardens is not healthy for future development. It is all to do with the amount of cortisol (stress hormone) produced and how the body copes with it. In fact Norwegian kindergardens are now looking at UK models to improve the way they settle children in, and communicate with parents!
So, in spite of all the hype in my industry (childcare) that Scandinavia had the whole work/life/family ethic balanced, actually that is not the case at all!
What is more interesting though is the debate that the anniversary appears to have inspired in the newspapers! Author and psychologist Linn Stalsberg has just published a book 'Am I free now?' where she discusses whether what women have so far achieved was really what they were fighting for backi in the 1970's.
Many women in Norway return to work, but do so on a part-time basis. The question is why? Linn S. argues that a hectic lifestyle, climbing the career ladder and taking the brunt of caring for children and maybe older parents, is far to demanding for women to continue working full time - at least whilst children are small and parents are hanging in there! Yet most Norwegians seem to be much better at sharing household chores and taking care of the children than others.
Equality minister Inga Marte Thorkildaen however, thinks it is unhelpful to women in general that so many choose to work part time. You are either 100% engaged in your career, or 100% at home parent! And this in a country where family definitely comes first. Wow - that is quite a statement ror a country where the rights and needs of the individual seem to spercede anything else.
With regard to families for example, you are entitled as a parent amongst other things to take 2 days leave per month to care for a sick child, and that is on top of your own sick leave allowance and holiday (and you will be paid too!). Many HR departments check with staff at the end of the ax year if they have not used their child sick leave quota to see if they will be using it - it's a great way of getting a few more days off work around Christmas!
Also people only work a 37.5 hour week and nurseries are open 7.30-4.30 (as are schools with pre and after school clubs for children up to 10 years old), which limits the working day to circa 8-4, which employers accept. It's a far cry from the long hours many seem to work elsewhere. So, it is easier here for women to work full time and have a family. However, all is not as easy as it seems. Once in school children have nowhere to go in the school holidays so parents can find that they cannot take a family holiday together as they somehow have to cover 6 weeks of school holiday. Of course once you are 10 there is nowhere to go anyway as you are to old for after school clubs. School days are short here so kids are home by 1 pm and your average parent is home by 4.30/5pm. You can question whether the system really does support families. It is great for when the kids are small but not after.
Of course if you have a supportive partner you can usually juggle things, but there are more and more single parent families who must find the whole thing a struggle even in affluent, socially aware Norway!
Now the debate is turning to kindergardens and whether it is good for children aged one year to be placed in such an environment. Some research suggests that the stress levels shown by young children (under 3 years) in kindregardens is not healthy for future development. It is all to do with the amount of cortisol (stress hormone) produced and how the body copes with it. In fact Norwegian kindergardens are now looking at UK models to improve the way they settle children in, and communicate with parents!
So, in spite of all the hype in my industry (childcare) that Scandinavia had the whole work/life/family ethic balanced, actually that is not the case at all!
Monday, 4 March 2013
1000 metres up and plenty of snow!
So, we survived a 5 hour drive over the mountains and spent the weekend at Vaset - view from Nils cabin below, which is absolutely spectacular!
To the left of the picture is a frozen lake, which has friendly, rolling cross-country ski runs all marked out for novices such as me and the 2 year old down the road.
The scenery is beautiful. shame it had to be marred by viewing it from the lowest possible angle - ground! You can take it as read that I am not a natural skiier, in much the same way as I am not a natural ice skater, roller skater, bike rider or other '-er' which involves balance!
This is the fourth time in my life I have tried cross country skiing (although the first time was a good 20 years or so ago and was a complete disaster). Last year we did 2 days worth, and this year is the first time. I suppose in that respect I should be quite proud of myself as I only fell over three times, but we were only out for an hour and a half, so it's not as though I have spent time practising my technique.
Trevor didn't fall once. He did have a problem though keeping in the grooves made for your skis by the run-basher, as he negotiated the bends on the hills. He managed to get up quite a momentum and found it difficult to turn the skis and follow the curve. Hopping out of the track and continuing straight ahead can be unhealthy depending on your speed and number of bushes that are out to get you! But he controlled the hop very well! He has much better balance than I do, and is prepared to go faster!
I find the whole concept of balancing on two slim pieces of wood that are as tall as I am completely alien. My legs just do not work properly with these things strapped to my feet! Any hint of a downward slope and my body freezes and slams the brakes on, which means I fall over.
Getting up from the fall is even worse. I feel like Bambi on ice with skis crossed and poles caught up, wondering quite which part of me should I focus on to push myself up. Each angle I try just seems to make the skis slip away and I end up on my butt again! Elegance is certainly not something I can aspire to when skiing.
Norwegians make it look so easy, and they go so fast! We split from our friends in the car park, with the thought that they would meet us back there in an hour. An hour and a half later we got back from maybe a 3km 'run', whereas they had been over half the mountain and around the lake, and probably could have done so again. We were knackered though!
Still, I must be improving a little as I can do the gently rolling bits of the track now - give me 10 more years and I might be able to tackle a gentle slope without either hesitating or taking the skis off and walking down!
Actually, on Saturday we could not ski anyway as it was blowing a gale and snowing a little. When the air temperature is already -5C, gale force winds bring the chill factor down at least another 5 points. So we walked around down town Fargernes a twenty minute drive from the cabin, and discovered the most amazing second hand shop. It was in an old house and had room after room of second hand glass, china, furniture, textiles, toys - heaven!
Right at the back of the shop was a room full of china tea sets (the type your granny would have with cups and saucers and matching tea plates, teapots etc,) and a small shelf of Norwegian pewter. I couldn't resist, so now we are the proud owners of a pair of arts and crafts (Jugendstil) candlesticks. For once, it wasn't expensive either!
To the left of the picture is a frozen lake, which has friendly, rolling cross-country ski runs all marked out for novices such as me and the 2 year old down the road.
The scenery is beautiful. shame it had to be marred by viewing it from the lowest possible angle - ground! You can take it as read that I am not a natural skiier, in much the same way as I am not a natural ice skater, roller skater, bike rider or other '-er' which involves balance!
This is the fourth time in my life I have tried cross country skiing (although the first time was a good 20 years or so ago and was a complete disaster). Last year we did 2 days worth, and this year is the first time. I suppose in that respect I should be quite proud of myself as I only fell over three times, but we were only out for an hour and a half, so it's not as though I have spent time practising my technique.
Trevor didn't fall once. He did have a problem though keeping in the grooves made for your skis by the run-basher, as he negotiated the bends on the hills. He managed to get up quite a momentum and found it difficult to turn the skis and follow the curve. Hopping out of the track and continuing straight ahead can be unhealthy depending on your speed and number of bushes that are out to get you! But he controlled the hop very well! He has much better balance than I do, and is prepared to go faster!
I find the whole concept of balancing on two slim pieces of wood that are as tall as I am completely alien. My legs just do not work properly with these things strapped to my feet! Any hint of a downward slope and my body freezes and slams the brakes on, which means I fall over.
Getting up from the fall is even worse. I feel like Bambi on ice with skis crossed and poles caught up, wondering quite which part of me should I focus on to push myself up. Each angle I try just seems to make the skis slip away and I end up on my butt again! Elegance is certainly not something I can aspire to when skiing.
Norwegians make it look so easy, and they go so fast! We split from our friends in the car park, with the thought that they would meet us back there in an hour. An hour and a half later we got back from maybe a 3km 'run', whereas they had been over half the mountain and around the lake, and probably could have done so again. We were knackered though!
Still, I must be improving a little as I can do the gently rolling bits of the track now - give me 10 more years and I might be able to tackle a gentle slope without either hesitating or taking the skis off and walking down!
Actually, on Saturday we could not ski anyway as it was blowing a gale and snowing a little. When the air temperature is already -5C, gale force winds bring the chill factor down at least another 5 points. So we walked around down town Fargernes a twenty minute drive from the cabin, and discovered the most amazing second hand shop. It was in an old house and had room after room of second hand glass, china, furniture, textiles, toys - heaven!
Right at the back of the shop was a room full of china tea sets (the type your granny would have with cups and saucers and matching tea plates, teapots etc,) and a small shelf of Norwegian pewter. I couldn't resist, so now we are the proud owners of a pair of arts and crafts (Jugendstil) candlesticks. For once, it wasn't expensive either!
Because the weather was so bad on Saturday, the passes over Filefjell and Hemsedal (the only two routes back to Bergen and the west of the country) were either closed, or drivers had to join a convoy, which is when you follow a snow plough all the way across the pass. It means that traffic is moving in only one direction, so drivers on the other side have to wait. It takes about an hour to cross the pass depending on weather conditions, so it can really delay your journey. Few people live up there so it is best to be prepared and have food, warm drinks, blankets, snow chains and snow shovel in the car! A little different to every day UK driving!
The wind on Saturday, was so strong, and the flurries of snow so heavy that it was too dangerous to drive there, so the passes were closed. Thoughts were racing through my husband's head as he wondered how he would get to work on Monday, or whether he would be forced to take a days' holiday! It was amazing how quickly the weather had changed, as we had only driven across Filefjell the evening before and there had been little snow - certainly not enuogh to get blown across the road we thought and completely halt traffic on a major thoroughfare.
How naive we were! Going back, it was easy to see how the road could suddenly become hazardous. It isn't a brilliant photo taken with my phone through the windscreen, but you can see how the snow drifts across the road. If there weren't snow poles on either side you could easily drive off the road into the ditch, or worse down a mountain side. Also it was best to keep to the middle of the road where it was clear, as the sides of the road were treacherous with thick ice, coverred by slushy snow!
This road is the E16, a major traffic artery joining the east and west parts of southern Norway. As you can see it is just an ordinary road, no dual carriageway or road markings apart from a central yellow line (and that isn't everywhere). The road is used by thousands of trucks every month and there are always accidents, usually caused by foreign truck drivers driving on summer tyres as they have no way of checking the weather conditions up on the mountain (they can have snow here in September!).
Anyway, back to wet and (slightly) warmer Bergen and as usual we can hardly see the mountain across the water as it is so misty! If I have to choose I guess I would prefer sun, snow and cold, as opposed to rain, mist and cold - but would trade both for sun, blue skies and warmth!!
Friday, 1 March 2013
Vaset
We are off for a skiing weekend this afternoon, to a little place called Vaset in Oppland. Apparently there is loads of snow so it should be 'fun'.
We are staying with some friends at his family cabin. Owning a cabin is a bit of a tradition for Norwegians. Before the second world war only the rich coukd afford to have two homes, and the leisure time to use them, but times have changed and I would guess nearly 80% of Norwegian families either own their own cabin or share one with the rest of their family.
Cabins can be found everywhere - along the coast and in the mountains. Some are very tradiitional with no electricity or running water and an outside loo, and some are 4 bedroom luxury houses with wi-fi and all mod cons. Oir friends cabin is sort of in the middle (with running water and electricity!!) and he has a neat app on his phone which means he can turn on the heating before you get there. Nice to arrive at a warm house when it is -10 C outside.
As for the skiing part well it is the third time I have tried cross country and so far it doesn't really agree with me! I will try again but .....
Update to follow next week!!
We are staying with some friends at his family cabin. Owning a cabin is a bit of a tradition for Norwegians. Before the second world war only the rich coukd afford to have two homes, and the leisure time to use them, but times have changed and I would guess nearly 80% of Norwegian families either own their own cabin or share one with the rest of their family.
Cabins can be found everywhere - along the coast and in the mountains. Some are very tradiitional with no electricity or running water and an outside loo, and some are 4 bedroom luxury houses with wi-fi and all mod cons. Oir friends cabin is sort of in the middle (with running water and electricity!!) and he has a neat app on his phone which means he can turn on the heating before you get there. Nice to arrive at a warm house when it is -10 C outside.
As for the skiing part well it is the third time I have tried cross country and so far it doesn't really agree with me! I will try again but .....
Update to follow next week!!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)