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John & his sister
This is a typical northern Norway bunad. I spent the past couple of days in Oslo, Norway visiting my friend John-Rune. Up until this point, the furthest north I had ever been in Europe was Copenhagen, which happens to be one of my favorite cities in Europe; needless to say, I was definitely looking forward to what the rest of Scandinavia had to offer. In general, I had an
amazing experience in Norway. The people are the nicest, Oslo is a nice city, & it's a genuinely great atmosphere (minus the fact that everything is expensive). Norway isn't a member of the EU; therefore, it's not a part of the Euro-zone so it uses its own currency (the Norwegian Krone). Right now, the exchange rate is about 1 USD for every 6 NOK. When I withdrew 1200 from the ATM, it freaked me out... a lot... hoping that the machine would know I really only wanted $200 worth of Krone & not overdraw my bank account... haha. Since my general concept of money isn't exactly the best, it was hard for me to get used to a new currency, but I managed.
The purpose of my visit was to experience Norway's National Day, which takes
Children
Schoolchildren from the Oslo area all gather for a parade through the city. They play music & carry Norwegian flags. The parade walks past the royal palace where the King & Queen wave to the children. place on the 17th of May. It celebrates Norway's independence & the foundation of their constitution. John had told me about how awesome this day is in Norway & how it trumps any 4th of July celebration, so I decided to see for myself. It didn't take me long to realize that he was right.... The entire country celebrates the day, but I was excited to experience it in Oslo, the capital of Norway. The day revolves around a children's parade (where all the schoolchildren from the area march around their respective towns. In Oslo, the parade goes in front of the royal palace where the children can wave to the king & queen). One of the main incentives for the kids is the fact that at the end of the parade, they're each treated to some ice cream. (Ahh the power of sweets & the things they can make people do).
Traditional Norwegian costume, called the bunad, is worn by men & women for the celebration. The dresses are very elaborate, with designs embroidered on them, & they are adorned with hand-made silver jewelry. It can be distinguished which part of the country a Norwegian family is from
Norwegian pride
This is me hoping my red, white, & blue ribbon would help me blend in & show my Norwegian patriotism for the day. :) based on the design/colors of the bunad. It's really pretty awesome. Men wear the costume, as well, but those who don't usually just wear a suit & tie. It's a very classy celebration. The best is little kids in the costume. They are
adorable .
Perhaps the most outrageous part of the National Day celebrations is the russ. The russ is a celebration for the Norwegian equivalent of a high school senior. Essentially, beginning in the end of April & continuing until 17 May, the russ go around Norway (typically in red vans/cars/busses) drinking, celebrating, & doing a bunch of ridiculous things. There are dance parties on the roofs of buses, loud music, & general debauchery for 3 weeks straight. It's totally a "right of passage" in Norwegian culture. I asked John what kind of crazy things they did when he did russ, but he would only tell me some of the "tame" stories... perhaps it's best not to know. The russ participants are distinguished by their red overalls & caps which they wear the entire time. I guess if American culture would have an equivalent, it would be "senior week at the beach"; however, the russ goes
Royal castle
The parade walks up this street where the royal castle sits. on before the exam period. I can't even imagine partying for 3 weeks straight & then have to take an exam. Norwegians are intense, man!
To celebrate National Day, we watched the children's parade, walked around the city, & met up with some friends. It was a very nice day. The weather was amazing (it was actually sunny & mildly warm in Oslo, which is unheard of!) Nice weather in conjunction with good people is always a great recipe for a good time. 😊
Norway in general is very beautiful. It reminded me very much of Colorado - evergreen trees, big rocks, bodies of water. It was definitely a big change from Holland where everything is so flat. It was nice to be around some hills again. The scenery is beautiful, so I hope someday I get to go back & experience more "outdoorsy" things to really take it all in. John said the drive from the south of Norway to the north is amazing, so that may be next on my Norwegian "to do" list. haha
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Alice B.
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Amazing!! Just amazing!!