A Sad Anniversary

July has been a very hard month . Scorching temperatures are causing grief for farmers as crops wither with the lack of rain, while record high temperatures have been the cause of several heat-related deaths.

Not much good news is found this July.

News from Norway is centered around an oil and gas dispute, as the Norwegian government finalized a settlement averting a worker lockout that would have affected 6500 workers, and avoiding three hundred million US dollars in daily losses. But Norwegian minds are focused on another sad anniversary.

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Sunday, July 22nd, Norway marked the first anniversary of a bomb and gun massacre that left 77 people dead. Anders Breivik, a Norwegian accused mass murderer, terrorist and confessed perpetrator of the 2011 attacks in Norway has been kept at the Ila, Oslo prison facility since his twin terror attacks last summer that killed 77 young people. He had posed as a policeman, shooting and protesting the “Islamization of Norway.” Breivik is currently being held under evaluation.

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Prosecutors said Breivik was psychotic and should be sent to compulsory psychiatric care while Breivik's defense lawyers argued that he was sane. Under Norwegian law, a sanity finding would mean that Breivik could be sentenced to a maximum of only 21 years in prison, although he could be held longer if he is still considered a danger to the public at that time. Authorities would have more leeway to hold him indefinitely with an insanity ruling, something that would also further undercut Breivik's claims of being a right-wing revolutionary leader, saying that the nation responded to the tragedy by reaffirming its democratic and tolerant values.The Oslo district court is set to deliver its ruling on August 24.

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Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg attended a service at the Oslo cathedral, alongside the royal family, to give a speech to Labour Party youth on Utoeya. Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg stated that Breivik had failed in his declared goal of destroying Norway's commitment to being an inclusive, multicultural society.

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Survivors and families of victims gathered for a private ceremony on the island where the shooting took place. Eskil Pedersen, a survivor of the massacre and the head of the Labor Party's youth chapter spoke at the ceremony. Bjoern Ihler, another survivor of the shooting massacre, insisted that extremists must be permitted to express their ideas freely to avoid the creation of underground enclaves. Pedersen was quoted as saying: "Today we remember those who were killed. Tomorrow we continue the fight for what they believed in."

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Norwegian culture has a far more humanistic approach to people’s freedoms while compared to that of the United States. Twenty one years is a maximum sentence for most wrong-doers in Norway, while those wrong-doers are fully enveloped in many rehabilitation programs. Norwegian prison officials announced plans to hire "friends" for Breivik, because they’re unwilling to restrict him to solitary confinement, but also do not want to subject other inmates to him, worried he may try to take hostages.The "professional community" will have tasks that include playing indoor hockey and chess with Breivik. Plans have been approved to build a new psychiatric ward inside the prison specifically to house the right-wing extremist in the event he is found to be insane, as they hope he will be. If deemed insane, he may be kept in prison for a longer period of time, while being evaluated.

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Here in the U.S. July --,a 24 year-old post-graduate university student, who was in the process of dropping out of school took advantage of a crowded midnight premier of a popular Bat-Man movie. He jumped onto the stage during the movie and began shooting at the audience. After killing 12 and wounding 58 others, he quietly surrendered to police. He is currently being held in police custody pending his hearing. Motive being unknown, it will be interesting to hear the sentence, American style. If deemed insane, it is doubtful that Colorado will be building a special psychiatric ward for his prison stay.

July has been a tough month.

Sing 'til the cows come home!

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Though the age of "summer farms" has dwindled and many "seters" have been abandoned, in the summer of 2008, there were still 1100 independent summer farms in use. There were also over 200 "shared summer farms" for goats and cattle. Archaeological finds have proven the tradition of summer farms was used in the 7th century - Iron Age! With farmland being so scarce in Norway and Sweden, perhaps 10 acres or less, farmers need these acres for growing their crops during the summer months. This means they must move their cattle and sheep up into the mountains to graze. In the 12th century, old Norwegian Law stated if a farmer didn't send his herds to summer pasture he could be reported for illegal grazing - "grass robbery"! Other valuable perks of the summer pasture: fishing and hunting, haymaking in adjacent meadows and gathering wood.

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The children and older women of the family were usually left to care for the animals; herding and milking them. They also ran their own little dairy, making cheese and butter. And mmm...that good 'geitost' goat cheese! Either you love it or you hate it. The ladies also got to spin wool and knit stockings (and probably darn stockings!) and mittens for the coming winter. The "seter" (summer mountain farm) would have a little cottage and a "stabbur" for storing their cheese, butter and supplies. The stabbur was built on rock pillars to keep out the rodents.

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There were no neighbors to a seter, just surrounding forest land between the seters, cutting the herdswomen off from civilization, so they had to handle every situation on their own. These girls developed a means of communication through a method of singing called "kulning" - also known as "kauning" in some parts of Norway and Sweden. The sound is sung without vibrato and at full volume, a very concentrated and high-pitched vocal sound which carried long distances. Each tune has a particular function - different songs for different situations. If an animal wandered off, a herdswoman could call it back with a few notes of music. If she needed help finding one of the flock, she could sing the message so girls in other seters would know to help search. (The herders got close to their animals while up in the mountains and since the herds were small with only about a dozen animals, those animals often learned to recognize their own names). Kulning was a comfort to the girl who became lonesome also, as this was a way to communicate with girls in other seters by using their kulning tunes.

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The only weapons the girl had to protect herself and her animals if a wolf or bear attacked, were wind instruments. Using them to make loud and ferocious noises, she hoped to frighten away that big bear! We haven't heard how many of those bears didn't get scared... Life and death stuff. The animals were very precious to the farmers and it was the girl's duty to bring each one of them back home in the fall. Without them, a family could face starvation. Ram and cow horns with 3 or 4 finger-holes were the usual wind instruments. Visnum, Sweden can boast to having the oldest surviving animal horn, dating back to the the end of the Iron Age. There are few big-horned animals in Scandinavia, so the Scandinavians often made a wind instrument from wood which they wrapped with birch bark and called a "lur". I am not sure how this would differ from the vuvu horns heard at Minnesota games??

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Kulning supposedly was developed by young girls who were alone with the goats and cattle all summer. They needed company when they were lonely and help when trouble came. Their kulning sound traveled long distances, ringing and echoing against the mountains. The girls liked to embellish their tunes with trills It was said the "kulade" at times was so beautiful "that men would lean on their scythe handles and women on their rakes - just listening. They were so enchanted by the grace of her trills that they couldn't work." ----

Remaining seters in our time have become more diversified. Some are single farms, o

thers are shared summer farms. Some are purely milking operations while others process milk. Some have roads and other seters are secluded. Tourist business has helped the economy with several farms

having opened to the public, serving farm fare meals and selling sour cream, butter, cheese and other dairy

products. Artists and writers have been inspired in this beautiful mountainous area. During the winter months, (lots of those in Scandinavia!) abandoned seters are now used by skiers. But if you plan to visit, in the winter, bring your long-johns. It is chilly up there and those seters don't have furnaces! Forty below zero is not unusual.

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Brrrr! Winter comes early with long winter nights.

Let's Go For A Drive!

It’s tourist time! Summer is vacation time when the kids are out of school, and workers have to use their vacation-time or lose it! This provides an opportunity to show the kids where their great-grandparents came from! There are tours to many locations, and people who have returned after having taken an annual summer group-package tour happily share their scenic photos, while viewers often agree that the scenes are the same as ”when we were there”. Many tourist city streets are busily crowded with shopping and strollers. The people who have traveled as a family probably stayed with relatives in less crowded areas and enjoyed a very different experience. Things can be different on “the roads less traveled”.

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European and Scandinavian countries offer a variety of travel plans from boats, planes, trains and even cars. Cities are often too crowded for cars, but renting a car to get out into the country opens up new possiblities.Wild animals! The biggest roads normaly have fences against wild animals, but the smaller roads do not. You need to look out for deer and moose - a moose collision, in particular, is very dangerous and often kills instantly! A full grown moose weighs 600 kilograms or more. Moose are clumsy creatures. The moose does not react fast enough, to change it’s direction away from this fast moving vehicle. One tip: If you can’t avoid hitting a moose, aim for the hindquarters. Reindeer and elk have a habit of wandering onto roads, particularly early in the morning and at dusk.

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In the north, you will also have to watch out for reindeer! -----------------

Know the rules! Drivers are at least 18 , licensed, and don’t speed. Speed demons might want to drive somewhere else. Norway's speed limit on highways is only 90 km/h (56 mph). On open country roads you can go 80 km/h, and in towns it's 50 km/h. Besides the varying road conditions. There are reasons for the slower speeds.

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... And forget about drinking and driving! Norway has the strictest laws in Europe. The maximum blood alcohol content is only 0.1 promille (which is only a small glass of a weak drink) and there are hefty punishments for violators. Immediate jail time is possible.

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Despite having to grant the right-of-way to all the wild animals, there are wondrous sights to see. A usually enjoyed scene is the Atlantic Road.The Atlantic Road consists of eight small bridges that cross over an archipelago of eight different islands. Norway's Ministry of Foreign Affairs notes that the region where the road is situated is prone to autumn hurricanes, and its website says that construction teams had to withstand a dozen hurricanes while building the road.

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Another is Trollstigen. This mountain pass in southwest Norway opened in 1936 after eight years of construction. Trollstigen translates from Norwegian to English as The"Troll Ladder."

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Always drive on the right side of the road. Until 1967, traffic in Sweden drove on the left, as they do in the UK. Then, at 04.50 (AM) in the morning on September 3rd, traffic all across the country was directed over to the right side of the road and stopped still for 10 minutes before setting off again at 05.00, this time driving on the right, where it has remained ever since.

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Ever wonder why anyone would drive on the left side of the road? It has been suggested that seven hundred years ago, everybody used the English system. In the Middle Ages you kept to the left for the simple reason that you never knew who you'd meet on the road in those days; You wanted to make sure that a stranger passed on the right, so you could go for your sword in case he proved unfriendly.

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After deciding to tour the crowded city, check out a bicycle! Many travelers in Scandinavian cities love to use a bicycle for short-range and medium-range transportation. It is free or very cheap and healthy, and no hills . Just check out a bicycle with a small fee, enjoy the day and your fee will probably be refunded when the bicycle is returned.

Have a nice trip.

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Don’t forget your camera!

Fit For A .....

The month of June has traditionally been known as the “Month for Brides”, however, this year, June news reports have been featuring people of royal backgrounds. Earlier this month, the Queen of England was honored, as the British celebrated her Diamond Jubilee marking 60 years of Queen Elizabeth’s reign .

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The Queen celebrates two birthdays each year: her actual birthday on 21 April and her official birthday on a Saturday in June! The reason? Official celebrations to mark British Sovereigns' birthdays have often been held on a day other than the actual birthday, especially when the actual birthday has not been in the summer. Summertime provides better weather for a parade! July will continue the trend of royal news as Norwegians celebrate a “commoner”, Sonja Haraldsen, who was born in Oslo on 4 July 1937. She grew up at Vinderen in Oslo, later studying dressmaking and tailoring at the Oslo Vocational School. She then earned her diploma from the Swiss Ecole Professionelle des Jeunes Filles, ( Professional School For Young Women), a college in Lausanne which offered social sciences, accounting and fashion design. Later, she received a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Oslo, where she studied French, English and art history. Every year, Sonja enjoys long hikes and ski trips in the Norwegian mountains. She is an avid outdoorsman and a very competent regatta sailor, plus being a certified skiing instructor. This is where she was noticed by a young Crown Prince Harald of Norway. The courtship between the Prince and a commoner caused a bit of concern. They dated for nine years, keeping it secret because of opposition to her non-royal status. A rumor states that the prince informed his father, King Olav, that, unless he received permission to marry this woman, he would remain single for the rest of his life, thus ending the hereditary lineage.The King approved their marriage. Sonja Haraldsen , who was born on the 4th of July , in 1937 married Crown Prince Harald in Oslo on 29 August 1968.

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When Prince Harald acceded to the throne on the death of his father, King Olav V, on 17 January 1991, Norway also gained a queen for the first time in 53 years. Queen Sonja became devoted to helping disabled Norwegian children. She is deeply concerned about the plight of refugees and immigrants and frequently visits institutions for the elderly, children and the mentally retarded. In the 1970s she took an active part in several large fund-raising drives for the benefit of refugees. To gain a first-hand impression of the refugee situation, she visited several sites, including a camp for Vietnamese boat refugees in Malaysia.

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The Queen also holds some titles usually thought of as those being held by men, She has the rank of colonel in the Army and the Air Force, and is a commodore in the Navy. In addition, Queen Sonja has completed the Army Signal Corps' staff course and the commanding officer course at the National Defence College.

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Her civic interests include being a patron of a number of institutions associated with classical and folk music. The Queen Sonja International Music Competition was first held in 1988. The aim of the competition was to create an international music arena in Norway that could raise the profile of young musicians and give Norwegian soloists an opportunity to compete at an international level ------------------ With all of these civil responsibilites, the King and Queen have raised two children, Princess Märtha Louise and Crown Prince Haakon. The Queen’s birthday celebration will be held July 4th .

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The Norwegian Birthday Song

Hurra for deg som fyller ditt år!
Ja, deg vil vi gratulere!
Alle i ring omkring deg vi står,
og se, nå vil vi marsjere,........
og si meg så, hva vil du mere? Gratulere!

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Hurray for you for celebrating your birthday! Yes, we congratulate you! We all stand around you in a ring, And look, now we’ll march And tell me, what more could you want? Congratulations!
Happy 75th Birthday! Queen Sonja of Norway