A 17th of May in Tromsø : The Russ Invasion!
Almost 200 years ago, on may 17th 1814, the Norwegian constitution has been signed granting Norway its independence towards the Swedish crown. Since then, every year Norwegians celebrate this day as the Norway’s national day.
Something very interesting about it is its very non-military nature. Most of the parade is made by children, students and associations. And the result is a really happy and positive day.
As you can expect from me, I was not able to wake up for the first half of the parade, which was mostly dedicated to children. But I was really curious about one thing : the russ parade!
The russ are the participants of the traditional Norwegian high school graduation ceremony called Russfeiring. They are easily recognizable with their overalls and caps that they have to wear, without washing them, during the whole Russfeiring.
The overall and caps can have different colors:
- Red for students having courses geared towards higher education
- Black for engineering students
- Blue for business students
- Green for agriculture students.
The Russfeiring can last up to one month, with the culmination of the celebration on the 17th of may. During this period, they have to perform stupid tasks to earn russeknuter (russ knots). Of course, the more knots you have, the better! ;)
I couldn’t resist to copy paste Wikipedia for some examples:
Here are some excerpts from the list of the russe knots (and the items you receive):
- Answering every question the teacher asks by reading out loud from a porn magazine (pornographic picture)
- Speak a language other than Norwegian for an entire day (a piece of a dictionary)
- Drink a beer while having two tampons in your mouth (a tampon)
- Order a meal from McDonalds or Burger King without using vowels (a letter from the alphabet)
- Have safe sex outdoors (a pinecone)
- Ask for sex tips from the mother of one of your fellow russ (a safety-pin)
And effectively, those last days I have had the chance to see (and hear) a good number of russ in the streets of Tromsø. Some in their van listening to music loudly, some drinking all night long on the beach, some fishing in the sewers … All wearing this iconic overall with the Norwegian flag.
Their parade is also really interesting. All are in a more or less intoxicated state, but all very enthusiastic.
Their vans are slowly moving through the cheerful crowd. We can hear loud music coming from the back of the vans, soon followed by singing and whistling russ. They are giving “business cards” to the crowd. Children are rushing to get the most cards possible to be able to exchange them afterwards. This is a pure moment of happiness shared between all generations. There is almost no police surveillance but yet no incident. I can feel that everybody here wants everything to go well. And everything went well : no provocations, no arguments nor fights, no negativity…
Another interesting aspect was that most of the crowd was wearing ceremony clothes (I was definitely looking like a hobo that day :s). Some of them wore traditional Norwegian suits, others were more classical and a couple of them were definitely original. The most interesting here was the number of different traditional Norwegian and Sami dresses. Blue, Green, Black, … with different embroideries This was a really wonderful mix of traditions and colors and I could not resist asking people to take pictures of them… And that’s the exact moment in my “photography career” I start to take pictures of unknown people and make portraits. And I must admit that I love that!
Of course, it’s a bit frightening at the beginning. I am quite a shy person, so the first step has been a bit difficult. But once you start, you quickly figure out that most people are surprised and really happy to see that you have some interest in them and have their moment of fame. Of course sometimes you might look like some kind of weirdo wanting to take pictures of nice girls … that actually happened to me once :). But most people are really happy to be photographed.
After a couple of portraits and group photographies, another parade is about to start: the military parade! Well, it’s not really military: they don’t wear any weapon and everybody is smiling. It’s more some kind of military teddy bear’s parade … :). It is quickly followed by musicians and associations: from the karate club, to the association of the small cute dogs looking like hair balls (yes, it exists!), every association of Tromsø is showing in this parade.
We can hear “Hurra! Hurra!” among the crowd and the parade. Once again, everybody is cheerful and happy and everything happens without any incident!
I usually don’t like those kind of events and tend to run away from the crowds but I am really happy that for once I found motivation go there. Despite the crowd, we could easily feel a sense of respect and joy among people. And that’s something which simply makes you feel good at the end of the day. If I had the opportunity to see that again, I would definitely take this chance!
-julien
Påske i Lofoten, dag I : On the road …
5 years ago, during summer 2007, I made with Céline and Kioki — yes, our car has a name! ;-) — my first road trip through Scandinavia. We were still living in Aix-en-Provence, France, though we drove through France, Germany, Denmark, Sweden and then reached this country which has since become our new home: Norway. That was my first contact with this country and since that moment I often use to remember about that place as one of the most beautiful places in Norway, and also probably one of the most beautiful places in the world: the Lofoten islands. And guess what … it’s only 400 kilometers from Tromsø!
This year we had 5 days off for easter holidays, it was though a great occasion to rent a car and go back there… and that’s what we did!
Don't you see the face of a sleeping giant (or dead?) underneath the ice?
Early and difficult wake up on thursday –you will often see this sentence on this blog, waking up is ALWAYS difficult for us! ;-) –. Outside, it’s snowing more than ever. The entrance is covered by a thick white coat that we have to get rid of. We get the car, fill it up with our stuff and the trip begins … terribly. It’s snowing so much that we barely see the road in front of us, and it’s like that all way long until Bjerkvik, where we have a short break for lunch in Det Lille Kjokken. I have been told that it is the best burger restaurant in Norway. But I have also been warned that as a French food lovers we might not agree! … and actually their burgers are far from being as good as Céline’s burgers … but not bad either :)
After the 3 hours of driving and the 200 kilometers crossed from Tromsø to Bjerkvik, we now switch to the main road that will lead us to the Lofoten islands (E10). The weather is becoming very unstable. From one place to the other, it’s snowy, then sunny, then snowy again… but I am very happy, as this is the perfect weather for the kind of photographs I love to do. When the sun beams fight to pass through the thick clouds, lights become really interesting and add this extra drama I’m looking for. Those 5 days will definitely be interesting!
200 kilometers later, we finally arrive in Stamsund, a small fishing village (like all villages in Lofoten). It is 19:00 … Yes, in Norway you better plan your trips using time from a place to the other, not kilometers! :-)
There we share a rorbu, a typical Norwegian fishing cabin, with 3 Germans that are cooking a fresh and appetizing cod fished this morning by the landlord … We make our best to find the mariner and get our part of the catch but unfortunately, we do not manage to find him soon enough. Next time maybe!
To be continued…
-julien
Sámi people
We already talked a bit about this native ethnic group of Northern Europe on our article about their National Day. Now, in collaboration with our blogging friends from Gluk, here is an illustrated article of the Sámi history!
Who are the Sámis?
Sámis are the native inhabitants of Sápmi. You have probably heard about Lapland (or Lappland, we apparently can write both), but Lapland is the pejorative word for Sápmi as well as Lapp is the pejorative word for Sámi. Sápmi regroups the northern parts of Norway, Sweden, Finland and Russia.
* This is a ‘Gákti’. It is the Sámi ceremonial dressing. The shapes can inform about where the person comes from, her/his marital status and even sometimes her/his family.
In Norwegian language, Sámis are also sometimes called ‘Finn’, from which comes the name of Finnmark (northernmost area of Norway), Finnmark being the only place in Norway where you will find more Sámis than Norwegians. Their language is also called Sámi, but it is actually not one language, but many. Everything becomes really complicated when it comes to languages in this part of Europe! ^^
When everything begins
11000 BC: Ice age is ending. Therefore, new possibilities of settlement opens up for humans on the Arctic coast. Tribes of hunters, fishers and gatherers start to appear in this previously virgin area. They will be the first ancestors of those who are going to be called ‘Sámis’. As a consequence, Sámis are considered as an indigenous population of this area.
Time passing, we see this ensemble of different tribes sharing the same culture being more or less split : The sea Sámis, mainly fishers, and the mountain Sámis, living by reindeer hunting.
The middle ages
1349 is a major date in Norwegian history. It’s the year during which black death decimates over 60% of the Norwegian population. During this time, Norwegian’s diet is rye and wheat based and part of this food is imported through European trade routes.
Plague then comes from the rest of Europe to Norway in the wooden barrels containing this food and other supplies. Sámis at this time are still fishers and hunters and thus are not as much concerned about the plague as the Norwegians do.
After the plague, income revenues of the monarchy drastically diminish, as you can imagine. Sea Sámis are then encouraged to take over abandoned farms (they continued to take over those farms until the 18th century! ). This way, population of sea Sámis grows bigger: nowadays, mountain Sámis population does not represent much than 10% of the Sámi population.
On the other side, mountain Sámis , due to their nomadic way of life, have to pay taxes for each nation they are crossing, which does not really help them to grow actually!
The dark ages
During the beginning of the 17th century, colonization of northern Scandinavia starts. Settlers are mainly practicing farming, which is in contradiction with the nomadic way of life of northern Sámis. Some settlers adapt to their way of life, and some Sámis adapt to the Norwegian way of life, interested in the products farmers can provide (houses, butter, milk, wool, …). But at the end, farming and other activities of the settlers lead to the extinction of species and to the destruction of Sámi hunting culture, which imply starvation for their people. Meanwhile in Sweden, the Nasafjäll mine opens up and Sámis are coerced to work here or be severely punished. Many Sámis run away from this area, but the Swedish government sends troops to prevent that …
At the end of the century, colonization of northern Scandinavia becomes more violent. Sámi polytheist religious practices are punished and holy sites and traditional religious objects as Sámi drums are destroyed.
During the 19th century, Norway becomes an independent country. Norwegian government starts reforms willing to make Norwegian culture and language universal. Sámi is restricted in schools and it is now forbidden to sell or lease lands to non Norwegians. Moreover, christianization still makes it’s way through Sámi communities. In 1852 in Kautokeino, the only Sámi revolt against Norwegian policy involving human deaths takes place. An excellent movie has been made about those riots, and I strongly recommend you to see it: The Kautokeino Rebellion.
This process of “Norwegianization” becomes more and more aggressive until WWII, therefore strengthening independent thoughts and links as a community.
Fight for the future
After WWII, pressure on Sámis is relaxed, but changes take a moment before having any effect. In 1960, the right for Sámis to preserve and develop their own culture is officially acknowledged. Sámi is taught again in schools and institutions are created.
But in 1979 in Alta, the construction of an hydro-electric power station rises up old daemons. A long fight takes place between Sámis and Norwegian authorities that lead in the end to a “compromise”. In 1986, Sámi flag and national anthem are created and in 1989, the first Sámi parliament is elected in Norway.
During the previous decades, Sámis gained more and more rights. Although theory seems to be on the good way, reality is not always that beautiful. Most of the Sámis are now living a “modern” way of life and are no more considered as “under-Norwegians”.
But for those who chose to live the traditional way, cohabitation and environment related problems remains and make their life harder if not impossible… but this might be explained in another article! :)
Big thanks to Céline for the killer drawings! ;)
-julien
Sources:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sami_people
http://boreale.konto.itv.se/history.htm
http://www.reisenett.no/norway/facts/culture_science/sami.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alta_controversy
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/S%C3%A1pmi_%28area%29
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sami_revolt_in_Guovdageaidnu
Norway relationships to alcohol
A Friday night like any other. We are going to meet colleagues at 21:00 for the pre-party. So we go to the supermarket to buy some drinks. Advertising curtains are hiding beers … Never mind, we move them and take a few packs of our dear Mack! Once at the checkout, people are staring at us … weirdly. The cashier is staring at us the same way and says: “… it is Hummmmmm 20:30, you no longer have the right to buy alcohol”. Shit! We did not know that: supermarkets do not have the right to sell alcohol after 20:00 on weekdays and 18:00 on Saturdays. Too bad, we’ll borrow other’s booze! :)
Approximately 2-3 hours later, everyone is drunk. Pre-party is over, let’s go to the pub! Everyone is speaking to each other, everyone loves everybody. Seems like the renowned coldness of Norwegians has disappeared: a few drinks and everything is love and fun! After a few dance steps of Scottish dance with a metal background and many other weird things that I no longer remember, the evening goes to an end. It is about 4:00. The last people remaining are leaving the pub. The main street is crowded … of happy people, social and in a good mood. Apparently we are not the only one to succumb to the sweet freshness of the pints of Mack! And every Friday night, the same show is happening, which leads me to talk about the relationship between Norway and alcohol.
The facts
The history of Norway is not unaware of alcohol. Thousand years ago already, Vikings were fond of. References to mead, their favorite liquor, are very common in the literature relating the Norse mythology. Valhalla, the paradise of dead warriors, is also described as the place where they can indulge in their favorite pastimes: fighting and drinking!
During the mid-sixteenth century, the fight against alcohol begins. It is now forbidden to serve alcohol on Sundays (which is also still supposed to be the case nowadays) and during religious holidays. Nevermind, Norwegians created home distilleries. That lead in 1848 to a law that puts an end to home distilleries. Between 1916 and 1927, several laws prohibit alcohol. First spirits and wines and then strong beers. However, some countries like France and Portugal, which were important wine exporters and important buyers of Norwegian fish, are able to negotiate. Alcohol is allowed again in Norway, but under the strict control of the state. We are in 1922, this is the birth of the Vinmonopolet.
So, what about now?
Nowadays, we can see that the Norwegian policy on alcohol is still very strict:
- Prohibited advertising
- For all beverages containing more than 4.5% alcohol, a single store: the Vinmonopolet, open until 18h on weekdays and until 15h on Saturdays
- Prison for drunk drivers
- Price extremely discouraging: 10 € minimum for a bottle of low-end wine, around 10 € also for a pint of beer in a bar / pub …
These measures seem to be successful: Norwegians are now among the smallest drinkers in Europe! Then why so many people drunk in the streets on Saturday and Sunday nights?
Probably because Norwegians have a different type of alcohol consumption. Generally in Norway you do not drink alcohol during meals, especially during working days. So instead of a constant and low alcohol consumption type, it is rather an intense but sporadic type: we usually drink alcohol to get drunk! :)
And thus, to avoid emptying our bank account too fast, we go buy alcohol in advance for pre-parties, drink it all … and then go and finish the party in a bar. Guaranteed results!
-julien
Norway, chapter I : The discovery
I’m back on the blog to present you Norway. Everyone knows this country, but when I say that I’m in Norway, people usually reply: “This is such a cold country!” and this remark proves that this country is not really well known. First, this is not true, this country is not so cold! We are in Tromsø and in January the temperatures are between +3°C and -10 °C! During winter, we can find about the same temperatures in many parts of France and of the world.
(click on the picture for a larger view)
I don’t find the temperature difference with Marseille is huge, what do you think? :)
In addition to this, the cold is not the only characteristic of Norway ( if not, we would not be there…). This country has plenty of treasures that I want to show you and that we will study on various topics.
The real name of Norway is “Kingdom of Norway”. It is located west of the Scandinavian peninsula and shares borders with Sweden, Finland and Russia. The Scandinavian peninsula is a geographical concept. This name comes from the word that designates the Scander mountains (Scandinavian Alps), which goes from the north to the south of the peninsula, mainly along the border between Norway and Sweden. These mountains, eroded by glaciation, falling to the west in the Norwegian Sea, form numerous fjords. The Scandinavian peninsula is strictly geographical and refers to Norway and Sweden. These two countries forming a peninsula wich is an advanced land into the sea.
We must be careful to not confuse the Scandinavian Peninsula with Scandinavia wich is a political concept bringing together countries sharing a common history and culture. Scandinavia is the homeland of some of the Germanic peoples and the Vikings. In addition to the Scandinavian peninsula wich includes Norway and Sweden, Scandinavia includes Denmark, whose inhabitants speak an ethnically apparent language and share a common history. Not only to the Viking period (late VIIIth to XIth century) but also more recently, Norway and Denmark have often been united under the same crown.
In the broad sense, Scandinavia include Iceland wich was long ruled by Denmark and originaly settled by norwegian people. But also Faroe Islands, an autonomous region of Denmark, and Greenland and Svalbard, respectively dependent of Norway and Denmark.
Finland is sometimes included because it was under Swedish rule for a long time but this is a mistake, because the Finnish language is unrelated to the Scandinavian languages and Finland forms a distinct geographic of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The addition of Finland and Scandinavia is referred to as Finnoscandia or Fennoscandia.
About the country’s name, many etymologists think it comes from the term “North Road” (in old Norse “nord veg”) . Sami people call it “nuorrek” which means “the coast” or “along the sea.” Another proposed etymology is “Nór rige”, meaning “Kingdom of Nór”, Nór being the name of a mythical king.
The Norwegian coast, with a length of over 2,500 km (mainland only), is punctuated by fjords and a multitude of small islands (about 50,000 in total!). Norway is surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean and three other seas: the North Sea to the southwest, Skagerrak to the southeast , the Norwegian Sea to the west and the Barents Sea to the northeast. The land borders measure 2,542 kilometers in length, most with Sweden, but also Finland and north Russia.
(click on the picture for a larger view)
Norway is known as ”land of the midnight sun” because of its location. A part of the country is at the north of the Arctic Circle where the sun never goes down in summer (from May to July) and never rises in winter (from late November to late January). Norway is the most northern country of Europe, containing the famous North Cape (Nordkapp in Norwegian) where people come to watch the midnight sun. But in reality, other parts of the coast are slightly further north.
With 385,155 km ² (including Svalbard and Jan Mayen), Norway is slightly larger than Germany. But the relief of the country, with mountains and glaciers, is very rugged. The most famous features of its geography are the fjords. Norway has several hundred fjords on its coast. They were formed by the severe erosion exerted by huge masses of ice on the the valleys and the sea came to fill them at the end of the Ice Age. They cut land and some of them penetrate the lands until 200 km, as Sognefjorden, and their deep may reach 1350m. The most narrow and deep fjords are the most extraordinary, like for instance Geirangerfjord. Most of them can be found between Stavanger and Trondheim. Norway is also home to many glaciers and waterfalls. The highest summit is Mount Galdhøpiggen (2469 meters high). Moreover, erosion has also been the cause of the formation of islands and islets (over 200,000) that line the coast.
Along the coast, the climate is tempered by the heat brought by the Gulf Stream. But climatic conditions inside the lands, along the border with Sweden, offer a more severe climate.
At the political level, Norway is divided into five Landsdeler or large regions, whose delimitations are based on geography and language. But the most important subdivisions are the nineteen “fylke” or counties, which provide important administrative functions. The “fylker” are the intermediary between the kingdom and the municipalities. In every “fylke” the king is represented by a “fylkesmann“.
Oslo is considered both as a municipality and a county. Municipalities are the local unit of gouvernemeent in Norway and are responsible for a number of areas.
Here are for your information the 10 largest municipalities:
To be continued…
-céline
… And this creature looted, raped and gave birth (Black Metal pt.2)
In the previous article we saw that metalheads are some kind of “nazi pedophile grave robbers” (kidding!). We stopped in 1994, from which I think black metal starts to leave its underground cocoon to move towards new horizons. Then today we’ll leave the world of gossips and focus on the evolution of black metal music.
The beginning
Arcturus
1997 : black metal 3.0?
- Emperor release their second album: Anthems to the Welkin at Dusk. Their debut album was a masterpiece. This one is a pure concentrate of epic black metal that propels them to the rank of greatest black metal band of the moment (one might even say the greatest black metal band, period!).
- Dimmu Borgir, a band that has already started to make its way a couple of years ago, also releases a masterpiece: Enthrone Darkness Triumphant. This band is however very criticized because of the importance of the symphonic elements in their music which make them much easier to listen … and what means easy listening, means wider audience. And then, farewells to the closed underground black metal world!
- Arcturus, which we just discussed, releases La Masquerade Infernale. This album is even more bizarre than the first one. It is not really about black metal here, yet this album is highly acclaimed and is now considered as a classic of what we might call avant-garde metal.
- Borknagar makes its first apparitions. Founded by Øystein Brun with members of Gorgoroth, Ulver and Immortal, this band aims to combine black metal and melodic elements (Is that possible? Well yes, my dear!). Slowly, progressive elements, clean voices and acoustic instruments are added to their music and thus create a unique style and atmosphere.
- From the depths of Norway another great band makes its appearance. Its music is cold. Very cold. It is also very descriptive. When we listen to it we are transported into this beautiful and wild country called Norway. But beware, not the Norway where you can live peacefully on the edge of a fjord enjoying reeinder sausages. No! Norway! The true Norway! Snow, wind, ice and dark days of a winter that never ends … This is of course the famous Windir, maybe one of the fathers of what will later be called the folk black metal.
Things are getting quicker and quicker. Black metal scene is growing fast. Norwegian bands do not hesitate to break the rules of the newly born black metal. Bands are becoming more and more diverse. Bands such as Immortal, Emperor, Gorgoroth, Satyricon, Enslaved, are headliners of numerous gigs. Metal fans get excited!
“The Emperor is dead … Long live the Emperor!”
R.I.P Valfar
R.I.P. Valfar
Enough of the past!
In 2010 Ihsahn, guitarist, composer and singer of Emperor, offers the services of the now famous Jørgen Munkeby (saxophonist and singer of the black-jazz-weird-metal stuff, Shining) and releases his third solo album: After. A subtle blend of black metal, rock and jazz. A new masterpiece is created!
Ihsahn
Enslaved
An infinite universe of passion
I think I showed you a good overview of this Norwegian black metal scene. Unfortunately, I failed to mention many interesting bands because of the lack of space. I think about bands like Ulver, former black metal band that evolved into electronic music, and which now has its truly unique style.
I also think about Solefald, which probably released one of the best metal album of 2011 with their unique weird style between rock, jazz and metal…
-julien
PS: To finish, here is a nice bonus video. In 2011, Dimmu Borgir played a unique gig in Oslo’s Spektrum with Oslo symphonic orchestra. It has been filmed and broadcasted on Norwegian TV. Here is one of my favorite songs of this concert:
PS2: It’s Christmaaas! Another bonus video! Last music video of Dimmu Borgir with the crazy Agnete Kjølsrud as a guest. Metal videoclips of this quality are pretty rare, then have fun!
Recent Comments