The week began with more rain. It seems we have 4 or 5 days of dreary weather, then 3 days of glorious sunshine. Being so far north I’m not used to the arctic summer.
Gary and Luana (from Mattapoisett and Rødven) arrived on Saturday afternoon. I showed them the Petter Dass Museum and Alstahaug Church. Sunday we went by boat to Skålvær, an island west of here a few miles. It is still within the Alstahaug municipality. The weather was glorious. (I told them to bring good weather and they brought the best weather so far). There were about 60 people on the boat (Gamle Helgeland – Old Helgeland). A church service took place at 12 noon. Many people attended – around 95. It is very unusual to have so many attend church. Since services are held at this church only 3 or 4 times each year, and the weather was great, people decided to go to church. It is rather difficult to get to Skålvær, and practically impossible to get there and back in one day, unless a special event with transportation is arranged. It was a great occasion and I’m glad Gary and Luana got a flavor of Nordland. They left for Bodø on Monday morning.
The weather is moderating a bit. There was a passing light shower on Monday afternoon, and mostly overcast on Tuesday, but fairly warm (for arctic Norway). Most of the staff at church is on holiday so there were only 5 at our weekly staff meeting.
I finally figured out how to use the music data program at church. Vegard (my predecessor and for whom I’m interim) showed me how it works. For the past few weeks I’ve been assembling choral repertoire for the choir. Norway doesn’t have the rich liturgical music tradition that you’ll find in other countries in Europe. Most of the pieces I’ve chosen are from the last century but are easy and flexible. Rehearsals begin at the end of August.
On Thursday I took a bike ride to the island of Dønna, just north of Sandnessjøen. The trip began with a ferry ride over to Bjørn, the ferry landing on Dønna. From there I cycled north to Dønnes, stopping at Nordvik Church to take a few pictures. It was incredible seeing Dønnes Church for the first time, almost like a Disney feature film. Dønnes Church is a medieval stone church from about 1200. A mausoleum was added in 1690. In 1866 the church was enlarged and an onion dome was added. In 2006 the church was voted the most beautiful in northern Norway by Radio Norway listeners. After Dønnes Church I went up to Dønnes Mountain and took in the great views of the surrounding area. From Dønnes Mountain I continued north-west a few kilometers and saw the monument to Ole Edvard Rølvaag who was born here in 1876. On the northeastern side of Dønna, in Glein, there are Viking Burial Mounds. On top of one of the largest mound, Valhaugen, is a marble phallus measuring 89 cm high x 50 cm diameter (roughly 3 feet x 20 inches). It dates from the Age of Migration, 300 to 700 AD. The stone phallus is associated with fertility rites in the Viking religion. The bike ride back was a breeze with tailwinds. In all I must have cycled 65 kilometers.
Friday we had more rain. I still have the heat on in my bathroom, but it’s off in the living areas. Being so far north there is no need for air conditioning here. Sunrise on the 1st of August is about 4 am, sunset about 10:30 pm. Tomorrow (2 Aug) we will begin to have completely dark nights.
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