After church on Sunday, the 7th of November I flew to Oslo. The flight was delayed due to a snowstorm in Bodø. I was pleasantly surprised that the airline offered me round-trip transportation back into town and a meal voucher. You would never get that in the U.S. I finally arrived at Gardermoen Airport in Oslo at about 11 pm. Turid (a distant cousin) picked my up and I spent the night at their house in Jessheim. Monday afternoon I went down to Oslo to meet one of the professors at Oslo Conservatory of Music. We had a couple friends in common, in particular (the late) Einar Haugen and his daughter Camilla Cai. Professor Herresthal has just finished a 4-volume work on Ole Bull. Einar and Camilla published a book on Ole Bull in the early 1990’s. The meeting was very pleasant and fruitful.
That evening I had dinner and coffee with my friend Gjerulf, Tuesday morning coffee with Harry, then off to the music store, and finally back to Jessheim Tuesday afternoon. Gunnar (Turid’s husband) has a bad knee and it needs surgery. He’s now on canes and in pain. I hope it goes well.
Early Thursday morning I got the 8 am flight to Paris. I arrived at Jim’s apartment about 11:30 am. Fortunately I brought some smoked salmon with me and we had a delicious lunch. That afternoon we went to Notre Dame for a commemoration service for Armistice Day (11th of November). We were up in the organ gallery and had great views of the procession and pageantry.
On Friday morning I hit the music stores. I made my way back to the Mont Parnasse area where Jim and I had lunch with Jaqueline and Pascale. (Jaqueline is the daughter of André Marchal; Pascale is the granddaughter of Louis Vierne). After lunch we had a walk in the cemetery of Mont Parnasse and saw the graves of many famous composers (Franck, Saint-Saëns, Vierne & Guilmant) and the famous 19-century organ builder Cavaille Coll. That evening I went up to the 56th floor in the Mont Parnasse Tower and saw Paris by night. Mont Parnasse Tower is quite ugly, but it offers great views.
Saturday I spent the morning at the Pompidou Center for Modern Art. Jim and I had lunch with Brigitte, the biographer for Louis Vierne. That evening we heard a performance of Heinrich Schütz’ Musicalische Exequien.
Sunday morning Jim and I went to Saint-Sulpice to hear Daniel Roth. There were about 10 in the organ gallery. Roth played a few improvisations, but for the most part he played Bach. After church I took a walk in Luxembourg Gardens, then made my way to the Church of the Madeleine. From there I walked to La Trinité where I met Carolyn. She was a classmate at New England Conservatory. The Church of la Trinité was where Messiaen was organist. Carolyn and I made our way to St Roche for a solo-violin concert. Carolyn directed my way back to Notre Dame. Jim and I had dinner with a couple of his friends who were in Paris for a week (Jay and Izzy). Monday morning was early. I caught the 11 am flight back to Oslo, bought provisions at the duty-free store in Oslo, and spent the rest of the day waiting for my flight. After delays I finally arrived back in Sandnessjøen at about 11 pm.
Tuesday was overcast with snow. Both Wednesday Thursday were clear. The sun is now hiding behind the mountains. We won’t get direct sunlight until the end of January. The quality of light is very unusual. It seems like a very long twilight. You can see the sun shining on the mountains to the north. As of Thursday, the 18th of November, the sun rise is at 9,05 am, the sun sets at 2,40 pm.
Thursday, November 18, 2010
Friday, November 5, 2010
Half-way through
Week 42. I am now beginning the 2nd half of my adventure in Norway.
Tuesday began with rain. It gradually turned over to snow and got very cold. The winds were terrific. It was so raw. I bought a winter coat yesterday. I didn’t realize I would use it so soon.
Thursday morning I woke up to about 8 inches of snow. Am I ready for 7-8 months of winter? Today I feel like I’m in the Narnia Chronicles and the wicked white witch has declared perpetual winter.
Friday I bought “isbrudd”. They are cleats that fit over your shoe. On the bottom are metal studs so you can walk on ice.
On Saturday I decided to buy a car. It’s not cheap but in months left it will still be cheaper than if I lease by the month. It’s a little frightening: to buy a car (or any other major possession) seems like a step toward a move here. I’m not ready for that (unless the Republicans take control of Congress, gut the health care bill, abolish Social Security, and force through a pre-F.D.Roosevelt United States). I really think the next supreme court justice should be Anita Hill. When they announce that it will give Clarence Thomas a fatal heart attack and give Obama another choice for an open position.
There were about 70 attending church on Sunday, with a baptism. Sunrise today is 8:35 am, sunset at 5:10 pm. Total daylight is 8 hours, 36 minutes.
Monday, 25 October. Week 43. I picked up my car. Tuesday I drove to Tjøtta for a funeral. On Tuesday afternoon I got my absentee ballot and immediately sent it back. Thursday I finally decided to go with car insurance through the bank. The other possibility was through KNIF (Kristen-Norges InnkjøpsFelleskap – Christian Norway Purchasing Cooperative). I’m totally ready for winter: I got studded tires for my bicycle! Thursday evening Anna (one of the ministers on staff) and I drove to Mosjøen to see Eugene O’Neil’s “Long Day’s Journey toward Night”. Liv Ullmann and Bjørn Sundquist were leads in the Riksteater production. Fortunately I read the book a couple times so I didn’t have many problems following the dialogue (everything was in Norwegian, of course). It was great theatre. The drive back was hair-raising, as usual. The road is awful between Sandnessjøen and Mosjøen. They are building a new one but it won’t be ready until 2013. I had Friday free and drove down to Brønnøysund to visit my friend Bjarne. On Saturday we drove out to Torghatten and hiked up to the mountain with the hole. The hole is huge. It seemed as though a storm was brewing: the winds were very strong, but Bjarne explained that it is quite normal to have powerful wind gusts where the mountains create wind tunnels. Bjarne rode back to Sandnessjøen with me. He had a birthday party to attend. Sunday morning was the time change. (Spring ahead, fall back, or fall over!). Sunday was an exhausting day, plus my legs were so stiff from the hike up Torghatten the previous day. There was extra music for Sunday: a special day called “Prayer and Penance Sunday”. On Sunday afternoon Anna (the prosti minister) and I drove up north to Lurøy for a service at 5 pm. It took about 3 hours to drive there. The place is called Konsvik and it’s about 3 miles south of the arctic circle. A good crowd showed up – about 25 or 30 people in all. It took place in a “bedehus”, a meeting house which is less formal and smaller than a church. We got back to Sandnessjøen about 10 pm. This past weekend I saw most of the Helgeland coast: from Torghatten and Brønnøysund in the south to Lurøy and Rødøy in the north.
Sunrise on 31 October is at 8:00 am. Sunset at 3:40. Total daylight is 7 hours, 40 minutes.
The first week (44) in November was uneventful, except that my Macbook seems to be very sick. I can't get a wifi signal. So I bought a pc this week. At least I have a connection to the internet now.
The choir will be singing in church on Sunday so we've been rehearsing the pieces for Sunday.
The news from the U.S. isn't very cheerful (referring to the elections), but it could have been worse. Here in Norway the right-wing party (Høyre) is to the left of the mainstream Democratic party. There is one party here which is against everything that social democracy stands for. They are called The Progress Party (Fremskrittsparti). What a misnomer. Fortunately they are only about 20%, but the third largest party. I still think that Obama should nominate Anita Hill to the Supreme Court. That would give Clarence Thomas a fatal heart attach (hopefully) and another nomination for Obama. I heard from my mother that the church where I grew up is pulling out of the ELCA over the gay issue. How unchristian can you get? I hope I never have to set foot in that place again. And there is a burial plot for sale!
Sunday the sun rose at 8:25 am, sunset at 3:20 pm. Total daylight is just under 7 hours.
Tuesday began with rain. It gradually turned over to snow and got very cold. The winds were terrific. It was so raw. I bought a winter coat yesterday. I didn’t realize I would use it so soon.
Thursday morning I woke up to about 8 inches of snow. Am I ready for 7-8 months of winter? Today I feel like I’m in the Narnia Chronicles and the wicked white witch has declared perpetual winter.
Friday I bought “isbrudd”. They are cleats that fit over your shoe. On the bottom are metal studs so you can walk on ice.
On Saturday I decided to buy a car. It’s not cheap but in months left it will still be cheaper than if I lease by the month. It’s a little frightening: to buy a car (or any other major possession) seems like a step toward a move here. I’m not ready for that (unless the Republicans take control of Congress, gut the health care bill, abolish Social Security, and force through a pre-F.D.Roosevelt United States). I really think the next supreme court justice should be Anita Hill. When they announce that it will give Clarence Thomas a fatal heart attack and give Obama another choice for an open position.
There were about 70 attending church on Sunday, with a baptism. Sunrise today is 8:35 am, sunset at 5:10 pm. Total daylight is 8 hours, 36 minutes.
Monday, 25 October. Week 43. I picked up my car. Tuesday I drove to Tjøtta for a funeral. On Tuesday afternoon I got my absentee ballot and immediately sent it back. Thursday I finally decided to go with car insurance through the bank. The other possibility was through KNIF (Kristen-Norges InnkjøpsFelleskap – Christian Norway Purchasing Cooperative). I’m totally ready for winter: I got studded tires for my bicycle! Thursday evening Anna (one of the ministers on staff) and I drove to Mosjøen to see Eugene O’Neil’s “Long Day’s Journey toward Night”. Liv Ullmann and Bjørn Sundquist were leads in the Riksteater production. Fortunately I read the book a couple times so I didn’t have many problems following the dialogue (everything was in Norwegian, of course). It was great theatre. The drive back was hair-raising, as usual. The road is awful between Sandnessjøen and Mosjøen. They are building a new one but it won’t be ready until 2013. I had Friday free and drove down to Brønnøysund to visit my friend Bjarne. On Saturday we drove out to Torghatten and hiked up to the mountain with the hole. The hole is huge. It seemed as though a storm was brewing: the winds were very strong, but Bjarne explained that it is quite normal to have powerful wind gusts where the mountains create wind tunnels. Bjarne rode back to Sandnessjøen with me. He had a birthday party to attend. Sunday morning was the time change. (Spring ahead, fall back, or fall over!). Sunday was an exhausting day, plus my legs were so stiff from the hike up Torghatten the previous day. There was extra music for Sunday: a special day called “Prayer and Penance Sunday”. On Sunday afternoon Anna (the prosti minister) and I drove up north to Lurøy for a service at 5 pm. It took about 3 hours to drive there. The place is called Konsvik and it’s about 3 miles south of the arctic circle. A good crowd showed up – about 25 or 30 people in all. It took place in a “bedehus”, a meeting house which is less formal and smaller than a church. We got back to Sandnessjøen about 10 pm. This past weekend I saw most of the Helgeland coast: from Torghatten and Brønnøysund in the south to Lurøy and Rødøy in the north.
Sunrise on 31 October is at 8:00 am. Sunset at 3:40. Total daylight is 7 hours, 40 minutes.
The first week (44) in November was uneventful, except that my Macbook seems to be very sick. I can't get a wifi signal. So I bought a pc this week. At least I have a connection to the internet now.
The choir will be singing in church on Sunday so we've been rehearsing the pieces for Sunday.
The news from the U.S. isn't very cheerful (referring to the elections), but it could have been worse. Here in Norway the right-wing party (Høyre) is to the left of the mainstream Democratic party. There is one party here which is against everything that social democracy stands for. They are called The Progress Party (Fremskrittsparti). What a misnomer. Fortunately they are only about 20%, but the third largest party. I still think that Obama should nominate Anita Hill to the Supreme Court. That would give Clarence Thomas a fatal heart attach (hopefully) and another nomination for Obama. I heard from my mother that the church where I grew up is pulling out of the ELCA over the gay issue. How unchristian can you get? I hope I never have to set foot in that place again. And there is a burial plot for sale!
Sunday the sun rose at 8:25 am, sunset at 3:20 pm. Total daylight is just under 7 hours.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)