10 Jul 2011 – Fantasy Island

Bærums Værthuset***** is the oldest and finest restaurant in Norway. Værthuset=guesthouse has a wonderful ambiance to have a meal or a cup of coffee. Besides history, this place also has a soul! Sitting in the courtyard or in the restaurant there can give you timeless feeling and allowing the imagination to run wild back to the 1600s 🙂

https://amylamsg.com/2008/10/14/bærums-verk/
http://www.baerumsverk.no/English/
http://english.vaertshusetbaerum.no/

Bærum Verks: ironworks and workers’ lodgings from the 1600s now converted into the most charming area with art & crafts, cafe, shops, museum, sculptures, etc. There is a walking path in the woods near the house and it is a pleasant walk/app 30mins to get here.

http://www.hok.no/hjem.30477.en.html
Henie Onstad Kunstsenter=Henie Onstad Art Centre: officially opened in 1968 with 100s of contributions from Sonja Henie (Norwegian figure skater who won more Olympic and World titles than any other ladies figures) and husband Niels Onstad (shipping magnate and art patron). The museum has stunning exhibits spanning the 20th century.

In 1940, when the Nazis invaded Norway, she was out of the country. She telegraphed her maid and told her to place a picture of her with Hitler, which he had autographed, in a prominent place in her house. When the Nazis arrived to take over the house, they saw the picture and left quickly. For the rest of the war, all of her possessions were left untouched by the Nazis…

App 1hr by bus south of Oslo is Moss, (pop app 23,000, area: 24.3 sq mi), return tickets NOK200/S$45. A pleasant ride on E6, by passing Tusenfryd/Norway’s largest amusement park and Korsegården/the only stop between Oslo-Moss.

John was at the lakeside with his boat to meet me at Nesparken where the bus stopped. ~1hr by boat on the lower Vansjø (parts of Mosseelva/Moss River) there it is, an idyllic little cabin on its own tiny island, across from Dillingøya somewhere around Ospeholmen&Vierholmen on Vansjø.

Relaxing with fishing and bird-watching. 3 species of fish which were caught in nets- Abbor/Perch, Brasme/Bream (the smaller ones, taste good except for the tiny Y-shaped bones, got choked a few times. Had to throw them away or risk choking. John was right!) and Gjedde/Pike (the largest one).

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Convention_of_Moss
Was given a tour of the area where paper mill was once the major industry and livelihood in this area. John being from this area told interesting stories of his ancestors. Another historic fact which some might not know is that the Convention of Moss signed here in 1814, which effectively put an end to the Dano-Norwegian kingdom and solidified the union with Sweden.

Jeløy Naturhus and Galleri F15 in Alby Estate where the stately house and farm with the grounds were donated to the community by the owner. The beautiful alley of trees lead to the buildings and the location commands an unobstructed view to the sea. The 6th Momentum Biennial Imagine Being Here Now is ongoing at present. Thanks to Berit & John for their hospitality at their hytta and for the tour in Moss.

This moment deserves your full attention, for it will not pass your way again –
Dan Millman

9 Jul 2011 –  … but not by choice!

A whole week without being online, not by choice and it just so happened that there is access today. Will see what happens tomorrow! No radio or TV (by choice), like being back to student days in the 1960s! Strange as how one will miss not being online the first few days and then after that you get kind used to it. Done with the painting on the 1st floor except for the sanding of the floor and to give it a layer of varnish.

4th Jul came and went without any special celebrations as it was any normal Mon here.  Bjørn’s parents, Berit & John visited and stayed for a couple of days and it was nice getting to know them. Thu & Fri, visited them in their hytta on a little island in Moss, pix next posting when uploaded, ie if wireless is available!

The terrace exterior needs to be painted, floor and walls as well as the exterior wall at the front entrance. Have not given much thought to the 2nd floor, except to paint the baby’s room green… ie after the aching body and joints have had a break and rested!

Previous posting where wild strawberry was mentioned, so here are some pix from a walk a few days ago; spied on some real senior citizens resting and chatting. Thoughts about L&M’s grandmother Ellen who is honest to say that when she already feels the aches and pains in addition to needing hearing aid, then old-age is to be dreaded!

30 Jun 2011 – Over with Half of 2011!

Yesterday was a beautiful day, took time to walk to the grocery store and enjoyed watching the butterflies basking in the sun. Was also lucky to find a handful of wild strawberries on the way. One of them is about the size of my tiny finger nail but the taste is unlike the big cultivated ones. These are wild and taste what strawberries should taste like. Too eager to have them in my mouth that the camera forgot to do its job… LOL, the camera is my latest scapegoat, like a childhood imaginary friend 🙂

Painted the concrete flower case on the terrace, managed to clear the patch by the entrance and now hopefully the row of sunflowers will bloom. It was quite a job with all kinds of roots and weeds to pull. Dug up this root and thought about a children’s book by Anne-Cath Vestly (1920-2008), a known Norwegian writer for children’s book which Linn enjoyed.

One was Lillebror & Knerten. In this book, Little brother is a little lonely boy and think that the adults are so busy and boring with no time to play with him. Mother works in a shop and his older brother Phillip goes to school. Just when brother finished putting together a pointed, small, strange house, he looks over at some branches. One of the roots looks like a little man with both arms and legs and a small head. And thus begins a relationship with this imaginary friend, Knerten!

Both L&M had imaginary friends during their childhood and they were good friends who took the blame when things did not go right 🙂 Will keep this piece of root to remind me that one is never too old to have an imaginary friend and who knows, sometimes it might even be a good listener! When the house is sold, it will also be a reminder of the Norwegian experience in life’s journey!!

28 Jun 2011 – MagnusPOULSSON (1881-1951)

Herodd is located on Nesøya and was the home of the renowned architect MagnusPOULSSON (1881-1951), who designed the Oslo & Bærum City Halls + many more well-known buildings here in Norway. Also Ellen’s father and the L&M’s great-grandfather. The house is now a Heritage house, thus protected.

Yesterday was a rainy walk from Sandvika to Nesøya (app 1hr) to visit L&M‘s grandmother, Ellen. We had a lovely afternoon chatting away over a pot of tea with smoked salmon, cheese and her delicious home-made oatmeal biscuits which are the best. She will still insist on having a perfectly pressed linen table-cloth and napkins. Looking thru’ her childhood pix accompanied with the stories was one of  the high points. Thank you Ellen for her graciousness and time. She will be 87 in Oct.

1974-1976, lived in Ellen&JohnIII’s Nesøya house, 3mins walk to Herodd and with the use of a private beach. They were then living in Tromsø. Nesøya in 1974 was and still is a small island in the municipality of Asker/Norway. It is linked to the mainland via a bridge and most likely got its name from the farm Nes on the mainland. This farm is assumed to have been one of the oldest ones in the district. When we lived there, Linn was the only a baby and we had just moved from Dublin/Ireland. It was difficult times, not understanding the language, culture etc. Without immediate family or friends did not help to the feeling of isolation.

The few familiar sights, like that of Kolberg farm is still the same, otherwise many changes. The Kolberg family are one of the known families (importers of Mazda & Hyundai) who have lived here for 4 generations. Took pix in 2008 during winter (Oct 2008 posting, WinterWonderland) and the winter and summer views are quite a contrast. The colourful variety of wild and garden flowers are a feast for the eyes!

Flowers are restful to look at. They have neither emotions nor conflicts – Sigmund Freud

Edited 10Jan2026 link from 7Jan2026 Budstikka – Magnus Poulssons egen drømmebolig på Nesøya er nå til salgs for 26 millioner kroner. Mannen som tegnet Oslo rådhus bygde i 1919 sin egen nasjonalromantiske tømmerhytte, som senere ble ombygget til helårsbolig under krigen. Boligen “Herodd” står som et hovedverk i norsk arkitekturhistorie og har vært i Poulsson-familien frem til 2010. 

24 Jun 2011 – Hurtigruten…

When translated literally hurtrig=speedy or fast and ruten/ruta=route but can also be mean window in some dialects. L&M’s grandfather nicknamed it Speedy Window and it would docked in Tromsø around midnight sounding it’s comforting & familiar horn thru’ clear skies or storms. The first time on hurtigruten was 1978 traveling from Tromsø-Hammerfast (then the world most Northern town) to visit Kari & Bjørn.

http://www.hurtigruten.com/Norway/
16-22 Jun: the Norwegian public access channel NRK2 brought reality TV here. In a 5 1/2 day marathon, the network was broadcasting a live production every minute of the entire trip, of one of the Norwegian Coastal Liner ships, the M/S Nordnorge and was a big success. People were up all hours to cruise along. It might not be easy for others to understand this but having lived in Tromsø and Lyngseidet gave me the insight to appreciate, enjoy and be emotional with the locals!

Taken into consideration that Norway’s coastline is 25,148km (includes mainland 2,650km, as well as long fjords, numerous small islands and minor indentations 22,498km; length of island coastlines 58,13km) and in certain parts, the only form of transportation is by coast. Perhaps then can one imagine how important the coastal liner is. It is no wonder that it is such a fine merchant marine and seafaring nation. Hurtigruten calls to 34 ports between Bergen and Kirkenes, most never visited by commercial cruise liners, these ships deliver cargo, post and passengers to towns and remote communities, some of which are home to just a few hundred people.

Just learnt that in Vardø (3rd last port of call before Kirkenes), Queen Sonja was there opening the monument for the victims of the witchcraft trials yesterday. It was documented that 91 people, mainly women were either burned at the stake or tortured to death in the 1600s.

Personally not sea-faring of nature but have done this route from Bergen-Kirkenes in 1984 and will say that it is the most beautiful and spectacular trip in memory. All pix are downloaded here as my other pix are in SIN and I am posting this in Norway! If ever to do a cruise again, this will be it!

Love for life in all its forms is the basic ethic of Witchcraft – sources unknown

23 Jun 2011 – The Longest Day!

Today is Sankthans/Midsummer which refers to the period of time centered upon the summer solstice, but more often refers to specific European celebrations that accompany the actual solstice which take place on a day between 21-24 Jun and the preceding evening. The exact dates vary between different cultures.

The significance marks the ancient middle of summer and is the longest day of the year, originally a pagan holiday. As Christianity entered pagan areas, midsummer celebrations came to be often borrowed and transferred into new Christian holidays, often resulting in celebrations that mixed Christian traditions with traditions derived from pagan Midsummer festivities.

Thanks to good friends and neighbour Mette & Sturla for a yummy salmon dinner last night. Made a simple seafood salad dinner tonight to celebrate the longest day of the year. After today, the days start to be shorter where daylight is concerned. Bonfires are past events for now- until when the grandchildren can build their own bonfires, will then participate again 🙂

Above pix from Budstikka, local area newspaper looks like anything possible to burn can be piled into the bonfire! What a good way to clear your junk 🙂 🙂

In Norway, this day is also called Jonsok, which means John’s wake, important with pilgrimages to churches and holy springs. Up until 1840 there was a pilgrimage to the stave church in Røldal (southwest Norway) whose crucifix was said to have healing power. In most places the main event is the burning of a large bonfire. It is also said that if a girl puts flowers under her pillow that night, she will dream of her future husband… yeah, right; the only thing under this pillow is clean bed-spread 🙂 🙂 🙂

I have had a dream, past the wit of man to say what dream it was – Shakespeare/A Midsummer Night’s Dream

22 Jun 2011 – Rise of the Asian Megacity

Here is a realistic article about the situation in China today and how they are dealing with the population to cope with the environment  by Thomas J Campanella who also is the author of The Concrete Dragon: China’s Urban Revolution and What It Means for the World.

To write about urbanisation in China is to traffic in superlatives… Three decades of sustained economic growth, concentrated along the booming coast, has lured millions from the impoverished Chinese countryside. This great migration – unprecedented in human history – has put 46 Chinese cities over the one million mark since 1992, out of a national total of 102.

And this is just the start...

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-pacific-13799997

Viewing these pix with Shanghai, now has twice as many skyscrapers as New York, China’s domestic automobile market exceeds America’s and Beijing West Railway Station gives the feelings of anxiety, claustrophobic, panic, stress etc! But will this Awakened Dragon show us how to save the world or otherwise?

One of my SIN friends recently commented: exhausted from a 90 min car ride from Marine Pde to SGH for med appt. 3rd world traffic on 1st world highway! Comic relief from anti-speeding (70 kph ahead) signs flashing at cars moving at 10 kph. A journey like this would usually take app 15mins on the highway! Still 90mins is relative in comparison to places like BKK, NRT, HKG etc where one can get stuck in traffic for up to 3hrs!! All photo credits to different sites, except for the house painting below.

Must admit that being in a Minicity like Oslo and in the suburbs is quite relaxing, even when the body and joints ache daily after house painting; better than sitting in traffic-jams! This too shall pass and will keep focusing ahead when I can welcome grandchildren #5 & #6 🙂

My grandmother started walking five miles a day when she was sixty.  She’s ninety-seven now, and we don’t know where the hell she is – Ellen DeGeneres