What a cruise... I've just got back from a cruise to Germany. What a 'marvellous trip' - I felt like wondering the streets of Hamburg to explore the Beatles stomping ground in the late 50s early 60s. Not that I'm much for travelling in other peoples footsteps - I've always preferred my own.
Anyway - I'm back from Germany and find that I'm living in Norway - what the bloody hell am I doing here? It's expensive and I have no one to be here with - all on my lonesome. Bloody silly... So I sit here and listen to old Beatles songs - which is OK, but it's not really a life, yet. I think it's time I had a change of scene...
In the meantime I'll satisfy myself with listening to the occasional play of Norwegian Wood - safe in the knowledge that he didn't set fire to the flat he was in - he merely lit a fire in the fireplace, waiting for her to come home... ahhh, bless!
There are only ever happy endings... I think I must be living in Hollywood... Oh look, there's Lassie!
Wednesday 28 May 2008
Saturday 24 May 2008
Short Night's can cause delirium...
Saturday morning in Oslo. It's the 24th May and already it's light until nearly 10:30pm or so - and light again at about 4:15; and there's another month to the solstice.
When we get there morning twilight will start at about 2:30am and finish the following morning at about 12:30am - giving us a grand total of 2 hours of 'proper' darkness. In this time I hope to build a scale model St Paul's cathedral out of my gnawed toenail off-cuts. There should be time.
Whilst I wait for this azimuth of light I am going to prepare physically for the event by eating nothing but raw herring and living on a small island in the centre of the Oslo fjord. Supposedly this will give me the constitution required to last the short nights.
Enough of this absurdity - I must away and find myself a boutique from which I can purchase my next year's worth of shoes. Have a grand weekend! Until the next time!
When we get there morning twilight will start at about 2:30am and finish the following morning at about 12:30am - giving us a grand total of 2 hours of 'proper' darkness. In this time I hope to build a scale model St Paul's cathedral out of my gnawed toenail off-cuts. There should be time.
Whilst I wait for this azimuth of light I am going to prepare physically for the event by eating nothing but raw herring and living on a small island in the centre of the Oslo fjord. Supposedly this will give me the constitution required to last the short nights.
Enough of this absurdity - I must away and find myself a boutique from which I can purchase my next year's worth of shoes. Have a grand weekend! Until the next time!
Saturday 17 May 2008
Castles, Palaces and Constitutions
It's the 17th of May - Norwegian National Day. It commemorates the signing of the countries first constitution in 1814 when the country was 'released from Danish rule after 400 years of subjugation'.
I think the official line is that the Dane's lost Norway to Sweden in a bet. So the Swedes got in and took 'power'; however, the Norwegians retaliated by shrugging their shoulders and saying, 'So what?' - setting up their own independant government and political system; after two decades of being ignored the Swedes kind of got embarrassed about 'things' and Norway got it's complete right to independance.
Nowadays it's a good excuse for all the children (some of them in their 40s) to march in parades and dress up in old national dress down Karl Johan's Gate - the main high street in central Oslo, whilst parties ensue all over the country... Many beers are taken - for medicinal purposes, of course.
Here's a 'did you know': the Norwegians sing 'God Save the King' to the same tune and with the same words (translated, of course) to Norwegian? It's not their National Anthem - but it is the 'King's Song' - as it was described to me.
Obviously I would have expected it to be rife amongst the 'old colonies' - don't you know - but it was also popular across all of Europe (including France, until the masses favoured the guillotine) and, last but by no means least, Lichtenstein (which, I have to say, I thought was a Principality - so do they sing 'God Save the Prince'? It's these kinds of questions that keep me up at night - no doubt about it).
Right - got to get to work, not because it's time - just because I woke up at 4:10am (well, it was sunny!) and after two hours of faffing about it seems like a good idea to go now that I'm sure the public transport will be running.
By the way - I never did find the King and Queen, even although, apparently, they were standing on the balcony of their 'Castle' ('Palace' of course - but the locals seems to like the word castle there, despite the lack of turrets and fortifications). Shame - maybe next year... but I doubt it...
I think the official line is that the Dane's lost Norway to Sweden in a bet. So the Swedes got in and took 'power'; however, the Norwegians retaliated by shrugging their shoulders and saying, 'So what?' - setting up their own independant government and political system; after two decades of being ignored the Swedes kind of got embarrassed about 'things' and Norway got it's complete right to independance.
Nowadays it's a good excuse for all the children (some of them in their 40s) to march in parades and dress up in old national dress down Karl Johan's Gate - the main high street in central Oslo, whilst parties ensue all over the country... Many beers are taken - for medicinal purposes, of course.
Here's a 'did you know': the Norwegians sing 'God Save the King' to the same tune and with the same words (translated, of course) to Norwegian? It's not their National Anthem - but it is the 'King's Song' - as it was described to me.
Obviously I would have expected it to be rife amongst the 'old colonies' - don't you know - but it was also popular across all of Europe (including France, until the masses favoured the guillotine) and, last but by no means least, Lichtenstein (which, I have to say, I thought was a Principality - so do they sing 'God Save the Prince'? It's these kinds of questions that keep me up at night - no doubt about it).
Right - got to get to work, not because it's time - just because I woke up at 4:10am (well, it was sunny!) and after two hours of faffing about it seems like a good idea to go now that I'm sure the public transport will be running.
By the way - I never did find the King and Queen, even although, apparently, they were standing on the balcony of their 'Castle' ('Palace' of course - but the locals seems to like the word castle there, despite the lack of turrets and fortifications). Shame - maybe next year... but I doubt it...
Tuesday 6 May 2008
The Tourist Police
So - time to see the Tourist Police. Sounds like some crack squad of madly devoted 'locals' that will stop at nothing to make sure that the 'local community' doesn't end up looking like Bournemouth beach on a Saturday.
Actually, it's just a place to register if you are a foreigner seeking residency status in Norway. I arrived at 8:50 and got seen at 11:10 - for a full 30 seconds and it was done.
Actually, it's just a place to register if you are a foreigner seeking residency status in Norway. I arrived at 8:50 and got seen at 11:10 - for a full 30 seconds and it was done.
Monday 5 May 2008
South America
OK - South America... What can I say? Not much really...
You know, I met an old friend the other day, Alfie - it'd been a while since I last saw him, it was in a foreign country too... We tried hard to remember how long it had been - or avoid saying how long it had been - as it was 10 years - no, 11 years...
Now, I remember - when I was 9 or 10 years old - sitting in the back of the car listening to my parents talk of people that they hadn't seen for 10 years and burbling onto themselves, rather pleasantly, "Whatever happenned to old 'John'" - that probably wasn't his name - artistic license we can call it...
"'John', yes, what happenned to him" - and right there and then they would suddenly become far more reminiscent of my grandmother than my parents; no longer driving a car but looking absent mindedly into the shade of the back garden, trying to fathom where their thoughts had got to as they grasped out into nothingness hoping that somehow the 'idea' of what had happenned to good old John might come flooding back to them - despite having never known it in the first place. Out of breath - yes, I should have punctuated that sentence.
So - back to the night with my friend - there we were talking of ten years ago and carrying on like it was last week - which it might have well been for all I can remember of the time betwixt the two. ...and it suddenly occured to me that we had turned into our grandmothers - or, at least, mine. Alfie and Tom down the pub after black-out waving fingers and talking of the old times when we 'knew' people.
It was certainly not an experience I would like to repeat (not the seeing my friend bit, just the grandmothers' business) - so, the moral of this post is simply:- see your friends frequently and in short amounts - preferably over several pints so you don't really recall if you turn into your grandmother.
You know, I met an old friend the other day, Alfie - it'd been a while since I last saw him, it was in a foreign country too... We tried hard to remember how long it had been - or avoid saying how long it had been - as it was 10 years - no, 11 years...
Now, I remember - when I was 9 or 10 years old - sitting in the back of the car listening to my parents talk of people that they hadn't seen for 10 years and burbling onto themselves, rather pleasantly, "Whatever happenned to old 'John'" - that probably wasn't his name - artistic license we can call it...
"'John', yes, what happenned to him" - and right there and then they would suddenly become far more reminiscent of my grandmother than my parents; no longer driving a car but looking absent mindedly into the shade of the back garden, trying to fathom where their thoughts had got to as they grasped out into nothingness hoping that somehow the 'idea' of what had happenned to good old John might come flooding back to them - despite having never known it in the first place. Out of breath - yes, I should have punctuated that sentence.
So - back to the night with my friend - there we were talking of ten years ago and carrying on like it was last week - which it might have well been for all I can remember of the time betwixt the two. ...and it suddenly occured to me that we had turned into our grandmothers - or, at least, mine. Alfie and Tom down the pub after black-out waving fingers and talking of the old times when we 'knew' people.
It was certainly not an experience I would like to repeat (not the seeing my friend bit, just the grandmothers' business) - so, the moral of this post is simply:- see your friends frequently and in short amounts - preferably over several pints so you don't really recall if you turn into your grandmother.
Nearly a year later...
Clearly this blogging, for me anyhow, is a regular thing. It's only been 10 months since my last 'blog' and I'm pleased to report a fair amount of activity - albeit no activity on the blogg... So, I've been on a tour of Europe.
Not sure why - didn't really want to go - but after getting a short contract job and it coming to an even earlier end (with profuse apologies from those involved) I decided to cart myself round Europe in less than perfect conditions. The 'big' thing to do here would be to tell you how amazing it all was - all the different cultures and the like, which *is* true...
However, equally, it was *nearly* the weirdest experience I've ever had (the winner there goes to either Thailand or South America - still undecided) with some strangers treating me like an old friend and others with contempt that turned, on occasions for them, to tears... Weird - with a capital 'W'.
Aside from all that, the architecture was 'nice' or 'glorious' or some other adjective that someone who isn't really that interested in architecture would use. Similarly I took a lot of photos - perhaps I can torture my, as yet unborn, children with a slide show when they're at the cusp of 'teenagerism'. Manacle them to dining chairs and force them to watch my 'tour' saying, 'You'll learn something, I promise you' in that ever so slightly, but untintenionally, patronising voice.
Anyway - I have a job now... More on that later.
Not sure why - didn't really want to go - but after getting a short contract job and it coming to an even earlier end (with profuse apologies from those involved) I decided to cart myself round Europe in less than perfect conditions. The 'big' thing to do here would be to tell you how amazing it all was - all the different cultures and the like, which *is* true...
However, equally, it was *nearly* the weirdest experience I've ever had (the winner there goes to either Thailand or South America - still undecided) with some strangers treating me like an old friend and others with contempt that turned, on occasions for them, to tears... Weird - with a capital 'W'.
Aside from all that, the architecture was 'nice' or 'glorious' or some other adjective that someone who isn't really that interested in architecture would use. Similarly I took a lot of photos - perhaps I can torture my, as yet unborn, children with a slide show when they're at the cusp of 'teenagerism'. Manacle them to dining chairs and force them to watch my 'tour' saying, 'You'll learn something, I promise you' in that ever so slightly, but untintenionally, patronising voice.
Anyway - I have a job now... More on that later.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)