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December, 2000 |
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| September, 2000 Contents: 1. Virtual Cities 2. Interactive Maps 3. Trondheim Information 4. Stavanger Information 5. Scandinavia Links 6. Uff-da Jokes |
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News from Norway.com, December 2000 1. Sweaters
1. Sweaters Norwegians over the centuries have developed clothing that allows them to work in and enjoy weather that at times can be cold and harsh. There is even a Norwegian saying to express the importance of good clothing, "There's no such thing as bad weather, only bad clothing". Norwegian sweaters and knitwear, made from local wool with fine insulating and elasticity properties, have proven to be an excellent protection against the elements over many generations of use. Norwegian knitwear is, however, much more than good winter clothing. With elaborate patterns and traditional motifs, Norwegian knitwear is also esthetically pleasing and is a showcase for Norwegian culture. Many sweaters and cardigans are also made in lighter weights that are suitable for warmer weather, and it is quite common to wear sweaters and cardigans indoors as well. The Norwegian government even wears "lusekofte" traditional sweaters when they meet to have their annual budget conference. Visitors to Norway often plan on
buying some sweaters while they are here. There is a good
selection of shops that carry knitwear with traditional,
classical Norwegian design. In recent years, many producers
have made knitwear with Viking period inspired design. Others
have experimented with modern designs that refer to
traditional motifs. For a list of leading sweaters stores in
Norway, select sweaters in the shopping directories at:
If you will not be in Norway in the near future, you can shop tax free for Norwegian sweaters and other gifts online at: http://www.norwayshop.com . For customers outside of Scandinavia, they offer free airmail service during the Christmas season.
2. Meeting Planner We now can offer an online service for the planning of meetings and conferences in Norway. Our Meeting Planner at: http://www.norway.com/meetingplanner/mp_enter.asp?lang=47 gives detailed information about over 150 places in Norway with conference facilities. You can search by location, meeting room capacity, plus type and number of rooms if you need accommodations as well. Most of the places listed are hotels with meeting and conference capabilities, but you will also find cruise ships, dedicated conference centers and interesting facilities (such as museums and a glass factory) that can arrange meetings. For each place listed you will find detailed technical information and equipment available for use. Transportation, nearby attractions and activities, and food and beverage information are also provided. For hotels listed you will get information about the hotel rooms and dining facilities. For most places there is an online request form and it is possible to view their location on a map. To view a few interesting
examples, look at: The world's northernmost full-service
hotel; http://www.norway.com/meetingplanner/company_mp.asp?id=2976&lang=44 Presently we have the Meeting Planner in two languages, Norwegian and English. Just click on the flag for your desired language.
3. Christmas in Norway There are few places in the world that can match Norway when it comes to Christmas spirit. There is an abundance of snow, reindeer and time-honored traditions. It is also not that far to the Julenisse's (Santa Clause) home at the North Pole. The Christmas season starts on December 1 or the beginning of Advent four Sundays before Christmas. During this period the streets and Christmas trees are decorated, gifts are bought and each day children open a door in their Christmas calendar to find a small present, usually a sweet. A cherished tradition is the eating of the Christmas porridge during the day of Christmas Eve. The porridge is made with rice and milk, and hidden in the porridge is an almond that has been peeled for camouflage. Whoever gets the almond in their portion of porridge wins a marzipan pig. Christmas Eve officially starts at 5:00 pm with the ringing of the church bells. Afterwards, families gather for a Christmas dinner. After dinner the Julenisse makes his appearance and gives gifts to all the good children. The food served during Christmas can vary from region to region and from family to family. Some traditional dishes are rib roast, salted lamb, lutefisk (cautioned advised for novices), herring, Christmas sausage, cod, lefse and seven different types of Christmas cakes. You can find recipes for some of these dishes at our culinary link page at: http://www.norwaylinks.net/viewframe.asp?mappe_id=900 If you happen to be in Oslo during the Christmas season, a good place to visit would be Baerums Verk, an old irons work from 1610 that has been converted to a crafts and shopping center. Their Christmas tree at 21 meters (ca 65 feet) is Norway's tallest, even taller than the tree that the government sends each year to the city of London, and they have daily special Christmas events. They have a site at: http://www.baerumsverk.no/ . You can also get info about them at: http://www.norway.com/guide/directories/company.asp?id=681. For events going on in Norway during the Christmas season, check out the events calendar at: http://www.norwayevents.com/top_events.asp . Here you can tailor your search by date, destination and type of events. The sending of Christmas cards is quite common in Norway. If you would like to see some examples of Norwegian Christmas cards, go to: http://www.jenteporten.com/jul/icq.htm. Click on one of the pictures to see snow fall. Christmas is a time for Children. To see drawings of how some kids at the Helldal primary school in Norway experience Christmas, go to: http://www.gs.bergen.hl.no/~helldal/Juleside/Elevtegninger/elevtegn.htm For additional information about Christmas in Norway you can visit the Norwegian government's site at: http://odin.dep.no/odin/engelsk/om_odin/p10000971/032005-993720/index-dok000-b-n-a.html and the Christmas World site at: http://christmas-world.freeservers.com//norway.html
4. Slide shows One of the pleasures of surfing the Internet is being able to see far away places. We have lots of pictures online in the slide shows at our various city sites. For Oslo slide shows including Holmenkollen, Vigeland Park and May 17th celebrations, go to: http://www.virtualoslo.com/virtualsightseeing/. If you want to see pictures of Bergen including the funicular and Edvard Grieg's home, go to: http://www.virtualbergen.com/virtualsightseeing/ We also have slide shows for the following cities and places at:
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