| Page Views: 61,549 Last Visit to Norway: - I Live Here | NORWAY - by a Norwegian by FletteMette - last update: May 5, 2008 |
Bits and pieces...
* Capital: Oslo
* 4.6 million inhabitants
* The northernmost country in Europe
* Norway is a constitutional monarchy - our king is Harald V.
* Ranked 1st on UN's Human Development Index.
* Contrary to popular belief: Norway is *not* the capital of Sweden!
* World's third largest exporter of crude oil. (2003)
* Other exports: metals, machinery, chemicals, fish and ships.
* Famous for the spectacular fjords on the western coast. (See pic below!)
* Mountains, waterfalls & glaciers.
* Only a very small part (3%) of the country is arable.
* In the northern parts of the country you can experience the midnight sun - or the polar night.
* Northern lights
* Polar bears *do* roam the streets of Norway...but only on the islands of Svalbard.
* Other wild animals found in Norway include: brown bear, elk, reindeer, lynx, wolf, wolverine and arctic fox. (But unfortunately only small numbers of arctic fox and the large carnivores)
* The traditional food can be quite a challenge for foreigners (and many locals alike) - or how about some Smalahove (cured and salted, then steamed sheep's head, served eyes and all) or Lutefisk (dried cod soaked in a lye solution before boiling to give it a somewhat gelatinous texture)
* Each year Norwegians consume around 11,000 tons of the "delicious" frozen pizza called Pizza Grandiosa. (Yuck!)
* Skiing is the national sports - but most of us prefer watching (with extreme enthusiasm!) the national teams compete on tv rather than being out in the ski trails ourselves.. ;o)
* Norway appears in the international news once a year - when the winner of the Nobel Peace Price is announced in Oslo.
* Norwegian words that are now used in English include fjord, ski and troll.
* "Norway: nil points!" is an expression familiar to all those who enjoy watching the Eurovision Song Contest
* ...but there really is some Norwegian music worth checking out, my personal favourites include Turbonegro, Madrugada, Kings of Convenience and Kurt Nilsen (who won the World Idol)
* Smoking is prohibited in public buildings, including all cafés, restaurants and bars.
* Wine & spirits for home consumption can only be bought in special state-run (and incredibly expensive!!!) stores: Vinmonopolet
* Troll figures and knitwear are the most popular souvenirs - in addition to elk warning signs "found" somewhere by the road.
* Norwegian viking Leiv Eiriksson visited America almost 500 years before Columbus.
* Some Norwegians you might have heard of: playwright Henrik Ibsen, painter Edvard Munch, composer Edvard Grieg, scientist & explorer Thor Heyerdahl, eighties band A-ha, and explorers Amundsen & Nansen.
* And a Norwegian invention...: the paper clip!
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|  | A bit about my page...:
Under "General tips" you'll find "general" stuff about Norway - such as info about the midnight sun, language, currency...This means the tips really don't fit very well into the VT template... :o)
In the "Restaurant" section I'll write about Norwegian food and some traditional dishes - you'll find proper restaurant tips in my pages on various Norwegian destinations, I don't think there's a huge point in me listing restaurants from all over the country on this page... :o) Some of my "restaurant" tips could just as well have been listed under "local customs".
In the "Accommodation" section I'll write about various hotels worth noticing, and I'll probably (eventually...;o) write about the general accommodation options you've got in this country (ie hotels, cabins, "rorbuer", camping...)
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You might also want to take a look at my pages about various regions, cities and towns in Norway:
Bergen - the city where I've lived most of my life
Tromsø - the Arctic town where I'm currently studying
Oslo - our capital
Sogn og fjordane county - in the fjord region of Norway
Troms county - in the Arctic circle
Fedje - group of islands near Bergen
Røros - old mining town and a UNESCO world heritage site
Lillehammer - host to the 1994 Winter Olympics
...and a few smaller pages, see my travel map to find those.
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> Add to your Custom Travel Guide [What's This?]
| Pros: | "Fantastic nature...! I wouldn't want to be anywhere else during summer...!" | | Cons: | "November! A horrible time of the year... And yes, Norway is quite expensive...but enjoying the nature is free...;o)" | | In A Nutshell: | "Home Sweet Home..." |
FletteMette's Norway Travel Tips
 FletteMette's Norway Travelogues | | | |
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 Comments for FletteMette about Norway | | | | |
mallyak Thu Sep 17, 2009 01:04 UTC
Interesting pages and great photos...rdgs. | saga61 Wed May 6, 2009 23:35 UTC
LOL! Sort of like sheep and cows clogging the road in Ireland! Great photo. | hindu1936 Tue May 5, 2009 11:10 UTC
Whereas I had thought to just show my wife a few places I had seen in Norway, I now know I had not touched the surface. Your info is wonderfully composed and most useful. thank you. see you down the road. | black_mimi99 Mon Dec 8, 2008 14:16 UTC
hjemmesiden din er kjempe fint en av minne drømme er reise til Norge og ta bilder av Nordlys og hval |
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