Travel Report Norway #1 - ENGLISH

Norway, near Rena, August 2022

The air is filled with silence. The vast forest stretches like a dark, soft blanket over the hilly evening landscape. No sign of civilisation. Only dark forest and a silvery glow where Lake Ryssjøen has nestled itself. Above it, the half moon peakes out between the thick, slightly purple shimmering clouds. The east shows us the night that awaits the coming day. The west doesn't want to let today go yet and so the horizon there is bathed in bright, warm colours. The sunsets here are long. But by now there is almost a real night. It hasn't been that way for long. When we arrived in Norway in mid-June, people smiled at us because we packed our head torches in our backpacks. Indeed, the night was an endless twilight. The sun disappeared just below the horizon, painting the sky with a moving watercolour for hours. On Midsummer, it remained bright as day. The grasses, herbs and flowers thanked the abundant light by growing high up to send their scents and purple, pink, yellow, blue and brilliant white colours to the sky. Plenty of rain helps the land to thrive. Green and fresh it shines in the summer glow. What a contrast winter must be. Long winters here. Dark nights. But the winters, we were told, are not dominated by permanent darkness here. We are still too far south for that. On the darkest days, the sun shines from morning until afternoon. Above the horizon, however, it only shows itself for a shy smile. On the other hand, the moon, when it is full in the sky, illuminates the vast white winter landscape. On these nights, it is said to be particularly magical to walk through the snow. Because it glitters and sparkles and the eye sees as well as during the day, except that everything appears silver. And on the dark, clear nights of the new moon, the vastness of our galaxy is revealed in its starry infinity. But we are still far away from these spectacles. It is the beginning of August, winter is still a long way off. At least that's what we Central Europeans think. In the minds of the northerners it is already murmuring: "Winter is coming!" So they pickle vegetables, cut down trees for firewood and chop them up, winterise buildings, catch fish and enjoy the abundance of berries. These are picked in large quantities and dried. In winter, people rest in front of the warm fireplace or relax in the sauna. Summer, on the other hand, is the season of action.

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We have also been infected by this attitude. Now it's warm and we could enjoy the summer without worrying. But how soon will it get colder? And will we have found a winter nest for ourselves by then? Or will we still be travelling in our camper van? So far we haven't been able to heat it, which means that in colder times we'd have to stay in bed, wrapped up thickly, but also that we'd have a problem with mould. Fortunately, we met Jo, Pauliina and their son Lillebjørn (little bear). As Lillebjøern is only half a year older than Elouan, we quickly found ourselves spending a lot of time together. In fact, we've been standing with our camper close to their trailer for almost two weeks now, enjoying some family time together. So what does this have to do with our winter preparations? Well, Jo is a blacksmith and he has his forge in a small barn. And that's where Jo and Maël are currently bringing the heart of our camper van to life: Frankenstein; A small, rustic wood-burning stove, no frills, no special extras, but designed to serve its purpose: To heat our little home, to protect us from the cold and from mould. To compensate, Maël helps Jo finish his berry dryer in time and possibly make another load of wood. But we are not only creating. The daily routine, into which we have just somehow slipped, is actually very relaxed. Once a week we have a sauna. We have Pauliina to thank for that, because she is Finnish and in Finland sauna is a weekly must, even in summer. Again and again we are invited by neighbours. In fact, we are very surprised by the warm hospitality and openness of the Norwegians. For example, we chatted for half an eternity with old Thor, sitting on his veranda and drinking coffee. There was also the farmer Liv, with her son Odin, who first invited us to dinner and then gave us three bags of the finest organic vegetables and salad from her own cultivation as a farewell gift. By the way, the names of the Nordic gods are given here as naturally as the names Jesús and Maria in Spain. On particularly hot days, we go for a swim at the lake or roam through the forest to feast on the abundance of blueberries, raspberries and shiny golden cloudberries. Especially to Elouan's delight. When we need an hour's peace and quiet, we simply put him in a blueberry field. Then he happily picks one berry after the other and puts it in his mouth with a giggle.

See you next time!