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Jan 30

Torrfisk
4 Comments

Dried Fish Dipped in Chocolate

Last November, I went to Mo i Rana to buy Christmas presents. After spending one hour at the first mall, I was drained. I had no idea of what to get for people. It turned out leaving without a list was a huge mistake. Walking the aisles of big stores (big by island standards) didn’t at all make me inspired. Then, in a moment of desperation, a revelation! I would go home empty handed and order all the presents from a chocolate factory that I just heard about. Read more

Jan 25

IMG_8087 Feature
7 Comments

Nacreous Clouds

When we were in Oslo between Christmas and New Years, we saw some very strange looking clouds. We were in Frognerparken, a well-known park with hundreds of statues by the same sculptor, Gustav Vigeland. The sun had already set, but these clouds, rather than turning red or dark gray, were a brilliant white. Read more

Jan 22

Northern Lights Feature
20 Comments

Northern Lights

People come from all over the world to see the Northern Lights in Norway. The pictures in the tourist brochures look really good. My advise is, don’t. Come and see the fjords, the midnight sun, the mountains, the cod, but not the Northern Lights, because chances are you’ll be disappointed. Read more

Jan 18

Norwegian Language Books
5 Comments

Being A Teacher and Student Again

Once a week between 6-8 PM, I’m in a classroom at the Rødøy school as a student. To learn Norwegian. Now, on a different day of the week between 6-8 PM, I’m a teacher. I’m teaching drawing and photography for the Youth Club. Read more

Jan 16

IMG_5919
16 Comments

Is Parenthood Doomed?

Back in Boston, a friend of ours came over for dinner one day and told us that she was going to attend a week-long program to “undo” the effects of her parents. This program, called Hoffman Process,

“…brings into awareness the counterproductive beliefs, perceptions and emotional needs that have been adopted from parents…”

Read more

Jan 13

Cod Tongues
9 Comments

Cod Offal

I didn’t know that cod had tongues. I didn’t even know they could speak. Kristin’s father told me about them being a delicacy a long time ago, and I had been anxious to try them ever since. Until last week, I only caught relatively small cod whose tongues were too small. Read more

Jan 9

IMG_8383
16 Comments

Here Come the Big Ones

Every year, big arctic cod and pollock (sei in Norwegian) from Barents Sea come to the northern part of Norway to lay their eggs. With keen eyes for beauty, they have chosen Lofoten, a chain of islands about 50 miles north of there, as their favorite spawning ground. Read more

Jan 7

The Sun Returns Feature
6 Comments

The Sun Returns

Today, the sun returned for about 5 minutes after nearly a month of absence. It emerged between two mountains on mainland, basking everything with golden glow. Read more

Jan 4

IMG_7597 Feature
5 Comments

Pinnekjøtt: The Best Norwegian Dish

The dish most commonly associated with Norway is lutefisk, which has become the symbol of Norwegian cuisine and made the term “Norwegian cuisine” an oxymoron. Even those who can’t name the capital of Norway know about lutefisk, probably through the popular American radio show “Prarie Home Companion.” Read more