By: Colin Tattersall

Part 1
A Brit's Norwegian Adventure

I was also very lucky to have visited friends in the fjords and been warmly welcomed into their homes.  I would like to think I helped with chores on the farm, but I was looked after so well it never felt like I was working.  Driving tractors and diggers, milking the cows, checking the nets for salmon, fishing in the mountain streams; it was an idyllic time.

Arrival

I spent about a year studying Norwegian, reading language books over breakfast and listening to various courses on my iPod on the Underground.  I must have looked a bit odd, standing there on the train muttering away to myself in a foreign language in the morning crush.  When I wasn’t using it as a doorstop I read chunks of the tome ‘Living and Working in Norway’ which also helped with preparations for what lay ahead.
Dutifully, as advised in my book, I announced to the immigration official that I had come to Norway in search of work.  I was somewhat deflated to be told that officially I was only in Norway on holiday until I had actually found a job.  Ah, well, I’m here none the less.

My arrival in Bergen at the beginning of May couldn’t have been better timed.  It started with wonderful weather, despite Bergen being known being the rainiest city in the nation.  Then there are all the festivals, music and holidays all the time.  And also the Russ.  If you’re Norwegian and reading this, mmm, what memories it must bring back!  If you’re not Norwegian, find a Norwegian and ask them all about it...

Finding a job was top of the agenda, but when all avenues had been chased down and I’ve been waiting for somebody to read my email / CV, or for them to phone me back I have never been at a loss for something to do.  Positively spoilt for choice!

Encounters

Norway is a pleasant place to visit at any time of year, but May 17 is Constitution Day where everybody lines the streets to watch bands, teams, clubs and societies parade past.  They are a very patriotic nation at heart.  It was quite something to see everyone in their finest, typically wearing a bunad, the traditional costume.  The details and styles of the bunads all vary depending on the town or region they are from, but they are all gracefully uniform when seen together.

 
I was also struck by how active people are, particularly with getting out hiking in the mountains.  There isn’t much opportunity for contacting prospective employers at the weekends so I made the most of getting involved with the activities too.  Every year there is an event held in Bergen called the sjufjellsturen, which involves hiking up the seven mountains surrounding the city.  The walk is about 35km and involves climbing up the mountains totalling about 2400m.  Not being so accustomed to the local conditions I carried enough food and equipment to survive several days on the mountains with the worst weathers.  With hindsight this was completely unnecessary, leaving me feeling a lot older and maybe a little wiser I guess...

Oh, yes, and back to the topic of work.  Ten hours spent hiking round the mountains proved to be a wonderful day out but left me with sore feet.  Twenty hours spent on the bus to Kristiansand and back for an interview and I’m closing in on an offer of employment...

And one final thought to leave you with.  While typing away looking out over Bergen with the rush hour traffic backed up below I see a chap stick his hand out of the sunroof and put a mug on the roof of his car.  To which the chap in the car behind promptly hopped out, strolled up with a pot of tea to fill the mug, then returned to his car just as the traffic started moving again.  I can’t remember ever having managed to get served like this in London traffic.  Maybe I was taking the wrong approach and needed to start with doing the serving part.

So in an attempt to integrate myself with the local culture I have completely given up on learning any more language and have taken to carrying flasks of tea and coffee around with me should I encounter anyone in need of refreshments...