VIKINGS

Ok, no points for this one!! But did you know that the Vikings were more than capable seamen who discovered America centuries before Colombus. They also set foot on Iceland (probably) before anyone else and colonised Dublin in Ireland and York in England.
Dressed in skins and rough cloth, wearing iron helmets and covered in fleas and lice, they burned and raped, pillaged and murdered throughout most of Europe.
Hmmm, nice picture! No wonder most of England prayed "Deliver us, oh God, from the rage of the Vikings."

THOR HEYERDAHL (1914 - )

Is one of the best known explorers of our time. On the raft "Kon-Tiki", he sailed from South America to Polynesia to prove that the Indians could have undertaken this journey centuries before.
In the same way, on the papyrus boat "Ra", he demonstrated that man could have crossed the Atlantic in ancient times.

EDVARD GRIEG (1843 - 1907)

The composer best known for "Morning" from the first of the two "Peer Gynt" suites. Grieg uses the sounds and harmonies of Norwegian folk music. His A minor concerto is on the repertoire of many famous pianists.

BERGEN

The capital of the western fjords and home of the composer Edvard Grieg. It has one of the oldest symphony orchestras in the World and is well known for its annual Bergen International Music Festival.

EUROVISION SONG CONTEST

Hmmm, lets not dwell on this one !!

ROALD AMUNDSEN (1872 - 1928)

Celebrated as the first person to have reached the South Pole. He was also the first person to sail through the North-West Passage, north of Canada.

KNUT HAMSEN (1859 - 1952)

Nobel Prize for Literature winner in 1920. Author of the following major works, "Hunger", "Pan" and "Victoria".
One of Morten's favourite authors, I believe.

FJORDS

The coastline of Norway is broken by narrow fjords which can reach up to 200 kilometres inland. The fjords and the surrounding mountains which rise steeply from the water to a height of over 1000 metres, are among Norway's most popular tourist attractions.

SALMON

Yes, you did read this right!
Salmon from Norwegian fish farms are sold all over the World.

THE VIGELAND PARK

The Vigeland Park is one of Norway's most popular tourist attractions.
The park consists of 212 sculptures in bronze, granite and wrought iron by Gustav Vigeland (1869 - 1943). Most of them stand along an 850 metre long axis and depict people of all ages, from birth to death.
With the adjacent Frogner Park, the sculpture park is the largest and most beautiful park in Oslo.

EDVARD MUNCH (1863 - 1944)

Few paintings awaken such recognition and feeling as "The Scream" (below). A celebrated artist, he portrayed loneliness, anxiety and death, but also love, joy and life.

CONSTITUTION DAY - 17th MAY

This national holiday is primarily intended to celebrate the memory of the men who wrote Norway's Constitution, which was signed at Eidsvoll on 17th May 1814.
Constitution Day has also become a day for children, a day of brass bands and national costumes.

THE WINTER OLYMPICS

STAVE CHURCHES

Norwegian stave churches are often regarded as architectural monuments to the meeting of Christianity and Norse paganism.
The Norwegian King Olav Haraldsson is often credited with the honour of bringing Christianity to Norway, sometime in the year 1000.

THE WINTER OLYMPICS

The Olympic Winter Games were first held in Oslo in 1952, and were again hosted by Norway in 1994, this time in Lillehamer.
It was the 1994 Paralympic Games in Lillehammer that inspired the a-ha track "Shapes That Go Together". This was released as a single, but to date has never appeared on an official album.