It's been a while since I posted. Among other things, we've been busy putting together the initially undaunting stack of stuff IKEA delivered on Monday. Over the week, the stack of cardboard boxes has somehow become...daunting. I am thinking it wouldn't have taken the crack assemblers at IKEA three four days to put it all together, but then again I think I am done with having delivery and/or assembly people tramp through our apartment for a while. You would be too if you saw how much gravel and general grime is on the streets and sidewalks after all the snow treatments. Considering all the grime, I am thankful that, in general, households in Norway are shoeless. Unless you're a delivery person, in which case you wear your shoes to deliver. But I digress.
We enjoyed our first invitation to a Norwegian home for dinner. Our landlord and her husband had us over for a lovely dinner on Tuesday. G and I took the tram there and were met in the snowy suburban neighborhood by her husband, who walked us back to their utterly charming house. One thing to note about Norway homes is their use of candlelight both inside and out. There were lit candles in a sconce on the porch and plenty more inside in the living area and in the dining room. Given the lack of daylight, I find candlelight the next best thing. (Sidenote: if you visit Norway outside of the summer months, you will find that stores and restaurants have lighted candles outside the doors in an array of displays, from simple dishes to giant lanterns. I love it, and I think it is one of the best parts of the winter season for me.)
After taking off our shoes (see?), we enjoyed a glass of sherry in the living room before dinner and met their dog, a two-year old English springer spaniel, who took to G like a duck to water. No surprise there. Dinner was a "simple weeknight dinner" according to our hosts, but it was a multi-coursed affair with fish, elk from the fall hunt, and vegetables. Then another round of elk and vegetables, and then blue cheese with port, and finally tilslørte bondepiker, a traditional Norwegian dessert. The literal translation is veiled farm girls. Even Martha has a recipe for it. Check it out. It was really, really good. (Apologies for the lack of real-time dinner photos; I thought it might be a bit rude to whip out the camera at our first social dinner with such nice folks.)
After dinner, we traveled with our hosts in their Prius (and yes, the Prius handled quite well in the snow) to Frogner kirke (kirke = church) to attend a Julekonsert concert by the Norwegian Chamber Orchestra. I've not really been to many chamber orchestra concerts (okay, I haven't been to any), but this was a beautiful performance. Most of the evening was devoted to Bach with several soloists ranging from a flutist to an opera singer, but my favorite piece was The Lark Ascending by Ralph Vaughan Williams. If you've not heard this piece or are not a big classical music fan, I still think it's worth a listen of a clip on your favorite place to find music online.
In all, it was a very enjoyable evening. When we were turning in for the evening, G joked that all of our friends in Norway will end up being our parents' age (our landlord and her husband are that age or slightly older). To which I thought, if it means I can look forward to evenings of pleasant company, good conversation, and soul-filling entertainment, I am all for it. Photos below; enjoy.
Frogner kirke og konsert-goers.
Candles everywhere!
I am a sucker for good stained glass. Apse, where the orchestra would soon be playing. And some random guy's head.
Nice! Candles, good music and goood company are all good in the dark fo winter. Only a few more days till the Solstice! :-)
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