Greetings from Norway

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Fishing village Nyksund, Lofoten

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American hiker Alec Luhn is still in hospital in Bergen: .

The American thought he was going to die in the Norwegian mountains: – Had to drink his own urine

“This is the kind of thing you only read about in books and watch in movies,” says Alec Luhn after six dramatic days alone at Folgefonna. Death was only a few hours away, according to his doctors.

SPEAKING OUT: The well-known climate journalist has been hospitalized for two weeks. He is very grateful to the Norwegian rescue team who found him in time.
Photo: Therese Grimstad Pisani / NRK
Source:

Amerikanske Alec Luhn overlevde seks døgn alene på Folgefonna

Long and detailed article in Norwegian. (Translate quite well by Google Translation)

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The Norwegian way is rehabilitation, not just punishment.
Interned on holiday in Norway:

After two weeks of vacation, the inmates of Romerike Prison, Kroksrud ward, are back behind bars.
The common holiday is over, and everyday life has set in. Maybe you’re already feeling a hint of longing for the holidays
This is also felt by the inmates by those interned at Romerike Prison Kroksrud branch.

The prison arranged a Norwegian vacation for the inmates.
The vacation trip started in Sogn and ended in Oslo.
– We’ve gotten out a little, seen other faces and talked about something else. We’re normal too, adds Shabani.

50 out of 52 weeks are grey in here. The two weeks of vacation were very important to them.

Thomas Kahn, First Officer
– Can they understand if someone reacts to the fact that they have been on such a vacation?
The first officer responds quickly:
– The main goal of the correctional service is reintegration. We are going to make these guys here become good neighbours – in one to two years they could be your neighbour.

• In Norway, the purpose of prison sentences is to protect society from criminal acts and help inmates return to society as law-abiding citizens.
• Here in prison things go very slowly, out there they go very fast. Being out among people is reintegration work.
• On the tours we get the opportunity to show our progression and that we are stable, says Shabani.

Both men are at the end of their sentences and will soon return to society.
They are now incarcerated in Romerike Prison, Kroksrud ward. The prison has lower security and is intended to prepare them for release:

Photo: Shilan Sari / NRK

Ibish Shala has been in prison for almost nine years. The 45-year-old is serving a sentence for drug offenses. Before he came to Kroksrud, he was in a maximum security prison for about six years.
Blerim Shabani also had high security before he came to Kroksrud. The 38-year-old has been in prison for almost five years, serving a sentence for drug offenses.

At the Kroksrud branch, the school offering and the workshop are closed for two weeks in the summer.
This means that the inmates have nowhere to go.
Thomas Kahn and environmental therapist Sine Bjørndalen took the opportunity to focus on coping in real life among the inmates.
– Sine and I decided to move our vacation to give these boys an adventure for two weeks, says the first officer.

Seven inmates and two staff members packed their bags and set off for Stryn in Sogn og Fjordane.
With clear training goals, the group was ready to tackle Norway’s longest uphill climb Mt. Skåla.
– At the top of the Skåla, it was our personal trainer who managed to pull us to the top, says Kahn and smiles at Shabani
The 38-year-old has not previously had an interest in outdoor activities, but the trip uphill gave him a taste for it.
He will soon start training to become a personal trainer.

• I will never forget it. It was very good for my head, and I was very happy to reach the top, Shabani replies with satisfaction.
  
  
  
  After walking uphill for several hours, Blerim Shabani reached the top of Skåla.
  Photo: Thomas Kahn

The evenings in Stryn were spent grilling and having “good conversations” outside the cabins they had rented.
– We were like buddies. No one knew we were from a prison, we were normal. The officers don’t usually open up to us, but that day we all talked about our private lives, says Shabani.
– We know we are in prison. Life is on hold, but we are trying to enjoy the summer days as best we can, adds Shala.
We have the good conversations on these trips. No one wears a uniform, and we are equal, adds Kahn.

The next goal on the holiday trip was to reach the summit of Mørkgonga in Ringerike and Kyrkjebønnøse in Hemsedal.
The group also visited Son, Drøbak and Oslo during the trip.
– I experienced it as more normal, and we talked about completely different things, says Shala.

After the summer break, the inmates and officers have become closer.
Photo: Shilan Sari / NRK

In Norway, we don’t throw away the key and let people rot. They need to get out, and going on such trips can give them motivation and new interests.
Thomas KahnFirst Officer

Ibish Shala has reflected on the effect the holiday has had.
– When you are inside for a long time, you can become “prison damaged”.
Some people may have trouble being out among other people.
You may get anxiety or panic. Vacations are good for recovery and progression.

Shala will soon return to his work in the prison workshop:

Even though everyday life can seem gray, the sun shines in the workshop.
Photo: Shilan Sari / NRK

The 45-year-old is busy getting his trade certificate as a carpenter.
– We are required to report in the morning at a quarter past eight. Some people find that the day goes by faster when they are filled with teaching or work, he explains.
Shala lives long in the memories of the holidays, which color her otherwise routine everyday life.

Source: Innsette på noregsferie – no er kvardagen tilbake – Direkte

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Perhaps those who supported the charging, imprisonment and deprivation of the so-called “J6 insurrectionists” could learn from this.

I doubt it though.

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Would you prefer them to be called “freedom fighter”, like other “terrorists” like to call themselves?

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Like this “terrorist” perhaps?

71-Year-Old Grandma Convicted on All Charges by DC Jury After Praying in...

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Back to the subject.

Å in Moskenes municipality is located at the very tip of the Lofoten Islands.
Norway’s shortest place names, containing only one letter. (Å is the last letter of the alphabet in Norwegian)

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50K views · 857 reactions | A mountain with a hole straight through it –...

Torghatten – The mountain with a hole straight through

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Ålesund inner harbour today:

Photo: Magnar Lyngstad.

PS> We have had a kind of “indian summer” with max. temperatures exceeding 20C these last few days and expected into next week.

This is because the remnants of TRS Erin is sending warm air our way as it pass south of us into mainland Europe:

Ex-hurricane Erin's impact on weather in Western Europe

Yesterday we had three cruise ships in town all day:
Celebrity Apex 28.08.2025 06:39 -16:52 hrs. Max Pax: 2850
AIDAprima 28.08.2025 07 - 17:55 hrs. Max Pax: 4350
Viking Saturn 28.08.2025 08:39 - 22:54 hrs. Max Pax: 930

Here is AIDAprima on arrival in the early morning:

Photo: Martin Bugge Slinning

PS> Hurtigruten’s MS “Kong Harald” had to use a different wharf on her two calls that day. (Her regular wharf was occupied by “Viking Saturn”)
Here seen on her departure north bound in the evening:

Photo: Martin Bugge Slinning

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Trolls can be a nuisance on social media, but in Norway they can also be a problem for the police:

Troll on the run in Tromsø: Police are searching for the owner of the troll-like arrestee

This weekend, the police had to arrest a troll. “It has been out a winter night before,” says the section leader.

UNDER ARRESTS: It took two strong police officers to handle the troll.
Photo: Troms Police District.

The police in Tromsø received several reports from residents in the Tromsdalen district over the weekend about an uninvited guest.
A physical troll about one meter tall had wandered there.
The police expelled the troll from the district and took it into custody.
The troll was unable to take care of itself, or where it came from.
Therefore, the police took a walk around downtown Tromsø in the hope of finding the identity of the troll.
– The patrol made a round of all the tourist shops and other tourist operators in the city, and asked if it was their troll. So far, no one is missing a troll, she says.
This is according to June Wiesener, section leader in Troms Police District.

Thus the troll ends up in the lockup at the Tromsø police station, and then at the lost property office.
The troll is well over a meter tall, solidly built and wearing black jeans, a black and green vest and a white jacket. This is a type of troll that is often seen in tourist shops.
But since no one in Tromsø is missing a troll, the police are now looking for the troll’s origin via social media.
– We hope to reach out to more people, because maybe someone is missing a troll. We hope the owner or others who recognize it will get in touch, says Wiesner.
If someone is missing a troll, a " troll arrestee " is waiting at the lost and found office at Tromsø police station.
Wiesner says they don’t have many cases like this.
– It’s not often that we have a troll to spare, but there may be someone who has. If we have the opportunity to be involved in the slightly more trivial matters, like this one, we are happy to do so.

Among other characteristics, the troll only has one tooth.
The arrestee is apparently in a good mood.

Photo: Troms Police District
– It would be sad if someone lost it. But it looks like it was left outside one winter night before, says the section leader.

Source: Politiet i Tromsø etterlyser eigaren av troll – NRK Troms og Finnmark
Google translation (with a little help)

PS> Looks like the Tromsø Police Officers have armed themselves for this operation.

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Norway hold it’s parliamentary election on the first Monday in September every 4 year.
This year that is on Monday 8. Sept.:

Norwegians to pick new parliament in tightly fought election clouded by...

Key issues in the election campaign have included the cost of living, taxation and public services, and the outcome could have an impact on energy and power supplies to Europe and the management of Norway’s $2 trillion sovereign wealth fund.
But geopolitics has also loomed unusually large with voters this time round, and analysts said this could benefit Labour and its leader, Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Stoere, a former foreign minister who presents himself as a safe pair of hands.

PS> No gerrymandering and no voter intimidation. Foreign observers from countries in Asia, Africa and South America have been invited to watch and report on the procedures and conduct of the election.

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Then the election is over and the result is know:

Norway Election 2025: Red-Green Parties Win Majority

The party leaders may have been quarrelling on live TV during the campaign, but no drama and no contesting the result by the loosing side when the result is known.

Once they have had a little rest they may get together for a cup of coffee and a chat at the canteen in the Storting (Parliatemnt) building:

Now comes the negotiations between the 5 different parties on the winning side to iron out an agreement on how they will cooperate and where they may disagree during the next 4 years.

One thing is certain, the new Government will be lead by Jonas Gahr Støre from the Labour (Social Democratic) Party.

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It is dead flat calm today, but it is not long before the first autumn storm will hit the area around Stad peninsula (West Cape):

Steinar Saeterdal

The picture was taken by Øistein Torheim (?). It was used when we were trying to convince a Chilean admiral that the ships would be able to handle the “Drake passage” / Cape Horn. The picture was taken of “Nordnorge” (straightened) on the Stadt Sea. It is part of the same story that the partners in Chile were on a trip with Nordnorge from Bergen and northwards. The admiral was “speechless” when “Nordnorge” on departure from Bergen was anchored close to a rocky cliff at Biskopshavn, on shore there was a choir that wanted to sing to the boat. After this experience he wondered if it was possible to buy the ship

Source: https://www.facebook.com/groups/909538579071083/permalink/25002165032715101/
PS> The planned ship tunnel through the peninsula is still being fought for, but not yet fully financed:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jMAO0wAyzTc

[Hogsnort]

Looks like a ferry crossing Cook Strait near Tory Strait. Spring is on it’s way.

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It’s as Norwegian as “Kvikk Lunch”:

The controversial sweet that fuels Norwegians

Kvikk Lunsj is a four-fingered chocolate bar that’s beloved across Norway and synonymous with outdoor exploration. The snack’s slogan is "tursjokoladen " (“the trip chocolate”), and ads for the wafers often depict hikers spinning a compass, skiers summiting frosty peaks and people drinking water from rushing rivers. Today, roughly 60 million Kvikk Lunsj bars are produced each year – about 11 for every Norwegian – and whether you’re skipping across mountain brooks or striking out in a kayak, no journey into the Norwegian wilderness is complete without one. That’s because Kvikk Lunsj isn’t just a sweet treat; it’s part of our national heritage.

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Two countries, one bridge

Have you ever crossed the iconic Svinesund Bridge?

Source: Spectacular Norway

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In these turbulent times in the world there are small “feel good stories” that only get in the local news paper:

Fishing trip ends with rescue operation: – Panicked

She cast the line for the first time. Shortly afterwards, a seagull lay helpless in the sea.

Sandra-Kristin Skjønberg’s (19) first fishing trip in Ålesund did not go according to plan. Photo: PrivateOn Wednesday afternoon, around 6:00 PM, Skjønberg met up at the express boat pier in Ålesund with friends.
What was supposed to be her first attempt with a fishing rod instead became a dramatic scene with panic, police on the scene – and a spectacular rescue, says Sandra-Kristin Skjønberg (19).

From left: Dagny Hilanda Vågstøl Juuhl (18), Sandra-Kristin Skjønberg, Siv-Anita Skjønberg (17) and Kristina Stenvåg-Indreeide (16). Photo: Private

– I threw out the line, and then the seagull came and flew straight into the line. He got caught, but fortunately not in the gully,
Panic took over. She says her heart rate rose as the bird lay helpless in the sea.
– We completely panicked. We cut the line, but then the seagull lay there for 15 minutes, unable to swim or get up. We didn’t know what to do, so we called the police, says the 19-year-old. Sandra says the police asked them to see if a boat could help.

Jump into the sea.

A passing tourist would prove to be the saviour.
– I was prepared. The bird was hanging on the line, and I knew how to do it, says Gerd Müller, originally from Austria.
He works as a tour guide and was in the city with a group of tourists.
He offered to swim out. And as promised, so he did:

Gerd Müller, is originally from Austria, but lives in Stavanger. Photo: Shiva Ghalvazi

– He managed to free the seagull from the line. It was incredibly good to see, says Sandra.
Müller had previous experience in fishing and had rescued birds before. This time he resolutely threw himself into the sea.
– The bird had to be rescued. It was summer, the water was 15 degrees, and I couldn’t think of anything else but to help, he tells Sunnmørsposten

A memory for life

The tourist group had only been in Ålesund for a few hours when the drama occurred at the express boat pier.
– We had planned two nights in the city before traveling on to Trondheim. But we will never forget this, says one of the tourists.
– He managed to free the seagull from the line. It was incredibly good to see, says Sandra.
What was supposed to be a simple attempt to catch fish instead became a memory for life.
– This was our first time fishing here. I don’t think we’ll do it again, laughs Sandra, before adding:
– We are very happy that the seagull was able to live on.

The first fishing trip was a memory for a lifetime – Sandra witnessed a man jump into the sea and save a seagull. Photo: Private
Source: Fisketur enda med rednings­aksjon: – Fekk panikk - smp.no

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Norway has the world’s largest Sovereign Wealth Fund, (aka “Oljefondet”):
https://www.nbim.no/en/investments/the-funds-value/
Yet Norway has debt. WHY?

National debt vs. GDP has been discussed in several threads on the forum, but maybe most on the Singapore once more thread: Singapore once more

Maybe this can clear up some of the questions about why a rich country has, even NEED, national debt:

Norway also have their Sovereign Wealth Fund, almost 3 times bigger than their GDP, ticking in interest at a ridiculous amount. They could easily pay off all debt, and wreck their economy in the process. They need debt like everyone else. It’s a part of the monetary system to have debt.

Source: https://qr.ae/pCtlfE

More on the subject here:
https://www.quora.com/Why-does-Norway-have-billions-in-government-debt-and-pay-billions-in-interest-every-year

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104K views · 948 reactions | Norway has the best welfare in the...

Fact check if you don’t trust the video.

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Basketball court with a view:

Norges mest ekstreme basketballbane?

Sorry, Norwegian text only