| Show n i 7 7 01 K A haymaking in norway mrea tred by the national geographic society washington D C old viking capital and the surrounding country of central norway recently celebrated the nine hundredth anniversary of the benth ot of Nor ways patron saint olaf the king who established christianity in kuropis Ku Nu ropes northwestern corner the cites name was officially changed a few months ago to 0 Nl Ni daros its ancient designation but the inhabitants are not unanimously pleased with the change and continues in partial use modern la Is built on a peninsula formed by the driver kid and the fiord which indents Nor voys west vest roast coast its houses ouse are cheerful frame structures painted in white or light colors with potted plants making colorful spots at their windows the royal palace a huge white building Is one of the largest wooden buildings in tile lie world the shops have ninny many unusual wares ware s for visitors furs tire are sold and there Is a demand for blue and silver allyer fox polar bear and ermine eiderdown Eider down quilts bear skin rugs embroideries carved wood souvenirs and sliver silver e carved arved in old norse designs are popular with tourists many of tile the larger s shops hops are on olaf threet which was named after the towns founder although it lies in tile the same lati tittle as southern iceland has summers like those of england and its winters winter sare are no more severe than those of germany the river and the fiord tire seldom frozen in summer numerous trees hiees and aind shrubbery give the town a semitropical appearance pe arance which the visitor had not expected the long arctic summer daylight has its effect on the farmlands surrounding often there are two crops a year of produce which yields but one crop in temperate climates norse noree coronation place was the coronation place of ancient norse kings and tile the present king haakon VII was crowned there in 1000 1900 when the union of sweden and norway wits was dissolved the city has a population of some mu h of its life centers about the water front the ship building industry Is brisk tind there Is a boat service between and bergen and the north lope capo numerous fishing boats come tn in with their cargoes of suited salted herring to he deposited in the tall quaint gabled warehouses which line the the lofty gothic spires of cathedral rise above the surrounding low buildings of purely norse architecture in sir thing contrast to them tile the cathedral 1001 looks like a transplanted english church in fit a norse setting its gothic style may be attributed to Nor norseman norsemen semen living hi ing in england when the gothic was attaining its vogue who preferred it to the simpler norse style stilo and incorporated corp orated it into the cathedral the structure was begun during the retail reign of olaf the quiet between 1000 1060 and 1093 it has been restored ninny many times but each restorer has kept to the gothic style stile and tile the present restoration to has haq endeavored to follow the original building all the exel truent which maiks our most generally observed holiday christmas attends the day of st john on june 24 while it bears a chils christian lan name the holiday find and its customs go back to pagan origin in effect the day still Is it a festival of the sun green birch trees adorn every house and children carry evergreen branches through the streets ets tile the analogy to christmas bicais down however when younger folk crowd into boats on the fjords hoi da or lilke hike to the mountain woods which at twilight are flecked with bonfires bondies all night long these bensons burn bum as yli gla figures of tho the merry matters makers dance and sing around them life in central norway yearly more visitors are strapping on their knapsacks tor for walking trips through the thi rugged countryside of 0 central norway where every rock hewn rond seems to lead to a flord fiord and where tho native customs defy the in roads of such drib driblets lets of travel trav el as now sift through thron gli tile visitor goes to church and the simple services sen ices seem stereotyped enough until a bit of statuary descends fruin from the belling the figure of an angel supported by a rod holds a bowl filled with water tile the surprised visitor rentes realizes tills this theatrical appurtenance Is a baptismal font the and innocence of the country folk in the remote and isolated sections ts Is betokened by their promiscuous bathing and by bathing Is meant just that not the diversion of water splashing and sand bond sunning but getting oneself clean A log hut but Is the village bathhouse A furnace of stones Is heated and water poured over the red hot surface into this steam steps a family men women children visiting relatives and neighbors the bathers switch each other with birch twigs to induce more perspiration and gleefully throw buckets of cold water over each other when the hent heat becomes became too intense all of this Is nothing of tin an orgy but as prosaic us as our dally daily bath the rural norwegian would see nothing immoral nor tunny funny in an american hotel which inadvertently advertised 1000 rooms and bath in a vermont village each family once omen had its horse hoise and buggy a vehicle now supplanted by the au automobile torno in a norway hamlet a boat Is the principal family conveyance in sut 11 tinaA there fishing tales takes the place of forming farming and the houses are r trung strung around a benil bend of a fiord instead stead d af pf of along a rambling main street grazing herds berds of goats Is the principal land industry of Nor ways hilly it orth north country and these locks flocks give rise to the picturesque goat girl the mountain pastures usually are fa removed from the villages and spring sees the young farm women driving their herds up the mountain paths to some lofty but sheltered valley among the glistening snow capped peals peaks there they remain all summer long camping in wooden huts buts visited occasionally by their men folk to curry away the butter and cheese che esse goats coats cheese Is a staple goats cheese a delicatessen delicacy in the united d states Is a principal article of norwegian diet it has the rich brown color and something of the flavor of peanut butter it Is not eaten on crackers cinc kera as a supplementary tary course but sliced and laid ined on large cross sections of brown brend bread Is a staple of tile lie characteristic of inland norway Is a ramer which lies at the north noi thern them end of kjosen lake Nor ways largest body of fresh water the town Is 15 a gateway to tile the gudbrand 8 do dal in tills this valley many ancient customs and costumes of the country are still to in vogue the town itself lies on the north and south rail mil route from oslo to anil and Is visited united annually by thousands of tourists this region differs maric markedly effly from the flord fiord country bord bordering erinc the atlantic coast and the load land of the lie mid night sun san which lies farther to tile the north in spite of its high latitude lillehammer enjoys a mild climate resort hotels being open for visitors the year round of supreme interest to both norwegian anil and foreigner Is tin an outdoor museum of ancient arts and crafts nt tile the nearby village of Mal malhausen haugen hand built farmhouses mills workshops and barns were purchased pun fahed moved to one community and en riched with collections of old norwegian begian hanl handwork work there are articles art liles of wood brass leather and iron to to gether with exa examples eam milles ples of weaving and embroidery typical of the products of cottage handicrafts carried on by peasants of tile the neighborhood during long winter evenings here are also spann spinning ing I 1 wit wheels eels looms and tools used before the introduction of factory goods during tourist season provision la Is ninde made to have artisans actually working at loom and forge so that memory of the count rys historic pens ant alit arts and crafts may not entirely fade from the earth Lille lillehammer bammer itself while it Is the metropolis of gudni valley and claims more than Inh atil tants lias has lud had only a aport cp Ort r rf of CM or purnie borato existence |
