I'm just back from spending two weeks teaching at a College in Volda, Norway. It was my first time in this country - somewhere I'd always wanted to visit - and it was a wonderful experience. The landscape is truly stunning, with majestic peaks, steep cliffs that plunge thousands of feet into fjords and distant snow capped mountains. I also found the wooden buildings very interesting. It rained a bit (most days - that's what the splodges on the drawings are) but it didn't spoil it - the autumn colours were spectacular and I met some really great people. I'll post a link to the photos later
my photosMeanwhile here's a few sketches done with a broad nibbed art pen - I really enjoyed using it - the ink comes out very fast so you have to work equally quickly - and when it's about to rain that's a bonus.
Here's the view from my bedroom - with the steep side of the Rotsethornet on the left - I didn't get to climb up it this time - but I will return...
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHJRPzgdtpRAme_0PZ5xT5BuWZEjeB80viNRuhPfh4c9yCbSfvyyWqqAxD_k3bHkW8poHWoaOE3EkNBdxWa1GKhkD6MWn8I-uDvzHjzhyphenhyphenPKKm1fEjprvkg8PWPTHuAFxxFJ0zHYQ/s400/Norway01.jpg)
Volda has an open air museum - a fascinating collection of buildings showing traditional building techniques. The turf roofs were very interesting with a wealth of plants growing above a layer of birch bark...
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJceWZTzbCHVVvK0hGgtXUldVarIUdXdfu3WXb6-2spGm_2QE7lrkRBTiWEnOc0yBE8-ntEcu3b3uxg_nLW1T-XkFfFhpWaykf0asBtKNzweMmPc3sIOS81T3KEX0IhLk7QQ9C8w/s400/Norway02.jpg)
I think this may have been a small water mill. There's a millstone in front of it and it had a horizontal many-bladed fan underneath it...
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I went for a walk up the hill behind the town. There were some very picturesque mossy forest areas with streams and waterfalls. On the way back down I sketched the view over the town - again with the Rotsethornet behind...
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiU0Mere3NwjtO5h8-X1_rz3_7oFsCCkgVnRgac_zSpyn6b2JCgcr0ob2HuSwdYOeOFmc9bo83-hlFZoZV1TKAyByr9U0kefhAElggHzRagCY7GDNgFmg7LFCuSHLYg2Pfc7chL3Q/s400/Norway05.jpg)
The neighbours house had terrific Viking style dragons on the ridge of the roof...
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5-2oaYEIXdQbqBY5Chm6X2qrR0585oS2DDijIoNRTE1AfE72X4i7EFmKSYjwM3C66BGlIWNgbqy2IYKscjd3lorrkqOIFOkUiueO8ADzy22X-CmmDoFi5SGohloMNGpSS9pe6KA/s400/Norway06.jpg)
We visited the Briksdal Glacier at the weekend - it's difficult to get an idea of the scale - even in the photos. If you take a picture of the whole thing with someone alongside it they just become a tiny dot. Whilst we were exploring the edge we heard a terrifying crack and far above we could see a few bits fall off - it took a long time for the to reach the bottom. Sadly the glacier is retreating at quite an alarming rate...
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiw18xxMwSiXtaegMCHXSHGm8Oo8JlE1MT8pJeYn2yGPk9DDfgB2sdhZwvJu0UY55iMTzTpiohgYhTCDljnMZUiNdhlfYktF772N3Lfux3qDUv7j_mQxveoeMewgzm6WkqoKsQvqw/s400/Norway07.jpg)
This is a typical Norwegian barn. They always have at least one ramp for the farmer to drive his tractor up and drop off er, um, some farm type stuff - straw or cows or something...
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The day before I left was very special - some intrepid students agreed to come out for a walk in the rain and we found a reconstruction of a traditional Sami dwelling called a Goahti. The Sami are Reindeer herders from the far North. Ailu was a Sami himself and he quickly got everything in place and a fire lit. There was a table without legs and some decorated reindeer skins to sit on. What a fantastic place for a picnic. This is the view of the front door...
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDdzOY82_d4lVp1q-aDJs1mT68WmFWI0ly0QDYd8ynZOQ3nNfWroJAxG1eufFHdmaNAUFsoNbrpyfq4SQrK43nE2zdX59RfWg6AZMksEpGVRVNP7IQ_Px0d2I5BbY2yyvRFhWobA/s400/Norway09.jpg)
Finally the trip back. I had three planes t catch so I made it into a bit of a sketchcrawl. Here's Aalesund airport at 11AM and Bergen at 12...
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This is an old glider, also at Bergen, at 12.30PM...
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On the plane, somewhere over the North Sea at 2PM...
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And Aberdeen at 3.30PM (my first time in Scotland)...
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0RDa1lqjz5-1u2SWirU-1ff7IRWExI4eqZJOuYzZjoyFS_N7j0rZMLOX2_tZ_9I_mgwu0zvGd4FAf56JlTOrTCpvxmIlS95kMZTa130Zumj_7ZbHwvWbvevdCeTUkD-aaiS2rLQ/s400/Norway13.jpg)
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVaAp0JjI_8n_6QTwtUf_uCB3xIwlbAqUovgi_di2hfhM64oy7Zv-RVBZihPJvq4xTbIhJzBWn4gQca1GmRVqylDaXp2FEQ2eYio6y2oYoZY2RBdRpKP0_EqxAQLtos2-HLTHZhw/s400/Norway14.jpg)
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Other Nordic observations...
- Fish are very important in Norway.
- There doesn't seem to be any crime in Volda - people don't put fences and gates round their houses or businesses and bikes are left unlocked on the street. Or perhaps stealing a bike is pointless. You'd either have to risk getting caught as you cycle slowly up a very steep hill - or end up at the fjord at the bottom of the hill.
- You can't buy alcohol in a supermarket after 6 on a Saturday (bear this in mind if you're invited to a party on a Saturday night and don't want to arrive looking like a beerless cheapskate)
- Most of the TV is taken up by news and current affairs - and most of the news and current affairs is about fish.
- Norwegians are very fit and love the outdoors. Whilst descending a 700m mountain in cold, almost horizontal rain we were overtaken by several joggers, dogwalkers and even a couple with a pram.
- Beer is expensive - almost £5 a pint. The barman will ask you several times if you really wanted 4 glasses before pouring them.
- They recently launched a cruise ship called the 'Hurtegurten'
- Norwegian for fish is 'fisk'
It all seems a long way off now I'm back and working again. I hope I go back again soon.