Anna går fremst med flagget

Esten shows Ariel and Solvei the traditional Norwegian videregåendeskole graduation outfit, "Russedress"

Jenni, Synnøve, og Tove viser frem bunadene sine. A "bunad" is a traditional Norwegian formal costume.

Olava, Halla, og Åsta spiller opp!

Barnetoget er i gang!

The parade on its way to Gimle

Vi vinker til Kongen! The royal family waves. Left to right: Ari Behn, Prinsesse Märtha Louise, Prins Håkon Magnus, Prinsesse Mette Marit, Kong Harald, Dronning Sonja

Deilig mat

On friday the 18th, we celebrated the Norwegian constitution day, the 17^th of May, with a children’s parade and music. The celebration was followed by a banquet with very good Norwegian food and a visit from the Norwegian royal family! We got a small taste of what it is really like to celebrate the 17^th of May in Norway’s capital, Oslo, and we had a lot of fun.

På fredag den 18 så hadde vi en fin feiring av den Norske grunnlovsdag, syttende Mai, med barnetog og musikkspeling. Feiringen var følget av en fabelaktig bankett med mye god mat og besøk av den Norske kongefamilien! Vi fikk en liten smakebite om hvordan det egentlig er å feire 17. mai i selveste Oslo, Norge, og vi koste oss veldig.

There are many more pictures on our Flickr page. Be sure to check those out!

Det finnes flere bilder på Flickr!

-Skrevet av Elsa

The following image is from a campaign by Nasjonalbiblioteket to promote Bjørnsonåret 2010.

Even though it rained for most of Saturday, familiar faces brightened the day for those of us out there (Jens, Hannah, Magna, Minda, and Lena, as well as some 2009 credit villagers).  Former Skogfjorden staff members, former villagers, barnehage families and staff (our Norwegian pre-K program), and a lot of other hard core supporters of Norwegian culture and language programs came out to play with us, knit with us, sing with us, etc.

Carol Sersland (of Fjell og Fjord  and Det Norske Folkedanslaget) came out for a few hours to teach folkdancing to some enthusiastic beginners. “The Pretzel Dance” was particularly popular! After much giggling and hopping in the slush, we headed over to the Reclamation Dance Shanty and danced to another Skogfjorden favorite: “Utadæsjælåplevelse” by Ravi and DJ Løv.

Folkdancing video on YouTube.

Utadæsjælåplevelse video at the Reclamation Dance Shanty on YouTube

By Sunday, the rain had puddled quite a bit, melting the snow. A river grew (some of us were humming, “Nidelven Stille og Vakker du er“), and then a lake (“Får jeg ikke mat, så hopper jeg i Mjøsa“). Even though attendance was down, participation was certainly up. About 430 visitors came to choose Norwegian names and identities for themselves. Click here to learn a bit about them! We learned the value of rubber boots (stakkars Asle!) and that we know a lot of people who we can “stole på mmmmm på en regnværsdag, en regnværsdag.”

Click here to see more photos from the Norwegian weekend at the Art Shanty!

Nordic Immersion Village Art Shanty featured on FOX 9 News

A recent story on Fox 9 News in the Twin Cities features video of the Nordic Immersion Village Art Shanty and interviews with Skogfjorden staff members. Be sure to check it out!

Skovsøen to Host This Weekend at the Art Shanty

Our friends from Skovsøen (the Danish Language Village) will be hosting this weekend (January 30-31) at the Art Shanty. As usual, the shanty will be open from 10AM to 5PM and there will be lots of activities for you and your family to enjoy.  Invite your friends on the Facebook event page and help us spread the word! 

If you need directions to the Art Shanty Projects on Medicine Lake in Plymouth, MN, you can click here. See you out on the ice!

The Oslo Chamber Choir (Oslo Kammerkor) will be visiting Minnesota soon to perform at four concerts around the state.

During the course of its 25-year history, the Oslo Chamber Choir has established itself as one of Norway’s leading choirs. The group has gained an international reputation for quality and versatility in performance and is particularly famous in Norway for its groundbreaking exploration of vocal folk music. The choir is conducted by Håkon Daniel Nystedt, grandson of the famous Norwegian composer and conductor Knut Nystedt.

Minnesota Tour Dates

• Concordia College – Moorhead, MN (Memorial Auditorium)
  Friday, Sept. 25, 2009 @ 7:30pm —- Event Page
• Augsburg College – Minneapolis, MN (Foss Center)
  Saturday, Sept. 26, 2009 @ 7:30pm —- Event Page
• Bethlehem Lutheran Church – St. Cloud, MN (church sanctuary)
  Sunday, Sept. 27, 2009 @ 4pm —- Event Page
• St. Olaf College – Northfield, MN (Memorial Chapel)
  Monday, Sept. 28, 2009 @7:30pm —- Event Page

You can view their Facebook event page here.

Bli med!

På lørdag hadde vi vårt siste avslutningsprogram av sommeren. Gjestene våre fikk se på noen av høydepunktene fra sesjonen, hørte på noen norske sanger, og lærte litt om hva vi gjorde på Skogfjorden i løpet av de siste to ukene. Vi feiret våre sju 10-års deltakere (vi hadde 10 totalt i sommer!) og våre 5-års deltakere fikk medaljene sine. I tillegg feiret vi Randis tjuende år på staben og hun fikk fra Tove og Martin Graefe et spesielt brev fra Concordia Language Villages. (Gratulere, Randi!) Til slutt danset vi… selvfølgelig!

Alle bildene fra avsluttningsprogrammet
Bilder av 5 og 10-års deltakere
Randi får brevet fra Tove og Martin

On Saturday we had our final closing program of the summer. Our guests got a chance to see some of the highlights from the session, hear some Norwegian songs, and learn about what we have been up to at
Skogfjorden during the past two weeks. We celebrated our seven 10-year villagers (we had 10 total this summer!), and our five-year villagers received their medallions. We also celebrated Randi’s 20th summer on staff at Skogfjorden. Tove and Martin Graefe awarded her a special letter written for her on behalf of Concordia Language Villages. (Congratulations, Randi!) We wrapped it all up with a dance… naturally!

Se på bildene!
Check out the photos!

På lørdag var vår siste Eurovision kveldsprogram av sommeren og alt gikk kjempe bra! Deltakerne lærte litt om hva Eurovision er, hørte sanger fra forskjellige land, og danset litt. Alexander Rybak, som representerte Norge i 2009, vant Eurovision i år med en sang som heter “Fairytale”.

On Saturday we had our last Eurovision evening program of the summer and it went well! The villagers learned a bit about Eurovision, heard some of the songs from the different countries who participated, and danced a bit. Alexander Rybak, who represented Norway in 2009, won the Eurovision song contest this year with a song called “Fairytale”.

Du kan finne mer informasjon om hvordan vi har brukt Eurovision som et tema i år her og du kan se på mange, mange bilder fra Eurovision kveldsprogrammer gjennom årene her. For å lære mer om Eurovision kan du klikke her.

You can find more information about how we’ve used Eurovision as a theme this year here and you can see many, many photos from Eurovision evening programs throught the years here. To learn more about the Eurovision song contest you can click here.

Hamsunsenteret skal:
- Dokumentere, bygge opp kunnskap og formidle informasjon om Hamsuns liv og diktning
- Presentere bredden og flertydigheten i Knut Hamsuns forfatterskap – Presentere forståelser av forholdet mellom Hamarøy, Hamsuns liv og hans diktning
- Kontekstualisere forfatterskapet
- Presentere og initiere kunstneriske produksjoner i sporene av Hamsuns diktning
- Stimulere til aktiv fortolkning, og fremme leseferdighet og interesse for litteratur og fortellertradisjonen
- Skape engasjement for problematikk knyttet til sammenhengen mellom litteratur og samfunn – Stimulere til utfoldelse i et unikt kulturlandskap
- Bidra til utviklingen av kultur-, nærings- og reiseliv i regionen, og således være med på å profilere Hamarøy, Nordland og Norge for turister fra inn- og utland.

—–
2009 is the year of Knut Hamsun and is being celebrated by the opening of The Hamsun Center in Hamarøy, Norway (in Nordland). Knut Hamson spent part of his childhood in Hamarøy. The mayor of Hamarøy was the host father to a Skogfjorden villager and counselor (Kaia!) during an exchange program. You can see a picture of the internal design of Hamsunsenteret above, along with a recent photo from their webcam.

The Hamsun Center shall:
-Document, collect, and share information about Hamsun’s life and works
-Present the depth and complexities in Knut Hamsun’s work
-Present an understanding of the relationship between Hamarøy, Hamsun’s life, and his work
-Contextualize his authorship
-Present and initiate artistic productions in the footsteps of Hamsun’s works
-Stimulate active interpretation, and advanced reading skills, as well as boost interest in the tradition of storytelling
-Engage people in problems related to literature and society
-Stimulate the growth of a unique cultural landscape
-Contribute to the further development of the cultural lives, business, tourism to build the profile of Hamarøy, Nordland, and Norway to people both inside and outside of Norway

Onsdag kveld var deltagere og ledere på Skogfjorden så heldige å få besøk av selveste Kongefamilien. Både kronprins Haakon, kronprinsesse Mette-Marit, Märtha Louise, Ari Behn og dronning Sonja var med i følget. Etter hvert kom også Kongen selv, kong Harald, og hilste på vår alles kjære Tove. I forkant hadde deltagerne fått i oppdrag å hjelpe Tove med å finne ut av hva hun skulle si, når hun nå fikk mulighet til å utveksle noen ord med ham. Og forslagene haglet:

- Liker du Ishockey? Har du det bra?  Hallo Konge! Liker du skilpadder? Du ser bra ut!

Det var med andre ord en opplevelsesrik, interresant og gøyal kveld på Skogfjorden, for både små og store. Helt etter oppskriften.

Wednesday evening, Villagers and staff at Skogfjorden were so fortunate to recieve a visit by The Royal Family. Both Crown Prince Haakon, Crown Princess Mette-Marit, Märtha Louise, Ari Behn and Queen Sonja came. After a while, The King himself showed up and greeted our dear Dame Tove. Prior to his presence, the Villagers were given the task of helping Tove come up with what to say to him, when she had the opportunity to have a conversation. And the suggestions came flowing in:

-Do you like Icehockey? Are you doing well? Hello King! Do you like turtles? You’re looking good!

In other words, it was an eventful, interesting and fun evening at Skogfjorden for everyone. Entirely by the book.

Lær mer om Kongefamilien her.
Learn more about The Royal Family here.