Another side of Lesley Riddoch

MUSEUMS AT THE EDGE OF THE WORLD

 

 

A couple of pictures from the fab Tromso museums – and then I'll stop writing about Norway! As I mentioned in today's Scotsman column (30 March) the Norwegians have far more museums than the British – 800 for 4 ½ million people there against 2500 for 55 million people here. They are imaginative, thoughtful and well-funded community centres – not freezing sheds opened every other Wednesday by exhausted volunteers. And even though Tromso is the world's northernmost town, these are not the world's northernmost museums. Kirkenes and Spitsbergen "naturally" have museums too. I like the way these Nordic museums celebrate the small personal things – like the birch bark tar used as chewing gum by a Stone Age child (her teeth marks are visible through the magnifying glass.) And also admire they way they aren't afraid to court controversy. The polar bear picture here helped earn Tromso's Polar Museum a place in the ten worst museums in the world according to the Lonely Planet Guide because of its "celebration" of hunting, killing and trapping animals. Having spent two hours looking round, it's hard to see how people could have survived in the Arctic without hunting. And without other natural resources to exploit, no surprise hunting became a trade and a virility test. Anyway, one thing I wanted to say in the Scotsman diatribe about the Lewis Chessmen, I quite realise the historical society in Uig has said they don't want the Chessmen on permanent display locally. So I'd really like to ask them – WHY NOT?!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Norway and tidal power - a short video

This is a short piece I recorded with Inger Lise Mathisen of Hammerfest Strom talking about the tidal technology headed for Islay. It was another fascinating part of my trip to Norway.

The hits keep coming...another Aftermath is available

Lesley and the Riddoch Questions crew discuss technology and creative writing from the usual irreverent perspective of the post broadcast lull. Enjoy it here.

My photos from my recent Norway trip.

norway select

Following my recent trip to Norway, I sat down, downloaded all the photos from my camera and captioned them all for you to enjoy. I hope you enjoy them as much as I do.

The Missing Flights Aftermath

The Riddoch Questions crew muse in the light of a programme all about energy. Naturally, the subject of missing flights comes up. Have a listen over at the Missing Flights Aftermath

Revolution in the snow

It snowed very heavily today here in Bodo (pronounce Buddah). The kind of snow that would make everything grind to a halt in Scotland. But life went on here almost as normal. Car tyres have studs, so there's no slipping. And outdoors is NORMAL for the kindergartens we visited today. The Medas farm kindergarten 60 kms inland was an inspired case of diversification. Jostein Hunstad bought the sheep farm in 1983 but attacks from raptors like the lynx pictured here made the farm unviable.

So his wife Anita started a kindergarten based on visits to the farm animals, helping grow vegetables and playing outside. Ten years ago they had 6 children, now they have 64 and a waiting list. The kids play outdoors in little thermal, waterproof suits, hats and boots – they feed and play with the farm animals and even learn to sharpen knives on trees. They watch chickens being throttled and cow carcases being butchered – they learn how things live and how they die. My stalwart companion educational researcher Wenche Roening could hardly understand my questions about safety, hygiene and "taste."

That old Norwegian saying has never been more true "there is no bad weather – only inappropriate clothing." I've just been warming my feet up in the bath at the hotel.

Home tomorrow – great to see my husband Chris. But not so great to get back to a land where things are the way they are because, its ae been. Why are we cooping up kids – and what is it doing to their playfulness and sense of independence? I have film, audio, pictures and notes aplenty. sSo watch this space.

Hurtigruten hopping

Every day for the last century a Hurtigruten boat has started the 11-day, 35-stop voyage from Bergen to Kirkenes and back. Yesterday, at 1am, I became part of the Norwegian Coastal steamer's journey, joining at Tromso and sleeping like a log aboard the MS Lofoten till our first big stop at Harstad at 8.30am. The scenery around the Vestfalen and Lofoten Islands has been spectacular. I've filled a memory card and gone through two sets of camera batteries and learned that these islands -- with peaky mountains like massive versions of the Cuillin on Skye –make for great summer cycling. And if you stay near the coast and avoid July, the mozzies are quite negligible. Apparently. The crew are marvellous – during one stopover there was enough internet signal to send my Scotsman column, I discovered norovirus was my problem earlier this week and had a half hour discussion in the bridge about everything from controversial Norwegian writer Knut Hamsen to the ever present issue of oil and gas discovery and change. The Hurti-dinner tonight was absolutely top notch. But within a minute of sipping coffee the boat really started to lurch. And knowing my sea legs were left somewhere between Eigg and Mallaig in the 90s, I headed back to my Hobbit-like cabin and laid flat out. I've been writing this in a five minute respite as we made a stop at Stamsund on the Lofoten Islands. Now there's a four hour schlep across the Norwegian Sea to Bodo. Let's hear it for islands! They provide shelter in every sense of the word! And now there is none – its lights off in Cabin 235. And let that sea do its worst! (Later) And it truly did! The boat pitched – and I lay stock still -- for about three hours hearing the propeller whirring right out of the water. The Captain said we'd been through an unexpected Force 9 (look at the picture above for unexpected. It was like a millpond all day!) and the ferry from Russia had turned back! OK life. That is surely enough natural challenge for one week?!

The Faith Aftermath

At the recording of the Riddoch Questions Faith Debate, we kept the recorders running for the next 20 minutes or so. We got more questions and audience interaction. It's over at www.rqs.libsyn.com - enjoy!

Oslo issues

Who could believe such a healthy looking salad could cause so much pain? Perhaps the fact the photo is out of focus was trying to tell me something. Like – don't eat me. Anyway suffice it to say that after this nutritious nibble went wrong in transit at Copenhagen airport I didn't get much sleep, fainted twice and felt like I'd been in a marathon when I got up this morning in Oslo. And this was my big day! I'm here on a trip organised by Scotland's Norwegian Consul to discover more about the Nordic outlook, why it's so successful and whether – if you scrape 300 years of "British" overlay off the Scots, we are Nordic too. Well a bit. The Scots pride themselves on being a mongrel nation, but are strangely unaware of the hidden strengths that lie in the unacknowledged Nordic parts of our national DNA. Having spoken at length today to Erik Rudeng and Nina Witoszek – I'm starting to realise how differently Scotland might have turned out if we understood the Nordic connection better. Erik is Director of Fritt Ord, a Foundation set up after Norwegian independence to safeguard freedom of speech in the wake of Nazi occupation. Nina is a petite Polish whirlwind of energy, political incorrectness and intelligence. She's Professor of Cultural History and some of her observations were mind-blowing. More in the book! Meantime, go and see the Nordics in tune with Scots -- Floe is the musical collaboration between Scottish harpist Catriona MacKay and Fair Isle fiddler Chris Stout and Sweden's Olov Johansson playing the zither like nyckelharpa and the entrancingly weird and haunting Norwegian ensemble headed by fiddler Nils Okland. We saw them at a packed house in Stirling's Tolbooth – tradition for the future.

I think the last gig left is the 11^th in Aberdeen's Lemon Tree. Don't hesitate if you're in town.

The Brown Barter Poverty Aftermath is available

There is a new Aftermath where the Riddoch Questions crew start by talking about Gordon Brown and meander through local barter systems and end up in poverty. As usual, all the opinions of the contributors are their own and are not those of Lesley Riddoch or Feisty Productions Ltd. Heavy metal music, we all accept, is an acquired taste.