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.