Slekta mi! Day 2

*originally written 6/30*

After a delicious breakfast at the hotel, we loaded all the relatives into the various cars and mini buses we'd brought to Bømlo and drove the half hour or so to Moster, one of the oldest churches in Norway and the place where Christianity first reached the country. The church at Moster was established in 995 by Olav Tryggvason after he crossed the North Sea from England. Olav was originally a Viking but converted while in England, was baptized, and sailed to Norway to claim the throne. When he landed in Moster, he built a wooden stave church, which lasted 150 years before a stone church was built on the same spot. We got to go inside the church and hear about the history of Christianity in Norway as well as that of the church (relevant, since we have been hearing all about how Ivar and Anna were very invested in their church and religious life). As we entered the church, our guide began chanting in Latin. Wow! So crazy to hear Latin with a slight Norwegian accent but she had a GORGEOUS voice and I enjoyed every second of it. After the short talk in the church, during which we sat in some really uncomfortable box pews (boy, am I glad we didn't have to sit through a three hour sermon on those things like they used to!), we followed our tour guide out into the green to the cemetery at the side of the church. She showed us a "deal stone" - a very large rock with a hole in the middle, large enough to put your entire arm through. People thought that if a deal was struck and the deal makers shook on it through the deal stone hole, it would be a very good deal with positive results. Please realize that by saying this hole was big enough to fit an arm through, I mean a normal person's arm. I could probably have fit both arms through, all the way up to the shoulders. And if that wasn't enough, the hole looked like a giant footprint! Legend says that this particular deal stone was made when St. Olav (also known as the Holy Olav, which is quite fun to say) stamped his foot on the ground - putting it straight through the rock! Talk about a feet of strength. Get it?

The Deal Stone

Post-deal stone, we went into a much newer building to see a short exhibit called "From Heathendom to Christendom," which illustrated Norway's ancient mythological traditions and the move to Christianity by the nation, as well as the integration of Christian images and symbols into traditional Norse stories and pictures. Following that exhibit was an equally short exhibition on the geology of Moster, displayed in a real cave tunnel. (I was kind of excited to be in the cave - I could breathe to full capacity! Asthmatics rejoice!) The cave let out into a large amphitheater, where it was quite fun to watch the younger cousins play. Lars and Live treated us to a dance while Louisa merrily ran all over to avoid the Tickle Monster (her uncle Erik).

We then all headed back to Bømlo proper, to the hotel, to split into activity groups for the afternoon. Dad and Peter joined a group that hiked to the top of Mt. Siggjo, others napped, Mom and I went to Svortland with Nancy, Lindsay, and Karen for some shopping. Mom found a new scarf while I also got a new scarf and a top for my time in Florence - and all our items were on sale. Go us.

A few hours later, we all met back at the hotel, dropped off bags, got cleaned up, and car-pooled out to Hiskholmen - a refurbished, historic smokehouse in a rocky inlet just off the coast. Hiskholmen was one of eight old merchant houses which developed out of a law from 1303, when Håkon Håkonson (the same guy who built Håkonshallen) ordered a guest house placed every three miles along the main thoroughfares for use by travelers of both sea and land. Hiskholmen, thanks to a lot of dedication and hard work put in by Kjell Steinsvåg (the current owner), is still around today and remarkably well preserved. We stayed outside, enjoying the weather, for quite a while, taking pictures and mingling. We even got around to taking a huge family photo! A journalist from the Bømlo paper had gotten wind of our reunion and wanted to get some pictures and information on the gathering (apparently the locals can't quite wrap their heads around the fact that there are so many of us - much less so many who are from the States! I can't either.) I'll post the links once they're up and translated. While waiting for dinner, the Norwegian cousins, led by Asta, showed us a new game, called Slå På Ringen, which was rather similar to Duck, Duck, Goose. I was only picked once but boy, was it fun.

The view from Kiskholmen.

Hiskholmen.

The whole family!

Soon after pictures and games, we all went inside to eat. We were served a seafood buffet consisting of pickled herring, two types of salmon, three types of shrimp, whole stuffed crabs, scallops, mussels, salad and bread - all cold. The food was good, but there were some looks of surprise at my table (the kids and young adults) when we discovered the temperature was not what we had expected. Dinner was good though; I got to meet and talk to a number of cousins my age, making new friends and bonding over a shared hatred of the mussels (which looked nasty). Although most of us at my section of the table were in the 17-26 age range, 9 year old Magnus held his own and we all had a great time. At one point, we told an older cousin that we were all going out later - with Magnus as our DD (which he agreed to right away). We asked him a few minutes later if he knew what a DD was and he said no. We explained, saying that he would keep us all safe while we were drinking, to which he replied "I can't drink." We explained again and his response this time was "oh. I can't drive!" At that point we told him that he was smart, so we'd teach him and we were sure he'd pick it up right away. His next concern? That he didn't have a license (we said he could borrow one of ours). What a good, law-abiding kid I have for a cousin.

Cousins!

Dessert was delicious - Kransekake (almond cake), Lefse, and Bløtekake (cream and jam soaked sweet bread cake). Afterwards, we had a short program which began with singing "happy birthday" to cousin Knut, who will turn 90 at the end of July. Other cousins got up to talk too - my favorite was Tom with his "no lutefisk" signs! We then had a special treat: Kjell, the man who restored Hiskholmen, wanted to speak to us as well. Asta told us that he would speak on the history of Hiskholmen, but instead Kjell launched into one of the most heartfelt and moving speeches I have ever heard (and I couldn't even hear all of it!). He started by saying that he wanted to thank the United States and its people; he told us that we helped during World War I, in World War II (during which he says we saved Norway), in Korea, in Afghanistan, and more. He told us that Americans bring peace, freedom, and education and that he will always be grateful for this. He said that Lincoln taught us to love peace and love each other after the Civil War and that experience has shaped us as a people. He then spoke directly to my table - to the young people - saying that we are responsible for carrying on that legacy of peace, freedom, and helping those in need. We all felt very solemn for all of this - until Woody's hero music from Toy Story 3 came floating in from the other room where the little kids were watching a movie. That kind of killed the mood. Thank goodness we were the only ones who could hear it! Kjell ended by saying that we should tell all our newspapers and all of our people that Norway will never forget, that he will never forget, and that they are all eternally grateful.

Now I don't care what your political beliefs are or what you think of the United States' role in the various conflicts and wars of the world, when you hear an old man like Kjell tell you something like that, you believe it. You listen to it, you believe it, and you want to live up to it. You can't help but want to help people and be the hero that he sees you as. How incredibly powerful.