Happy New Year!

I wish you all a Happy New Year! 2010's last photo was taken a few years back, fireworks above Nedre Eiker!

Frost

It is still cold, even though it is "only" around -10 here in Eiker. It has been twice as cold and colder for so long, so -10 feels like zero degrees about now, yet these frozen branches tells the truth about how cold it really is..

Snømannen Kalle

I'm no engineer, but I'm pretty happy with the making of this snowman! Looking at it now, I can see it looks a little sad. Maybe it's because he's got one eye smaller than the other? And yes, I know I'm (supposed to be) grown-up, but I'm allowed to make ONE snowman throughout the winter!?

Snow Graffiti

It is not that there has been a lot of snowfall this winter, it's only about 30-40 cenitmetres. The abnormal thing is that the snow came in early November and because it's been so cold for such long periods (between -15 and -20 for weeks at a time), the snow is still here. Today's photo is of a wall covered in patches of snow, making a nice pattern. It's decorative and harmless, but when patches like these cover up whole traffic signs along the road, it's a different case.

Romjulsdrøm

The days between Christmas Eve and New Years Eve are called "romjul." Traditionally, the romjul lasts from the 3rd day of Christmas (today) until the 13th (the 6th of January). The name derives from the norse word "rúmheilagr," meaning "that do not need to be kept strictly sacred." Romjul is for many a quiet, peaceful and relaxing time at home, for others a busy week of visiting family and friends eating left over Christmas food. My romjulsdrøm (romjul's dream) is to do as little as possible, only with breaks of some acitivity, preferably cross country skiing or bandy. As the famous norwegian singer and writer Alf Prøysen put it;

"En skulle vøri fire år i romjul

da julelysa brente dagen lang
og væla var et hus med fire vegger,
der saligheta var et bessmorfang"

If you have got Spotify you can listen to Alf Prøysen singing his Christmas song here.

SSK-MIF

Boxing Day is the day for the annual derby between Mjøndalen Sports Association (MIF) and Solberg Sports Club (SSK) in bandy, a winter sport similar to ice hockey. This year, the match will be played at the ice in Solbergelva, whilst today's photo is from last years game at Vassenga, in Mjøndalen. I'm cheering for MIF as it is my home team, but I suspect that SSK will win. For those of you who are not too familiar with bandy, check out this video.

Gnomes need food too!

When you read this, you might be chock-full and sick of Christmas food, but have you thought about the little gnomes that might be living in a barn close to you?? There might be a little gnome or Santa Clause living in this barn, if so, I hope someone have put out a plate with traditional "risengrynsgrøt" (rice porridge) and a glass of special "tomtebrygg" (santa beer) to him.

God jul!

My favourite Christmas window display does not belong to a fancy boutique in one of Eiker's main streets and it can't be found in the shopping centres. This display, these Santa Clauses, can be found close to home, as they belong to my grandmother and sits in her living room window. I want to wish all of my readers God Jul, a Merry Christmas! In a few hours my family and I will enjoy our Christmas dinner; pork ribs, sausages, sauerkraut and more Aass Christmas beer, before opening our presents! I hope all of you will have a lovely Christmas Eve and Christmas Day!

Mølje

For those of you who don't know what mølje is, read my post about the annual Møljefestival. Today, on lille julaften (little Christmas Eve) the tradition in my family's house is mølje for dinner (and Christmas beer from the local brewery Aass on the side), hence today's photo! Velbekomme and enjoy your meal!

The battle for the scissors and tape!

With less than two days to Christmas Eve (the day we Norwegians open our Christmas presents) there is a battle for the scissors and tape at my parents' house. Every year my mother complains that the rest of the family borrow and lose her scissors and tape, so it made me chuckle when I saw this year's solution to the problem!

Ciao!

I have gone to Italy and back, in just the time it took to eat this italian styled waffle at Kafé Elvebakken. On Saturday, my mum and I went to see Pushwagner's exhibition at Gulden Kunstverk (see earlier posts), and afterwards we had lunch at the café next door. As I have shared in an earlier post (see link above), they serve a norwegian speciality, the waffle, with a twist. On Saturday they had an italian styled waffle on the menu. It contained ham, crème fraîche, pesto and salad. Yum!! I'm definitely going back for more! Check out their menu here!

The artist

Remember "The Cadillac"? This is another photo my mother took on the opening of Pushwagner's exhibition in November, a photo of the artist himself (the man on the right). Read more about Pushwagner here.

Christmas holiday!

Three exams in less than a week have taken their toll on my blogging. I now have a month of (Christmas) holiday and I am celebrating it with this photo, the seasonal window decorations made by the pupils at the local elementary school

Juletrefangst

A favourite Christmas memory from when I was a kid is the day that my family and some family friends went to the farm, Klunderud Gård, at Darbu, Øvre Eiker to "catch the Christmas tree." The picture Eagen Daily Photo posted on the 29th of November is spot on recounting what we used to do those days, except that we also sledged down the hills we climbed to get far into the forest in our Christmas tree hunt. I spotted this sign some days ago, apparently there are plenty more farms in the area that offer their forests and trees to those who don't want to settle with catching a tree at the local petrol shop or a buying plastic tree from the grocery store.

Stenseth

I have fallen in LOVE!! With my dad's new camera, the beautiful Canon Eos 500D, with a perfect 18-200 lens!! This is a very zoomed-in photo of the little area called Stenseth, "belonging" to the village Krokstadelva. I have yet to explore the camera's settings more, but so far I like what I see!

Brrr

To all of you out there, whether you are somewhere else in Norway or in France, in India, Australia or Canada, I’d like to give you an insight of how being in Eiker feels at the moment. I only need one word to go with my photo today: ”BRRR!” The temprature has been down to 20 blue continuously the last week and a half. Usually this cold period comes around New Years Eve, but this year, the winter hit Norway and Eiker early! I wonder how long it'll last..

Advent

Today is the second Sunday in the season of Advent. As it is a Christian season, I think a photo of Nedre Eiker Church is an appropriate photo today. The church dates back from 1860 and were drawn by architect Wilhelm Hanstein. The church is a "langkirke" which means that its nave is elongated to symbolize the sacred way (via sacra).

A mother's love

I have posted a photo of this deer family earlier (this post here), but I couldn't resist posting this photo too, that I took yesterday morning. Ever since I moved here in August, I have seen them every other day, but never so close to the house like this. They defied the dangers by crossing the fields in search for food closer to people, still the mother (on the right) took her time to pet and take extra good care of her little one.

JULAnissen

Since we're now in December it's about time to be all "Christmassy." The shops have been all about the jolly season since late October or something, but I always try not to get in the Christmas spirit until December. Today's photo is of JULA, a retail warehouse that recently opened in Mjøndalen and their choice of Christmas decoration, a huge Julenisse, Santa Claus on top of the roof.

Time

The blue colour and the coldness of this photo gives me the feel that time stands still. Yet, the white line in the sky made by an airplane so far away you can’t even see it, tells me that time does go on.
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November 30th, 12 p.m

Everyone who's ever been in the mountains know about the tree line, where trees no longer can grow, due to the cold, lack of moisture or insufficient air pressure. In Norway, during the winter, especially in valleys (like Nedre Eiker), there is something I call "solgrense," the sun line. It's the line where the sun stops to shine, where its rays of light can't reach. I took this photo today from the south end of Mjøndalen, with views to the north and Krokstadelva. Precisely at midday, the sun only reached to the middle of the valley. This is due to the surrounding hills and because the sun goes lower in the sky in winter. This means that for the people who live on the south side of the vally, there is absolutely no sunshine from early November to approximatley March. "No sunshine, isn't that a little depressing?" you might ask. "At least we've got daylight," my answer would be and I would compare it to the north of Norway where it's dark throughout winter!

Waking up in winter wonderland!

Yesterday it snowed non-stop, and by nine o'clock this morning I had, together with so many others, shoveled lots of snow already, just in order to get out of the front door! I'm not complaining though, this is winter wonderland!

Ice Ice Baby

After a short "warm" period, with about zero degrees, the weather reports says it will get colder. Already it's down to -10 degrees, and the icicles have arrived!

The cadillac

This Saturday was the opening of Hariton Pushwagner's last exhibition this year, at the art gallery Gulden Kunstverk in Steinberg, Nedre Eiker. Pushwagner, or Terje Brofos, which is his real name, is a popular norwegian pop art- and contemporary artist. The opening exceeded all expectations, with close to a thousand visitors during the day. As I was busy on Saturday, my mother took time to quickly drive past and take a few photos on my behalf, and she took this snapshot of the cadillac, Pushwagner's cadillac, parked in front of the gallery!

H2O

I spotted this old fire hydrant a while back. If it's still in use, I don't know, but I guess it is. Nowdays, the firemen's water supply mainly comes from manholes. I did a quick search on the name on the hydrant and found out that Esco is the factory where these hydrants (and other valves and fittings) are being made. The factory is actually situated in Kongsberg, a city a 30 minutes drive away from Øvre Eiker.

Wall of fame

Thursday night equals quiz night at Mjøndalen Gjæstgiveri, the pub in Mjøndalen. Yesterday I went there and I took this photo of the quiz's wall of fame, where the proud quiz winners get their photo posted. Yesterday, my friends and I came only second, but last time we actually won, and to my delight and to my friends' horror, our photo is now on the wall of fame too!!

Fancy a ride?

I don't know about you guys, but I rather just walk than take my bike for a ride at this time. It is icy and slippery enough as it is, than having to keep balance on a bike as well. You do get special winter tires for bikes if you're that keen, but that keen, I am not!

Alpine fever

This weekend, Aron Ski Club (from Drammen, a neighbouring municipality) organized a second hand market in the recreation centre in Mjøndalen. Hundreds of people came to get their hands on cheap skis and equipment. As Aron Ski Club is an alipne club, most of the equipment on sale were alpine gear, but there were some ice skates and cross-country skiis and equipment there too, which is more to to my taste and interest!

3050

I've cheated a little with today's photo. I took this a few winter's back, but with the amount of snow that has fallen the last few days, the valley looks just the same today! The photo shows the west part of Mjøndalen, with views towards Steinberg and Øvre Eiker!

Orange

On Saturday I was missing the snow. I didn't have to miss it for too long, the other day it snowed again. Now I find my self missing the bright colours of autumn, the orange, red and yellow, like these leaves. I know, I'm not easy to please, but that's how it is when autumn and winter are so different, but equally beautiful!

Gamlebrua

A few months back I posted this photo from the river side. Today's photo is taken almost at the same place, with focus on the bridge Gamlebrua (the Old Bridge). The bridge is one of two bridges connecting Mjøndalen and Krokstadelva in Nedre Eiker.

Surrender

When I see this photo, that I took in the forest of Mjøndalen, my mind instantly stops working and I let myself surrender to the peacefulness and serenity in the picture. The local Golf Club has these fields in mind when it comes to expanding the current golf course from 9 to 18 holes. I do not support it at all, and would rather unwind, relax and get fresh air from walking here than playing golf.

Antique Mania

Two happy ladies selling antiques at Vestfossen Marken earlier this autumn. I think it's about time to find an antique market or a flea market in the area soon. I don't know exactly what I need, but I'm sure I need something for my flat.. Last time, I found an egg cup and a pastry iron, I wonder what little treasures I'll find the next time..

Snow misses me

How long ago is it since this winter's first snowfall? A week, two weeks? Regardless of when it fell, it was gone again within a day or two, and since then it has been raining loads. It's just the last few days it's been nice and sunny, still I miss the snow. This photo I took the morning after the snowfall. It's the photo I postponed to post the morning after as I took this and showed you instead..

Poesi

Yesterday I posted a photo of the barn at Portåsen, and today I decided to post a photo from inside it, and inside the gallery that tells the story of Wildenvey and his poetry. Here, I found a collection of his poetry.

"Åser som senkede rygge
av dyr i hvilende ring
senker seg solskinnstrygge
hele min bygd omkring”

Wildenvey

In August, I wrote about Portåsen, the farm and childhood home of Herman Wildenvey, a famous local poet. The farm has been renovated and restored. A little café has opened up in the main house, and this barn has been transformed into several small art galleries, one of them telling the story of Wildevey's life and career. For information about what's on at Portåsen, follow this link.

Happy Halloween!!

Just a quick post today, as I'm going trick-or-treating!! Happy Halloween!!

Møljefestival

Pepperkaker (gingerbread men) and marzipan has arrived the grocery stores. It's not yet November, but obviously Christmas is not far away. One Christmas tradition in the Eiker area is mølje. Mølje is a dish, and in different parts of Norway it consists of different things. In Eiker, mølje is broth from boiled pork meat that a special thin crisp bread, flatbrød, are being dipped into. For the second year, Mjøndalen football club and Aulie lompebakeri (the suppliers of the special flatbrød) are hosting a Møljefestival here in Mjøndalen, which is a big feeding frenzy of mølje in the recreation hall. The banner hung up in Mjøndalen's main street tells me the festival takes place on the 6th of November. Read more about Møljefestivalen here

Knudsen Smia

In the middle of Mjøndalen, a small red brick building stands. The building is a forge, called Knudsen Smia. It has been in the Knudsen family through three generations, since 1896. Today the forge is run by Karl Oddbjørn Knudsen, who keeps it open twice a week. Knudsen has also close contact with a PhD student, who is learning how to make the type of ax, merkeøks, that Knudsen Smia is famous for. The building today dates from 1906 and is preserved (a photo of the building will be posted another day). The forge is also the closest neighbour to what used to be the house and property to my grandmother's family, where she and my mum grew up. They can both still recall the smell of the burnt metal and coal and the sounds from the anvil whilst the merkeøks were produced!

A new gymnasium

During the summer holiday, the old gymnasium at Veiavangen Ungdomsskole, the high school in Mjøndalen, Nedre Eiker was demolished, and now they are in full swing of constructing the new one. I am sad I never got a photo of the old gymnasium before it was torn down, as I have many good (and some not so good) memories from my three years there, whether it was playing dodgeball or checking out the boys at prom night!

Malum

I'm a little confused whether my title today actually translates into apple. If not, it translates into evil. There should be a little thing in top of the "u" in "malum" that would tell the difference, but I can't find it on my keyboard... I do find the connection between the two words interesting, as the apple has been poisoned in fairy tales, like Snow White, and indentified as the forbidden fruit in the Book of Genesis. Today's apple is neither poisoned nor in the Garden of Eden, so I guess I can saftely give it to my teacher in the morning..

More graffiti

Remember I said I thought I would have difficulties finding graffiti for this month's theme day? Well, as I found out, there are loads of grafitti images around train stations, like Mjøndalen station. Here is another one!

Candy

I was craving suger and sweets yesterday, so I went down to our local grocery shop to buy some. This is a photo from inside of it! No, I'm just joking. Despite being a small place, Eiker do have the kind of shops like everywhere else in Norway and the world! This shop is a "replica" of the old fashion shops, and it's located inside the manor "Fossesholm" in Vestfossen. When I was young, I came here many times with school, and my memories from the visits are the old fashion candy you could, and still can buy here. I also love the old commercial posters on the wall, and you might recognize the old boxes on the top left, as I have written about them in an earlier post.

Fields of gold

Today, I chose to give you a view of Nedre Eiker from the area we call "bygda." The word "bygda" means the village, but when we call the area between Øvre and Nedre Eiker "bygda," it means the area where all the farms and fields are, like the fields on today's photo.

Lille Eden

Lille Eden, or Little Eden, is a garden project planned and executed by Ingjerd and William Holmes, situated "inside" Fredfoss Culture Park in Vestfossen, Øvre Eiker. Lille Eden is open for everyone, and the initiators says the garden is intended as a place for peace and beauty in a stressing everyday. Both sculptures and installations are to come, and although I didn't find anything to back up my next statment, I think (and hope it's true) that the purple metal birds in this photo are made by Ingjerd Holmes herself. For more information click here

Hello Winter?

The ground and trees were beautiful and white this morning, although it looked like most the colour came from frost and not the snow that fell last night. I did take a photo of the scenery this morning, planning to post it today. That was until I saw this girl, trying to exploit the approximatly one to two centimetres of snow on the ground. 15 years ago, and that would have been me!!

Bye bye autumn!

It took the chestnut tree in the driveway of where I live just a few days to lose all of its leaves. The temprature has dropped below zero and the winter is coming closer. Tonight it has been snowing for the first time this year! I doubt the snow will stay for any longer than until tomorrow morning, but if it does I will make sure I get a nice photo of it! In the meantime, enjoy this beautiful autumn photo!

Generations

For today's photo I'm moving closer to home. This beautiful stone wall my granddad built and stacked 45-50 years ago. Many of the rocks were there from before, as the property is where he grew up in the 1930's. I love the moss on the rocks, and the thought of this wall being there for more generations to come!

My new home?

Towards Vestfossen, along the "rural road" and not the highway, just after the boarder to Øvre Eiker and amongst many farms and fields, this farm is for sale! For only 4.8 million NOK (€588 768 or $823 925) this property could be mine!! Click here for more pictures

Platevogna

Last weekend, the two buddies Jon Vidar Bergan and Jan Erik Smedsrud celebrated the one-year anniversary of the opening of their shop "Platevogna" (which can be translated into something like "The disc wagon"). Platevogna is the place to go for vinyl lovers! The little shop, which is housed in an old, 17m2 big barrack in Hokksund, Øvre Eiker, has over 2500 titles on show, with a wide spread of genres. Whether you like pop, rock, disco, country, jazz, metal or soul, you should be able to find some old gems hidden in this shop. I think I will blow the dust off my grandad's old LP player, and go on the search for vinly discs with The Beatles! For more information on Platevogna, see their facebook page