FRILUFTSLIV
The longing to be outdoors is in the Norwegian DNA. And it has a name: "Friluftsliv".
The orange flames light up our faces and warm our bodies as we settle down by the crackling campfire. Here we sit, in our scruffy woolly sweaters, with a cup of coffee in our hands and a sparkle in our eyes. The fir trees cast long shadows as the evening draws near. We lie down in the heather and watch the stars light up the dark sky. "This is the life!" the Norwegian thinks to himself.
There is something you should know about us Norwegians; we often have a deep yearning for the outdoors. A backpack, sleeping bag, fishing rod and tent are among the basic belongings we all have, which enable us to live a full life in this country. Strangely, during the summer vacation, we often meet more of our neighbours in the mountains than in the city we live in. And at Easter, more people head out to the wilderness than to the urban shopping streets. It is in the great outdoors we take our best pictures, which are then proudly posted on Instagram and Facebook.
Hurtigruten’s highly skilled
customised excursions.
This longing to be outside is part of our identity, and the old fash- ioned is sort of modern. It has a name: "friluftsliv", which can best be described as anything to do with outdoor living and con- necting with Mother Nature on both a physical and spiritual level. The concept is as important to the Norwegians as samba is for the Brazilians, sauna for the Finns and pasta for the Italians. The term was coined by the great playwright, Henrik Ibsen, who made the concept of frilufts- liv famous in his poem "On the Heights" (1859).
"Learn to love skiing." That was reputedly the advice Norwegian national hero Fridtjof Nansen gave King Haakon on how he could win a place in the Norwegians' hearts. "Why?" you may ask.
expedition team offers lectures, stories and
Because we are brought up to believe that we will be happier outdoors. Fridtjof Nansen believed it. The renowned Norwegian philosopher, Arne Næss, believed it. They both connect frilufts- liv to nature, to our origins, to health and to a sense of identity. Friluftsliv is a resumption of a previous way of life. Man was, until relatively recently, a hunter-gatherer. In earlier times, we were born in nature and we died in nature. We did not know anything else. As more and more people now live comfortably in cities, it is like our primeval selves are trying to tell us something. It comes in the form of a restlessness or longing. We start studying the map and pack our back- packs. We simply must get out! An Asian girl who moved to Norway with her family once asked in a newspaper interview: "Where are all the Norwegians on the weekends? We never see anyone around the neighbour- hood!" This was actually her first encounter with this concept. The answer: "We are at the cabin or on a Sunday family hike." Every Friday after lunch, you can see long queues of cars out of the cit- ies; people are off to the cabin or for a nature walk.
Our need to be close to nature is embedded in our DNA. So the longing to be outdoors and our passion for nature naturally characterise the ac- tivities that Hurtigruten create for you. We want to show you what we Norwegians love. And we hope that you will experience a touch of happi- ness on these trips, around the campfire, or on the trails, or over a cup of coffee or tea made and enjoyed together. We cannot guarantee that the weather will be good. But we can guarantee gen- uine Norwegian outdoor activities – and fresh, rosy cheeks.
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© Ørjan Bertelsen
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