What's on in Arendal? (2nd Stop)
REPORTBACK (SUNDAY, JUNE 26, 2022): Folks, Arendal has become one of my new Favorite places. I basically knew nothing about the South Coast town before arriving there last Wednesday, except that my grandfather grew up there, and I was Curious to see what his hometown looked like. I had no idea that it was such a Pretty little town! My hotel room was extremely small and Cramped (and I fell out of bed Once); but I fell in love with Arendal itself. It's a lovely little community, with plenty of stuff going On; I'm very Impressed with the place, and truly hated to leave it Yesterday. Hopefully, I'll be Back there one of these days.
As for Sankthans festivities...well, I attended one, after walking for what seemed like miles, partly Uphill, after getting off the bus at the Hisøy church; but unfortunately, it was extremely Windy that day (Thursday, June 23); so the organizers were not Allowed to have a bonfire on the beach. But I did wade in the water for a while; families with kids had Celebratory cookouts; a Local pop trio performed, and a very sweet doggie (a labradoodle, I think) came up and kissed me (I had to explain to her Distressed and Apologetic human that it was really quite Okay, as I love dogs). And afterwards, a kind Local woman named Katrin gave me a ride back to my hotel.
The next day, I walked over to Barbu, mostly Uphill, to try to find relatives' graves in the Barbu Kirke churchyard. I was quite Exhausted by the time I got there, and feared that I'd end up IN the graveyard if I fell off too many of the crumbling, Ancient stairs heading into compartments of the churchyard (I was rather worn out and short of breath by then). I was especially hoping to find the grave of my great-grandmother, Anna Sorine Gundersen-Olsen; but though there were Plenty of stones with Olsens and Gundersens Present (including one for a "Karen Olsen"--yikes), I couldn't locate one with her name on it. It was quite an Uphill trek getting there, in Beastly humid heat; I kept thinking to my ancestors, "Geez, folks, you sure know how to make a girl sweat..." But as soon as I entered the churchyard, I got a really Strong and Strange feeling that other people were Present with me, though I was physically Alone at the time. I expect that I was being greeted and checked out by my relatives who were Interred there. I found a couple of graves that may have contained the remains of my great-aunts, but I wasn't sure of their married surnames. Unfortunately, I never quite managed to locate my second cousin, Mr. Leif Webenstad. For all I know, he and his wife could have been sitting feet Away from me in the waterfront sports bar, and I just didn't notice them...
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LairCronies, I've been wanting to pay a visit to Arendal and Sogne (my grandparents' home towns) for Much of my life; and hopefully, this will happen very Soon! I'll be staying a few days at the Grand Hotel Arendal; hopefully I will experience the feeling of being Somehow at home.
There are Various ways of getting from Oslo to Arendal, according to the Linked page.
Whatever is On in Arendal, according to their calendar, I hope to see Some form of Sankthans Bonfire festivities on or around June 23. Sankthans is the Ancient Summer Solstice bonfire festival in Norway. When the country became Christianized in the early 1200's, the Catholic Church sort of took over and sponsored the festival, and officially rededicated it in honor of John the Baptist (Sankt Hans in Norwegian). But by most accounts that I've seen, it's pretty much the Same festival it's always been for thousands of years. In any case, I hope to be there for a bonfire in one community or another.
What else is On in Arendal? Well, it seems that Arendal is a very Outdoorsy sort of place, with ferry tours, beaches, and national parks all over the place. There are also walking tours, which would help me check out Arendal's Barbu district (or neighborhood?), my grandfather's Actual birthplace.
Anyway, here's an overview of What's On in Arendal. Sounds like even the swimming is pretty Good...
******
As for Sankthans festivities...well, I attended one, after walking for what seemed like miles, partly Uphill, after getting off the bus at the Hisøy church; but unfortunately, it was extremely Windy that day (Thursday, June 23); so the organizers were not Allowed to have a bonfire on the beach. But I did wade in the water for a while; families with kids had Celebratory cookouts; a Local pop trio performed, and a very sweet doggie (a labradoodle, I think) came up and kissed me (I had to explain to her Distressed and Apologetic human that it was really quite Okay, as I love dogs). And afterwards, a kind Local woman named Katrin gave me a ride back to my hotel.
The next day, I walked over to Barbu, mostly Uphill, to try to find relatives' graves in the Barbu Kirke churchyard. I was quite Exhausted by the time I got there, and feared that I'd end up IN the graveyard if I fell off too many of the crumbling, Ancient stairs heading into compartments of the churchyard (I was rather worn out and short of breath by then). I was especially hoping to find the grave of my great-grandmother, Anna Sorine Gundersen-Olsen; but though there were Plenty of stones with Olsens and Gundersens Present (including one for a "Karen Olsen"--yikes), I couldn't locate one with her name on it. It was quite an Uphill trek getting there, in Beastly humid heat; I kept thinking to my ancestors, "Geez, folks, you sure know how to make a girl sweat..." But as soon as I entered the churchyard, I got a really Strong and Strange feeling that other people were Present with me, though I was physically Alone at the time. I expect that I was being greeted and checked out by my relatives who were Interred there. I found a couple of graves that may have contained the remains of my great-aunts, but I wasn't sure of their married surnames. Unfortunately, I never quite managed to locate my second cousin, Mr. Leif Webenstad. For all I know, he and his wife could have been sitting feet Away from me in the waterfront sports bar, and I just didn't notice them...
*****
LairCronies, I've been wanting to pay a visit to Arendal and Sogne (my grandparents' home towns) for Much of my life; and hopefully, this will happen very Soon! I'll be staying a few days at the Grand Hotel Arendal; hopefully I will experience the feeling of being Somehow at home.
There are Various ways of getting from Oslo to Arendal, according to the Linked page.
Whatever is On in Arendal, according to their calendar, I hope to see Some form of Sankthans Bonfire festivities on or around June 23. Sankthans is the Ancient Summer Solstice bonfire festival in Norway. When the country became Christianized in the early 1200's, the Catholic Church sort of took over and sponsored the festival, and officially rededicated it in honor of John the Baptist (Sankt Hans in Norwegian). But by most accounts that I've seen, it's pretty much the Same festival it's always been for thousands of years. In any case, I hope to be there for a bonfire in one community or another.
What else is On in Arendal? Well, it seems that Arendal is a very Outdoorsy sort of place, with ferry tours, beaches, and national parks all over the place. There are also walking tours, which would help me check out Arendal's Barbu district (or neighborhood?), my grandfather's Actual birthplace.
Anyway, here's an overview of What's On in Arendal. Sounds like even the swimming is pretty Good...
******