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Hurra for Norge!!!!!!!!!!
Today is May 17, Norway's national holiday, celebrating their
independence from Denmark and signing of the constitution in 1814.
This is a big day of celebration in Norway, with parades of schoolkids
in every city and town, parties, dancing and heavy drinking. Actually,
during my highschool and college years we would start partying on the
evening of May 16, carry on all through the night and the next day.
Especially wild was the graduation years / May 17 celebrations, as
we had earned the title of "russ" and wore brightly colored hats
(green when graduating from Junior High "real-skolen", red or blue from
Senior High "gymnaset"). We felt those hats entitled us to make total
fools of ourselves, which of course we did.
One dear old tradition was to ride a around town at sunup (around 4am)
on flatbed trucks stacked tightly with "russ" with hangovers, blowing
horns to wake up the general population. Another tradition was the
red/blue "russ" trip by ship (tax free liquor) from Oslo to Kopenhagen,
where we made even bigger fools of ourselves.
Does the "russ" still exist today? Lets use this note to share thoughts,
memories and news about May 17.
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| This year's celebration of May 17 by the "russ" was
somewhat limited due to the fact that one "russ" died
from meningitis a few days before May 17, and several
others had caught it, too. The disease was suspected of
have spread during a big "russ" gathering outside the
city of Stavanger.
Hence, the "russ" were asked to avoid large parties,
avoid shouting too loud, avoid partying too hard etc. -
all in all a series of advice from the health authorities
that sounded a lot like the yearly nagging from most parents
of "russ".
But although this tragic death and the possibility of others
sobered a number of "russ", you could still see others just
as drunk, as happy, as tired, and with as tasteless jokes as ever.
If not worse...
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| Newsgroups: soc.culture.nordic
From: blix@asimov.cs.uiuc.edu (Gunnar Blix)
Subject: Re: 17.mai
Sender: news@cs.uiuc.edu
Organization: University of Illinois, Dept. of Comp. Sci., Urbana, IL
Date: Tue, 17 May 1994 19:16:08 GMT
ajameson@rsmas.miami.edu (Annemarie Jameson) writes:
>I had no idea it was such a special occasion. Congratulations to Norway
>and all Norwegians out there! It must be quite an occasion. Is it a
>public (bank) holiday there? What sorts of festivities are going on to
>mark the occasion.
>Anne
It most certainly is!
The celebration is somewhat unique, with parades in practically every
town in the country, featuring marching bands and millions of flags.
For those of you who thought that Norwegian patriotism got to be a bit
much during the recent Olympics, that was nothing...
I certainly miss it around here.
--
******************************************************************
* Gunnar Blix * Good advice is one of those insults that *
* blix@cs.uiuc.edu * ought to be forgiven. -Unknown *
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| From: trognmo@Direct.CA (Tor Rognmo)
Newsgroups: soc.culture.nordic
Subject: May 17th, 1995
Date: 17 May 1995 08:32:55 GMT
Organization: Netquest Communications
In case anyone is wondering what all the 'fuss' is about in Norway on
May 17th I've copied over a short article which is available at Links
to Scandinavia, a web site in North America with links to all the
Nordic countries.
(The URL is http://www.infoserve.net/netquest/nordic/welcome.html)
"Sometimes foreigners will inadvertently walk out of Oslo`s main
railway station and stumble into the capital city`s May 17 parade.
Either they then join in, or they run for cover and exit the country
muttering about `total chauvinistic madness`.
There may well be an element of madness about Norway's May 17th
celebrations, everything being relative. The event commemorates the
Norwegian Constitution, signed at Eidsvoll on May 17th, 1814. For a
country which has spent more than 500 of the last 600 years under
foreign domination, most recently by the German occupation during world
war II, freedom and sovereignity takes on a special significance.
I learned while living in Norway that May 17 is a day that is bursting
with highlights. It starts early in life, participating in the early
morning school parades. The climax is when you get to experience the
thrill of being a russ - a post secondary graduate who in the days
leading up to May 17 are allowed if not encouraged to paint the country
red and blue.
As the years roll on you find yourself on the sidewalk watching as your
own children march down the streets, waving flags and frantically
proclaiming how happy they are to be Norwegian. (This is the part that
confuses some visitors to the country, who may inadvertedly associate
this burst of national pride with other, negative forms of
nationalism.)
Later in the day come's the People's Parade, review upon review on
television of the King's speech of the day from the Palace balcony,
hotdogs by the score and, for many, just generally walking around town,
saying hello to everyone, waving their flag and yelling
"Congratulations with the Day!".
The People's Parade is a bit like American July 4, Remembrance Day and
the Stanley Cup play-offs combined. Grandmothers, young families with
baby carriages, military bands, trade union orchestras,
trumpet-bleating recent high school graduates, veteran-car parades and
`the common Norwegian` all walk side by side or arm in arm, dressed in
their Sunday best and waving their small or large red, white and blue
flags.
In the afternoon people congregate at the local community events,
usually held in school yards. These feature speeches, entertainment,
vast amounts of `polse og lompe` (hotdog rolled in a soft bread made
from potatoes), with or without shrimp salad, amusement park style
events and contests, and a lot of getting-to-know-your-neighbour-again
chat. Then they go home, to a dinner, perhaps consisting of more hot
dogs in lompe quickly prepared by parents weary from a day that might
have started at four or five in the morning. Or, adults may go to one
of the city`s restaurants for a grand May 17 dinner. Other highlights
include wearing a ribbon-emblazoned rosette in the national colours and
watching other people who are walking around wearing their
ribbon-emblazoned rosettes. And then there are those who live in the
same neighbourhood as a high school teacher. Early in the morning they
are made acutely aware of an old May 17 student tradition. It's called
`waking up the teacher`, generally achieved with the help of fire
crackers, bleaters, trumpets and car horns.
Towards the end of the day, as you try to wipe traces of ketchup and
lompe from your bunad, best suit or long dress, and carefully put your
rosette away in a drawer reserved for next year`s May 17, you generally
are left with the feeling that there really is something special about
living in Norway and being able to experience the 17th of May.
So, whether you are celebrating this day in Norway itself, are
participating in a Norwegian community event abroad, or are just
curious what all the fuss is about, Congratulations with May 17th,
Norway!
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| Norumbega Lodge #506, Sons of Norway, is celebrating Norwegian Constitution
Day in two ways this year.
On Saturday afternoon, May 17th, there will be a Family Picnic from 12:00
noon to 4:00 PM at the Belmont Day School in Belmont, Mass. There will
be an informal parade, and free soda and prizes for all children. All
are welcome. For more information, please call Vera Gregg at 617-484-5748,
or Peter Vatne at 603-888-9105.
On Saturday evening, May 17th, there will be a Syttende Mai Dinner Dance
from 7:00 PM to 11:30 PM at the Boston Marriott Burlington in Burlington,
Mass. Entertainment will be by Nils Lundin. Reservations required. For
more information, please call Ben Olson at 508-785-0800.
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