A magical retreat and a very happy birthday

Norway! We were invited to celebrate a Norwegian friend and colleague’s 70th birthday – first  of all in Oslo – then to be whisked away to a mysterious and, as it turned out, magical island.

To be honest, I was excited but also slightly fraught. John was flying back to Heathrow from Seoul and there was a short window of time for us to meet up and take the plane to Oslo together.  So it was with a heavy case full of jumpers, hats and waterproof jackets that I arrived at Terminal 5, hoping the plane from Seoul would be on time. It was.

We arrived at the hotel at almost midnight. It was in Nydalen, opposite the Oslo Business School, where the conference was to be held next day. There followed a ‘Festschrift’ for Jørgen, when a special book was presented to him, put together by his colleagues Per Espen Stoknes and Kjell Elisaasen, celebrating Jørgen’s life and work. The focus of the conference was on climate change. We were sitting next to a handsome young couple on the front row. They turned out to be Jørgen’s daughter and her husband.

The day sped by and I learned a lot – the more I learn, the more I worry.  But there’s no point in doing nothing and lots of the people gathered here are doing a lot. These people need all the support we can give them if we are to succeed in dealing with climate change. They know what needs to be done. And it needs to be put into action now. Read John’s blog for more details and also Per Espen’s new book – What We Think About When We Try Not To Think About Global Warning by Per Espen Stoknes.

The evening was bright and clear and we were all driven out to a beautiful house by the water for Jørgen’s birthday dinner. The organisation was very impressive. I think a lot of it was down to Per Espen and to Marie, Jørgen’s partner. There were about 60 people gathered, including our friend Jan-Olaf Willums, who shared an apartment with Jørgen when they were students.

Paul is an ex-CEO of Greenpeace and had travelled from Tasmania with his wife Michelle, also a great activist, to join the party.

We had to be ready by 10am next morning, when a fleet of three cars turned up at the hotel.  The amount of luggage was a small nightmare but we finally set off in Per Espen’s Volvo, along with Nigel – another arrival from Australia.  Norwegians drive fast but there’s less traffic on the roads than in the U.K.  And the roads are well maintained. We noticed that there are a lot of Teslas  –  Elon Musk’s electric car.  They look very streamlined – excellent design.

The island is near an area called Kragerø, which is three hours south of Oslo and on the way to Kristiansand. It’s very picturesque and many Norwegians come here in the summer for holiday. Apparently, the artist, Edvard Munch, was inspired by the unique light he found here. There are 495 islands off the coast.

Once we had all met up, we were treated to a wonderful lunch at a  restaurant built out over the water. The food was delicious and deserved at least one Michelin star. Good luck to the new young chef! I wish I’d taken photos but it was all gone before I even thought of it. Beguiled by the blue sea and the sky, I took an arty picture or two instead.

A small fishing boat arrived to ferry us across the water to the island.  There were one or two other Norwegians to drop off at other islands on the way. We were surrounded by trays of fresh fruit and vegetables and sweet smelling herbs as the sea spray whooshed over us. I felt the coast of Norway beginning to seduce me – I was lucky to be here! Marie was keeping a close eye on the package containing the birthday cake.

There are no roads on Jørgen’s island, so we are living alongside nature. The house is charming and very warm and comfortable – there is electricity and a bathroom! As I’ve never been a ‘happy camper’, this was a great bonus! The first houses built on the islands for summer residents were quite primitive and today nobody is allowed to build a new house unless it is on the site of an old one.

It becomes cool in the evening, but the weather forecast promises sun. It is cosy in the house and I sleep like a rabbit in its burrow.

It’s good to get to know everyone else while relaxing over breakfast.  I am fascinated by the lichen and the flowers which grow so well out of small cracks in the rocks so I make another foray to the islet, over the Japanese looking bridge, held up by old telegraph poles.

I am blown away by the vivid colours. Per Espen has been out in a rowing boat and Mathis suggests to John that they should have a go. I notice Mathis gets the oars! They cut through the water, smooth as silk.   And the sun looks as if it’s here to stay.

There are lots of arctic terns.  These birds travel 40,000 miles a year from the Arctic to the Antarctic and back again.  They are very graceful and acrobatic and extremely efficient predators.

Jørgen’s birthday celebration on the island was an unforgettable evening in which we all got to know one another even better and enjoyed yet another wonderful dinner, including a delicious birthday cake.

John’s blog explains the gift from John and Cindy Sherman, which concerned Jay Forrester, who is now in his nineties.

Next day Jørgen and Marie had organised a trip to another island for a fish soup lunch. The boat wouldn’t take us all at once but Jørgen zoomed off with the first contingent, saying he would be back soon. True to form, he was!

It was warm and sunny – we sat outside the restaurant eating fish soup from enormous bowls after our walk through the forest by the sea.

After lunch, Jørgen took us in convoy around the archipelago of islands dotted with small summer houses – and one or two rather more grand complexes, reminiscent of James Bond villain lairs – perhaps belonging to billionaires.

The Norwegians are a hardy lot it seems! When we got back John decided to show his mettle by diving into the sea which was 10 degrees.    One and a half minutes was enough! Brrrr! We were impressed and next day Per Espen and Jørgen both felt moved to do the same. I did not feel any desire whatsoever – but good for them!

I was amazed by how well this photo came out, but the amount of jellyfish and algae in the water is worrying. Jørgen said it had increased a lot. But still, the water is very clear and you can see down to the bottom.

We know so very little about the oceans and seas and yet they cover 71% of our planet. Acidification is destroying sea life but as most people don’t see what is happening underneath the water, we are naively unaware of the wholesale destruction both to maritime life and ultimately to the threat to our own species. Maritime conservation areas are slowly being increased, but not fast enough to keep our oceans healthy. And without healthy oceans, the future is bleak.

Aqua facts from The Oceanic Institute: oceans contain 97% of the Earth’s water. Less than 1% of the Earth’s water is fresh water and 2-3% is contained in glaciers and ice caps. The oceans contain 99% of the living space on the planet, (presumably in 3D). And, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Office (NOAA): ‘To date, we have explored less than 5% of the ocean’.

I found a recent report by Per-Erik Schulze, who is a marine biologist and environmental advisor for The Norwegian Society for the Conservation of Nature. He focuses on the danger of micro plastics filling our oceans. For example he notes that if the 8,000 tons of micro plastics  generated annually in Norway were dumped in downtown Bergen, its citizens would stand knee deep in plastics. About half of these end up in the ocean and pose a growing hazard to marine life. The report is titled Sources of micro plastic pollution to the marine environment (source: Norwegian Environment Agency).

Our time in this magical place was passing by too quickly, but we still had time to sit in the sun and watch the swallows that have invaded Jørgen’s boathouse.  How wonderfully well we are being looked after!

Another dinner was busily being prepared. We planned to eat outside – and were all issued with blankets to keep us warm as the sun went down. I even put on my furry hat later, which I’d stuffed in my bag as an afterthought. Jørgen and Paul were in charge of the barbecue.

I felt an ever closer bond with all these companions,  some of whom we hadn’t met before. A gathering made up of Australians, Americans, Germans, Swiss, Norwegians and we British. A unique meeting of minds on a tiny island.

Can Jørgen et al manage to pull the rabbit out of the hat on climate change? The talks at the conference were all impressive and the interactive model created by John Sterman had been playing about in my head ever since. It is a privilege to be among this good lot of people with such brainpower –  and to be having such a brilliant time.

I spent a little time taking pictures of things which would remind me of our time here.

But now the last morning has sadly arrived. Ulrich was out at the back of the house, mowing the lawn, while the rest of us were engaged in sorting out our luggage and helping with the domestic clearing up. Next weekend Jørgen’s daughter will be here with her husband and friends.  John and I enjoyed staying in her room with all her books and childhood  memories. I liked her notes on the wall by my bed!

The weather is breaking up and by the time Jørgen returns from ferrying the first contingent back to the mainland, it is starting to rain. But he has a hood for the boat!

Then we pile into Per Espen’s Volvo once more for the return trip to Oslo and on to the airport. The rain is heavy and non-stop but the sea gods have been very kind to us!

Homeward bound

Our trip home goes well, without hold-ups. Jørgen and Marie treat us to delicious prawns at their home in Oslo before taking us to the station. I wanted to buy some of that sweet brown cheese at the airport (albeit something of an acquired taste) but the shop is closed. Next time!

I’m reading Travels with Charley by John Steinbeck about his trip through the U.S. with his dog in the early 1960s. It was published in 1962: his vision of how the world was changing speaks to us warningly and prophetically through the decades (see the back cover). It’s an illuminating travelogue – one of my favourites. An intuitive writer – and a very enjoyable read. And, of course, he was a winner of the Nobel Prize for Literature.

Coming back into London, I have a window seat.

This has been a wonderful and memorable experience. Thank you so much to all involved for the great company and to Jørgen, Marie and Per Espen, especially, for making it all possible.