School

As in Britain, Norwegian schoolchildren have to go to school for ten years. They enter primary school at the age of six and stay there until they are 13. Then they go to secondary school until the age of 16. However, most pupils then choose to go on to upper secondary schools, regional colleges, or universities. Unlike Britain, a degree in a Norwegian university can take as long as six years to pass.


Food

As in Britain, food tends to be quite simple in Norway, and local dishes are kept to the rural traditions for each of the five regions of the country.

Norway has a long coastline, and as a result is a nation very fond of fish and seafood dishes. Unsurprisingly, there are lots of different types of fish to be found in its surrounding seas and fjords such as cod, wolf fish and salmon. The fish from the clean seas around Norway is very tasty, and is just cooked very simply, usually poached or fried. Mackerel is a typical summer fish for most Norwegians, especially along the south coast.

As for meat, delicacies such as moose are enjoyed throughout the country. In the inland forest and mountain areas, elk (a large deer) is also eaten, while in the north reindeer is popular. This may all seem pretty strange to us, but in Norway these animals are common, like cows and pigs are in Britain.

Some typical Norwegian dishes are laks (grilled or smoked salmon), reker (boiled shrimp) and torsk (cod), while for breakfast a sweet brown goat cheese called ‘geitost’ and pickled herrings are popular. Cheese and fish for breakfast anyone?!


Sport

Norwegians are a proud sporting nation, and are good at most sports they put their mind to.

The country has thousands of miles of cross-country and downhill skiing tracks, including the famous skiing resort of Lillehammer where the Winter Olympics were held in 1994. Norway recently won its most medals ever at the 2002 Winter Olympic Games in Salt Lake City in the USA. A national record of 11 gold medals, seven silver, and six bronze medals left them second only to Germany in the medal table.

Most Norwegians are also crazy about football and the country qualified for the last two World Cup Finals, even beating the mighty Brazil in France ‘98. They are especially keen on English football, watching many of the games on TV. They are the most represented foreign nation in the English Premiership, with players such as Manchester United’s Ole Gunnar Solksjaer and Ronnie Johnsen as well as John-Arne Riise of Liverpool.


People

Norwegians are a friendly and welcoming nation, who usually speak excellent English. They live peaceful lives and enjoy the great outdoors their country has to offer: mountains, forests and lakes.

Since the 1970s, the country has produced and sold valuable fuels like oil and natural gas. As a result, Norway has one of the highest standards of living in the world, which means it is very expensive to live and work there.

Outside of work and school, the people enjoy many traditional pastimes such as mountain climbing, bird-watching and even glacier hiking, as well as sea and fresh-water fishing.

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