Living By The Sea

An ideal setting for reading a long-winded novel or just escaping with your thoughts don't you think ? These were my first impressions of this quintessential get away by the sea, the Norwegian Sea to be exact. This summer cabin by the sea was spotted while en route back by ferry to the mainland of Norway from Ona Island (previous post Ona Island Lighthouse and Ona Cannery). What struck me about this structure was how stout it appeared, built of a stone foundation with concrete, cement block and a tile roof. It would have to be sturdy to withstand the horrific storms coming in from the Atlantic Ocean during the winter months. Yet here in August of 2013, it looks overly obtrusive in the peaceful seacape. Secondly, it is built on what barely amounts to a slight rise above water level, granite rock with some shrubs and sea kelp. You can not see the entire "island" in this photo but it only extends for another few hundred meters to the right of the photo. The portion to the right is the highest point of the island. It is estimated that over 83 % of Norway either owns or has direct access to a summer or winter cabin. . .that's a lot of cabins. The word for cabin in nynorsk Norwegian is "hytte".

The typical Norwegian is of hardy stock and independent as all get out and you would have to be to remain here all winter. However, during the summer months, they take to water like ducks to a pond, with boats of all types such as kayaks, dories and rafts as seen in this photo. I counted at least 4 kayaks, one dory and a rubber raft next to this cabin by the sea. The flying pennant is called a "vimpel" and almost always indicates someone is home. A vimpel always has the national colors and can be flown all hours of the day unlike the national flag itself. Norwegians are very patriotic and it has been surveyed in Norway that less than 6% of the population do not own a flag of some type, even vimpels.