Norway Archives - Page 17 of 24

I don’t know about you guys, but this Friday feels like a much needed one. It’s been quite a week, especially with all of the revolutionary news from the Middle East and the world in general! My parents are embarking on their own month-long globe trot, so I hope they have happy and safe travels while I hold the fort here at home in sunny Hawaii (things could be worse!). Here’s a dose of Gadlinks to carry you through the weekend.

If you’d like to have plate lunch with me here in Honolulu, now’s the time! Jaunted tells us FyndHawaii is offering unbeatable travel deals to Hawaii on Twitter.
Fourth of July is quickly approaching (hooray!), which means the all-American city of Philadelphia will certainly be celebrating the nation’s independence. If the editor’s glorified praise of the book is any indication, then Moon Handbooks’ latest edition of Philadelphia’s a real keeper.
Peter Greenberg’s got some really helpful tips on unique and unusual train trips abroad. Norway’s always been on my list, but after reading about the Flam railway, I’m ready to head to Scandinavia this summer!
Don’t forget: Father’s Day is this SUNDAY! If you’re still not sure what you’re getting your dad, maybe some beer soap will do? Or check out Matador’s 4 other unique gift ideas.

‘Til Monday, have a great weekend!

For past Gadlinks, click HERE.

Photo of the Day (2.7.09)

by Brenda Yun on Feb 7, 2009

I’ve been to Alaska twice and not once did I see the northern lights. Maybe it was the wrong season or maybe I wasn’t looking hard enough, but I’m sure when I do see them (and I will) I won’t forget the sight.

That’s what one of our dedicated and intrepid adventuring photographers, localsurfer, discovered on a trip to Norway four years ago. He writes, “It’s impossible to really take a picture of what the lights look like. This was like a pulsing river of light from horizon to horizon.”

The eerie green color reflecting off the water and the purple-brown night sky are nature’s way of saying what human words cannot.

If you have some great travel shots you’d like to share, be sure to upload them to the Gadling pool on Flickr. We might just pick one as our Photo of the Day!

Learn Norwegian in an hour

by Jerry Guo on Nov 4, 2008

Misleading headline? Well, I just came upon a wonderfully detailed post arguing that Norwegian is the easiest language for English-speakers, to learn. This followed up on an equally fresh post from last week in which the poster explained why Persian/Farsi (two languages for which the CIA is desperately looking for translators) happen to be easier to learn than most people think.

Anyways, back to Norwegian. The guy’s basic points are:

It’s a Germanic language
But with simpler grammar than other Germanic language
And a word order that more closely mirrors English

You’ll have to read the original post for the many examples. After an hour of this stuff, you’ll probably feel like you have a rudimentary grasp of Norwegian! Great way to introduce a language.

Pronunciation error costs Spanish couple over $5,000

by Abha Malpani on Aug 15, 2008

Whack me but I found this funny more than anything else: A Spanish couple traveling in Norway wanted to go to Olden to catch a cruise they had left to sort out some health issues. Traveling by taxi, due to a mispronunciation of their destination, the taxi driver took them to Halden instead, which is 560km away. Their fare came to 15,000 Kroners ($2765).

Still oblivious to the mistake, they tipped the driver 1000 Kroners ($184!) and spent the night in a hotel, only to find that there was no cruise ship waiting for them — that’s when they realized that they were in the wrong city. They jumped back into a taxi and and head towards Olden which was 610km away and the taxi ride cost them another 15,300 Kroners ($2,820).

So their pronunciation error cost them over 30,000 Kroners (over $5,300), the approximate cost of 2 round the world tickets.

Funny thing is, Spaniards don’t pronounce “h”; so they would pronounce Halden as “Alden” — which sounds more like Olden than Halden. When they try to pronounce the “h” it’s very strong and sounds like a “khhhhh”, so I’m not quite sure how they ended-up going to Halden. Perhaps the driver saw they were rich and decided to dupe them.

Controversy over Scandinavian ban on sexist advertising

by Anna Brones on Apr 25, 2008

Scandinavia is known for being liberal; universal health care, government funded secondary education and open immigration policies are the first things that come to mind when thinking about Denmark, Norway and Sweden. But when it comes to advertising, the Scandinavian countries are a little more at odds.

Sweden recently decided not to put a ban on sexist advertising, something that is strictly regulated in Denmark and Norway. Sexist content used to sell a product has been banned in Norway since 2003. “Naked people are wonderful, of course, but they have to be relevant to the product. You could have a naked person advertising shower gel or a cream, but not a woman in a bikini draped across a car,” said Sol Olving head of Norway’s Kreativt Forum.

In Sweden however, the government cited concerns that such a ban would conflict with freedom of speech and freedom of the press. “I don’t want to infringe on fundamental human freedoms and rights for a legislation the efficacy of which I question. This is not the way to win the fight for gender equity,” said Gender Equity Minister Nyamko Sabuni.

Basically if you want half-naked photos of Scandinavian hotties, better make your way to Stockholm and not Oslo.