If you wanna know a bit more about the country I moved to, then you find (apart from the above link "This is Norway") a short description on this post.
But first of all a map to illustrate my location:
The people around me, Norway's population:
As of 2009, Norway's population numbers roughly 4.8 million with a density of 12 people on 12 km². Only!
A historic introduction:
Archaeological findings indicate that Norway was inhabited since at least 10,000 BC. However, most historians agree that the core of the populations colonising Scandinavia came from the present-day Germany. The Viking age, 8-11th centuries AD, was characterised by expansion and emigration. The North Germanic pre-Christian religion though was slowly replaced and followed by the adoption of Christianity by King Olav Tryggvason in the 10th and 11th centuries. Conversion of the Norwegian kingdom occurred over the next several decades.
In 1397, Norway was absorbed into a union with Denmark that lasted more than four centuries. In 1814, Norwegians resisted the cession of their country to Sweden and adopted a new constitution. Sweden then invaded Norway but agreed to let Norway keep its constitution in return for accepting the union under a Swedish king. Rising nationalism throughout the 19th century led to a 1905 referendum granting Norway independence.
The discovery of oil and gas in adjacent waters in the late 1960's boosted Norway's economic fortunes. The current focus is on containing and spending on the extensive welfare system and planning for the time when petroleum reserves are depleted.
In two referenda held in 1972 and 1994, Norway rejected joining the EU... one reason why Norway still has its national currency the Norwegian Kroner (NOK).
A bit of geography:
Norway comprises the western part of Scandinavia in Northern Europe. The rugged coastline, broken by huge fjords and thousands of islands, stretches over 2,500 km and over 83,000 km including those fjords and islands.
Norway is slightly larger than Germany, but, unlike Germany, much of the country is dominated by mountainous or high terrain, with a great variety of natural features caused by prehistoric glaciers and varied topography. The most noticeable of these are the fjords: deep grooves cut into the land flooded by the sea following the end of the Ice Age. The longest is Sognefjorden.
Due to Norway's high latitude, there are large seasonal variations in daylight. From late May to late July, the sun never completely descends beneath the horizon in areas north of the Arctic Circle (therefore Norway's description as the "Land of the Midnight Sun") and the rest of the country experiences up to 20 hours of daylight per day. Conversely, from late November to late January, the sun never rises above the horizon in the north, and daylight hours are very short in the rest of the country.
Throughout Norway, one will find stunning and dramatic scenery and landscape. The west coast of southern Norway and the coast of North Norway are among the most impressive coastlines anywhere in the world.
Here some pictures of amazing scenery of the three major fjords Norway is famous for:
(the Sognefjord)
(the Hardangerfjord)
About two-thirds of Norway are mountains and there are some 50,000 islands in the country's much indented coastline which is also one of the most rugged and longest coastlines in the world.
An overview of the economy:
The country is richly endowed with natural resources - petroleum, hydropower, fish, forests and minerals - and is highly dependent on the petroleum sector, which accounts for nearly half of exports and over 30% of state revenue. Large reserves of petroleum and natural gas were discovered in the 1960s which led to a continuing boom in the economy. Norway is the world's third-largest gas exporter; its position as an oil exporter has slipped to seventh-largest as production has begun to decline.
Norwegians enjoy the third highest GDP per capita in the world and Norway has obtained one of the highest standards of living in the world in part by having a large amount of natural resources compared to the size of the population. Cost of living though is about 30% higher in Norway than in the United States and 25% higher than in the UK. The standard of living in Norway is high, and oil exports lead to a conclusion that Norway will remain wealthy through the foreseeable future.
Well, I could write so much more about this country and upload so many more pictures in general. But I think for this post it's enough. So see you in my next post.
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