Saturday, September 23, 2006
The King
This is the scene in the Torvet, the square of Trondheim. It's a bit quiet now, but during the summer evenings, it gets busy, especially when the vendors set up their booths with clothing, swords, trinkets, meats, breads, cheeses, and toys for sale, among other things. King Olav Tryggvesøn (who is poised atop the pedestal in Torvet) in 997 founded Trondheim at this tempting fjord and won the battles to convert the Viking populace to Christianity. Another famous convert was Leif Ericsson, who set sail westward and converted others. A personal note: the staff at DnB NOR bank, bottom right corner of the photo, are very friendly and helpful to foreigners who need to set up a Norwegian bank account--tusen takk to them!Saturday, September 09, 2006
The Red Building on the Corner
The "Nidar" sign atop the Studentersamfundet, basically the Student's Union building on the NTNU Gløshaugen campus, puts us in mind of delicious chocolate! The building itself is neat, too, containing cafés and concert space. Much more is at http://www.samfundet.no/
Monday, September 04, 2006
More of Trondheim
The role of religion in Trondheim's history is significant. This is a picture of the synagogue, which was recently restored. It is across the street from the famous Nidaros Cathedral. There is great importance in the restoration of the synagogue, given Norway's occupation by the Nazis during World War II, during which this synagogue was heavily damaged. I found this synagogue to be very moving.
Sunday, September 03, 2006
Norge....
I was in Trondheim, Norway, this summer, as a visiting scholar in the Department of Sociology and Political Science, NTNU (Norwegian University of Science and Technology). It was a great honor to be in such a captivating city, and it was an intellectually inspiring setting. I completed a research project and had many views of Nidaros Catherdral, dating from the 12th century, the largest in Scandinavia. This view is from the Bakklandet, heading down into the old waterfront warehouse district which has been re-created into a nice walking, dining, and shopping area. Trondheim is rather hilly! But that doesn't deter the residents from walking and cycling, which they do with great enthusiasm!