Saturday Urban Life - Solvang Kolonihaver

Something just happens.
During the last weeks the board of the "Green Society" at Solvang Kolonihaver 4 have installed digital network, prepared for a lot more TV channels than we have at home, and Broadband Internet!
The expected TV and Internet Free Zone is left over to us to decide. The possibilities are there and we must be strong and leave it alone. Or act natural and live as usual.

So here we are with this year first Breakfast in the Garden. Temperature at nine: 24 deg C.

Slovang 4 is located closer to the geographical center of Oslo than our home at Frogner. It takes us ab. ten minutes to drive up here, but the urban lifestyle is completely different. The cottage of 40 sq.m is an appendix to our city-house. This is our 31st summer up here, the children has almost been born here (first appearance after seven weeks), and have had an additional dimension to the growing up in the middle of a big town.

The possibility that more posts from Oslo´s urban life will occur here is now stronger than a few days ago.

More than 10.000 visitors in 4 months

17 weeks ago, on thursday Jan 31. I decided to swap from Norwegian to English text in my blog. I made the conclusion that if I wanted to communicate with the world, I had to write in a language that is more common to the world than my mother tongue. During this 4 months I have had an increase of 25% or 10000 visitors. My blog has been active since March 21 2005.The weather conditions have also changed during these four monthsThere will always be a question if it is the topic you cover that makes other bloggers visit your site, if it is your participation in memes like ABS Wednesday, Odd Shots Mondays or i.e Sky watch Fridays or if some other bloggers refer to you in their own postings.
The use of Mr. Linky gives us a unique opportunity to get visitors, with or without commenting, and the importance of being part of a blogroll cannot be underestimated. And you need to visit others to be visited.
You need to be known.

That takes time. May be these tips from Ianiv Schweber and Arieanna Foley may help you if you want to increase your blogging trafic:

-Write 25-40% original content. For some blogs this will mean reading news feeds, as well as other blogs, to catch news first. You can also consider non-RSS content research to find items or to connect the dots between topics.

-Use pictures. They draw the eye. Look on Flickr or Google Images. Take what is Creative Commons, but be liberal with your link of thanks. Ask when unsure.

-Know your area bloggers and link to them. Make sure to comment too.

-Send emails to big blogs in your area. Pitch a story, write something interesting about your blog, and make that link prominent.

-Break up paragraphs and use text effects - bolding, underline, etc.

-Use comments to start new threads.

At Squidoo you can see Things I wish I knew when I started blogging, and especially What they didn't tell you about blogging...

1. It's easy to start but hard to maintain.

2. People expect consistently good content or quality readers walk away.

3. You can't be famous just by blogging.

4. You can't get rich blogging.

5. You can extend your brand via the blog but you can't build a brand by blogging.

6. Blogging is an addiction and sometimes it can be serious.

7. If you want to succeed, you HAVE to start making others succeed.

8. You don't climb up by pulling down other people.

9. It takes time to produce "Timeless Content." But "timeless content" produces results (traffic included) in the long run

10. Traffic is important but "Quality" traffic is more important


The next 40 "didn¨t tell" can be found through the Squido link together with even more interesting matters.

At this time of the year I would normally move into a TV and Internet Free Zone. May be that will be changed this summer, but until you hear from me again:
Have a wonderful Summer.
(and do not forget me)

ABC Wednesday - S

On Monday I was challenged by anemone to

"Pick up the nearest book.
Open on page 123. Find the fifth sentence. Post the next
three sentences. Tag five people, and acknowledge who
tagged you."

So first I have to send greetings to all bloggers and possible readers around the world by inviting them to take the challenge and pass it further.
S is for SKÅL to Selected SentencesBut when planning for this ABC Wednesday I thought there was no other interpretation of the meme than
S is for Summer Residence

The following photos are thus a presentation of my Cottage, inside and outside with some the flowers we have around us during the few summer months in Oslo.
Click on photos to zoom.The roses are climbing up the wall of the appendix.

"Living room" decorated with my own paintings
"Dining room" and entrance to the bedroom
Japanese apples?
The first to come
"Forglem meg ei"
Roses
Pink Peonies smells good
Hundreds of FlammenTanz Roses
and beautiful pink single roses
Natural motive for painting
and the result a la van Gogh
But most of all we look forward to the warm sunshine and temperatures like last year.
Have a nice summer.

Tuesday facts - Mobile phone development

Yesterday I showed you one of the gaps we have noticed between today and the past regarding Data Storage and Memory Capacity within computers. I was active on Internet when staying in Singapore in 1994, but my first mobile phone I acquired four years later in 1998.

Before that I used in my car for a short time in 1983/4 one of my employers Ericsson NMT Radio SystemThe real market development of mobile phones started in 1984 when Motorola presented their "Dynamic Adaptive Total Area Coverage Unit"DynaTAC8000X.
From then on we have all been in the middle of the Mobile (Cell) Phone development. This evolution can be watched on this YouTube Video.

My mother-in-law died two years ago at an age of more than 100. I often think of the changes she had lived through, but the volume of changes we have to adopt today must be even more difficult to understand for those coming after us.
Yesterday NASA's Mars Phoenix Lander had a successful touch down at the planet Mars. Will my grandchildren think of that as odd when their next door friends are planning their summer vacation at the Moon?

If some of you feels that we are left behind in this rapid changing world, relax a few moments with the photo of my neighbors Falcon-Knight Six (2 doors) from 1927. It is only 80 years ago this "wife"-car became a sensation.

Odd Shots Monday - Magnetic Tapes

Some of us have lived some years.
Forty years ago I joined the pioneers in the Development of Data Processing in Norway after being employed by the Norwegian Ship Classification Institution DNV - Det norske Veritas. My career has given me a lot. Personal and professional (and total kidney and heart failure).
But the almost twenty years within Human Resources, Leadership and Management, as a continuation of more than ten years of development within IT or EDP (as we called it in late 60s) have been fantastic years. I never would have been without.

These Monday Odd Shots was taken during that period when data storage, short term and long term, was saved on Magnetic Tape Data StoragesFor many of you using todays laptop computers, the web, e-mailing, photo manipulation and databases called servers, these volumes of sequential data storage may perhaps be a little odd.
When I started with EDP we used Punched Cards as the medium for input of programs and data. The computer IBM 360/20 had 128Kb memory (K = 1000) while my present MacBook Pro has 2Gb internal memory (G = 1 000 000 000).
However, I will save you for more of the historical details and only which you all the best for the week after you have visited Kathney for her and all others Monday Odd Shots

Solvang Pictures

Home after a working day at our Summer Residence. Flowers planted at the balcony and in the flower bed. Last clean-up and preparing for sleeping-over and watching the fruits growing.
The blossom comes from:
Apple three James Grieves Origin: Scotland from 1890 but in our garden since mid last century. Medium to large, conical fruit. Size medium, round conical slightly ribbed shape. Almost solid crimson over yellow. Savoury, juicy yellowish flesh. Crisp yet melting.Red Current will give us ab. 40 kg berry.Blackcurrant which normally only is for eating direct from the bush.And in the air, a veteran aircraft (LN-WND Dakota Norway Sandefiord Norway) flying just over our heads:

Almost summertime and a new Stetson Hat

The summer is close. Yesterday I bought a new hat.

Stetson Genuine Panama Hat hand-woven in Equador from the fine fibers of the Jipijapa palm and blocked in the US by Stetson. Black silk grosgrain band. Pinch-front crown. The fine mellow classic natural color panama hat that can be used for both dress and casual wear.

Wearing hat in bad weather I normally do. The umbrella can be left at home and the bold top of me is protected from the cold.
During the summertime I often use the pirate scarf, but from now on when strolling the city, the off white retro style Panama Hat will be preferred. Because of the lightness, Panama hats are worn in warm weather and the wide brim provides sun protection.

Saturday Urban Life - Market in Bogstadveien and Down Town

"Når Kastanjene Blomstrer i ..........", When the Horse chestnuts blossom and the scent of lilac is all over Oslo, it is time for the Car free market in one of our neighborhood streets.The weather was not the best, but in party-tents a lot of products could be yours.
Pastries, Halfpriced modern cloths, supporter-scarfs and some winter fabrics

The market day also gives odd activities a free space of selling their products. Rubber hats for children and Health studios motivation campaigns
The pavements of the Norwegian Capital´s main street Karl Johan are covered with sayings from our writer Henrik Ibsen,and at "Kunstnerforbundet" you may see Reidar Kraugeruds colage
What else do you expect from Oslo in May. Lunch at Cafe Christiania? Of course.
Have a nice weekend.

Eating out?

Due to the fact that anemone must have hit something in the air through her thursday post (based upon comments), and the weather in Oslo invites to a very short experiment within this extrovert behavior, I present one of the documentation from last summer within the same topic - Eating out!However, when touching the topic and not being too passionate to this activity physically, this blog must also take the opportunity to include one of Picassos versions of E.Manets Le Déjeuner sur l'Herbe and the original if you prefer that versionThe very big question regarding Manets Breakfast in the Green, and only one month till midsummer (St. Hans) is:
Can you find the Frog?

I have also been younger - years ago

Lately some of the bloggers I visit daily have presented old pictures of themselves or their parents, grandparents etc. Due to the fact that I got my new scanner CanScan 4400F this week, I am also able to present old memories from Ålesund.
Here you see photos of my grandparents
(father side) Peder Kristian (1880-1961) and Jetta Jacobine (1878-1975) are probably from 1949 and
(mother side) Sevrin (1886-1960) and Sofie (1892-1967) taken about 10 years later.
But photos of me and my mother and me and my sister taken early 1950s are also interesting images. You can easily se the post-war clothing in the first, and the National Costume on my sister (from 1951) we still have in the wardrobe. Rikke was the latest user and now we wait for Helene to fit into the Bunad from Sunnmøre.Around eleven I joined the shoolband (Nørveguttene) playing the Trombone for more than five years,
whereafter I started with sport (Rowing) together with Anton, Even and Åke, and took my GCSE before leaving Ålesund and settled in Oslo.

The last photo is of me and Asbjørn on the "Russetur" to Copenhagen, Berlin and Hamburg in 1966.

ABC Wednesday - R

The preparation for this week ABC Wednesday made me think about at least four possible words starting with R:
R is for Room, Roof, Recommendation and Restaurants at Rue de Bouchers

In a way all these words was linked together as I normally take photos of the view from my hotel Rooms and many times the window is higher than the Roofs below. Sometimes places I have visited when staying at these hotels, are on my Recommendation list like Rue de Bouchers in Brussel.With the atmospheric charm and the cuisine, Rue de Boucher is a walking thoroughfare abounding with 17th century stepped gables, decorated doorways, cafes and restaurants with lavish pavement displays of seafood, piled high on mounds of ice. It is often called a "tourist trap" in regards to menu prices and quality of food, but I liked the atmosphere and will Recommend you to go there.
The Restaurant painting above I made out of my visit there in 2006.
The original display of seafood in front of the Restaurants looks like this.Some of you have of course seen the movie "Room with a view" from 1985 with Maggy Smith as the chaperone in Florence. The view from my hotelroom in Brussel was these Roofs:From the hotel Rooms in Kuala Lumpur and Shanghai I shot these photos of the Roofs below:I also Recommend you to visit the spectacular Roof at the new Oriente Railroad Station in Lisbon. The Oriente station is an inter-modal terminal: Its facilities serve and interconnect several forms of transport. Passengers can change between metropolitan, long- and medium-haul regional and international trains. There are connections into the underground system, national and metropolitan buses or taxis. There is also an airport link and check-in facilities.Other fabulous and Recommended Roofs are the Trulli in Alberobello, Italy, the Dome at the Cinema Colosseum and the Pave Roof on the New Opera House in Oslo, Norway.

The Roofs at the Restaurant area Boat Quay in Singapore and the City Hall in Sintra, Portugal are also places to visit:

When I climb up in towers and hills on my journeys, I find motives like the Roofs in Tavira, Algarve, Southern Portugal, and like the medieval Moorish part of Granada, Spain like Albayzin.
The Roofs of houses seen from the city mountain in Ålesund, Norway, and at my own summer Residential area, just Require to be presented with photos in this blogpost

Many of these places is on the list of World Heritage sites and if you want to see more photos based upon the letter R, visit MrsNesbitts Place.
But before you leave, join us at the ground in front of the Berlaymont building which houses the European Commission Headquarter in Brussel.

R is also for the Representative Refinement of my wife.

Odd Shot Monday - Worm´s Head and The Norse Dragon

A different Monday odd shot this week. At the Gower Peninsula South West Wales one of the old landmarks is Worm´s Head. This small island connected to the peninsula when the tide is withdrawn and you may visit the spectacular place for about five hours, until the coast guard give alarm and you have to hurry back, has got its name from the Norse Vikings 1000 years ago.
Most of Wales have origins from Kelts, but Gower was a place where the seaborne Norsemen or Vikings settled down and mingled with local people. The "Orms Hode" as Worm´s Head is meant in Norwegian was a natural navigation point for the people entering Bristol Channel from their possessions in Dublin Irland.
(Swansea has according to local people also a meaning from the Norse as "Sven´s Øye" or the Eye of Sven).
Some would say that this photo or text is not odd at all, but that is only until you look at the other photo. Here you (I hope) can see the worm, snake or Dragon crawling up from the beach and rule the Gower peninsula.
Have a nice week and go to Kathney´s Blogroll for more odd shots.

Snapshot 17th of May 2008

The following snapshots is taken during the celebration of the Norwegian National Day.In front of her Band the tambour major is always focused.
Head Master at Skøyenåsen school "Peter" former Boss at Hovin.
Rain and wind id no excuse to walk the Parade.
All nationalities are carrying Norwegian Flags
Students Parade. 13 years in school has come to an end. Now they celebrate and Universities are next.
Cold weather, wind and rain, but also some sunshine. A lovely National Day in Oslo.

Happy 17th of May

Gratulerer med Dagen!Breakfast at home. Hipp, Hipp Hurray!
The Royal Family greets the Children Parade and people like us in National Costumes from Sunnmøre, North West Norway

2008 FA Cup Final - Heia Cardiff!

The 2008 FA Cup Final is a football match scheduled to be held at Wembley Stadium tomorrow on 17 May 2008. The match will be the 127th FA Cup Final, and the second to be held at the new Wembley Stadium since its redevelopment.
The match will be contested by Portsmouth and Cardiff City.

This replica of the cup was on show in Cardiff during our stay there last week. You could be photographed holding the cup with artificial background of Wembley, or what so ever. If not, H&M was ready to offer their usual stuff.
The other cup is placed in Portsmouth.


Although Cardiff City are considered a Welsh club and only hold associate membership with the Football Association, should they win the 2008 FA Cup they will be allowed to compete in the 2008-09 UEFA Cup. However, it was decided that Cardiff would not have been entered for the UEFA Cup as FA Cup runners-up had Portsmouth already qualified for the UEFA Cup by finishing fifth in the Premier League. In such a scenario, the sixth placed Premier League team would have been awarded the UEFA Cup place. However, since Portsmouth finished eighth, this condition is now irrelevant.
The FA announced that, before the game begins, the Welsh national anthem, "Land of My Fathers" (Welsh: "Hen Wlad Fy Nhadau") will also be played along with "God Save the Queen" and "Abide with Me"

Just to let you share the information from Wikipedia, and waiting for the Final when watching Norwegian football league today.

Best Single Malt Whisky - Talisker

Do you like or love Whisky.
Are you among those who sometimes put a bottle of this Water of Life in your duty free bag when returning from your stay abroad, and are more or less unfamiliar with the different Brands and thus ending up with something safe and on budget (marked in traveling magazine)?
Are you among those who look at the bottles on the shelves and don´t know the difference between Single Malt and Blends?
Are you a woman and do not think Whisky is for you?

Then try a Scottish Single Malt next time and enjoy the flavour.
The single malt is flavoured according to Smoky, Delicate, Light and Rich. Pick your best choice based on these four variables.
Here is a map to help you.When returning to Norway last week I chose Talisker 10 years.
Chilled with ice-cubes it is well understood why it was awarded Best Single Malt Whisky at the World Whisky Awards 2007
Try it, because you´re worth it.

ABC Wednesday - Q

The answer is Grandchildren and Family
The answer is M4, Narrow Roads and Left side Driving

The answer is Green Parks, Wild Garlic, Dunes, steep Cliffs and beautiful Beaches

The answer is Bacon, Eggs, Tomatoes, Mushrooms, Sausages, Bean and Tea

The answer is Roasted Lamb, Jacket Potatoes, Fish and Chips, Lager and Wine

The answer is Penrhyn Gŵyr, Abertawe and Caerdydd
What is the Question ????

Q is for Question.

Two weeks without daily blogging feels strange, but my abstinence can be cured.
I`m Back!
After the week in Portugal we had some days at home before we went to De Cymru and the Gower Peninsula

The answers given above cover the most from last week, and here are some photographic documentation of the same:
Caerdydd or Cardiff (The Castle and Art Nouveau): Abertawe or Swansea: (Breakfast out and the old Castle Ruins) Park le Bruce: (Park path, Wild Garlic and Caves)Rhossili Beach and Orms Head:Family: (Helene and Henrik)and Thanks a lot for your hospitality Trine and David:
For more photos se My Gallary

PS For more about ABC Wednesday, please visit Mrs. Nesbitt's Place. It is well worth the effort.

Tuesday facts and ABCW tomorrow - P is for Portugal

I could have given you a lot of facts about Portugal this Tuesday, but the information available at Wikipedia is the right source for that reading. I will however, for all of you that want to take a trip to this interesting country, do not only read the overall Wikipedia article, but also go deeper into every 7 regions (Alentejo, Algarve, Açores, Centro, Lisboa, Madeira, and Norte).

Portugal is a developed country, and although having one of the lowest GDP per capita of Western European countries, it has a high Human Development Index and is among the world's 20 highest rated countries in terms of quality of life. It is a member of the European Union (since 1986) and the United Nations (since 1955)

My holiday last week to the three regions Algarve, Alentejo and Lisboa, has made my interest for visiting the Centro and Norte regions even stronger. According to comments from friends is the wine also better up there. May be will the island regions also be visited in the years to come.

But until new photos are taken, you have to deal with the south and one third of my shots presented like this of the Atlantic Ocean at
My Portugal Gallary.

Odd Shots and Bridging Gaps

Just coming home from Portugal, the Coast of Algarve, Evora and Lisbon including Sintra and Cascais / Estoril with almost 300 photos copied and given titles in my iPhoto Library. Will present some of them in My Gallery after returning from this week´s visit to Hospital and Wales.
However, it is Monday and time for Odd Shot. This monday´s motive is from the UNESCO World Heritage Site Sintra, (40 min west from Lisbon.) No comments needed by me, but you are welcome to evaluate this photo and see more Odd Shots at Katneys site.
On the First monday of the month I also have to present "Broer som Binder" managed by RuneE .
Of course Bridges from Lisbon are my choices on the May Monday, and I start with the Free Waters' Aqueduct from 1732. The aqueduct and its branches are total 58,135 meters in length.The next Lisbon Bridge is 25th April Bridge or Lisbon´s Golden Gate. The bridge is 2.278km long between its anchorages with the main span being 1.013km long, and was opened in 1966. The last Lisbon Bridge is Vasco da Gama Bridge. This magnificent structure was opened on 29 March 1998. It is an amazing 17.185km long and connects the north Lisbon suburb of Sacavém to the south bank of the Tagus near Montijo. The bridge includes viaducts of 12.345km, the rest of its length being approach roads. I had to use three shots to catch the length from north to south.For more information of the bridges, (and may be professional photos) go to The Luso Pages

Back from Portugal

Home after a week in Portugal, The coast of Algarve, Evora and Lisbon, Sintra and Cascais/Estoril.
A more systematic presentation of the tour will soon be available at my Gallery, but some of Tullens photos are shown here: (click on the photo for better view)The Stork nest at Faro and Naranja from Tavira
Praia do Roca at Portimao
Cabo Sao Vicente (most south western point in continental Europe)
The Roman Temple for Diana at Evora (from 2nd century ad) and some of the flowers we found at the Algarve coastline
The blogger in Sintra with the roman castle at the top
and close to the Atlantic ocean at Boca do Inferno
In Lisbon naval monument at the place where Vasco da Gama left Portugal on his voyage around Africa to India with schoolchildren playing in yellow caps
And at the end the Governor of the Beer Republic in a break between wines and Portuguese food and adventures. A lovely visit with many old friends from Det Norske Veritas.