Lately I have been confused by the reactions of fellow Newfies (yes I use the N-word) to articles in the news. First of all, I was not really surprised when Premier Danny Williams got overwhelming support for standing up to Stephen Harper on commitments related to the Atlantic Accord. Why wouldn’t he? Last time he took on the (former) PM on this issue, he won, and we expect the same thing this time.

However, at the same time this story plays out, the Premier (and his Government) is being flogged from all sides for a new branding campaign for the Province. The first complaint was one you expect whenever any government makes a decision, the cost. The Opposition and other groups felt the million dollars could have gone elsewhere, like propping up outport communities on hard times. Though I feel some of these complaints are short sited, I not going to argue them here because it was the second reaction that took me by surprise and lead to my confusion.

You see, the new brand is a stylized version of the words “Newfoundland” and “Labrador” along with a Pitcher Plant, our Provincial flower. In explaining the symbol and how it relates to the people of this province, the literature sent to residents includes text such as, “Because we can’t help but smile at something that lives on a rock, where nothing else grows.” (Cue the criticism…)

When the one of the local newscasts ask for comments on the topic, amongst other things, people complain about the reference. Most of which boiled down to, “why would you want to portray the Province in such a way.” And it’s not only call to the broadcast that have projected this distaste; I have heard it form others both in conversation on the topic, and in passing references.

This is where I start to get confused. Since I can remember I have always here stories about how Newfoundlanders are a strong, hearty people. We had to be! Our ancestors inhabited a fierce and unforgiving land to take on one of the worlds most dangerous professions (especially in those times), fishing. We built communities on the sides of cliffs, just to take advantage of sheltered harbour below. Quite literally growing a community where nothing else would grow.

Not only did we live this way, we were once proud of it. We passed stories and sang songs about the hardship and how our people overcame it all. Lately though, we seem to have lost this sense of pride. We haven’t stopped singing the songs or telling the stories, but it would seem we stopped listening to them. Then we started to hear what a few loud voices in the rest of Canada had to say, and we were ashamed.

Yes, it would seem that Newfoundlanders have the pride and conviction to stand up with our Premier for what we believe is right for our future. What we need to get back now is the pride in our past. With this complete identity, we can more forward, and knowing what our people have gone though thus far, we won’t be afraid of anything the future might hold.

Okay, so I broke down and changed to WordPress. Blogger didn’t have all the features I wanted (like categories), but I didn’t want to move until I finished my own WP Template. That however has not happened, and I am not sure when I will have the time or want to finish one, so I decided to just go for it. Now I just have to blog more.

I write this as I sit on the plane approximately 2 hours out of St. John’s. My trip has come to an end, and quite frankly I am happy to be going home. It’s not that I didn’t enjoy Oslo, on the contrary, I found it to be a great place to visit and if it was not so far from home, a nice place to live. However, it is always better to travel, especially with the one you love.

For most of my first week in Oslo, I did not do much in the evening (except the before mentioned concert) other than eat and head back to my room. I had taken all of my file for my research (a complete carry on filed) and tried to get some work done on my thesis. I did in fact get a good bit of work done on one chapter which I hope to finish up this weekend so I can send it to my supervisors (possibly with this comic).

Last weekend I finally caught up with Jason Barron, a fellow Engineer (whom I have know since before high school) now working for TrollTech in Oslo. He invited me out Friday with some of the guys from work, for a bit to eat. At least I thought it was just for a bit to eat. We ate, talk, drank, and then decided to visit a few clubs. It was a great night (if the guys from TrollTech are like that at work, I would recommend working there to anyone) that just kept going. We started at about 8pm in the light. We moved on to a few clubs at 11:30pm in the dark (sun goes down around 11pm in Oslo right now). And then went to get Kabobs at with the sun coming up again (3:30am). By the time I got back to my room, it was light out and my head was messed up.

This no doubt had an effect on my sleeping, and I did not get up Saturday until 12pm (about 2:30hr behind my intended schedule). Once I finally did get up, I wandered of to the Palace grounds for the changing of the guards, then down Karl Johan Gate for some shopping. Found myself a late lunch at McDonald’s (Norwegian McNuggets are oddly similar to Canadian ), and then head to the Viegland sculpture park to see lots of naked people. By the time all that was done, I was spent and headed back to my room for some sleep. However, by the time I finally did get close to sleep, there was an announcement in the hotel that the fire alarm had been pulled, and we should wait for further instructions. So, I waited… and waited… and nothing. At 3am (about an hour had passed) I finally call the front desk to find out that it had been a false alarm. I guess they didn’t want to annoy people with a further announcement :S.

On Sunday, I decided to take it easy and limited myself the to Munch Museum. This holds the largest single collect of any one artists (in this case Edvard Munch) in the world. Unfortunately, it does not hold his two famous works, The Madonna and The Scream, as they were stolen from the build in broad daylight two years earlier. The evidence of this is obvious when you reach the medal detectors and air lock style doors as you work through the exhibit. Even without the paintings though (I knew they weren’t there before I went), the tour was quite informative and I feel I gained a better appreciation for the art.

Monday it was back to work, which was highly productive (thankfully, since it was the main purpose for the trip), but I will spear you the details. On Tuesday night, Bjorn, Yens, Knut and I went of for kind of a farewell supper. We decided on a place called The Mona Lisa, which server both Norwegian and Italian food. So, keeping with my “try new things” resolution this year, I decide to try a traditional Norwegian dish, reindeer. It may even have been Rudolf, but they don’t serve the nose, so I have no way of knowing.

Wednesday was my last full day in Norway. I took a little time in the morning to get some pictures of the harbour and then headed over to the National Museum. It was there I finally had a chance to see The Scream and The Madonna (the copies that were not currently in the hands of criminals). Then I headed to work, after which I headed to my new hotel to get some sleep for the flight home.

Before our trip last month, Lori and I spent a fair bit of time trying to determine what we wanted to do in Australia. One a whim I decide to try and find out if David Helfgott would be playing any concert there, since he lives there. Just my luck, he was not.

When I got to Oslo however, my luck changed. I was given a entertainment guide for May at the airport and to my surprise, David Helfgott was giving a recital the first Tuesday of my trip. A few questions to various people later, and I found where it was and there were tickets available (at least I thought I knew where I was going).

On the way to the concert, it started to rain and in my rush I took a wrong turn. I ended up in the area of Gamle Logan (the concert hall), but I couldn’t figure out which build was the one I wanted. So, I decided to ask a woman standing under a tree, shielding herself from the rain. “Can you help me?” I asked. She replied, “I think I can,” with a smile on her face. That’s when I realized I was talking to a prostitute. Boy, was she surprised when I asked her for directions.

I did finally find the concert and, at the risk of over using the word, it was amazing. I have to admit, I have not seen many pianists play live, but like wine, I know what I like. I like David Helfgott.

The event was more of an experience that a concert. If you don’t know the story of David Helfgott, I suggest you rent the movie Shine which will give you a Hollywood version (with an great performance by Geoffrey Rush). For now all you need really need to know is he was a childhood prodigy who’s career was almost end by his battle with Schizoaffective Disorder. This affects his communications and relations with the people around him.

After being introduced, David ran out on to the stage giving the crowd two thumbs up, with a look of pure joy on his face. He then shook the hand of everyone in the front row, bouncing from person to person, before sitting at the piano. There he played works by Beethoven, Listz and Grieg, all while talking singing and muttering to himself (a side effect of his disorder).

For two pieces, he was joined by Maria Goldberg, a young soprano, who performed works by Puccini. During her performance I saw something quite unique. After missing a note early in the first piece, she collapsed to the ground in embarrassment. David quickly stopped playing, though he was not embarrassed or mad. He simply went over to comfort her and rally the crowd around her, returning to the piano only when she was ready. After this she performed quite well (I would say flawlessly to my ears). When she finished her pieces, David continued by himself, playing three encores, finishing with Flight of the Bumblebee which was astounding, and will be one of my fondest memories of my trip.