We are getting quite good at staying up late in Norway since the sun doesn't set here until after 10pm each night. Thus, the disorienting late sunsets combined with a very full schedule often keeps us up much later than we are accustomed. Many evenings we are up until midnight or later before we realize it and last night was once again one of those late nights. Therefore, luckil today's itinerary did not require an early start so I enjoyed sleeping in a bit snuggled up in my down comforter that I have come to be so fond of in Norway, on this cool Vågsvåg morning. The sun has a short night here in Norway since it rises very early, like around 5 am. So when I check the time in the morning and realize that's too soon to get up, I really enjoy rolling over and dreamily go back to sleep again. Which is what I did this morning as I reminded myself that I really need to buy some of these down feather duvets when we get back to Iowa!! They are great.
Eventually I did get up for the day and first on the agenda was a guided tour of the cemetery in Vågsvåg with Lisbeth and Asbjørn. They graciously showed us many gravestones of Våge relatives including some of Jorgen's (Bob's great-grandfather) siblings/half-siblings, and patiently explained how we were all interconnected. Bob recognized the cemetery right away from an old picture his grandparents kept. Very cool! It is a beautiful place to be laid to rest as it overlooks the peaceful fjord below and is quietly encircled by the nearby mountains. This place reminds me of God's love, like the mountains, always around us to comfort us and like the fjord, deep enough to last forever.
Then we were all off for a short hike in Maløy for a picturesque view overlooking the city and fjord. What fun and thankfully no one fell off the cliff! (Sorry Lillian if my adventuresome boys nearly gave you a heart attack!)
After our little excursion, we had a very important appointment to meet and visit with the local Lutheran priest from the church in Maløy. The church is a lovely traditional Lutheran church that reminded me of many Lutheran churches in Minnesota and Iowa except this one had a beautiful pipe organ! And thanks to Lisbeth's persuasiveness (and maybe some persistence too), we were honored with a beautiful organ/brass program with Asbjørn, his brother, Terje and their accomplished church organist. Wow, it was great! More coffee and treats were served while we visited with the priest and then we were off again before the road closed! (Whatever weight I may have lost hiking around Oslo and Bergan has, I'm afraid, all been regained during our time in Vågsvåg. It seems that all we do is eat here!)
Following our return to Vågsvåg, we had the pleasure of visiting with Magnar and Marie Våge in their home. We had a lot of fun looking at some really old pictures and some new ones of their family today too. You could definitely see the resemblance between Magnar and Bob's grandfather, Carl! Marie served us a wonderful lunch of coffee and some Norwegian krumkakke! My favorite!! (Oh my, more food.)
By now it's mid-afternoon and we find ourselves around the Våge table again this time eating some of the fish that had been caught the day before! The makerel and polluck were excellent! The boys devoured the fish like they hadn't eaten for days even though it had only been a few hours since their last snack! Lisbeth laughed as she described how Chris's eyes rolled back in ecstasy following the meal. Much thanks is owed to John Inge for cleaning the fish very late into the night last night and for Lillian preparing it all! Tusen takk!!
Well, the kids are feeling a bit more adventuresome than Bob and I, so the four of them set out on an ambitious hike to the top of the mountain near Vågsvåg. From their account of the hike, it was a pretty awesome mountain-top experience, and not just figuratively speaking. In contrast, Bob and I took food coma naps.
Ah, but the day wasn't even over yet! The culminating event of the week was the family reunion party and the long anticipated Våge band concert! So we all got cleaned up and took off for the party! What an absolutely wonderful evening we had meeting and visiting with more Våge relatives and of course, eating more great Norwegian food!! It was all very, very delicious but the famous cream cake was to die for!! (Thanks Inger!) Then the fun really began when we were all entertained by the amazingly musically talented Våge family! Several pieces of the brass choir even included Jon on tuba, Erik on trombone and Chris on drums! Before the evening regretfully ended, we were treated to several other selections including Terje on his accordion and a coronet/clarinet duet by Lisbeth and Verena. Bob and I also took part in the concert with a guitar/vocal piece and I dedicated a "Norwegian wood" keyboard solo to our new-found cousins. Thank you so much Lisbeth for coordinating the dinner and concert and to everyone who helped make it possible! Also, thank you for allowing us to be a part of the program too! I think a Våge Band road trip to Iowa sounds like a great idea!!
Well, we find ourselves up quite late again tonight but mostly because we really don't want the day to end for sadly, tomorrow we start our journey home...
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