We do not like foreign traditions. Norwegians are protesting against this holiday. Some put up posters reading: "Halloween is not celebrated in this house; we invite you to julebukken." They even have a Facebook page where they argue that it is a foreign holiday and that it would be better to celebrate julebukken, a tradition involving dressing up as Christmas characters, going from house to house between Christmas and New Year’s and singing carols. They argue that for Halloween, you have to buy a child a new costume, whereas for julebukken you can use what is already in your home. Of course, there are Halloween supporters everywhere, although in Norway it is becoming an increasingly less popular holiday. Poles and Norwegians prefer their own holidays and treat foreign ones with some reserve.
We make sandwiches for work. Although Norwegians could afford to order lunch, everyone still takes a “matpakke” to school, preschool and work. It is usually an ordinary sandwich and a drink in a thermos or bottle. It is an old, good tradition.
We shop at thrift stores. Of course, it is not the case that every Pole and every Norwegian buys clothes at a second-hand shop. We also have different motivations. A Norwegian does so for ecological reasons, so that good clothing is not thrown away but used again. Regardless of the size of their wallets, however, Poles and Norwegians like to boast about the bargains they have found. For both us and them, the art lies in buying something good and cheap.
We like staying at home. Norwegians do not consider a home to be a place where one sleeps and eats before going out to work and spending the whole day there. A home is meant to be a zone detached from work and problems; above all, it is meant to be cosy. A Norwegian home contains a great many knick-knacks and mementos, paintings and photographs. It is warm and bright here. Norwegians, like Poles, rarely eat in restaurants.
Getting things done takes a lot of time. "But this takes so long!" a Pole thinks while waiting for a letter from an office, an Internet connection or a court case that drags on for years. Imagine that Norwegians have it similarly. You wait at least two weeks for a parcel and collect it at the post office. An acquaintance told me about a Norwegian woman who spent two months arranging the replacement of an old washing machine with a new one. Looking for work also takes time. If you see “snarest” in a job advertisement—that is, they need someone as soon as possible—it probably means that the position will be vacant in six months.
More posts on the blog Scandinavian Woman, or Anka in the Land of the Fjords.