St. Georgsdagen, Ibsen, Knut Hamsun and Nazi Germany, and Grimstad revisited with Sarah and Karin

St. Georgsdagen, St. George's Day (celebrated April 30 this year) is the Norwegian scout movement's biggest celebration in honor of the saint knight St. George. According to legend, St. George fought a fire-breathing dragon to save the life of a princess, which symbolizes St. George's fight against evil, and struggle for the good, noble and true. Like him, all scouts should be ready to help those in need. St George's ideals are also reflected in the Scout promise. All Scouts renew their Scout promise annually - on St. George's Day.




Mark in the St. Georgsdagen parade. We finally broke down and splurged for a 3 season sleeping bag, sleeping pad, and a rucksack. We hope Mark is prepared for his camping trip to Oggevatn, which follows the parade.




Sarah with the guide at the Ibsen Museum in Grimstad where Ibsen worked for a pharmacist, from age 15-21, where he impregnated a young servant girl, and where he began his writing career.



Ibsen's writing desk while in Grimstad.


Sarah and Karin, who lives near Grimstad and who has been a dear friend to me this year.


Knut Hamsun, arguably Norway's greatest writer, published Hunger in 1890, was awarded the Nobel Prize for literature in 1920, and influenced a generation of modernist writers. Hamsun's legacy in Norway, however, is contested because of his avid support for the Nazi regime.. According to a post on the website of the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, "He was a literary giant of his time, but he also applauded Hitler and the Nazi ideology, and sided with the Nazi occupation of Norway for five years."

Reporter Andy McSmith, writing for the Independent, notes that Hamsun "was a life-long admirer of German culture. He backed the Germans in the First World War, supported Norway's fascist movement in the 1930s, and when Norway was under Nazi occupation, he met Hitler and gave Goebbels the Nobel Prize Medal for Literature that he had been awarded in 1920. Neither did he relent or apologize when the war was over. A week after Hitler committed suicide, Hamsun wrote an obituary praising him as "a warrior for mankind", 'a prophet of the gospel of justice for all nations' and 'a reformer of the highest sort.'"

Nonetheless, Hamsun appeared on a Norwegian stamp in 2009.





Knut Hamsun's home near Grimstad, where Hamsun lived for 34 years and which is privately owned by a Hamsun descendant. Knut Hamsun moved with his family to farm outside Nørholm Grimstad in 1918. Here he lived until 1952.



Karin and Wooster