AS snow falls heavily from the skies, every chimney in the neighborhood is spewing out smoke. With temperatures ranging from two to minus thirty degrees, the winter in Norway can both be enjoyable and harsh. One thing is for sure, the Norwegian winter is full of different traditions relating to the snow, our mountains, forests and weather.
Sundays is often a day many children have a love-hate relationship with. More often than not, parents drag their children out in the forest to go skiing. After having come out of the house however, most people find that it is not so bad after all to go on a trip outside. When what seems like skiing for miles and miles aimlessly comes to an end, you know there is a cabin in the woods where they sell fresh pastry, hot chocolate and coffee. With new energy and a clearer mind, you head home with a wish that this should last forever.
Classic Norwegian winter morning. You wake up, eat breakfast, walk out your front door to find that your driveway is covered in thirty centimeters of snow. Still sleepy you start shoving all the snow that’s between your car and the road so you can get going to work. Now in the freezing car the sweat from your morning workout is starting to go away as the heater ramps up. Coming home, the entire house is a bit colder than comfortable. Lastly, the best way to end the day is to go outside only in your underwear, roll around in the snow for a minute before you run inside to take a hot damp shower.
During the winter months, there are a lot of skiing competitions around the world. Traditionally the television is almost always turned on to watch skiing from morning till the evening. Downhill, cross country and ski jumping are equally represented when we trust our Norwegian sports idols to bring home the golden medals of each branch.
Winter is both harsh and fun. Appreciation of nature, sports and family are largely what the Norwegian winter tradition is all about. Skiing, snow and hot drinks make the winter go around. Happy winter!
News for YOUth 
I really liked reading this text about winter traditions in Norway because it shows how differently people can experience winter. For Norwegians, winter isn’t something depressing but actually something they look forward to. I found it interesting that they spend so much time outside, even when it’s dark and freezing. The way they go skiing on weekends, walk through snowy forests, and then stop in a little cabin to drink hot chocolate sounds really cozy and peaceful.
LikeLike
Winter and Christmas are the best part of the year. I love winter joys like sledding, throwing snowballs, snowballing… In Norway the weather is extreme, snow is high 1 m and every morning people need to clean snow from the cars and driveway. Something that surprised me was that people throw themselves into the snow in their underwear in the evening before takimg a shower. I was in Norway and something I noticed is that they have underfloor heatimg in the squares. Christmas in Norway is experienced in completely different way.
LikeLike