– Norwegian explorer Roald Amundsen sails with Fladvad sisters in 1907 –

Norway Hidden History Question:

In 1905, he finally breached the Northwest Passage. During the incredible journey, he also located and charted the magnetic North Pole.  When he was not enduring the hazards of a harsh arctic climate, he was engaged in activities potentially much more dangerous aboard a passenger ship en route to the United States.  Who was he and what was he doing with these beautiful Norwegian ladies on October 15, 1907?

Answers:

1. Fridtjof Nansen, socializing aboard the SS Oscar II en route to the United States
2. Henrik Ibsen, preparing journals of his explorations.
3. Roald Amundsen, playing shuffleboard aboard the SS Oscar II
4. Edvard Greig, composing his famous “Arctic Suite.”

Roald Amundsen was only a young man of seventeen when he witnessed the triumphal homecoming of Fridtjof Nansen, Norway’s famed Arctic explorer in 1889.  At some point during this time he fixed on the idea of mastering the Northwest Passage.

His first chance at Arctic exploration was in 1897-1899 aboard the Belgian ship “Belgica,” under the command of Adrian de Gerlache.  He was first mate on this expedition that was the first to winter in the Antarctic.  However, he wanted to set his own course with destiny.

In 1901, he conducted oceanographic research along the northeast coast of Greenland.  Finally, he was able to buy the Hardanger sloop Gøja, (“Sea”), and set out in 1903 for Arctic seas.  His aim was to locate the magnetic North Pole.  He spent two winters in Gjøahavn, learning Arctic survival skills from local Eskimos, for whom he had enormous respect.

In 1905, he finally breached the Northwest Passage making the first voyage around the northern Canadian coast.  During the incredible journey, he also located and charted the magnetic North Pole.

Amundsen’s name doesn’t show up again in the logs of history, until 1909.  However, we do know where he was on October 15, 1907.  He was not enduring the hazards of a harsh arctic climate.  He was engaged in activities potentially much more dangerous–socializing aboard a passenger ship en route to the United States.

Otilie and Olise Fladvad were en route to the U.S. for their first visit to this country.  They were traveling with their older sister, Marie, and her three children who were returning from an extended visit to her beloved Norway.

On the back of an autographed photograph, Olise noted that she was traveling on the SS Oscar II.  The photo is “of Captain Hemple during a very interesting game called shuffle board with Captain Roald Amundsen.”

It is interesting that she mentions Captain Hemple first, then Captain Amundsen.  After all, at that point Amundsen had simply spent three winters stuck in the ice.  If he had any dreams about reaching the Pole, it was probably the North Pole, not the South, he had in mind.  In any event, she thought enough of his friendship and accomplishments to have him pose with her and to autograph the photograph.  It would take him several more years to achieve his highest goal: to be the first to reach one of the Poles.

Flavors of the Fjords is the most comprehensive history of any Norwegian-American family yet prepared, including its holiday recipes, travels, photographs, and correspondence.

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Why you should savor Flavors 2018 ePub Edition…

“Flavors of the Fjords” is a combination of cookbook and family history assembled by the Fladvad and Bjørke family. The book may be the most detailed history of a Norwegian-American family yet published, and it serves as a model of what many Norwegian-American families could do to preserve knowledge of their past and the stories of their ancestors’ immigration.”
News of Norway, Norwegian Embassy, Washington, D. C.

• Flavors of the Fjords is the largest, most comprehensive history of any Norwegian-American family yet prepared, including authentic, traditional holiday recipes, travels, photographs, and correspondence, over 400 pages (depending on browser used).
• Explore and Celebrate Norway’s history, culture, and breathtaking beauty.
• Follow the Fladvad and Bjørke family through over 400 years of illustrated history and documented survival. “…the most detailed history of a Norwegian-American family yet published…”
• Family history is interwoven with fascinating images of Norwegian “must-see” locations such as Maihaugen, Slottet, Storting, Sunndal and social history, including explanations of Norwegian Holiday traditions and customs, many of them kept alive to this day by millions of Norwegian-American families.
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• Recreate the aromas of your Bestemor’s kitchen at Christmas, National Day, or other holidays, with over 100 authentic, traditional Norwegian cakes and cookies.  “History has never tasted so good!”
• Recipes for over 100 holiday cookies, cakes and breads, toppings, and puddings.
• Includes a 1,800-word Norwegian-English glossary, with useful terms for foods and cooking, but also family, kinship, home, and utensils. The Glossary is the first designed specifically to help readers wishing to translate their family Norwegian recipes.
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• Flavors includes rare letters and photographs from family members describing the trials of life in German-occupied Norway during World War II.
• Recipes are really interesting and fun to read. The Authors have included copious notes on Norway, its people, and its cooking. In addition, many of the recipes pages include period photographs of family members who were connected with the recipe.