TRONDHEIM: Warm temperatures may have relaxed dress codes and some traditions on Friday, when thermometers set quite a few records on Norway’s Constitution Day holiday. It was especially warm in the central region of Trøndelag, where 17th of May celebrations in the region’s biggest city seemed a lot more casual than those in Bergen, Oslo or Haugesund.
There were still lots of men and women dressed in their bunad, the traditional costumes that represent different areas of Norway. Since nearly all are made of heavy wool, though, they can be mighty uncomfortable when temperatures rise above 25C like they did in and around Trondheim on Friday.
A wide variety of the bunad were nonetheless on parade, however, perhaps because of the city’s central position in the country and because it’s home to Norway’s highly acclaimed university specializing in science and technology, NTNU. It attracts people from all over the country (and the world) and may explain why there were nearly as many bunad from Svalbard, Nordland, Vestfold and Telemark as there were from Trøndelag. Many others, though, were casually dressed, even in shorts and T-shirts instead of the traditional suits and ties or bunad.
The streets of Trondheim were also a lot quieter than they are in several other Norwegian cities early in the day, both at 8am flag-raising- and wreath-laying- ceremonies. They draw large crowds in Oslo and Bergen, for example, while Trondheim officials seemed grateful for the few dozen who showed up at Friday’s memorials outside the city’s famed Nidaros Cathedral.
By late morning, however, crowds had gathered along downtown streets and central squares, before no less than three parades began at 10am, 1:05pm and 3:30pm. The first one was the children’s parade called the “Schools’ Flag Parade” and the last was for the rowdy graduating high school students known as russ.
The parade in the middle of the day (timed to begin right after canons roared frlm Trondheim’s historic Kristiansten Fortress overlooking the city) was the longest and called Folketoget (the People’s Parade). It featured marching bands, city officials from politicians to firefighters, sports organizations, football clubs including Trondheim’s professional club Rosenborg and a wide variety of civic organizations from the local Red Cross to The Nepalese Society in Trondheim. There were gymnasts, sword-bearing fencing enthusiasts, hockey players and a large delegation of Taekwon-do fans.
In the middle of all this were several street concerts and sing-alongs that also drew crowds of young and old. Patriotic songs were well represented, along with local favourites and, of course, the national anthem. Sing-alongs (called allsang in Norwegian) were popular at the 17th of May celebrations in Trondheim, and even fussy children suddenly seemed captivated by the sight and sound of parents and grandparents suddenly singing along with perfect strangers.
Local choirs were also busy on the 17th of May in Trondheim, including one made up of university students. They performed at the city’s main square, called Torvet, and offered powerful renditions of traditional songs ending, like most all others, with the national anthem.
The weather remained brilliant throughout the day, as crowds grew and then mingled around Trondheim’s City Hall, at central squares and especially at local bars and restaurants. They do brisk business on the 17th of May, and this year the holiday fell just before the traditional three-day pinse (Whitsund) holiday weekend that runs through Monday.
ALL PHOTOS: NewsinEnglish.no/Morten Møst
NewsinEnglish.no/Nina Berglund
