Saturday 17 May 2008

Røros

 
 
 
 
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Two years ago I went to Norway. The country I have loved for so many years, since I came there in 1961. That was before I got married. My husband had the same love for this beaytiful country and we went there first together and later with the children. After my husband died in 1999 I went four times to Norway and stayed there twice with relatives in Lillehammer. My cousin and I went to Røros and here are some photos.


The roofs are made of 7 layers of grass, which is a cheap, but excellent way of insulation. Sometimes we see flowers on the roofs, like the blue flowers on the roof of this little house. The name Grass Roof comes from the architectural concept of the same name. Historians believe the first grass roof house was built some time around 900 BC. The grass roof design really came into its own in Iceland and Scandinavia where natural grasses were often used on structures. Even now grass roofs are becoming more and more popular with people looking for an effective roof covering that provides many benefits over other more modern materials.

4 comments:

Janice Thomson said...

What a neat idea - there's actually older stores over here in small communities that have sod roofing and goats to keep it mowed short :)

Reader Wil said...

That is also the case in Norway: the goats keep the grass short and the roof is a cheap way of insulation in winter. Do you know if there are many immigrants from Scandinavia in Canada?

Janice Thomson said...

There are Scandinavian settlements scattered here and there across Canada but I do not know the specific numbers. I do know they are very clean, hardworking people. There is a Norwegian community called Hagensborg (population around 300) in the Bella Coola Valley on the west coast. It is one of the most beautiful villages I have ever seen.

Reader Wil said...

That's what I like about Norway: the buildings are very nice and very colourful and tidy. The Norwegians had all the time of the world to carve wood during the evenings in former days when there was no TV and they were more or less bound to stay in their valley, due to heavy snowfall and lack of transport. The women did all the sewing and knitting.