This picture shows one of the pictures I saw, walking in Luleå, Sweden . Luleå - the gate to Norrbotten! It is a pretty small town, a lot of water and a big sky. I love the water, and if I find some nice lakes or rivers, I can sit watching for hours and hours. Just watching the water, the sky and people, if there is any of those around. I have been watching a lot of water on this trip. First in Bodø, Norway, then when travelling by the Hurtigruta along the coast of northern Norway until I got seasick and had to go to bed. For hours I watched the big rivers of Rovaniemi, I thaught they were lakes, but they were rivers. I have no idea of geography, sorry, I just see the beautiful water. I also watched a lot of water in Oulu, Finland. This summer, before I left, I was waterwatching back home in Viksdalen . The lake called Viksdalsvatnet is magic. We have a lot of water where I grew up. Quite a few pictures were lined up in Luleå. You could see people swimming, bathing, jumping into the ...

This trip, Anne covering The Barentsregion 2008, comes to an end. I am on the train from Sundsvall to Stockholm, and I can't tell you I look forward to going back to the same old streets of Oslo. Well, of course, Oslo is a nice city, and there are lots of nice people, but sometimes I am just gettin' fed up, and I am not sure if I am not still fed up with Oslo, the way I was before I went on this trip, and the trip before this one. Guess I'll find out soon, but tonight is Stockholm. Well. To sum up, this has been a really great trip, and I've met dozens of nice people on my way from Bodø to Umeå. In Oulu, Janne asked me: What is the main difference between Finnish people and Norwegians? The language, I replied. And I have never seen Norwegians drink a big glas of milk in the pizzahut after leaving the nightclubs, but I guess, that is not a bad habit, and I have no idea if this is something most Finnish folks do, or if it was just those guys I met who did it, and who know...

printscreen Dagbladet magasinet 9.august

I was walking in the town of Oulu when I saw this sign. It's a good one, nice picture but hard words. Anyway, I get it . Then I saw this signs. I thaught maybe it ment: DON'T STEP ON THE GREEN STUFF, and kept walking on the roads, but I later was told this was the name of this place. Walking by the beautiful rivers, I saw this sign. It was a lot of mosquitos around, and since this sign was placed along the path, I thought maybe it ment something like WATCH OUT - KILLERFLIES, and stopped to think. Should I dare walking this deadly mosquito-walk? I did take the chance, I am still alive, and was later told Potnapekka is the name of a little train that runs along these small roads. It is also the name of some kind of flie.

I was walking in the streets of Oulu, Finland, when I met this man. He is made of stone and pretty big, I think he is some kind of famous, but I didn't get it. What is he famous for? Maybe someone can help me. At least, he didn't speak. I went on, trying to find something I could read. That was not easy, but I kind of got the idea that there were some books on the third floor. 3.kerros. I went by the lift to the third floor, and found a lot of newspapers. I still have no idea what happened to Madeleine that day. But then, I found a book in a language I understand, but about a babe I have no intentions to read about. I went back to the lift, down on the street and met some nice Finnish guys at the Jazzfestival. They really made my days. A city where you know no people, is a city without a soul. Now Oulu has a soul, a good one.

På NRK mot Jan Atle Stang Ligg på 30.juli ca klokka ti på sju. Eg vinner debatten!! Katt et agurk i Firda var ei sak som handla om MILJØ! Katt et agurk er ei MILJØSAK?? Hjelpe meg. Det at det i det heile tatt går an å sei at dette er ei miljøsak, seier vel ganske mykje om kunnskapen om miljøproblematikken. Eg forstår ikkje kvar mediene får det frå at eg har utropt Firda til landets dårlegaste avis. Eg har ikkje samanlikna nokon aviser, men kommentert debatten/den kritiske journalistikken i fylket, som er paddeflat, og mange har gått ut og vore enige med meg, så ja, men redaktørane vil tilsynelatande berre tåkebokse og sjølvforsvare seg. Her er ein interessant debatt på P2 om kommentatorenes rolle i etterkant av Torbjørn Rød Isaksen og Audun Lysbakkens artikkel i Samtiden her i vår. Artikkelen var forsåvidt interessant.

Elojazz 2008 , which means august jazz 2008, since Elo are the three first letters in the Finnish word for "august". Here I've spent two nights, you'll get to see some pics later, but now I've got to run for my bus to Sweden. Sweden, I am afraid, will be pretty much like Norway after this Finnish-language-experience. My guidebook told me Finnish was like a mix of Chinese and Italian, I'm not sure if that's right, but at least it is impossible to understand, at least for me.