Góða Ólavsøku

Hello everyone! Góða Ólavsøku!! Or as you may understand it better...Happy St. Olav's Festival! Ólavsøku is the national holiday here in the Faroe islands, and what a festival it is! Though today is sadly our last day in the Faroes - we fly to Iceland tomorrow - I couldn't have asked for a better ending to our stay here. Ólavsøku is quite an experience - definitely one I will never forget!

The festivities started on Saturday with a big parade through town and many of the local people dressed in traditional Faroese dress. It was amazing. It seemed like the whole country turned out to watch. Then it was just partying all day! People young and old were out drinking in the streets, and there were events all day. From choirs and traditional dancers to a hip hop routine by some local teenagers (you would have loved it Liz!). There was also carnival like games set up all over the place and little shacks selling popcorn, hot dogs and cotton candy (or as they call it, candy floss). We had a great time walking through the streets and checking out all the events.

Then came Sunday, which is the real holiday. Everything started with a march from parliament to the cathedral of all the ministers and parliament members. Then there was a service in the

cathedral followed by a huge choir singing in front of parliament. Everyone was there and loads of people where dressed in Faroese national dress. It was quite a sight to behold. As luck would have it, right after the choir finished singing we ran into the kind Faroese family that had invited us for dessert and coffee while we were in Suðuroy. We were chatting about the day and the invited us over to their house for an evening brunch/open house. What a fortuitous meeting! After another day of festivities we did indeed join this kind family for an evening in their home, full of good food, drinks and singing. Then at 11pm we walked back into town for the big event. At midnight there was a huge singalong in the town square. They estimate about 10,000 people were there in the little town singing their hearts out. There were song books passed around, so even James and I did our best with pronunciation and sang along (I think the drinks helped). After the singing, everyone joined hands and began the traditional Faroese chain dance - even us. It was an amazing experience to see thousands of people all doing the same steps in time together. I can't even explain it. Sadly I was so enthralled by the events that I didn't even think to take pictures. But I think James was able to snap a few, so tune into his blog for some views!

Here's what James wrote about our time at the festival:

Standing in the midst of some 8000-1000 inebriated Faroese at midnight last night, all of us belting out Faroese songs (me included), I realized I would have a very hard time explaining Olavsøka -- or St. Olaf's Day -- to anyone who had not witnessed it first hand. It is perhaps the most important festival in the Faroes, though only celebrated in Torshavn, the capital. What limited hotel and hostel space is available fills up months in advance, both with tourists and with Faroese traveling from other islands. Although St. Olaf's Day is technically just that, one day (July 29), the party started on Friday night and didn't really wrap up to the wee hours of today. It is a combination religious holiday (celebrating the arrival of Christianity to the islands) and political affair (politicians marching from the parliament to service at the "cathedral"); it is an assertion of the unique Faroese culture, with a large percentage of the population dressed in beautiful national dress (even when sporting punk hairstyles and piercings); it is a fair with games and junk food; it is a weekend of drunken debauchery; it is a sporting competition (rowing and horseback riding); it is a showcase for the musicality of the Faroese, with its many choirs and bands, and a time to dance and sing at random; it is a time for family and friends to be together. Basically, it is a complete celebration that encompasses anything and everything Faroese. And at midnight of Olavsøka proper, all is distilled into an absolutely moving experience of singing followed by the famous Faroese chain dance. Everyone links hands and begins the simple two steps to the left, one to the right, movement and singing out the ballads that chronicle the history of the islands. Indeed, the dance and the ballads were one of the major ways the Faroese maintained their history and language when under Norwegian and Danish rule. It was fascinating and a whole lot of fun.

But perhaps the best part of all is that Meghan and I got to share the experience with a Faroese family. The islands are special for many reasons, but one of the most important is the warm hospitality we have experienced. Through a random connection with a Swiss man we met in Suduroy, we had been invited into a home there for coffee and conversation. The Faroes being the Faroes, we ran into this family (along with the Swiss) at the morning processional of Olavsøka. We were then invited to their home just outside of Torshavn for a buffet dinner (including dried whale with blubber and air-dried leg of lamb, uncooked). We sat for hours laughing and discussing the world, also getting to know their friends. It made Olavsøka a much more meaningful experience.

It is with real sadness that I am leaving these far away islands tomorrow morning. But it is on to Iceland, with warm memories of Olavsøka and the friendships we have made here to carry us forward.

Ok...I best be off, my time here at the library is running short. I uploaded a couple photos from our trip to Mykines onto Flickr. Hopefully I'll be able to update again once I reach Iceland tomorrow!

Miss and love you all!

Meg