Fifteen things in Norway that I wish we had in Australia.
Having lived in Australia for most of my life, here’s a list of things that I do not take for granted here in Norway.
Man I wish we hadn’t have been so reckless with chloroflurocarbons all those years ago. You know why Scandinavians have that lovely golden skin? It’s because they can go outside in a singlet and shorts when it’s 25 degrees and not suffer third degree burns.
Insulation
Australia has pretty extreme weather. It’s like a fireball in summer and it is frigid in winter. Why don’t we have proper insulation? It’s a shame the home insulation scheme was so poorly rolled out as proper insulation and double glazed windows (which are both building regulation here) are the easiest way to reduce energy costs and emissions. Not only that, it’s a lot warmer inside in winter and a lot cooler in summer. What a concept.
High speed internet
Ok, so compared to South Korea, the internet here is just ok. But if you’re from Australia the internet speed here will make your head spin. The 3G on my Norwegian mobile is faster than anything that I paid $70 per month for in Australia.
Mobile phone connectivity
I use to live in Melbourne, the second largest city in Australia. When someone called me on my mobile, I had to wander around my apartment or out onto the balcony in order to hear anything. In Norway, I can actually have a full length conversation with someone in another country without having to repeatedly say, “oh, hang on, you’re dropping out…can you hear me? CAN YOU HEAR ME?”
Sweets are incredibly expensive over here because most of the retail price of confectionary is tax. It’s currently around $1.20 per kilo of refined sugar. It certainly abates consumption and something that has been debated in the United States as a way of curbing obesity. A 200g bag of sweets will set you back about ten bucks over here. Don’t even start me on McDonalds.
Every Scandinavian country has their own version of brown cheese although Norwegians think theirs is the best (of course they do). It’s made from caramelised whey and was invented as a way of using the waste product from cheese production. It’s full of fat and caramelly goodness. Mmmm…
I mainly like having four seasons because of the all the seasonal produce that comes with it. There is a cycle to the year in Scandinavia and it is very much driven by the weather. There are distinct activities, foods, festivals and holidays associated with each season and the weather is also pretty distinct, too. You won’t get a wintery blast in the middle of summer, nor will you get a T-shirt day in the middle of winter.
Norway has embraced electric cars which shows a real commitment to the environment (which is ironic considering most of Norway’s wealth comes from deep sea oil drilling). In Norway, if you own an electric car, not only will you have a lot of leftover cash since the car is almost tax free, but you also get free street parking and free electric charges for your vehicle. Your on road costs are virtually non existent. Needless to say there are stacks of electric cars over here. Maybe that’s why the air is so clean. Just sayin’.
A range of grocery retailers
There are about twenty supermarket chains in Norway each with their own special offering. Coming from a country where 75% market share is held by two retailers that are indistinguishable, having six different supermarkets within a 500 metre radius of my apartment blows my mind. The supermarkets are all owned by about three or four retail giants but the power here is with the producers, not the retailers. Farmers do pretty well here in Norway.
The Statoil cup
Statoil is Norway’s petroleum giant and they pretty much have the market cornered. Why they need loyalty gimmicks is beyond me but I’m glad they have them. The Statoil cup is my favourite. It’s essentially a branded thermo mug that you buy from the petrol station once a year. Every time you fill up the petrol tank, you can also fill up your Statoil cup with coffee, hot chocolate, warm milk, mocha, tea or cafe-au-lait …. for free. Yes, free! Every year there is a new cup but in order to reduce landfill, Statoil introduced the option to just buy a new lid for your cup. That way, they know your cup is valid for the free refills for that respective year. Imagine the amount of people who would actually stop and pull over for their free coffee on the Hume freeway rather than snoozing behind the wheel.
The welfare system
The welfare system here is one of the most generous in the world. Fancy that, a nation that takes care of its youth, its poor, the sick and elderly. This is funded from the 78% corporate tax on oil so before you say Australia can’t afford to pay for childcare, education, hospitals, parental leave, the unemployed and the disabled, think about how much wealthier the country would be if mining companies were taxed properly for not sharing the spoils they dug up from commonwealth soil.
Grass here is so green. Trees are so green. It’s real green, not yellow green. And it’s soft. It’s like a big green velvet blanket. And there’s heaps of it.
Proper discounts when shops have a sale
When there is a sale on in Scandinavian shops the discounts usually start at 50% off. It’s pretty common to get 75% off the retail price at sale time. I think the last time I got 75% off anything in Australia was when Daimaru closed down 2002.
Dog friendly everything
Norway is very dog friendly. You can take your dog into the office, on the bus, on the tram, on a plane, into the mall and to quite a few hotels. Not a lot of cats around here, though. There may be a connection there.
I can’t believe there is even a market for bottled water here. The water that comes out of the tap is insanely good and tastes just like it came off a glacier and filtered over a thousand rocks. Actually, it probably was.
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