Royal Town of Slaný • Královské město Slaný
31. 3—5. 4. 2003
Norway is a magic and for our homeboys unusually attractive country. It boasts not only on its natural beauties which often cannot be compared with other in Europe but this country is inhabited by people with very specific cultural habits, usually so specific that a visitor feels like in a fairy tale. No wonder. It's a country of Vikings’ descendants and of the original northern inhabitants – Samas, and… in addition to that it's a kingdom!
Scenery of landscape and its majesty are so charming that if a fabulous gnome troll looked at you from behind a rock, you wouldn't be surprised. Inhabitants are closely connected with nature, especially on the north of the country, and for us – Central Europeans it is amazing to follow what we have already lost in our conditions. I mean a sense for environment, discretion and for our mutual heplfulness. If you write about Norway, if you recall your stay there or if you imagine the Norwegian country, whatever disposition and world attitude you are, sooner or later pictures full of immense waterfalls, deep forests, rocks of various sizes and characters, and of fjords, of course, will arise in front of your eyes. If you happened to have time and wanted to come round the rugged coast, it would probably take you much time. It would be the same as if you came round half of the world along the equator. The coast is rugged to that extend. The individuality of landscape and the roughness of climate reflect naturally in songs, myths, life-style and in temper of its inhabitants. These facts always attracted attention of Czech people and due to it Norwegians are very close and sympathetic to us.
There doesn’t probably exist better evidence in the Czech literature proving highly cited than Karel Čapek took down in his book of travels A Travel to North. Reading this book is even more interesting for us – people from Slaný – because the well-known author took the journey with his wife Olga Scheinpflugová, a native of Slaný.
I’m very pleased that the next festival of cultural days in Slaný is devoted just to the Norwegian culture. I’m looking forward very much and I hope it will find favourable response as well as last year’s Days of Japanese Culture.
Ivo Rubík,
Mayor of Royal Town of Slaný
Norway. Country which we don’t see on TV everyday, country about which we don’t read in our everyday newspapers. And at the same time, country which is not so far-away from the Czech Republic, country which has already given much to the world, country which still has a lot to offer. And nevertheless when I asked myself for the first time what is Norway, I hardly squeezed my memory and recalled my classes of history and geography. I know, however, that it is the country with an enormous historical and cultural wealth. Country in which an entire life is connected with a harsh but beautiful nature. Country in which people’s thinking, their life philosophy, music and literature are touched with the severe northern climate. Country whose people appreciate, despite their continous fight with natural elements, their nature and natural wealth and they know how to manage it by the way it helps people and doesn’t harm nature.
I'm very pleased to have the opportunity to invite you to the Days of Norwegian Culture in Slaný and I would appeal for you to look, listen to and ask questions!
Pavel Toms,
ředitel UMOE Schat-Harding, spol. s r. o., Slaný
Days of Norwegian culture in Slaný are arranged by: Royal Town of Slaný, UMOE Schat-Harding, spol. s r. o., and Nordic Society.
Programm of Days of Norwegian Culture in PDF format:
• English (4,07 MB) 
• Czech (4,25 MB)
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