Scan Magazine | Special Theme | Autumn & Winter Experiences in Norway
world to do something like this and are still the only ones. It’s a learning curve, but we are excited that more and more people are making their way to Geilo, some travelling huge distances to experience the festival. The idea behind the musical celebration is borrowing nature’s raw materials, and returning them back to nature year after year.” Friendly footprints The idea of using pure materials, renewal and having little or no environmental impact is something of an ethos for Medhus and his vision for Geilo. Rather than buying a fridge magnet and jetting off, it is about making a positive impact that lasts. “We are focusing more and more on promoting Geilo as a sustainable tourist destination and are working hard to realise our goals for the community,” Medhus states. “Apart from events such as the Ice Music Festival, one of the ways we are doing this is by encouraging and facilitating local food suppliers to learn more
about the nearby environment and obtaining food there. For example, we’ve arranged for chefs to go on culinary excursions to national parks. Basically, we would like more of what Geilo has to offer to be available to a greater number of people.” Food is no minor matter in Geilo, which boasts some of the best-known restaurants in the country, acclaimed for their traditional cuisine and quality wine. “Geilo has always had sort of a hosting role,” Medhus says. “We have some excellent hotels that are used to hosting visitors from all over the world. And that’s really what is exciting, I think, being a local in Geilo: being able to meet all these different people, contribute to their experience, and inspire them to try out new things in our unique village.” For more information, please visit: www.geilo.no
Melting music During the winter, Geilo might as well be taken straight from a snow-dusted fairy tale. With over 39 downhill slopes, 550 kilometres of cross-country tracks, dog sledding, ice fishing, snow shoeing and any other winter pastime imaginable, it is a winter enthusiast’s utopia. However, if you are not a sports enthusiast, or just looking for a less stereotypical experience of the arctic north, there is one event that is unparalleled: Geilo’s Ice Music Festival. Each February, for the last 10 years, gigantic blocks of ice have been sawed and transformed into musical instruments, played under the full moon in a hollowed-out cave made of ice. The sounds are like the material: fragile, haunting and completely inimitable from concert to concert. Slowly, the ice melts and the magical tones fade. Medhus has been managing the festival since its conception and is proud that it is still one of a kind. “We were the first in the
ABOVE: The idea behind Geilo’s Ice Music Festival, to borrow nature’s raw materials and return them back to nature year after year, carries a sentiment that echoes through the entire place, which more and more markets itself as a sustainable tourist destination.
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