King Harald Continues the County Tour in Samnanger and Vaksdal
Photo: The Royal Court
The county tour of Vestland continues. King Harald visited the municipalities of Samnanger and Vaksdal, with fjords, mountains and valleys, and was met by people in bunad, folk dancing, singing and entertainment, in both sunshine and rain.
On the second day of the county tour of Vestland, King Harald continued on to the municipalities of Samnanger and Vaksdal. The west-Norwegian landscape showed itself from every side, with fjords, mountains and valleys.
The Royal Yacht Norway lies at anchor in the fjord during the visit. Photo: The Royal Court of Norway
The King waves from the boat on arrival. Photo: The Royal Court of Norway
The King was welcomed by people in bunad, young and old, who had turned out to greet him.
The King greets one of the young in bunad on arrival. Photo: The Royal Court of Norway
Large crowds turned out in bunad with flags. Photo: The Royal Court of Norway
The programme included folk dance, singing and entertainment, and the King was given a warm reception in both sunshine and rain.
The King laughs heartily during the entertainment. Photo: The Royal Court of Norway
His Majesty The King's Guard parades during the visit. Photo: The Royal Court of Norway
The King takes time to meet local craftspeople and look at handcrafts. Photo: The Royal Court of Norway
Excerpt from the King's speech during the visit:
"Dear all,
First of all, I bring greetings from The Queen, who would very much have liked to be here with us, but who unfortunately had to stay at home.
It really was high time for a visit to Vaksdal and Dale for both of us. For The Queen and I have, you might say, had you close to our bodies our entire lives!
Through all the years we have represented Norway at the Olympics and World Championships around the world, in the stands of course, we have for the most part been uniformed in a sweater from Dale fabrikker, as part of Team Norway. So it is a real pleasure to be here and meet you all!"
Another excerpt from the speech:
"I would like to close with something today's host Jørn Øyrehagen Sunde wrote in a column in the newspaper Vårt Land about a month ago.
He reminded us of something important that we can all take with us in life and in our everyday: 'There is a difference between people. But it is not place of birth, religion or the like that separates people, but how kind they are to one another.'
Thank you very much for the warm welcome here in Vaksdal."