It is very cold here in Oregon. We went to the beach but it was EXTRAORDINARILY windy and unbearably frigid. Nevertheless I stumbled into an interesting discovery. There is a vibrant Scandinavian population here which keeps up with their ancestral tongues. I spotted Norwegian, Swedish and Finnish signs in abundance. There is actually a large international festival of Scandinavian culture. The Finnish National Orchestra is coming later too. I always thought the Pacific Northwest resembled the coastal region of Sweden (I have never been to Finland or Norway so I have nothing to compare it to). Nevertheless it is my guess that large number of immigrants came to this region (Oregon, Washington State) from Scandinavia owing to the fact that it resembled their homeland. I will try to take some more photos of Norwegian and Swedish business to round out the set!
