Directory of Eco-villages in Europe - Kennedy Bibliothek

Norway
Vallersund
existing
eco-village
Vallersund Gaard
pulling lines and hooks from the depth of the fjord in the afternoon,'
hoping for salmon rather than cod. And the man responsible for a reading
session with mentally handicapped will try his hand at gardening.
Hands will be painting, modelling clay or doing needle work, or painting
the wooden walls of the houses in summer. Whatever, the hands are creative
instruments, shaping, expressing, achieving.
Focal point of hand activity for everyone is preparing meals, washing
the dishes by hand, cleaning the house. All this work is savoured because
it is fulfilling life for the villagers. The introduction of telephones
from house to house is judged a pity by some, it substitutes
walking to talk face to face. Let alone introducing a dish washing
machine. Never. It would take away handwork that is a binding factor
among the villagers in the houses.
Living in a community, however respectful of the individual, is never
easy for young and grown up women and men. Perhaps children are
the best at it. They take life as it presents itself. Their Camphill family
has almost no limits and is always close. In the six houses and for all
the thirty odd inhabitants of Vallersund the meals are the focal points
of the community. The most important dish is the conversation. Someone
will always start it and everybody joins in. Sometimes language
difficulties or speech problems have to be overcome. There are always
interesting topics, there is gentle teasing but there are also undercurrents
of tension. That is what makes conversation lively. However
punctual, the meals are creative, free and relaxed.
Contact:
Vallersund Gaard
Gerrit Overweg
7167 Vallersund
Norway
Tel: +47' 72 52 73 00
Fax: +47 72 52 78 95
e-mail: overweg@online.no
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