Scandinavian libraries

Our trip to Scandinavia was inspired partly by our wish to get a taste of Scandinavian life, and also to visit some innovative public libraries that we had read about on the net, and heard about at conferences, etc.

We have visited a total of 7 libraries so far (and I have 1 more planned for later in the week) in our visit to Norway, Sweden and Denmark.

Here are some pics of things we have found inspiring

Buildings -

Children's areas -

Shelving -

Spaces -

Furniture -

Sights of Copenhagen

The last stop on our trip is Copenhagen.... The most liveable city in the world!

The first thing you notice when you get to Copenhagen is bikes, bikes and more bikes! Bikes rule the City, and It is not uncommon to see men in suits, parents with 1 or 2 children, and everyone in between, buzzing past on their bikes. 

Shows what is possible if the infrastructure is in place - definitely environmentally friendly.

We haven't hopped on a bike but we have taken advantage of the great public transit system and viewed many if the attractions in Copenhagen.

Here are just a few...

The Black Diamond (maybe the most famous library building in Europe)

The Stock Exchange - one of the oldest buildings in Copenhagen, built in 1640.

The Stock building was designed in the Dutch Renaissance style with its prominent spire offour dragons with their tails twisting towards the top and ending in a spear with three crowns representing The Kalmar Union between Denmark - Norway and Sweden

Frederiksberg Park - one of many parks in Copenhagen.

Assistens Cemetery - where Hans Christian Andersen is buried. This is just at the end of our street and is a popular place for cyclists, joggers, and picnicking.

Amalienborg Palace (official Royal residence) - no sign of "our" Princess Mary though! 

PS. I unknowingly got caught up in a bit of Royal watching yesterday and caught sight of the Queen when she disembarked from her yacht - on her way back to the Palace. 

Nyhavn port - with lots and lots of these open air canal tour boats!

Tale of 2 libraries

Stockholm Public Library receives lots of accolades on the net, so it was definitely on our list of libraries to visit. It was designed by renowned architect Gunnar Asplund and built in 1928.

  We caught the metro to the stop closest to the library, and were surprised to find that it was a rather neglected area of the city - what looked like a gang of beggars near the metro entrance (more than usual!) and run down fountain and park areas outside the library. 

Inside  - the building is certainly spectacular.... 

Great views from each level, and lots of nooks and crannies

But... the books and furniture are all really old and unappealing. 

There were quite a few people using the library, and they had tried to create an inviting children's library.

We left feeling more than a little disappointed as it didn't feel like a vibrant library.

A library service needs great building and spaces, but the building doesn't make the library service great.

We did not have any other libraries marked out to visit in our few days in Stockholm, but we found another library close to our apartment and decided to call in there to see if all libraries in Stockholm were alike.

Well what a difference... Luma Bibliotek was everything that we were looking for.

It was a small library in a new waterfront residential redevelopment based around the old Luma light factory. It had great kid's areas, craft/art room, story room -"Sagorum". Also had some spaces for adults to read or study. 

The staff there told us that it was well used particularly by the children, but there had been some dissatisfaction from older residents who found it a bit too noisy.

And a nice little touch.... Parent and child toilet with their own access!

Oslo Oddness

We've moved on from Oslo, but there was a tourist attraction we just had to share with you. The Oslo natives are very proud of it.

Set in a lovely park are a series of statues in granite & bronze by sculptor Gustavo Vigeland.  Apparently they moved him from his workshop, but gave him a new one in the park. In appreciation, he gifted them all the products of his labour - some 210 pieces. 

They are all human beings doing 'human things'. We didn't think some of the things were very human at all, and some were so strange they were funny or just plain disturbing.  Here are our creative interpretations.  Let's see what you think.

Man fending off baby attack?

Marge Simpson?

Boys looking for superman...or an asteroid about to crash to earth?

Cube 'o babies?

Family mosh pit?

Who knows?

Grumpy baby.

And the final masterpiece - giant column of human bodies (with tourist).

We hope you enjoy these as much as we did!

Fjords of Norway

We decided to be risk takers and hire a car for 1day so we could drive around some of the fjords near Bergen. We did about 450km and we were out from 10am to 10pm (the days are long and great for sightseeing).

Of course, there was no automatic car available, so Penny had to reacquaint herself with a manual, steering wheel on the left, shift on the right, and drive on the right-hand side of the road - we both survived. It was totally worth it as you'll see from these photos....

The 'Snow Road' - a winding, mainly 1 lane road (which they don't tell you in the brochures). Bit freaky for the driver & passenger alike.

Stegastein Viewing Platform - with glass at the end so it feels like there's nothing between you, the view, and the drop down to the water below.

Above the snow line. Not much snow at the moment, but a great landscape. Many cairns put up by hikers.

Our trusty Volvo in a perfect car advertisement setting.

The Laerdal Tunnel - 24.5 km. The longest tunnel in the world. Amazing engineering & cool blue lights every once in a while to keep you awake.

The trip back to Bergen.

Bergen Public Library

Well it was time to leave fabulous Lyon and head to Scandinavia. 

After a full days travel - including a few hours getting through Paris and waiting at the airport we arrived in Bergen, Norway. The scenery was amazing just coming into the airport, a taste of more to come.

We hadn't organised an "official" visit to Bergen Public Library, but we discovered a real gem in Bergen! 

We had found the libraries in Lyon a little disappointing so we were thrilled to see a library with some great collections and spaces in this library. We had a great time wandering around and exploring all the different sections of the library. We were able to take lots of photos and staff were helpful in explaining some of the areas. It is in an old building, but there is a real mix of old and new technology. 

penny relaxing in the craft section...

The YA area was amazing! 3 separate areas for viewing and gaming, stage and raised seating. Oh...for more space at Ellenbrook!The librarian told us that it was completed recently and was a joint project with the university and library. University students designed and built the area.

There was also a big focus on DVD and music collections. With separate rooms dedicated to listening and playing music. Music collections included CD's, vinyl, and sheet music. There was even a section dedicated to local Bergen artists.

Other highlights were the automated checkouts and returns, and opac access throughout the library. 

No wonder people know so little about Australia - this was the complete Australian history collection!!!

Also, notice no spine labels on the fiction???