New Yorkers walk because we have to. We walk with purpose.

We walk to the subway and from the bus. We walk to the corner store. We walk back from the corner store in a blizzard. You get the point.

Rarely, have I ever wanted to just go for a walk. Yeah, I indulged in this alien pastime of walking with no purpose in Central Park right before I left and my aunt thought I took leave of my senses.

Here in Norway, people don’t walk because they have to. They walk because the want to. They pack the kids in the stroller, leash fido or take their MP3 players and just walk for no other purpose than just doing it. They walk up the hill, around the lake or just through the neighborhood.



The Norwegian phrase for going for a walk sounds a lot like going on tour. And it’s precisely, what they do.

One idea of a vacation here is to go up into the fjords (mountains), get a map and walk from cabin to cabin. People stay overnight, someone is there to cook and you pay what you can. The next morning, you get up and walk to the next cabin. People spend their paid time off doing this.

I have heard all the reasons why Europeans don’t get fat after eating loads of bread and cheese. Let me confirm that: I have had more of both in two weeks than in the last five years. It might be because in 2002 I gave up all carbs, which lasted about two years. But anyway, there’s no doing that here or I’d starve. Literally. I mean, they eat carbs on top of carbs covered in three kinds of fat. Seriously. It’s ridiculous.

So, I’ve started to walk. And you know what? Walking for the sake of inhaling and just being isn’t half bad, provided, of course, you have the time. But these Norwegians do. They get off work around three or four and the sun doesn’t set until well after 11 p.m. Talk about a perk. Just think of all the things Americans would be able to do with those extra hours of daylight. Wait, maybe it wouldn’t work. Some corporate fat cat would probably make us all work until 8 p.m. I can see it now, mandatory 12 hour days. Yuck!

I have actually graduated from the walk to the daily 2-hour bike ride. It’s been wonderful. Just me and an assortment of interesting wilderness bugs — I’ve consumed a record number of gnat/mosquito-type ones and I'm hoping all the extra protein will help offset the even more pesky carbs from all that bread — and a book. I’ve done more reading and writing here than I ever have. My chi must be in balance.



So the next time it’s a sunny day and you’re inside watching some crap reality show, put on your Nikes, grab the keys and go on tour. You might find you like it or at least you’ll consume the daily recommended allowance of protein.