DAY 19

(May 12)
Episode 3

Today is the elimination competition.  Either Dana, Tara. Mary Caryl, Jessica, or C.J. will be leaving us.  I am safe this time because my team won the fish processing competition in Rennesøy yesterday.  It is definitely a good feeling to be safe.  I drew sowilo this morning, the sun, success, a very good rune.

My team didn’t have a lot to do today, we didn’t have to meet until 1300 for lunch.  I bought some sandpaper and worked on my drinking horn a little.  Then we gathered again at 1500, mama Christina told us what the red team was doing for their competition.

This week was all about Norwegian exports; oil, fish, and also…Black Metal music.  Yep, the red team was going to dress up like black metal artist and perform in front of an audience, this should be very interesting.  They had to write their own lyrics and perform with actual famous black metal musicians in front of a live crowd.  All of this was done under the tutelage of “King”, or “King ov Hell” as he was also called, his real name is Tom Cato.  He was the base guitarist for Gorgorath and several other famous bands.  The other musicians were also world renown black metal artists.

They took us to an old factory of some kind that had been converted into a really cool venue.  We waited around for quite a bit while the audience was getting situated, finally we were allowed to join the audience, near the stage.  It was dark, there were black lights and smoke.  Then Henriette, also in black metal garb introduced the red team one by one as they came out and performed their song.  I thought they all did pretty well, and no doubt they all did the best they could, but I definitely thought Dana and Jessica had an edge.  I was most worried about C.J. and Mary Caryl…who finished her performance by doing the splits.  In the end, I had called it pretty accurately; Mary Caryl was the one that got the least votes from the audience.  She seemed to take it pretty well.  We all said our good-bye’s and she was led away, back to America. 

Afterwards we were all having a beer, then Henriette came out to give the Norwegian Spirit Award.  This time, it went to Jessica. 

Later that evening the cast, entire crew, and the black metal artists had a wonderful dinner on the 21^st floor of the crew’s hotel over a spectacular view of Stavanger.  We were all there to watch the Gullruten awards on a huge TV, it’s kind of like the emmy awards or something, anyway, Alt for Norge had been nominated for best reality show with a competition for season 2, they had already won it last year for season 1.

During dinner Tom, the King ov Hell kept calling me over to their table, it seemed like he wanted to get to know me.  Eventually I got a chair and sat at their table where I had good conversation with him and the other band members.

Alt for Norge won the award and everyone celebrated; they let us have three units of alcohol instead of just the usual one.  Then Brita told us it was time to go, and the band told us not to leave.  We had to leave though, so the band left with us and got on our bus and rode back to our hotel.  It was already late, about 2330, but the Lords of black metal wanted to find a bar and have drinks with us…us!  That just doesn’t happen everyday so myself, Todd, Dana, Austin, C.J., and Tara went walking out down the streets of Stavanger with them to find a bar.

We went to one of those places where there is a big line of people trying to get in past the big bouncer door guy.  Tom went up and talked to him for a minute, the next thing I knew we were all getting waved in past all the waiting people, made me feel kind of famous for a minute.

It wasn’t really my scene; it was extremely crowded, the music was very loud.  We wound up sitting in a V.I.P. balcony overlooking the dance floor.  I didn’t drink that night.  They offered me drinks, but it was a strange atmosphere and I felt kind of responsible for my fellow contestants that were drinking, I wanted to make sure nothing bad happened to them so I just watched.  I watched them, and kept track of where they were in the crowd, I also watched the band closely.  I had never met black metal artists before and I was trying to understand them.

Every time my eyes met Toms he would toast me and shake my hand. At one point he leaned in and told me he liked me the best, because even though he was an atheist, I wore his heritage on my arm and around my neck.  He said to contact him on facebook when I got home, I said ok.

We had to get up early; 0515, it was already 0200 so Todd and I decided to go home.  Austin and C.J. had already left, Dana and Tara had left together.  We said good-bye and found our way back to the hotel.  It had been a long day.  Man…what a week!  What an adventure!  What a life!

DAY 20

(May 13)
Travel day

Today we woke up very early and very tired.  Completely missed breakfast.  Got on a bus that took us to the airport to fly back to our home base near Oslo.  I drew jera this morning.  Barbara had bought some yarn and made the cutest little Alf beards for everyone to wear, it was really pretty cool and thought it was sweet of her to go through that trouble.

We had pizza for dinner tonight, a nice treat.  Tomorrow is a day off.  Today is Sunday, Tuesday we will begin fiming episode 4 in the city of Oslo where we have not been allowed to go yet.