Strollers

Most of the baby strollers in Norway look like something from old British movies from the 1940s.  They seem like small automobiles to me, as they take up an inordinate amount of space.  I’m sure they aren’t very portable and couldn’t possibly fit in the back of any Norwegian car.   The main body is larger than most bassinets with a huge arching cover over half of it. The wheelbase is enormous and the wheels don’t pivot.  This is to help navigate snow and ice in the winter.  It’s certainly made to be an “off road” vehicle as they find their way far out in nature – places I, as an American, would never think they should go.  They also come with huge rain covers, as nothing will stop a Norwegian from going for a walk outside with their baby.

The malls are full of these huge strollers as mothers gather to enjoy their nine to twelve months paid baby leave.  My biggest complaint about these monstrosities is how difficult they are to get around when blocking an aisle.  Due to Norwegian “politeness rules,” one would never say, “excuse me” and expect anyone to move an inch, so, if two or three carriages are stopped together, they become impassible.  I just turn around and head the opposite direction.

The first time I saw a father pushing a baby carriage in Norway, I wondered what the mother had to do to convince him to do that.  What I didn’t know at the time, was just how common a sight that would be.  The mothers aren’t the ones convincing the father’s to push the stroller, the government is.  Fathers get five months off with paid leave, so they take it once the mothers go back to work. The government has their ways of leveling the parental playing field.  Taking the baby out for a stroll on one of the many walking paths meandering throughout each and every community, becomes a favorite activity during this “Papa time.”

Passing any “barnehagen,” aka, day care centers, one sees a row of these Norwegian baby carriages all lined up.  The shocking part is - there are babies inside them – even in the winter. Norwegians believe babies sleep better when breathing fresh, cold air, so they wrap them up in wool long johns and tuck them in their carriages with lambskin or reindeer hide under them and several inches of goose down comforters over them.  They put a wool hat on their head and leave them out in the cold.  People don’t steal babies in Norway, but still, the very sight of it is enough to make an American mother’s heart stop. 

Often baby carriages, with babies inside, will be seen at the entrances to stores, as the parent goes in to shop, leaving their baby on the sidewalk outside.  We Americans call that “child abandonment.”  Norwegians call it a “good nap.”