Wooden Boats Festival

Join us at the Lake Union Wooden Boats Festival this weekend, July 4th and 5th. The Nordic Spirit will be joining many other historic wooden boats from the Puget Sound region.

Essentials:
in South Lake Union
Saturday, July 4th and Sunday, July 5th, 2009
10 am – 6 pm daily
Suggested Donation: $5/person; $10/family

NW Folklife

We had a great time at Northwest Folklife this Memorial Day weekend. Thanks to everyone who stopped by our tent and saw the Nordic Spirit. I noticed many many people taking pictures with the Nordic Spirit, and I'd love to share those pictures on this blog. If you have any that you'd like to share, send me a link to your Flickr feed, post a comment, or email me at jasonh@nordicmuseum.org

To start things off, here's a picture that was taken of me after the Syttende Mai parade in Ballard last Sunday:

Photo by Lauren Richardson

Northwest Folklife

Thanks to everyone who made Ballard's celebration of Syttende Mai great! The Nordic Spirit made its official debut and we are just beginning to pull together photographs of the parade. I'll make sure to post a bunch in the coming weeks.

Northwest Folklife is this weekend, beginning on Friday and closing on Monday. The Nordic Heritage Museum is participating in a bunch of different ways: we will be active in the Nordic Village with Erik Holt showing off his woodcarving on Sunday, and lots of children's craft activities throughout the weekend. The Nordic Spirit will be nearby the Nordic Village, so be sure to stop by and say 'hi' to our staff and volunteers. Olaf Kvamme will be giving a presentation about Scandinavian participation in the Alaska Yukon Pacific Exposition on Friday at 6:00 pm on the Narrative Stage, and I will be giving a presentation on the Nordic Spirit the following Monday at 1:00 on the Narrative Stage.

Syttende Mai!

Join us in celebration of Norwegian Constitution Day at the largest 17th of May parade in the United States! We are excited to announce that the Nordic Spirit will be participating in the parade this year. This is the first major public appearance of the boat, and we expect it to be profound and inspirational.

If you would like to march alongside the boat in the Syttende Mai parade, come to the Nordic Heritage Museum by 2:00 on Sunday, May 17th. Be sure to fill out and bring the Individual Hold Harmless portion of the parade application with you. The parade begins at 4:00, and we are one of the first entries, so there will be plenty of time to enjoy the parade after we march down! We encourage anyone who marches to wear their Bunad or folk costume, or red or blue clothing.

If you have any questions, please give me a call at 206-789-5707 ex 27 or email at jasonh@nordicmuseum.org.

Help us finish restoring the Nordic Spirit!

If you've been itching to get up close with the Nordic Spirit, now is your chance. We are offering two opportunities for you to work with local artisans and boat builders to finish restoring the Nordic Spirit: Saturday April 18 from 10-4 and Saturday April 25 from 10-4.

Space is limited, so if you want a chance to work on the boat, please contact me at 206-789-5707 ex 27 or jasonh@nordicmuseum.org.

Volunteer opportunities!

If you've been dying to get up-close and personal with the Nordic Spirit, now is your chance: we will be holding a few weekend work parties in April. If you would like a chance to sand, scrape, clean and oil the hull, contact Jason Herrington at jasonh@nordicmuseum.org, or at (206) 789-5707 ex 27.

Culture and Heritage Day

Come sample Norwegian food, song, dance and handicrafts at Culture and Heritage Day at Leif Erikson Lodge in Ballard this Saturday the 28th from 10:00 - 4:00. I will be leading tours of the Nordic Spirit at Pacific Fishermen's Shipyard at 11:30 and 1:30. Tell your friends! It is sure to be a great event.