Every day hundreds, sometimes thousands, of refugees cross the Mediterranean Sea in their desperate journey for a safer residence. One of the countries they end up in, is Norway. And as it seems, many Norwegians are dedicated to making their stay as pleasant as possible.
A comfortable bed
Images of overcrowded boats, hopeless people floating in the sea and dead bodies that have been washed ashore reach our comfortable lifes every so often. Since World War II, our planet hadn’t seen such a comprehensive migration of people. And while it may appear as a far-from-our-bed show, reality is, we have now become part of this sad chapter since many of us feel obliged to provide a form of humanity.
Arna Mottakssenter
In particular this holds for the people who work at the Arna Mottakssenter, a shelter for refugees just outside the city of Bergen. Here, people put their efforts to improving the lifes of the refugees, even if only a small difference can be made. Of all countries on the planet, Norway could, in terms of culture and weather, well be the most distanced one if someone is to compare it to the countries refugees usually come from. Hence, an adequate integration is required.
Food: education and unification
What should qualify as an adequate integration? At least it is one in which the people are healthy. Not only the weather and culture are different over here. Switching to other types of food is just as big a challenge. In the past, food has repeatedly enabled people to unite with each other. In this case however, food seems to be a double Messiah. Not only does it unite the refugees with the Norwegians, but the sessions in which unification takes place also serve as lectures on how to deal with Norwegian food.
