Nordic Dancers leave for trip to Norway

Decorah's Nordic Dancers will leave for a mulit-week tour of Norway this coming Sunday.

The last time that the Nordic Dancers got a chance to dance in Norway was 1987. Now nearly 30 years later, Decorah will be sending 49 dancers and 29 volunteers for this exciting opportunity for cultural exchange.

The dancers will fly into Bergen first, for a workshop with younger Norwegian dancers. The group will then travel from Voss, where they will join in a whitewater rafting trip, through Valdres and to Lillehammer to participate in a sports competition at Olympic Park. The group will finish their tour in Oslo, to tour the palace and many folk museums that capital city has to offer.

According to Ann Kephart, fundraising for this trip began when the current Nordic Dancers were in third grade. Each dancer is also contributing personally to the cost of the trip. Kephart says that excitement among the group is growing as they prepare to leave.

"The dancers are super excited, they are excited to see the beautiful scenery because they keeping hearing about it," Kephart said. "Some are nervous for differences in culture and language but most are just ready for the trip of a lifetime."