"One hour after midnight,
and everything in Norway seems to be running
just as smoothly as it did in the final hours of 1999.
We have electricity and water,
and the phone lines are working.
According to government agencies,
there have been no serious problems of any kind.
All over the country the "thousand-year-fire" has been lit -
burning beacons on mountains and hills.
In Oslo, King Harald lit the first of the 1000 beacons.
_| This is a symbol of unity and the will
to create peace and friendship
in our country and the world,
said the King when he lit the beacon
at Frognerseteren in the capital city.
I am a journalist working for the Norwegian newspaper Dagbladet
(with national distribution, published in Oslo.)
At midnight I was off from work, spending the evening with my wife and my
mother.
A few minutes before midnight
one of our daughters called from Sioux Falls, USA,
where she was watching the new year celebrations in Norway
(and other parts of the world) on PBS - Public Television.
Our American granddaughter Kira (almost 4) enjoyed listening
to the fireworks in Norway over the phone.
As for now, the only thing that doesn't work here
is the Web site of Norway 2000 -
the organization that is responsible for planning, coordinating and
carrying out the millennium celebrations!"
Morten and his wife listen to NPR on the Internet and with a satelite dish.
