THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, October 14, 1995 TAG: 9510140275
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B3 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY TOM HOLDEN, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: VIRGINIA BEACH LENGTH: Medium: 72 lines
Bjorvik Jutta did not expect Queen Sonja of Norway to say much during Friday's ceremony by the Norwegian Lady statue at 25th Street and the Boardwalk.
And sure enough, the Queen of Norway, dressed in a conservative suit, her eyes hidden behind stylish sunglasses, her hair coiffed to perfection, did not utter a sound into the microphone.
But moments after she set a bouquet of roses by the statue, a symbol of the ties between Virginia Beach and its sister city, Moss, Norway, the 58-year-old queen walked over to Jutta and exchanged pleasantries with the Roanoke woman.
``She is so down to Earth,'' Jutta gushed after her brief encounter with royalty.
``She makes you feel right at home.''
Jutta, a native of Bergen, Norway, came to Virginia Beach with her granddaughter, Linda Scott, of Princess Anne, and her two great-grandchildren, Katie, 5, and Erik, 10.
The ceremony was part of a state visit to Hampton Roads that began earlier when their Majesties King Harald and Queen Sonja visited U.S. Marine Corps. Gen. John J. Sheehan, the Supreme Allied Commander Atlantic at his headquarters in Norfolk.
Norway is one of the 13 original members of North Atlantic Treaty Organization and one of 28 monarchies worldwide. It hosted a NATO exercise, Strong Resolve 95, in February.
Followers of the royal couple, like Kjell Arne, the royal reporter for the Norwegian magazine, Look and Listen, report the couple are generally shy in public, saying little when they're out among the people.
In keeping with that, the ceremony in Norfolk was short and neither dignitary spoke publicly.
A Navy band played each country's national anthem and the Norwegian flag rose briskly, snapping in the warm fall air. After the flag-raising, the royal couple walked into the headquarters where the king spoke briefly for about three minutes.
Following that, the queen left for Virginia Beach for another brief ceremony while the king took a helicopter to visit the Saipan, a warship with a landing pad for helicopters.
The royal couple are in the United States to visit friends, chat privately about the NATO alliance and participate in the 50th anniversary of the United Nations on Oct. 24.
This marks the first visit to the United States by the royal couple following the death of King Harald's father, King Olav V on Jan. 17, 1991.
Despite the relative public silence of the royal couple, the roughly 300 people who gathered at the Norwegian Lady to see the queen seemed happy for the opportunity.
Bjorn Hamran, a 17-year-old exchange student from Norway who is attending Kellam High School, was about as happy as anyone, having never seen the queen in person.
``It's strange to come to the United States and see the queen over here,'' he said. ``I've seen her before, but it's only been on television.''
A newly formed Cox High School Wind Ensemble, comprised of 52 students who are taking advanced band courses, performed the national anthems of the United States and Norway and a selection of songs by John Williams, John Philip Sousa, Aaron Copeland and Vaughan Williams. ILLUSTRATION: BETH BERGMAN
The Virginian-Pilot
Queen Sonja and King Harald of Norway are in Hampton Roads to
celebrate the United Nations' 50th anniversary. The couple's stay
included a Friday visit to the Norfolk headquarters of U.S. Marine
Corps. Gen. John J. Sheehan.
by CNB