Gated Community on a Budget

Yesterday when we caught the ferry to Kvitsøy, there was a bit of chaos as a different ferry was in use. Rather than having an upper extra car deck, it had an extra lower deck. Everything was in a subtly different location. It threw a wrench in the seating dynamics that naturally occur. The passenger area was laid out in a series of U-shaped arrangements, like a bunch of sectionals, rather than the grid of rows and aisles that the usual ferry has. The real question in my mind was what is this ferry normally used for? These are huge ships that can hold hundreds of cars. Do they just have an extra one lying around for those rainy days when the regular one needs work? These ships must cost millions of dollars. The ticket people seemed to be off their game as well. I am not convinced they made it around to everyone before we landed.

The thing about living on an island is how insular the community can be. Life off the island revolves around the ferry schedule. Life on the island is largely dependent on who and what actually enters. Gated communities have nothing on island living. There is so little crime here that the police stop out once or twice a month with regularly scheduled office visits (that is no exaggeration). It appears to me that a social contract keeps people's behavior in line. If one chose, he could drive home from tonight's party thoroughly intoxicated with no consequences from the politi. However, the community would keep talking about the incident for years to come. Everybody seems to know everyone else, and everyone looks after their neighbor. If someone's cows get out, it would be a matter of minutes before their owner was notified. Of course nobody locks their bikes up at the ferry landing. Kids of all ages can walk or bike unsupervised. Unless you have a boat, there is no fast escape from an island.

Property is relatively inexpensive here. One issue is that there are few jobs actually on Kvitsøy, aside from farming (sheep). The other issue is that the kommune is trying to avoid an influx of cabin owners- absentee property holders that are not invested in living here full-time. I believe the only way to have a cabin here is to somehow inherit one (or some property). It would be very difficult for someone from Stavanger to purchase a house to use as a summer home.

There are a few tourist sights here. There is a traditional looking light house, a church from the 1400s, a stone cross from the 1000s, and 365 little islands poking out of the water. It is amusing watching a gigantic tour bus driving around, then trying to find somewhere to turn around- usually the steep, narrow church parking lot. The roads here are about a lane and a half wide. If a car approaches, someone needs to pull off the road to let the other by. This is not an area designed for large buses.

What might change all of this is when they build an undersea tunnel that will come up for air on Kvitsøy. As it stands, the ferry goes beyond Kvitsøy to the north to connect with the rest of Norway. Somehow a tunnel would replace the ferry and keep everyone connected 24-hours daily. It would also certainly change the character of the community. My understanding is that plans are on the drawing board. It would be an amazing feat of engineering. The tolls are usually comparable to taking a ferry- probably at least equal to $30 per round trip for a car. As much as taking the ferry can annoy me, I don't know what I would think about tearing down "the gate" and building a road here. It is an amazing place as it is.