NORWAY

OUR NORWEGIAN ADVENTURE
Tuesday April 15th:
OSLO
Today we ate roast reindeer and moose stew.
This must be Norway. We flew to Oslo this morning arriving at around two thirty in the afternoon. Norway is one hour ahead of UK time. It’s a cold day but not freezing. There’s some snow on the high ground but the city itself felt like a really cold day in Melbourne.
Our hotel, near the main rail station is pretty ordinary but comfortable enough. We found our way around when we went for a street trek before dinner. To listen to, the language, is difficult to catch, but in printed form on public signage, you can pick up the sense of many words. So many English words have origins in common with Norwegian. And people don’t mind being asked if they speak English. A great many do, and are happy to help you. After passing Mc Donalds and Burger Kings, Thai and Italian and French restaurants we found a proper Norwegian one and enjoyed a very filling meal. As I said, we had roast reindeer (for Barbara) and I had moose stew. Both were gamy meats but delicious when washed down with a glass of Spanish cab-sav. Tomorrow we have to rise early to go back to the airport. From there we fly to Kirkenes away up in the Arctic circle. That’s where we join our ferry for the journey down the coast and the fiords.
Wednesday April 16th.
KIRKENES
What a memorable day. We took a fast train back to the airport, and then flew 2 hours north to Kirkenes, right up in the Arctic Circle. From the air the scene was a wilderness of snow and ice and frozen forest from horizon to horizon.
Once on the ground we caught a bus to the hotel. Lots of snow piled up on either side of the roads, and once we’d alighted we felt the cold. Even though the sun was out, it was minus 2 degs Celsius.
Then we were told we’d arrived at the wrong hotel. Ours was 800 metres down the road. It was the same company but another name. With cases in tow, we slipped and slid awkwardly along the icy footpath, found the hotel, but only to be told they were full. They were very apologetic and paid for a taxi back to the first hotel, where we finally checked in.
The view from our room is spectacular. Red and yellow painted houses with snowy rooftops, stretching down to the inlet, then snow covered slopes skirting each side of a bay leading to the open sea.
But this afternoon was the most unforgettable experience of all. We went dog sledding.
We were picked up by a driver, (named Sten) and driven a couple of kms to where we met our guide, a suntanned Norwegian girl who introduced herself as Panella. She in turn introduced us to the huskies, Zorro (the lead dog), Anna and Bertil and three others whose names I forget. Our hosts had provided us with fleecy lined suits, fleece lined boots, hats and gloves and Panella explained the workings of the sled, before we climbed in. While I took pictures, Barbara helped Panella put harnesses on the dogs and hook them up to the sled.
Then we climbed aboard, one behind the other, Panella stood at the back, spoke a command to the dogs, and we were off.
For the next hour or so, we were transported through an absolute wonderland of glittering white snow, a brilliant blue sky above, and glorious sunshine. We were on about a foot of snow with the frozen lake beneath us and the only sound, the swish swish swish of the sled runners as were went along. The breeze was bitingly cold and we were glad of our snow gear.
From time to time Panella would say a couple of words to the dogs and they would respond by speeding up or turning left or right. Sometimes we would reach a slope and think the huskies wouldn’t make it, but they are remarkably strong and, straining at their harnesses, conquered every rise.
Barbara said she felt like Anna Karenina. I felt like Father Christmas. Of course we have many photographs should we need a reminder of that wonderful ride, but we both agreed it was an experience we will never forget.
When we finally reached our starting point, Panella told us it was traditional to thank each dog for the ride, and so we gave all six huskies a hug and a pat and walked back to where we had donned our cold weather gear.
A final visit before returning to the hotel was to another tourist feature nearby; an ice hotel.
This is a whole building with bedrooms, a spectacular foyer and a cocktail bar, made entirely of ice. Apparently those who choose to stay there overnight, sleep in sleeping bags on ice beds lined with reindeer skins. We decided our hotel room was more attractive.
Tomorrow we board the ferry, “Vesteralen” to begin our voyage along the coast through the fiords.
Thursday April 17th
ABOARD THE VESTERALEN
Learning to sail again and cope with rolling seas and tilting decks isn’t easy. Our ferry, the Vesteralen is not big but very comfortable. The same goes for our twin berth cabin. We left Kirkenes and sailed out into open sea at about 12.45. We are never far from the coast and the scenery is mostly black and white. There are black cliffs blanketed with snow on either side, and a lead grey rolling sea between. Before lunch we explored the ship, locating the various saloons and cafe bars. There are plenty of big sofas and armchairs in which to relax and watch the scenery go by. I’ve never been a good sailor and found the going a bit tough, though I’ve not actually been sick. Even Barbara started to feel a bit off as the rolling and pitching continued. Late in the afternoon we made our first stop on our voyage south; a town called Vardo, the easternmost town in Western Europe. There is an old fortress, the Vardohus Fort which dates back to 1737 and is still manned. It is octagonal and there are lots of old cannons. Though it’s only a short walk from the quayside, we had to tread carefully along iced up pathways to get to it. We also had to be rugged up against freezing weather.
There was a museum at the fort featuring historic uniforms and memorabilia. There was even a German Enigma coding machine. Of course this place was occupied during WW2.
Friday April 18th
HAVOYSAND & OKSFJORD
We are gradually adjusting to the ship’s movements. We are sailing along the coast southwards in the Barents Sea, and it is bitterly cold outside. Through the mists and driving snow, great cliffs of black stone and bare trees loom up every few miles and then slide back into the mist as we go along. After breakfast today we docked at a place called Havoysand. Another picturesque collection of houses huddled in the snow. And later in the morning a more substantial town called Hammerfest, this time Europe’s northernmost city. We went ashore and wandered the streets of this busy community, with quite a large shopping mall, and even the local equivalent of Bunnings. I wasn’t allowed to go in though. However I did buy a warm woollen beanie to augment my Arctic outfit of weatherproof jacket and trousers and gloves. Here we also visited the Ïsbjornklubben”or “Polar Bear Club”, a small museum dedicated to the whalers, sealers and other slaughterers of wildlife from the past. Norway still has a whaling industry. There was also a huge stuffed polar bear, along with white seals, walruses, snow leopards and eider ducks, all fair game to the hunters of yore apparently.
After lunch (reindeer again) we docked at a small fishing town called Oksfjord, where a number of people disembarked and others joined the ship. These ships are just public transport to the people who live here.
Spent the afternoon reading and enjoying the magnificent scenery from the warmth of our cabin. We also had an interesting lecture on the importance of Trolls in Norwegian culture.
These ugly mythical beasts are always male. Trolls were said to be there when Norway was a land of continuous darkness. When the darkness lifted, there were the Trolls. The Norwegians apparently arrived later and had to battle the Trolls for territory. Everyone here respects and loves Trolls, all except one famous Norwegian, playwright, Hendrik Ibsen who apparently thought they were dumb creatures and just a dumb idea.
Saturday April 19th
RISOYHAMM, STOCKMANES, RAFTSUNDET & WW2 MEMORIES
We are now sailing in calm waters between small islands and towering snowy cliffs. As we get further south it’s getting a little bit warmer. Then on through a dredged channel until we reached the town of Risoyhamn whose main claim to fame seems to be a stone where King Haakon carved his name, as did King Olaf. There were more stops to pick up and drop off passengers, before we came to Stockmanes, where we visited the Hurtigruten museum. Hurtigruten is the ferry company which owns and runs this service. Lots of models of the entire fleet of ships this company has operated since 1893. In those days they navigated from maps and a compass, pretty hazardous, especially in the long Arctic winter when there was no daylight at all. Since then more than seventy Hurtigruten ships have operated this route, which they call the most beautiful voyage in the world.
It’s hard to argue with that, especially as over the next couple of hours we passed through a stretch of water known as Raftsundet. This is a much narrower waterway with once again those awesome cliffs, threatening to overwhelm us as we passed. Our ship stopped for a few minutes to allow us to see the entrance to an even narrower channel called Trollfjord. Here green clad rocky crags dappled with snow, towered on either side of water so still and dark as to throw back a mirror image of the cliffs above. You could easily imagine Trolls hiding in amongst the boulders, waiting to rain down rocks upon us as we passed.
To wind up the day, at around dinner time we docked at Svolvaer a bit further south. We visited a local museum with the most amazing collection of wartime memorabilia thrown together in no particular order. This place had a remarkable wartime story. Occupied by the Germans, bombed by the British and Americans and home to Soviet POW’s and slave labourers, the people here had a pretty bad time of it until the Germans withdrew, burning everything behind them.
So this museum featured Nazi uniforms and weaponry, Norwegian free forces and resistance gear, as well as reminders of those Norwegians who joined the German side to fight Bolshevism, or collaborated under Quisling. They’ve even got one of Eva Braun’s handbags here, not to mention Herman Goering’s gold plated luger. But whatever you do, “Don’t mention the war.”
A footnote to tonight’s dinner. As an entree we enjoyed a slice of a very nice if rather gamey meat called ‘’Vestfjord Ham” . We found out later it was whale!!!
Sunday April 20th

LEAVING THE ARCTIC CIRCLE
A quiet day today as we continue south towards the city of Bergen where we arrive on Tuesday. We passed a tiny village with a school boasting 12 students and three teachers. Barbara was most impressed with the student teacher ratio, and we were told that the Norwegian government has a policy of ensuring that country children are under no disadvantage because of where they live. We pass hundreds of small islands and flat agricultural land along our way with those magnificent white mountains providing the background. The only major stop today was at the seventeenth century trading port of Sandnessjoen, crossing the boundary of the Arctic Circle. We are now in the region of Helgeland and it’s getting much warmer, two or three degrees centigrade. Barb and I walked the streets of the township passing modern shops and a number of picturesque older buildings, mostly of brightly painted weatherboard with white window trims and decorative edging. Not many of the houses have gardens but some have a few square metres of mossy lawn with different colored crocuses starting to appear. The local Lutheran church is white timber with bright yellow trimming and lots of gravestones surrounding it. In the town square is a statue of the poet and priest Petter Dass, a national icon.
They gave us a farewell dinner tonight with scallops, steak, and a strawberry concoction for dessert. Tomorrow we reach Trondheim and have booked a tour of the region before our last day aboard the Vesteralen and arrival at the city of Bergen.
Monday April 21st
TRONDHEIM AND THE VIKINGS
We awoke this morning in the port of Trondheim, once the capital of the country and originally Nidaros. 149,000 people live here so it’s quite big. Many of the major buildings are of wooden construction but there are also substantial stone and modern concrete structures. This city goes back to before 1000AD and was the launching place for many Viking expeditions. This is reputedly the last resting place of the Viking King Olaf, later to become St Olaf. His coffin is said to be buried under the Cathedral of Nidaros which we visited. It’s a beautiful old building of green grey soapstone with figures of apostles, saints and kings decorating its west wall,and a roof of green copper sheeting. Olaf himself started out as a pillaging raping Viking, responsible for a lot of slaughter, and then he got religion, returned to Norway and gave everyone a clear choice; become a Christian or lose your head. As we sailed away from Trondheim we passed the islet of Munkholmen, a monastery which dates back to the Middle Ages. It later because a fort, then a prison and is now a museum. On either side of us now, there is greener and lusher agricultural land, with small forests of firs and pines. The sun is shining and the temperature rising.
Our next stops were the towns of Kristiansund and Molde. Kristiansund is a relatively modern town having been destroyed by German bombers in WW2 and rebuilt. But the houses and many of the buildings are built in the Scandinavian tradition. The waterfront reminded me of the Hobart waterfront except that the buildings were red and yellow and green rather than dark bluestone.
We docked at Molde after dinner and the sun was beginning to set, turning the surrounding mountains from white to pink. Spring has really arrived as we go further south and there are cherry blossoms, daffodils and crocuses along the footpaths. This place too was rebuilt after WW2, the outstanding feature being a beautiful modern cathedral with a carillon Despite the northern climate there are elms, maples and copper beeches here, to name a few. Consequently there is a thriving furniture industry.
It’s now 10pm and I can still see the white mountains against the darkening evening sky. This is our last night aboard the Vesteralen. Tomorrow we arrive in Bergen.
Tuesday April 22nd
BERGEN
We got up early this morning to find our ship cruising through green and forested countryside, with tiny farmhouses clinging to the hillsides. The water is like glass and the ship seems to be gliding across it, hardly ruffling the surface. The sun is shining. It’s a perfect day.
Having packed everything and vacated our cabin, there was nothing else to do between breakfast and lunch, but to sit out in the sunshine and watch the scenery slide by.
We reached Bergen in the early afternoon and checked into the Augustin Hotel, and then went exploring. This is a beautiful old city and our first real appreciation of it came when we took the funicular railway to the top of the surrounding hills and looked down. The city is built around an enormous harbour and from the hilltop it looks a little like Sydney, but with snow capped mountains and forests of conifer running down to its edges. Then we came down to city level and wandered along the waterfront. Along one area there is a row of very old warehouses called “The Bryggen”. These date back to the 1500’s and was a major centre for the Hanseatic League. This was the centre of trade between Northern Norway and the rest of the world. The Bryggan is now undergoing a major preservation project. From the waterfront you can see why. The colourful but somewhat rickety old timber buildings look as if they are about to tumble into the street. Up the narrow alleyways between the warehouses, there are overhanging doorways for lowering cargo, and ropes and tackle hanging overhead. Again the walls seem about to collapse onto the cobbled street below. The whole area is now listed by UNESCO as one of 89 international historic monuments.
Barbara and I could have spent hours poking around in the bric a brac and craft shops that are starting to open up in the old alleys and courtyards. But we needed to eat and wandered along narrow winding streets looking for a reasonably priced restaurant. In the end we found one down on the waterfront and sat in the last of the day’s sunshine, enjoying a drink before ordering. On such a perfect afternoon, the streets around the harbour were thronging with people out walking and socialising. The restaurant that we chose had rugs draped on the backs of the chairs. We found out why, as soon as the sun dropped behind the buildings, and everybody wrapped their rugs around their shoulders.
Tomorrow we take the train on the first leg of our journey back to Oslo.
Wednesday April 23rd
VOSS & AN UNFORGETTABLE TRAIN RIDE
Up early this morning to catch a train from Bergen to the mountain town of Voss. We stayed at a wonderful nineteenth century resort hotel called Fleischers. This elegant old wooden building looks like one of those lovely old hotels that the characters in romantic novels used to frequent in Geneva or somewhere in Bavaria before the great war.
From Fleischers we took a bus and climbed up into the mountains. Greenery and forest soon gave way to snow and frozen lakes. We reached the village of Gudvangen where we joined a ferry of the same name. Over the next two hours we cruised the length of a glasslike fjord called the Naeroy, with steep mountains dropping down on either side of us and tiny farmhouses clinging precariously to the slopes. How they can farm anything in this kind of country is beyond me but we were told they herded sheep and goats. Our final stop was for lunch at Flam at the far end of the fjord, where we enjoyed smoked salmon sandwiches, coffee and chocolate cake while sitting in the sun, with snowfields all around us. Then we boarded the amazing Flamspan train for an incredible journey up the valley and rising to over 2,800 feet above sea level. From both sides of this train we looked down into deep valleys of snow and ice with fir trees spruce and pine all along the way. From time to time our train plunged into rock tunnels, the longest of which ran for 5kms. There were magnificent waterfalls hurtling hundreds of metres from the peaks, cutting down into dark shadowed rocky chasms, there were fast flowing crystal clear streams, and everywhere a sparkling white blanket of pure crystalline snow. We reached the peak after fifty minutes, during which time the train completed a full circle inside the mountain.
From the station at Myredal we took a much faster train back to Voss, watching the scenery change from white to lush green farm country as we descended. This was an absolutely unforgettable day in a week of unforgettable days. Norway is such a beautiful country.
Thursday April 24th
OUR LAST DAY IN NORWAY
This morning we enjoyed a hearty breakfast in the beautiful wood panelled dining room at Fleischers, overlooking a partly frozen lake with green hills rising on the farthest shore.
Then followed a five hour train ride slowly losing altitude as we returned to Oslo. From the window we enjoyed for a final time, a panorama of snow white slopes and bright blue skies, and here and there, poking out of metres deep snow, the roofs of holiday houses and ski lodges.
We also listened and felt a little humble as a Norwegian woman, an Englishman and an elderly German engaged in lively conversation, slipping easily from one language to another. Speaking first in English, the Norwegian lady said she had learned German as a schoolgirl, but she was much more fluent in Spanish. She and the English guy then chatted away in Spanish and included the old German in English and his own language. We just kept quiet and listened.
We arrived in Oslo early in the afternoon and took the opportunity to enjoy the sunshine and see a little of the city. On this spring day we might have been in Paris as we strolled up the beautiful tree lined boulevard of Karl Johann gate. We stopped for coffee at one of the many sidewalk cafes and then on past the Parliament building, the university and finally the Royal Palace.
By chance there had been the presentation of community service medals to some men and women and we arrived just as they were coming out from an audience with the King. The men were dressed in their best suits and the women in traditional Norwegian skirts and headdress, with embroidered aprons. As we watched a troop of Norwegian royal guards marched past. All very colourful!
We continued our exploring, visiting one of the city’s public parks which featured hundreds of sculptured nude figures, male and female in all sorts of curious positions. After that we walked on through a very posh looking residential area with fine old houses and apartment building set in tree lined avenues. Again it might have been a little piece of Paris in this northern city.
To get back to our hotel we hopped aboard a tram.

We didn’t know how to purchase a ticket, but coming from Melbourne, that didn’t bother us and we just rose along until we got to where we wanted to go.
We spent the evening doing a final pack. Early start for London coming up in the morning and I can at last put all this on the blog. Hope you enjoy it.