Final week in Norway
Again, if you don't want to read all this, but want to look at pictures, feel free to check out my Facebook album.
Wed, Dec 19 - After breakfast, I look the Fløibanen Funicular up Fløyen Mountain, and spent the day hiking. It was a little more interesting than I planned, as I took a "suggested winter route" that turned out to be unmaintained, so I spent over an hour following the tracks of two humans and a dog through snow, snowdrifts, crunchy snow-covered marshy bits, and around a lake. I ate my lunch in an old Nazi watchpost, and eventually found the path and made it back before sundown.
Thurs, Dec 20 - I took the Norway in a Nutshell fjord trip from Bergen to Oslo, which was mostly a ferry trip from Gudvangen to Flåm. There was also a bus trip to Gudvangen, which was slightly narrated by our bus driver, and we took the famous Flåm railway back to the main train line as well, but as interesting as the Flåm train ride would have been, it happened well after sunset, so we weren't able to appreciate the engineering and the steep grade. However, the ferry fjord tour was beautiful, as we lucked out and had clear skies and low winds for the day! I spent most of my time on deck taking pictures, of which only a handful made it onto Facebook.
Fri, Dec 21 - I spent the end of the world at Solbakken. We started the day by going into Sweden and visiting a chocolate factory there. Alas, they weren't doing any tours, but we bought some delicious chocolate anyway! After a stop at the local coop, we went home and did domestic things, laundry and cooking and such, and we spent the apocalypse drinking margaritas and watching Fargo (because every now and then Mira and Maya would start talking English with a Norwegian accent, and it made me want to share).
Sat, Dec 22 - After many goodbyes (and sneakily leaving Christmas cards and a present in plain view!), Mira brought me to the bus station in Flisa, and I bussed into Oslo to check into my final hostel of the trip. For the first time, I had roommates, only one of whom I properly met. I had thought the cost of this hostel was rather high, but the 380 NOK (compared to 225 in Bergen) included bedding and a delicious breakfast buffet, so it was actually fairly reasonable. Once 10 pm rolled around, I went out to one of the local goth club nights! The night was called Shadowlove, and it was rather full of pretty dancey music, without any oontzy dancey music until after 1 am. I'll post a proper Tanzfreude review later. They finally shut down around 3 am, and I went back to the hostel to get some sleep before my last big day of being a tourist.
Sun, Dec 23 - Museum day! I went to the Viking Ship Museum, the Norwegian Folk Museum, and the Flam Museum. The Viking Ship Museum was awesome, and I finally found a copy of Hnefatafl there. The Folk Museum was also pretty neat, and I spent a lot of time there, wandering the grounds and looking at all the different buildings from different eras and areas of Norway. They also had a stave church, and I was actually able to get close to this one and look inside, so that was pretty nifty! The Fram Museum was great, and I wish I had been able to spend more time there. If you don't know about first Fram Expedition, I highly suggest reading up on it! It's pretty exciting. Afterwards, I went back to the hostel to pack and get ready for departure.
Mon, Dec 24 - took the train to the airport, and then flew home. Got in just after midnight, then back to my place about 2 am. So, that's my Norway trip, more or less.
Wed, Dec 19 - After breakfast, I look the Fløibanen Funicular up Fløyen Mountain, and spent the day hiking. It was a little more interesting than I planned, as I took a "suggested winter route" that turned out to be unmaintained, so I spent over an hour following the tracks of two humans and a dog through snow, snowdrifts, crunchy snow-covered marshy bits, and around a lake. I ate my lunch in an old Nazi watchpost, and eventually found the path and made it back before sundown.
Thurs, Dec 20 - I took the Norway in a Nutshell fjord trip from Bergen to Oslo, which was mostly a ferry trip from Gudvangen to Flåm. There was also a bus trip to Gudvangen, which was slightly narrated by our bus driver, and we took the famous Flåm railway back to the main train line as well, but as interesting as the Flåm train ride would have been, it happened well after sunset, so we weren't able to appreciate the engineering and the steep grade. However, the ferry fjord tour was beautiful, as we lucked out and had clear skies and low winds for the day! I spent most of my time on deck taking pictures, of which only a handful made it onto Facebook.
Fri, Dec 21 - I spent the end of the world at Solbakken. We started the day by going into Sweden and visiting a chocolate factory there. Alas, they weren't doing any tours, but we bought some delicious chocolate anyway! After a stop at the local coop, we went home and did domestic things, laundry and cooking and such, and we spent the apocalypse drinking margaritas and watching Fargo (because every now and then Mira and Maya would start talking English with a Norwegian accent, and it made me want to share).
Sat, Dec 22 - After many goodbyes (and sneakily leaving Christmas cards and a present in plain view!), Mira brought me to the bus station in Flisa, and I bussed into Oslo to check into my final hostel of the trip. For the first time, I had roommates, only one of whom I properly met. I had thought the cost of this hostel was rather high, but the 380 NOK (compared to 225 in Bergen) included bedding and a delicious breakfast buffet, so it was actually fairly reasonable. Once 10 pm rolled around, I went out to one of the local goth club nights! The night was called Shadowlove, and it was rather full of pretty dancey music, without any oontzy dancey music until after 1 am. I'll post a proper Tanzfreude review later. They finally shut down around 3 am, and I went back to the hostel to get some sleep before my last big day of being a tourist.
Sun, Dec 23 - Museum day! I went to the Viking Ship Museum, the Norwegian Folk Museum, and the Flam Museum. The Viking Ship Museum was awesome, and I finally found a copy of Hnefatafl there. The Folk Museum was also pretty neat, and I spent a lot of time there, wandering the grounds and looking at all the different buildings from different eras and areas of Norway. They also had a stave church, and I was actually able to get close to this one and look inside, so that was pretty nifty! The Fram Museum was great, and I wish I had been able to spend more time there. If you don't know about first Fram Expedition, I highly suggest reading up on it! It's pretty exciting. Afterwards, I went back to the hostel to pack and get ready for departure.
Mon, Dec 24 - took the train to the airport, and then flew home. Got in just after midnight, then back to my place about 2 am. So, that's my Norway trip, more or less.