Interactive map: markers contain maps and photos; red lines are Strava gps tracks
We were drawn to Norway for Tofino Expeditions fjords kayak trip, described here. Before that, we spent 5 days in Oslo, took the train to Bergen and spent 4 days there, so the entire trip spanned 24 June through 14 July. At that time of year there is plenty of light with sunset around 11:30 pm and sunrise around 3:30 am.
Oslo
As is our habit, we started off with a free walking tour starting from the Tiger at the train station, then taking us along the waterfront to Aker Brygge. I finally remembered to track the route on Strava this time - usually we're jet lagged enough to not really remember in detail where the walking tours go.
After the tour and hot dogs at a street stand, we retraced our steps back to City Hall, which is pretty plain on the outside, bordering unattractive. Our guide had said the interior was a whole different story - and it was. The grand hall had remarkable multi-storey murals and marble floor.
From there to the Munch museum, where we learned that he had painted 4 versions of the Scream, 3 of which were in the museum and the 4th in the National museum (also in Oslo). They were painted on paper or cardboard so the museum is very careful in their display, keeping them in a darkened room and only one on display at a time for 30' each. It wasn&apost as bad as trying to see the Mona Lisa in the Louvre, but the little room was a bit crowded. Munch also did woodcuttings and they had set up a room with a number of images cut into wooden tables and then provided crayons to make a''painting'. A bit like brass rubbing.
The roof of the museum gave great views of the waterfront including the Opera House next door. The Opera House has long ramps that allow you to climb from the harbour to its roof, and get further great views. One of which was the sauna boats docked - patrons can take a sauna and then jump into the fjord's chilly water.
The next day was a museum day, taking a ferry to the island of Bygdoy. We took in two very different ship museums - the Fram celebrating polar exploration and the Kon-Tiki for Polynesian. I was surprised to hear from one of our fjord kayak guides that it was the Kon-Tiki (not the Fram) that inspired him to be a guide, but then I remembered he was not native Norwegian.
The Fram celebrated the journeys of Amundsen and Nansen to both polar regions, and highlighted how well planned Amundsen's were and the efforts he went to to train for them. This was proven out when he was first to the South Pole in what seemed like a straightforward journey; while Scott's was a (fatal) disaster. It was a treat to be able to clamber over their ships, the Fram and the Gjoa.
We hooked up with Oslo Kayaking to paddle along a good bit of Bygdoy island's shoreline (I had not realized at the time that had we paddled a bit further we would have got to the Fram museum). When we arrived, there was a surf-ski training session underway, with paddlers doing 500m sprints. We figured they were just killing time until cross country ski season The main waterfowl we encountered were eider ducks, famous for their down. We were also able to point out to our guide that Canada geese are different from barnacled geese, and that we were sorry they had to have Canada geese.
We found an oddity: a restaurant that features a laundromat. Laundromats seem rare in Oslo, so we had dinner while the laundry ran. As for everything in Norway, that was a pretty expensive laundering.
We spent some time in Frognerparken, a large park featuring hundreds of (tasteful) nude statues. There is a fair bit of green space in Oslo and they pride themselves on never being more than 20' from the sea or forest. We tested that by walking from Frognerparken back to the harbour to catch the Skyss B1 ferry that visits 4 islands and is something of a harbour cruise. The commuter ferries are all electric (as are the buses and trams). Apparently they have a 3 hr range and can be recharged in 10'(!).
We finished out that day with a walking tour of the historic Akerselva river district.
We were impressed with how clean Oslo is: no haze in the air, no (or very little) trash on the ground or in the water. And pretty quiet: cars are discouraged in the city center, with tunnels and parking under the city to handle the traffic. Mostly one sees taxis (a lot of them are Teslas), buses and trams. Oslo did not feel like that touristy a city - there are plenty of tourists, but they (we) were spread out. It's also a sunny place, given its position to the lee of mountains. They get around 280 days of sun per year. Unlike Bergen.
We took the famous train from Oslo to Bergen, making sure we had front carriage seats facing forward. This 6-hr journey is said to be one of the best in the world. For a while out of Oslo in the rolling hills, I thought 'nice, but top 10?'. That changed when we got into the mountains. At the top, the Finse area is where Amundsen, Scott and Nansen did their glacier training. The rail route is quite the engineering feat as well, going through pretty challenging terrain. It was finished in the 1890s and includes some 200 tunnels.
Interactive map: markers contain maps and photos; red lines are Strava gps tracks
Bergen
We stayed at the Radisson Blu in the inner harbour where most of the tourists converge. It rained. Though happily not as we were trudging from the train station to the hotel with our luggage.
We took the free walking tour - in a solid rain to start. We were prepared with rain hats, jackets and pants. We noticed really nice (yellow) sou'westers in the visitors centre; they made us look like Paddington bear in our blue jackets.
Over the next few days, we took in a variety of sights including the Aquarium, Fisheries museum and Bryggen museum (conveniently adjacent to our hotel).
We went a little further afield to the textiles museum, which still had machines from when it was a factory - some of which were demonstrated to us. We asked the intern guide why she spoke with an American-accented English. She said she did a gap year in England, but that people her age would not be caught dead with a British accent. She got her American from movies and TV.
As in Oslo, we took a harbour ferry to the nearest island, Kleppest0. We had bought Bergen Cards, which made transit free, and got discounts at some attractions. The Oslo Passes had been a better deal, as almost all attractions accepted them.
And amazingly, the weather forecast flipped from 'raining every day' to mostly sunny.
We took the funicular up to Floyen, with its great views over Bergen. Petted the goats and did a hike at the top, where I was eaten alive by bugs (Deb was spared, a reversal from usual). The views from the top were remarkable. We walked back down to the hotel.
We also took a bus to the Lovstien area for a hike along the other side of the valley, giving the reverse view of what we’d seen from Floyen. This took us well away from the touristy areas so we could get a better idea of what the greater Bergen area was like.
It was really easy getting around by bus.
A lot of Bergen looks to us like we imagine a Danish-type city - it looked like towns we'd seen in Greenland - with the classic red A-frame buildings. Anticipating authentic Norwegian food on the kayak tour, we didn't explore that much. We probably had a few too many reindeer hotdogs (who knew they'd be yummy with dried onion, mustard and lingonberry jam!) at the Fish Market.
Bergen seems a bit less electrified than Oslo, and more car-centric. Someone explained it is due to all the rain. Ferries are less important as there are bridges between all the islands. That said, Norway is trying to go electric by 2040. Electricity rates are 1 cent per kWh, while gasoline is not subsidized, going for $8/gal.
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