Norway

Morning of 10th April, Oslo
Our journey to Oslo was most enjoyable. It was a bright, sunny day and although we thought Sweden would be rather flat and uninteresting, this was by no means the case. It is very much like the English countryside with hedgerows and stone walls.

Kronborg Slot taken on the ferry from Helsingør to Helsingborg (on Good Friday).

Arriving at Helsingborg, Sweden.

Our train went through a mountainous region in Sweden before crossing into Norway, and the higher we got, the colder it became – there were whole lakes frozen over. The immigration officials didn’t even put in an appearance, although the Swedish ones did as we arrived there from Denmark. So apart from the peace of mind it bought us, we wasted Z$10 foreign currency in getting a Norwegian visa for me! What we saw of Norway was lovely, but for much of the journey the sun had already gone.

Crossing into Norway through the rural Ed Region of Sweden.

 We arrived in Oslo to find the accommodation place at the station closed (Good Friday – normally it closes at 11.00 p.m. and we arrived at 10.15 p.m.) We walked around looking for a place to stay and, for once, Frommer’s Europe on $10 a Day was not much use, as he put us into a very expensive Hotell (sic) costing Z$40 B&B. We’re off to Bergen today.

Oslo, 11th April
I’m writing this after breakfast while Ray has gone to the station to change some money and book our seats to Bergen. Breakfast really was excellent: fruit juice (horrible, synthetic tasting), cornflakes, marinaded fish, two types of cheese, boiled eggs, polony, coleslaw, beetroot salad, another green pickled salad, tomatoes, bread, marmalade, Ryvita, coffee and milk. It was all self-service and between us we had just about everything. That should take care of lunch, which is just as well as we are living wildly outside out budget! If it were not for the fact that I do have money in England (which we would rather not touch) I’d be very worried! Ray’s just got back. No banks were open so he had to pay with a travellers' cheque at a terrible exchange rate!

11th April, 8.30 p.m., Oslo Station
Yesterday, as planned, we went to Bergen and it was really the most beautiful railway journey imaginable. Just outside Oslo the hills were gentle and rolling, mainly forested with fir trees.

Frozen fjord at Røa just outside Oslo.

View from Ål on the Oslo to Bergen trip.

There was quite a bit of snow around, and as we climbed higher there was more and more snow until eventually there was only snow! Most of the rivers and fjords higher up are frozen over, with the odd fishermen sitting patiently fishing trough the ice. Right up at the top at a skiing resort called Finse the temperature was -5^oC. This did not deter the Norwegians who were out in force doing their Easter weekend skiing. They are a very hardy, sports-minded nation. We saw many families of three generations skiing, and grannies carrying back packs etc. just as big as their son’s!

Cross-country skiing at Ustaoset near Finse.

At the Railway Station in Finse, temperature -5^oC.

Once out of the region of permanent ice the descent into Bergen began, through the most breathtaking fjord country. Actually, “through” wasn’t a badly chosen word as some of the tunnels are very long – the longest was 5 miles. There are also many “snow tunnels” to keep the snow off the tracks. A lady greeted us at Bergen Station offering us accommodation in her apartment, which we gladly accepted, having visions of Mr Jensen’s lovely place in our minds. Alas, it was far more expensive and no central heating and no breakfast! The temperature was 4^oC so we didn’t do much sight-seeing before turning in.

Bergen.

Then this morning we caught the train back to Oslo, and if anything the return journey was colder and snowier than yesterday’s. There was a huge snow storm at Finse on the top of the plateau with hundreds of hardy Norwegians skiing. Many take their dogs with them as well as babies in back packs with grandparents coming along too.

The North Sea, in fjords near Bergen (also the next two photographs).

Fjord near Vaksdal on the train journey back to Oslo.

In Raundalen.

Mjølfjell.

The approach to Oslo.

Outskirts of Oslo.

We’ve decided that judging by the streams of cars heading for Oslo, tomorrow is not a public holiday. When we arrived in Oslo (leaving our luggage in a station lock-up) we went on a tour of exploration. Oslo is not really a very big city. Of course nothing was open when we arrived at about 6.00 p.m., but we had a look at the docks, the very modern City Wall with statues of “workers” around it, the Royal Palace and the National Theatre.

Statue of Ibsen outside the National Theatre, Oslo.

We then bought take-away fish and chips, had some coffee in the station café, bought some apples and chocolate and are now waiting to board our very expensive sleeper to Stockholm.

 

On to Sweden

 

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