Part 38: 7 Hours on a Bus. 0 Hours Bored. July 19-21, 2012

On the 19^th we left the lodge on one of the first buses and ferried back over Stavanger fjord to the town.  We then had to walk a really long way to our hostel.  It was 30 minutes from the city center, which is fine, but when you have all of your stuff, it’s not that fun.  After dropping our stuff off, we hiked back into town to see the city and arrange our bus transportation back to Oslo on the 20^th. 

The man at the bus station was extremely nice and really wanted to help us get the cheapest bus.  He gave us several time tables and bus companies and then sent us to the Stavanger public library to buy our tickets online, since buying online also save you money.  He also gave use gummy cars (like gummy bears, but, you know, car-shaped).  We headed to the library, but got confused and used a café’s computer instead.  We looked up the companies he gave us, but they were more expensive than the national bus line that we found.  We wanted to be sure it was ok, so we walked back to the station to confirm that it would work.  He said we should take that one, even though it was a little longer, but it would work. 

We went back to the library this time and bought and printed our bus tickets.  The library has a “tourist only” computer that we could print from.  Apparently, this is a common need in this town.  After we had our bus tickets in hand, we set out to explore.  We didn’t make it very far, since S decided to grab a frosty from McDonald’s.  After that, though, we were unstoppable. 

The first site we happened across, since we didn’t really have a plan, was Valberg Tower.  This tower was built in 1853 as a fire watch tower.  Most buildings in Norway are made of wood, so fires are a definite risk.  We didn’t go in, but apparently it is now used as an art gallery.  From there, we wandered down into the old town. 

The old town is very quaint.  If you ignore the Burger King and the giant cruise ships, I imagine it looks about the same as it did 100 or more years ago.  We were asked earlier in the day if we were on a cruise and we soon figured out why.  Based on the 3 ships currently docked in Stavanger, there were at least 10,000 extra people in that town.  We walked along the fjord, admiring the water, the old wooden buildings, and stone churches.  We also wandered past the Stavanger Oil Museum and got to look at the rig and dike equipment that they had sitting out.  One definitely looked like a missile until I read the sign.  We eventually headed back to our hostel. 

The next morning, our stuff once again in tow, we were off to the bus station.  I saw the bus station man again and he gave me more gummy cars, which I ate right away in spite of it being 9 am.  When we boarded our bus it was us, our driver, and an Israeli couple.  It was great!  The couple was really nice and the bus driver talked to us off and on and gave us information about where to get the best pictures.  We were basically about to cut across the country for the next 5 hours… and I was so excited. 

It looked like it was going to rain on us as we pulled out of the city and I was a little disappointed, but it quickly cleared off and was sunny for the rest of our trip.  S told me to wake her up if she was missing anything amazing.  By my count, it was all amazing.  Once again, mountains and water and water falls and snow and sheep.  I did not close my eyes the entire time. 

We picked up more people as we made stops along the way and we eventually turned onto a crazy, one-lane mountain road and started climbing up and up and up.  As we turned through switchbacks and met other cars head on, I found that I was still less scared than I am in taxis in Sofia.  And the view was certainly better.  At the highest point in the road, we were blocked by sheep.  I think the driver said it was 1800 meters high, but like I said, there were sheep, so I was distracted. 

Eventually we made it to the town where we had to transfer buses.  After that it was another 2 hours to Oslo.  We drove past the most amazing, huge, inland lake.  The road went by it for over 30 minutes.  We were also in farm country, so it was really pretty with fields and red barns.  I loved it!  It would have only been better if I could have skipped the bus and hiked the whole way (which was cost and time prohibited, unfortunately).   

After we arrived in Oslo, we stayed at the same hostel that we did on our first trip through and then headed out to spend our last Kroners on real dinner.  We went to Peppe’s Pizza.  I had a delicious calzone and got tap water (not bottled) in a glass.  With ice.  It was like a little piece of America on the table. 

Then we went back to our hostel and slept until 3 am.  We had to catch the 4 am airport shuttle.  I definitely closed my eyes on that bus.  We arrived at Oslo Rygge Airport with more than enough time to catch our flight to Thessaloniki, Greece (because, believe it or not, the cheapest way to get back to Bulgaria is via Greece). 

Part 37: Buses and Boats: Take Me Away July 17-18, 2012

Bright and early Tuesday morning, S and I were off to the bus station to catch the bus to Stavanger.  I was a little shocked that our 5 hour bus ticket cost more than our 7 hour train ticket, but it made more sense later on that day.  We boarded the bus, which had Wi-Fi and settled in for our journey. 

I slept quite a bit on this bus ride, which I always feel guilty for.  When I travel I feel like I need to see everything that’s around me, not the inside of my eyelids.  Apparently, I even missed a 20 minute stop where S completely left the bus.  However, I still managed to see a lot of beautiful fjord land.  There were mountains and water and more mountains and then more water.  And then, we drove onto a ferry and were told by the bus driver to be back to the bus 5 minutes before we docked.

I’m sure the fjord we crossed was very beautiful.  However, it was foggy and rainy so I actually have no idea what it looked like.  Back on the bus.  More mountains and water and then… another ferry.  Once again, we needed to be back on the bus 5 minutes before we docked.  The weather had cleared a little, so this journey was more scenic, but we still couldn’t see much.  The two fairly long ferry rides made our expensive bus ticket make a little more sense. 

We arrived in Stavanger around 1:30 that afternoon and headed to the tourist information desk.  We needed a map and a grocery store.  We weren’t staying in Stavanger and we didn’t want to have to eat at the only (expensive) restaurant near our hostel for the next 2 days so we stocked up on supplies before heading to the docks.

Ferry ride #3 of the day was the most scenic.  Most of the clouds had moved off and the sun was sort of shining.  There were islands and mountains all around and very blue water.  We docked in the village of Tau and caught yet another bus up to Preikestolen Mountain Lodge and Hostel.  Our hostel was in a small wooden building with a grass covered roof that was cute as could be and had a great view of a lake. 

I wanted hike to Kjeragbolten, which was nearby, however there is apparently no good public transit between our hostel and the ferry to the trailhead so I had to let go of that dream after talking with the hotel receptionist about it.  That evening I took some pictures around the lake and S and I talked to our roommate from Finland. 

The next day, we set out for Preikestolen, or Pulpit Rock.  The rock formation was formed by a glacier and sits 1,982 feet above Lysefjorden.  We stayed right by the trail head so it was only a 2.4 mile hike but most of it was up, so it still takes 3-4 hours roundtrip.  Also, Norway’s traditional trail style is to dump a bunch of boulders on the ground.  While they do keep your feet out of the mud, they make for tricky climbing, especially on the way down. 

The hike up was gorgeous (see picture collage above).  We left early enough that the trail was not very busy and we made good time.  We hiked up boulder covered stream, across a green, wet valley, and past several mountain lakes that you can apparently swim in but I didn’t think it was nearly warm enough for that.  We finally reached the top and it was a sight. 

First of all, you’re really, really high.  I don’t particularly care for heights, but I don’t mind being high up on a mountain so I was ok.  You’re also overlooking Lysefjord and it is beautiful.  I even found a little boulder wedged into a crack between two cliffs to stand on as a joking replacement for missing Kjeragbolten.  We then took pictures of each of us on the edge of Preikestolen, climbed up above for the view down and after eating some bananas headed back down. 

I always find down to be much harder than up when hiking.  It’s the only time my knees complain (I’ve been lucky in that regard) and I inevitably trip or fall at least once.  However, when I did almost fall on the boulder covered stream going down, I was caught by a guy going up that had really quick reflexes.  My hero, swoon.  Haha.  I managed to make it without incurring any serious injury and when we were close to being back down, we decided to take another trail on a whim to see where it led. 

This trail led through the woods up a mountain.  When you come out you’re at a place that overlooks Stavanger Fjord, which is huge and blue and beautiful.  We were also at a place that has a really great echo if you yell.  Luckily the family that was there just ahead of it demonstrated it very well so I didn’t have to yell myself.  More pictures and then we headed back down. 

By the time we were at back to the original trail, my ankles were done.  I had to work really hard not to roll them over.  At the bottom, I took a picture with the Preikestolen sign and while S went to hike around the lake, I took a shower and rested my feet.  Later that evening I ate a chocolate bar before going to sleep.  It cost about $4, but it was worth it.

The next day, we were taking the ferry back to Stavanger.  However, this was my favorite part of the trip. 

Part 36: Beautiful Blustery Bergen July 15-16, 2012

On the morning of the 15^th we headed to the Oslo train station to catch the train to Bergen.  Unfortunately, the railroad is undergoing a lot of construction so you have to catch a bus to a different station outside of Oslo before catching the train.  The guy directing the masses to the correct bus line gave instructions to the people in front of us in English and then gave them to me in Norwegian.  Apparently I looked like a native. 

The bus took us to a small town train station that was not equipped to handle this much traffic.  The line for the bathroom filled the small waiting room inside the station.  S and I decided we could wait.  The train arrived a little later and we found our seats.  S was at the front of the car and I was at the very back.  On the up side, I did not have a seat partner, so I could spread out. 

The Bergen railway is “the world’s best train ride” according to the Norwegian tourism website.  Of course, they’re biased but I have to agree.  I spent most of the train ride staring out the window in amazement completely jealous of the fact that some people get to live there.  It was unbelievably beautiful.  S got to sit by an English professor and her husband who described it as “The Lord of the Rings with phone lines.”  Personally, I think Norway has Middle Earth beat. 

After about 7 hours we arrived in Bergen.  Luckily, Bergen is smaller and makes more sense on a map than Oslo.  Plus, our hostel was merely 5 minutes from the train station.  No extra directions necessary.  After dropping our stuff off in the 50 person dorm (we were travelling on a budget) we headed down to explore the city.  We walked downtown past many old churches and buildings from the 1700’s.  We reached the main square and looked at all the Norwegian tourist junk such as sweaters, moose key chains, and slippers.  Just on from there, right on the wharf, is the fish market.  It is big and it smells like, well, fish. 

One side of the wharf is named Bryggen.  It consists of several wooden buildings that were built by the Hanseatic Trade League from between the Late Middle Ages and early modern period (c. 13th–17th centuries).  The wooden buildings are in great shape for as old as they are.  Most of the buildings on Bergen’s wharf are from the 17^th century, but that’s still 400 years old!  

We then walked past Bryggen and on to Bergenhus fortress.  This fortress was once the seat of the king and the currently buildings date from the 13^th century.  S had to see Rosenkrantz tower since Rosenkrantz is a character in Hamlet and S is an English teacher.  I don’t think it’s the same Rosenkrantz, since Hamelt takes place in Denmark, but it’s still a good picture for an English teacher’s wall. 

The fortress continues at a higher elevation that gives a good view of the city (or it would have if it hadn’t been raining while we were there).  On our way up we walked around by the water and then up through the narrow old streets of Bergen past cute wooden Norwegian houses.  On our way back down, we passed through Bryggen and looked in the narrow hallways between the buildings before stoping at Subway for dinner (a $9 sandwich, yikes!).  We then meandered up towards a nice brick church and back through the university museums and park.  Finally we went back to our hostel to read, check our email, and sleep. 

The next day, we decided to visit Fantoft Stave Church.  The original Stave Church was a traiditonal wooden church dating from 1150.  It survived for over 800 years and was even moved to Bergen from its original site only to be destroyed by arson in 1992.  However, they rebuilt an exact copy and while it’s not old, it is cool.  The church shows how early Norwegian Christians used tree logs as pillars and it had carvings that reminded me of what I’d seen at the Viking ship museum in Oslo.  The church was far from the center of town, so we took the tram there and back.

When we arrived back in town, it we decided to take the Fløibanen funicular up Fløyen, a mountain plateau that rises over Bergen.  However, we timed it so we showed up with the bus/cruise ship tours.  Not wanting to stand in a huge line in the rain, we stopped into a café for some $6 coffee and hot chocolate and waited out the line and the rain.  It worked out very nicely and after we came back out we waited only a few minutes before we were on our way up the mountain.  It would have been a better view if it hadn’t started raining again, but it was still amazing. 

When we got off, we tried to take some pictures, but the rain was brutal, so we stood in the long line for the women’s bathroom (it’s an international problem) that was at least covered and then we checked out the tourist shop and waited for it to stop raining.  We took some pictures, but they still weren’t very good, so we decided to hike to a lake.  We got to the lake and saw a sign pointing us to another destination that I didn’t actually note the name of.  We decided, on a whim, to take it. 

We walked along a squishy moss-covered trail (that, yes, I slipped and fell on once) through a fern covered forest.  It was really different from other woods that I’ve walked through.  Rocks, ferns, and moss.  The floor wasn’t covered in leaves and underbrush.  It was beautiful.  We ended up climbing to the top of a mountain that overlooked Bergen on one side and a small mountain lake on the other.  It was awesome. 

We also successfully made it back down and I managed to avoid most of the mud, which Norway has copious amounts of.  I really have a thing about mud.  I hate it.  Luckily, I have gortex lined shoes and I’m willing to do just about anything to avoid mud, so I was ok and my socks remained dry.  S, was not so lucky in her Nike tennis shoes.  By the end of our trip, she was seriously considering some new shoes. 

We went back to the overlook by the funicular and took some good pictures since it had finally cleared off a little and then we started walking back down the mountain.  And once again, it started to rain.  We were pretty much done at this point and just went back to the hostel to dry off and eat free waffles. 

Bergen was pretty relaxed and I really enjoyed it.  The next morning, we were off to the bus station to catch the bus to Stavanger. 

Part 35: Oslo is Hard to Navigate July 13-14, 2012

We got off the plane at Oslo Rygge airport and started looking into transport into town.  Budget airlines never fly into main airports.  You’re always way outside the city.  After comparing roundtrip shuttle costs with the train costs and checking on the return trip times, the bus won for overall cost and convenience.   A girl with a Canada flag on her backpack that had asked us about where to catch the bus ended up sitting behind us.  T was from Slovenia (though her mom is Canadian) and was in town for a veterinary conference.   She became our new Oslo friend. 

We got off the bus at the central bus station and began looking for the road to our hostel.  Europe really needs to embrace street signs on every corner.  The fact that you have to walk a few blocks at times just to discover what street you are on is really annoying.  After asking a security guard we headed off in the right direction.  However, he didn’t exactly send us to the road mentioned in the directions, so we asked a nice man on the street.  He knew exactly where we were going and we were there within 5 minutes.  T got a bed in the same room as us and then we headed out to do a little exploring. 

Since most things were closed, we went to the opera house.  Turns out that Oslo isn’t that much easier to navigate with a map.  For some reason, it’s at a confusing angle.   Anyway, we did find a foot bridge that would have led us over the railroad tracks and right to the opera had it not been for the massive construction project in the way.  So, we re-evaluated our route and successfully arrived at our destination on the left. 

The Oslo Opera House is trying to reach the iconic status of the Sydney Opera House and like the Sydney Opera, it is built over the water and has a weird shape.  They went for iceberg inspired theme and you can climb up the marble/granite roof to the top to look over Oslo Fjord and the city.  Of course, when we were there it was raining, but it was still cool.  The inside is also nice, but I thought the outside was more unique.  Interesting fact, courtesy of Wikipedia:  The opera house was finished in 2007 and is the largest cultural building  built in Norway since the Nidarosdomen Cathedral was finished in 1300. 

From there we walked along the harbor to Akershus Castle.  The castle was built around 1300 and was used to defend Oslo.  As time progressed, its function changed and eventually it fell into disrepair in the 18^th and 19^th centuries.  Now, it is used by the Norwegian government to host foreign dinners and hold meetings and such.  It also houses the government’s ministry defense headquarters.  Since it was later in the evening, all the museums and things were closed, so we just walked around the grounds and looked at the old buildings.  It also has a nice view of the harbor. 

By now, it was nearly 8:00 and we were hungry.   We decided to check out a recommended pizza place called Hell’s Kitchen.  When we arrived it was so full that we couldn’t get a table, but soon one cleared out and we were seated in actual chairs.  We ordered our pizza and drinks and a few minutes later fellow teachers from Bulgaria walked in and took the table right next to us.  Actually, C didn’t even realize we were sitting there until she’d sat down.  We had a good dinner with P and C and heard about their whirlwind trip through every country in Scandinavia.  They only had the evening in Oslo, so we recommended  trip up the Opera House roof and we went back to our hostel to sleep (not that it was dark yet, I mean, it was only 10:00). 

The next day, we decided to get the Oslo Pass.  We went to the tourist information place and acquired our card and then laid out a plan to maximize our money.  We decided to take the ferry over to the Viking Ship museum first.  The museum houses the best examples of preserved Viking artifacts, including three ships: the Oseberg ship, the Gokstad ship, and the Tune ship.  The three ships were once sea-faring vessels but were found in such good condition because they were used as burial ships. 

The Oseberg ship’s occupants were two females buried around 834 but the ship was from the year 800 or earlier.  This boat is big.  70 feet long and 16 feet wide and could be rowed by 30 people.  This ship is ornate and was most likely used by a wealthy family for coastal journeys.  The ship was also filled with a lot of burial relics like ornately carved sleighs and 14 horses.  Most of the other artifacts in the museum came from this ship. 

The Gokstad ship is the biggest one at the museum (76 ft x 17 ft) and it was used for long ocean journeys.  32 oarsmen could power it when it wasn’t using a 1200 sq foot sail.  This was the kind of Viking ship that made trips across the ocean to places like Iceland and North America.  A man was found buried in this ship but most of the artifacts buried with him had been stolen by grave robbers. 

The last ship, the Tune, was in the worst condition.  It dates from the year 900 and was also used as a burial ship.  It is really fragmented, however, so it’s hard to find it as interesting as the other two. 

From the Viking Ship Museum, we decided to visit the Polar Ship Fram Museum.  We mostly decided to go since we were already on that side of the fjord, however I’m so glad we went.  Coolest museum I’ve been to in a while.  The Fram is a Norwegian ship that was used in some of the first successful Artic and Antartic expeditions.  According to Wikipedia, “Fram is said to have sailed farther north (85°57'N) and farther south (78°41'S) than any other wooden ship.”  Even better, the actual ship is inside the museum!  They pulled the ship onto land and built the museum around it.  You can literally walk through the ship (which still smells like diesel fuel) and look at the cabins, kitchen, and game room.  You can also try to get a picture with the steering wheel, but if you’re like me, the old guy photobombing your shot won’t leave. 

Other trips to the great white north ended badly for some wooden ships that were crushed when they became frozen in the ice.  No one thought it was possible for a ship to survive a winter in the artic, but Fridtjof Nansen (who is one of the coolest people ever- no pun intended) thought that a shallow and wide hull would do the trick.  He had Colin Archer design a ship with a heavily reinforced hull of this shape and they ended up with the Fram, which could withstand these forces.  The ship was designed with a windmill to generate power and enough space to allow enough provisions for a crew to live on board for 5 years (signing on for these journeys was a big time commitment). 

Nansen lead the first Arctic journey the Fram took from 1893-1896.  While he made it farther north than any other person had until that time, he didn’t make it to the north pole.  He floated with the arctic ice for over a year before trying to get to the 90^o mark via dog sled.  They made it as far as 86.3^o in latitude and had to give up.  They experienced a lot of difficulties, as evidenced by the fact that of the 150 dogs that left on the journey, only two made it back to Norway. 

The Fram’s second Arctic expedition was scientific in nature.   In1898, Otto Sverdrup started a 4 year journey to chart the flora and fauna of Arctic Islands.  The Fram’s last journey was to the Antarctic.  Roald Amundsen led this journey, which lasted from 1910-1912.  He was originally planning  to head to the North Pole as well but once 2 Americans beat him to it, he changed his plans.  He had significantly more success with his sled dogs and skies and this became the first expedition to reach the geographic South Pole. 

A brief note on Nansen.  As I said, he was a cool guy.  He was a champion skier and ice skater, explorer, and had a doctorate in marine animal neurology.  He also studied oceanography and earned a Nobel Peace Prize for his work helping refugees affected by WWI.  So… what have you done with your life? 

From the Fram, we took the ferry back to the main part of Oslo and headed back to Akershus Castle.  This time, however, we got to go inside.  We got to tour several rooms including the dungeon, the royal mausoleum, and the castle church.  Since the building was built in the 1300’s, it certainly wasn’t Buckingham Palace as far as fancy goes, but it was still impressive and had some impressive artifacts, such as tapestries from the 17^th century. 

Since I was traveling with an English teacher, the next stop was the Ibsen Museum.  What I know about Henrik Ibsen, besides that he had fantastic facial hair, is that he was a great playwright and, based on the museum’s information, dealt a lot with morality and religion.  I’ve never actually seen or read one of his plays, but I have heard of “The Doll’s House.”  The most interesting thing about Ibsen were his eccentricities.  The museum is below his apartments, which you can tour.  The apartment is very nice and the tour comes with great stories about his life.  He planned his day to the minute.  He worked at his desk until the same time every morning.  Then, he got up and followed the same route to the same café to read his papers, some of which he had specially sent in from other countries.  He did the same thing at the same time everyday.  He had a barber come a few times a week to trim that facial hair that I mentioned before and if the barber was even a minute late, he made him leave and come back the next day.  He was fastidious.  He also had a massive portrait of a rival Swedish playwright in his office so he could see the enemy and remember who he was trying to beat.  He was an interesting guy. 

From there, we took a turn around the Royal Palace and the Queen’s Garden.  It is the only park in the world that surrounds a palace and is open to the public.  There isn’t even a fence around the palace.  There are guards with guns so you can’t exactly walk up to the front door, but it’s still really open and meant to be used by the citizens of Oslo. 

We then took in the National Gallery.  We saw The Scream by Edvard Munch along with some Picasso and El Greco.  Everyone knows The Scream so it was great to actually get to see the real thing.  I also decided I really like Hans Gude and other Norwegian landscape painters. 

After that, we hit up the Nobel Peace Center.  They had the “In Afghanistan” exhibit that was featured in National Geographic a few months ago.  It features pictures and stories about women living in Afghanistan and how life is changing for them.  It also had videos on these girls that were working to improve life in their country.  They organized demonstrations on why harassing women on the street is wrong and they organized a trash pickup in one of the cities that a lot of young volunteers turned out for.  It was nice to see good things happening in a place that mostly has bad news coming out of it.  It also includes photos of soldiers in Afghanistan that was really moving. 

Upstairs had a full exhibit on the three women that won the Nobel Peace Prize this year.  ‘The Nobel Peace Prize 2011 was awarded jointly to Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, Leymah Gbowee and Tawakkol Karman "for their non-violent struggle for the safety of women and for women’s rights to full participation in peace-building work".’  Ellen Johnson Sirleaf is the president of Liberia and she fights for women’s rights, Leymah Gbowee led a group of women to literally block a group of men inside a hotel until they reached an agreement and ended the civil war in Liberia, and Tawakkol Karman works to improve women’s rights in Yemen.  They were all really inspirational.  You could also look up all other prize winners on a really cool interactive screen where you could read about what they did, hear bits of their speeches.  It was nice. 

Well, end Oslo Pass attractions.  Since everything was closed, but we had still had free transport, we headed up to the Vigeland Sculpture Park.  The 80 acre park has 212 bronze statues by Gustav Vigeland.  They are all naked people.  There is even a stone column called the Monolith that is covered in bodies.  It’s a little less creepy than it sounds.  Apparently, it took 14 years to carve, so maybe I shouldn’t call it creepy.  It’s also supposed to represent human unity, but it looks like a bunch of writhing bodies.  It was an interesting place.  I especially liked the upside down baby and the fountain. 

To finish our day, we bought our train tickets to Bergen and then headed to the fjord to take a little cruise.  Since we still had free transport and ferries are like subways in Oslo, we got a free fjord tour.  It was a little cold and windy, but also very nice and scenic.  That evening we copped out and ate McDonald’s since it’s cheaper (emphasis on the “er.”  It was still $15). 

The next morning we were off to Bergen on the “most scenic railway in the world.”