This morning we first had a waking tour of old town Bergen passing through the fish market which had an amazing display of many fish species for sale. The old town is a UNESCO heritage site and because of settling had several buildings that are sinking and askew. They are leveling and restoring one at a time and the results are impressive. We then had a guided tour of the history museum showing all the artifacts they discovered when rebuilding after a fire which seemed to occur every several decades. We then went on a bus for a tour of the other parts of the city including the more modern down town. After a short break Kathy and I rode the funicular up the mountain for a view of the city and had hot chocolate and pastries. Very pleasant as we have been blessed with good weather in what is said to be the rainiest city in Europe. This afternoon I had a brief rest while Kathy visited 3 CODA museums. Last event was a social hour at hotel bar and then a walk to dinner at a restaurant where we had a great meal of halibut fish. We said goodbye to the driver, guide and fellow travelers. We thoroughly enjoyed this group with a great gregarious guide and very congenial travel companions. Although we had great fun and learned a lot, we are now looking forward to our return home.

Today we had a little walk through the town of Flam before boarding an electric train to go up into the hills again (10% grade!). There we saw more waterfalls and beautiful scenery. We changed trains once and then boarded our bus to visit a Norwegian farm where we saw and petted a breed of horse unique to Norway with a black stripe down back from head to tail. We also viewed their very curly woolen sheep and of coarse petted them as well. We had a late lunch there and heard about farming in Norway and how endangered the small family farm is. An added treat was a modeling of the traditional dress by a young lady. Back on bus we went to Bergen for our final hotel on the journey. The weather turned more typical with rain and cold winds. We took a little stroll in the rain to finish the day and look forward to learning more about the city of Bergen tomorrow.

Today we left the Geiranger and drove again up into the mountains, stopping at several overlooks to view the fiord from up high. We stopped for lunch to have asparagus soup and ‘mushroom soup. Following lunch we stopped at a store for Norwegian clothing. We both bought T-shirts. After lunch we drove through the worlds longest tunnel that was 26 miles long with occasional blue-light sections. We visited a active but receding glacier park and followed that with a visit to a museum /including a very picturesque movie about glaciers. Finally we took a ferry across a fiord that lasted only 15 minutes and arrived at our hotel for the night in Flan. It is hard to get used to the sun not setting until about 11 pm and it is already daylight when we awaken at 6 am.

After the usual sumptuous breakfast we headed out on the bus for a scenic overlook above the fiord. Then back down to the town where walked through all the shops and Jay bought a very stylish wool cap which turned out to be very useful ( by Kathy). After a snack we boarded a sightseeing boat to cruise the fiord with all its gorgeous waterfalls and rock formations. Very cold and some rain, but we came prepared and had a great time! Then back to hotel for hot cocoas and pastry. Finally a nap ( first one of trip) and then buffet dinner where the Norwegian Trout was the highlight of the spread for Jay. Yum!We are quite certain we are not losing weight on this trip…..🤪

We drove from Lillehammer two hours and then had a stop in Lom where we viewed an ancient ( about 1105 AD) stave church which was completely built of wood without saws or nails. Lom was also located by a rushing river and a shop that had a bathroom sink made from an old Volvo. We then drove higher in the mountains towards the coast where we were very impressed by the rugged snow capped mountain rushing ice melt rivers and beautiful views. It was windy and cold and we appreciated it all the more thinking about the Texas summers coming up. We stopped at several magnificent viewpoints with an ultimate height of 4843 feet. These mountains are quite different than the Rocky Mountains for example as they are older and more worn with time. Late afternoon we then descended to the fiord and town of Geiranger. The hotel is owned by a very rich Norwegian Hotelier ( oil money) who had a car exhibit in the basement of some beautiful classic cars. This area of Norway is quite busy with many German and Dutch tourists and their campers. Tomorrow we stay in this town and take a day cruise of the fiord.

Spent our second day in Oslo, the capital of Norway. First we went to the national Museum of Norway where we had a tour of the highlights. That included an ancient tapestry from around 1100 AD which was found unfazed below a carpet which was being replaced in someone’s home. What a find! Then we saw the queen’s wardrobe dresses, followed by some of the major paintings of Norwegian artists culminating in “ The Scream” by Edvard Munch in which he expressed his anxiety over realizing the interconnection of everything in the universe. Upon checking the daily news I was allowed by the guard to give my own impression of The Scream. 🤣 After the museum we went to the ski jump used in the Olympics where we had a great view over Oslo. Then we went to a museum island that had a museum dedicated to artic explorers specifically Amundsen who took the ship Fram close to the North Pole where it froze in place and then they hiked the rest of the way to the pole and back to the ship waited for the Spring thaw and sailed back to Norway. Quite an adventure story! There was also a museum dedicated to, and containing the Kon Tiki boat which was a great adventure trying to prove that Polynesia could have been settled by peoples from South America. That museum also contained the boat “Ra” which was built from papyrus reeds and was used in an attempt to show peoples from the Middle East could have traveled to far distant shores, I think in the far east? Need too research that one more as at that point I was in information overload with a severe case of “museumitis”. Back at the hotel we walked to a brew pub for dinner. We really are impressed with Oslo and would like to return someday for more.

Today we had a late start and made our way to a local book store so Kathy could buy some mystery books in Swedish. She needs the challenge to read in that language but also have a backup English copy to fall back on. After that we walked to the old part of town to view the changing of the guard ceremony. It was quite a show and included a navy band that gave a concert after the changing ceremony. Military service is compulsory for men and women but not are all selected and mostly train and march in ceremonies like this as Sweden has not been in a war for over 200 years! After the ceremony we hiked to the National Fine Arts museum to view Swedish impressionist paintings and household objects from different periods. After a rest back at the hotel we had a meeting with the 20 other guests on this trip. They seem like a fun group and our guide is also a character. Tomorrow will be a full day of city tours with the group. We will have to get used to following someone else’s schedule now (630 wake up call!) but it will be fun to be led around and not make all the decisions about where to go and what to eat.

We are going on a trip to Sweden and Norway with Gate 1 Travel, to replace the one to Egypt that we had to cancel 3 times in the last 2 years for one war or the other. We thought this trip is a safe bet now and has always been on our bucket list of places to visit. If you want to follow along on our journey I will send an email link to this blog. You can bookmark the address to return on your own schedule or if you subscribe you will get an email notice for all new posts, ( hopefully daily starting Sunday the 31st of May when we leave.) Comments are always appreciated because it lets us know some family and friends are following. OK now back to packing!