The Fjords Day 2

This is my current view from the balcony of my room. Still quite rainy but almost magical with the low clouds. If by chance I wake up tomorrow and it’s a bit sunny it will be spectacular! I still pinch myself that I am here seeing it with my own eyes.

The morning adventure was a ride on the Flåm Railway called the Flåmsbana. It’s a train you can take from Oslo to Bergen but what most people do is take a portion of the train from Flåm to the top of the mountain and then back down to Flåm. The ride takes a little over two hours. Even though it was raining it was beautiful. They have had a lot of rain so it’s as if the mountains have sprung leaks! There are waterfalls everywhere you look. Tall and skinny or shorter and wider. The bottom left is a very long waterfall on the right and the road up to the top with something like 28 switchbacks on the left. Bottom right is a bush or tree with a red berry that was growing everywhere on the mountains.

One of the largest waterfalls is the Kjosfossen Waterfall with a free fall of 350 feet. The train makes a quick stop so you can get off for pictures. A Norwegian folk song starts to play and a woman with long hair and a red dress appears and starts dancing. It’s the Huldra - an elusive forest spirit from Norse mythology that is said to lure men into the woods to seduce them. You can see her in the bottom picture off to the right. Beware!

From the train and also throughout the beautiful rural countryside you see so many red barns and buildings. That’s a Norwegian tradition because back in the day red paint was cheaper than white so it was used lavishly. It’s quite cheerful. Also very traditional to have the Norwegian flag on your home. If it’s at half mast that means you’re not home and if it’s hoisted that means you’re home. I also read that Norway has an extremely low crime rate because announcing when you’re not home isn’t a great idea in most places. Everything is made of wood because there are so many trees here. I haven’t seen so many cows roaming around since I was in India. We were stopped more than once today because of cows wandering the roads. Also sheep too. Are they like dogs and eventually find their way home? Not sure but I’m going to try and find out.

Another thing often seen here are buildings with sod and plants on their roofs. I inquired and was told it’s a good way to insulate your building. So maybe in places where gardens are limited people could turn their roofs into gardens? An idea coming from a person that knows nothing about growing things. This was a restaurant we stopped at for a late lunch right by a beautiful glacier. Loved their use of skis as a divider. They say Norwegians are born with skis on their feet. Ouch! But they clearly are a very outdoorsy people. They live their lives outside and don’t let weather stop them. That’s me at the glacier. Yes I really am here!

A better picture of the glacier. Top left a little behind a cloud and then at the bottom by the water. The reason the water here in the fjords is such a beautiful green is because of the minerals coming from the glacier. Gorgeous even on a rainy day.

The food in Norway has been excellent. I have definitely seen some things on the menu not typical of the US diet, but the quality of fruits, vegetables and fish has been outstanding. Also really flavorful breads and cheeses. And delicious desserts! I have seen a few things that were a bit of a surprise. In this picture on the far left is smoked whale! I couldn’t bring myself to try it but I’m guessing it doesn’t taste like chicken.

Also not one but two kinds of caviar. Take as much as you want!

That’s it for today. One more day in the fjords tomorrow and then off to Bergen.