Our Mission in Norway: September 2011

Norway in a Nutshell - Part 4

Road Trip

Four gas station hot dogs and cokes which leave the body starving for real nutrition: $60. Filling the 12 gallon tank of our VW Polo for a 12 hour round trip driving tour: $144. One day supply of the world's best chocolate: $50. Marveling at the unrivaled beauty of Norway with really good company: PRICELESS.

Leaving from Bergen on our 1 day, marathon road trip.

We counted every tunnel we passed through, some several miles long. We didn't pass through one tunnel twice and our tally for the day was 62!

Coming down out of the mountains to this breathtaking view. We couldn't capture the scene in it's entirety with a camera, but from our view to the right there was a beautiful waterfall, and to the left of the valley a large cliff with another, smaller waterfall.

Once we dropped into the valley, the view looking back from where we came.

And we were warmly greeted!

Debbie started it with the crackers!

They looooved her!

Debbie found her new calling in life as The Goat Whisperer

mwah, cute!

We stopped in this little town to do some bike riding and enjoy it's wonderful energy.

Debbie in front of the darling stave church of Balestrand.

I was so happy to get my legs moving!

The following pics are all scenes from our bike ride....

We road through town along the fjord.

Back in the car and enjoying some chocolate.

Fairies and tunnels are necessary for getting around this water locked country.

Norway in a Nutshell - Part 3

There and Back Again. A few glimpses of a cross-country tour.

The breathtaking landscape of central and southern Norway is covered in cliffs, fijords, forests, waterfalls, and quaint countryside. Connecting the sleepy little fairy tale villages nestled in the mountains surrounded by clear lakes and streams, are roads dotted with tunnels carved strait through the mountain side. On such a journey, driving between the towering cliffs and the blue fijords, one will find colorful Norweigan homes and old Stave churches as picturesque as a postcard. With the sun shining brilliantly over the grassy, lush meadows or with a cool low mist draped over the water like a blanket, in all it’s forms Norway conjures in me a feeling of reverence and intrigue.

Grassy roofs is green living at it's best.

Land of the Troll

With Norway's diverse landscape, it is no wonder that story tellers of old have had fantastical visions and spread tall tales of a mysterious creature who lives at the top of the tallest mountains, resides behind a great waterfall, or lurks in the deepest, darkest of forests. He is a troll, and depictions of him can be found everywhere in Norway. Photo opportunity statues can be found around nearly every corner, and calendars, mini statues, postcards, and posters can be purchased for tourists to take home and remember the landscape of Norway that lends itself so well to such a tall tale.

flowers

Rain – Rain in Nor-Way, wearing coats long past May……..But it does explain the grassy roofs and perfectly rain kissed flowers.

Norway In a Nutshell - Part 2

Bergen

Where quaint is an understatement.

Notice the lovely summer weather? 18 hours of sunshine doesn't make up for the 18 hours of 'sunshine'!

One of our favorite things about Bergen is the sea food and market on the harbor. One thing we didn't like, is for the same price you could feed a family for a week in Costa Rica. One plate of seafood pictured above = $50.

Debbie sampling whale....

Debbie wondering why she sampled whale. Tastes just like chicken, eh?

Sitting down to freshly smoked salmon at the market.

Anyone who knows me, knows how much I hate chocolate. Every time we stopped for treats it was such a drag. ;)

A little street shopping. Tom totally should have bought this, 5th grade would have gotten a kick out of it.

Day Trip from Bergen; Voss, Flom, and the Naeroyfjorden

We took a cruise on the Naeroyfjorden, the narrowest Fjord in the world.

The views were breathtaking 360 degrees and a hundred different shades of green. We were lucky to have a nice sunny day for the experience.

We took a minute on the cruise to have a quick lunch, which happens also to be the name of our candy bar of choice - KVIKK LUNSJ

The narrowest fjord in the world.

And I'm enjoying my $10 cup o noodle. I was unaware that in Norway they use gold flakes as flavor enhancers as opposed to MSG. You can totally taste the difference.

Norway is a land of many water falls.

At the narrowest part of the fjord, these two ships could pass side by side, with the land as close on our side as it was on theirs.

There were several small villages on the hillsides that were only accessible by boat. That's Pura Vida.

Imagine how imagine it looks with a good camera, or better yet, in person. We feel very blessed to have experienced the grandeur of the country.

Debbie is embracing the local fashion by working on her scarf collection. Bob, undaunted by the price of food because he is satisfied with only one meal a day, is worried that the scarf collection will soon be taking over the mission budget.

On the way home from Bergen we stopped in Flam. We had some sunshine and actually saw someone take a dip. They must have been visiting from the North Pole. Tom was skipping rocks and his record was 16.