Arctic Circle – Valerie's Voice

The Hurtigruten

Ever since I heard of the Hurtigruten years ago, I have always wanted to take this postal/ferry working ship along the coast of Norway. I’m so glad Gary made it happen, and I was pleasantly surprised at how nice and comfortable the ship turned out to be.

We met a fun couple the first day, well… actually the first night. We boarded the Hurtigruten at 12:30 in the morning – but it was light out so who knew?

We got into an elevator that held four people and luggage, that took us to a small foyer with locked doors so we had to take the elevator back up again. There was another couple from Norway in the elevator with us. We laughed about the elevator ride, and then, when we saw them later, we started talking and spent time together on board.

The postal flag on the back of the Hurtigruten.

Comfortable lounge chairs to sit and watch the world go by.

The ship made many stops, but very few for any length of time, so we only got off the boat twice for an hour each time during our three nights on board. The food buffets were fabulous, and the view from the dining area – great. Our cabin was tiny, but we were only in it to sleep.

Our view from the dining room in the back of the ship.

We sailed through the fabulous Lofoten Islands, which are known as one of the most stunning areas of Norway. Majestic mountains, fjords, and fishing villages dotted the coastlines.

Our ship entered the narrow passage to the Troll Fjord and it was gorgeous. We went to end of this small fjord and turned around. Again, we were blessed with a beautiful, sunny day.

Entering the Troll Fjord, a very narrow fjord, but very wide in beauty!

As we crossed the Arctic Circle at 66*33’ N there was a special observance. We gathered on a deck and the crew pointed out an Arctic Circle marker on a rock, to indicate the latitude/longitude, as we passed by.

The Arctic Circle marker on an island in the sea.

They also offered us some oil on a commemorative spoon. I didn’t quite understand what was happening, but I got in line anyways, to get the teaspoon. Later I asked what it was I swallowed on the spoon, and found out it was cod liver oil! Fisherman, and many people above the circle, used to take cod liver oil daily (and some may still) as it is a good source of Vitamin D, and it is said to bring you a good and healthy life.

The only entertainment on board was the stunning views of the Norwegian coastline…and that was all we needed. We spent many hours enjoying the scenery.

We disembarked the Nordkapp/Hurtrigruten in Trondheim, anticipating more adventures.

Tromsø

Here are four things I will remember from Tromsø, the 3rd largest city in the world above the Arctic Circle. Tromsø is a city of 71,000 people in northern Norway, 200 miles above the Arctic Circle.

The midnight sun! Photo taken at 2:16 am.

One: We spent two nights in a hotel room that overlooked a harbor. I love the sea and it was so nice to have a great view from our room. Each morning we ate our breakfast overlooking the harbor. And during the night, I would get up and look out to see the midnight sun.

Our our hotel window…always no screens, no air conditioning. This photo was taken at 10:39 pm.

Two: The sun was shining in Tromsø. This is not an everyday occurrence. There are many cool and cloudy and rainy days. However, we were in Tromsø during a record-breaking heat wave. It was 30* Celsius which is 86* F and people kept telling us this was not normal for Tromsø. And the sun shone brightly. We spent one morning at the Telegrafbukta Park and Beach, at the southern tip of Tromsø, and submerged our feet into the sea.

Three: We took the cable car up to the mountain ledge Storsteinen (1400 feet).

After taking in the stunning views overlooking Tromsø, we walked back down the mountain.

We started out on a trail before connecting with the “sherpa steps” the remaining way down (there are 1,300 stone steps in all). We ended up at the Arctic Cathedral, another pretty icon of Tromsø.

We made a cairn to leave our own mark on top.

Beautiful stained glass in the Arctic Cathedral.

And four: we enjoyed the Arctic-Alpine Botanic Garden, the world’s northernmost botanic garden. There were plants from the Arctic and from alpine and cool parts of all continents.

We went after dinner, so it was about 8 o’clock, and we walked around for over an hour with no concerns that it would get dark.

Maintenance sheds in the garden…with sod roofs. We saw sod roofs throughout our travels. Photo taken 8:30 pm.

The flowers were so pretty. I used my Picture This app a lot to help me identify flowers. My favorite flower in bloom was the beautiful, blue Iceland Poppy.

Tromsø’s most popular tourist season is in wintertime when you can see stunning Northern Lights. They also offer a lot of winter activities. Of course, in winter it’s dark most of the day.

It’s such an interesting world we live in.

A Norwegian Odyssey

It’s been two weeks since celebrating America’s Independence Day, the 4^th of July. Although we didn’t get to see any fireworks in the night sky, Gary and I were welcomed to Bergen, Norway on the 4^th of July with an American flag waving for us, in the reception area of the Bergen airport. A few of my second cousins met us at the airport to welcome us to Norway. What a great way to be greeted on the 4^th of July. It was better than fireworks.

Warm greetings from the Norwegians, for Gary and I.

When we first arrived in Norway, a week prior to meeting up with the relatives, we flew directly up to Tromsø, a city 200 miles above the Arctic Circle…the land of the midnight sun. And we were witnesses to that sun that did not set…I saw the sun at 2 am one morning when I woke up.

The midnight sun, from our hotel room window, 2:16 am.

After two days in Tromsø, we boarded the Hurtigruten, a Norwegian coastal ferry and postal service boat that travels along the Western Coast of Norway, making many stops along the way. We had reserved a cabin on it for three nights…and it was amazing. We were delighted and surprised to realize it was more than a working ship, but very much a comfortable, not extravagant, ship with wonderful buffets at mealtime, and relaxing chairs next to large windows overlooking the magnificent beauty of the Norwegian coast. We liked the size…not too big…and the only entertainment was the breathtaking sea and scenery, and that was enough.

We disembarked the ship in Trondheim, where we spent the next two nights at a hotel. We walked around the city for two days, plus had a needed, relaxing rain afternoon.

Trondheim is the city where St. Olaf College performs choir concerts in the majestic Nidaros Cathedral. I’ve heard about this cathedral for years while working at St. Olaf. It was fun to finally see it….and when we purchased tickets…we learned the young woman behind the counter had been to St. Olaf College singing with her Norwegian women’s choir.

I don’t understand the question mark on Bergen’s airport identification sign.

Then… we flew to Bergen, where we began the second half of our trip with my wonderful, amazing Norwegian relatives, who treated us like royalty. We spent the next nine days with them and it was over-the-top wonderful!

From the airplane, along the mountainous coast of Norway.

From the airplane…along the western coast of Norway.

Norway, a country of 5 million people, is a stunningly, beautiful country with mountains, fjords, pristine shorelines, and breathtaking natural beauty. It is clean with friendly, warm and welcoming people.

In the coming days I will be posting blogs about this amazing odyssey. I will struggle with what photos to share…I took many!