Beauty – Valerie's Voice

Beautiful

Many beautiful happenings are all around lately…to name just a few:

The program for the musical at the Chanhassen Dinner Theatre.

We went to see Beautiful: The Carole King Musical at the Chanhassen Dinner Theatre. It was phenomenal, especially for those of us who grew up with her music. She was a prolific song writer, with over 118 top hits, written or co-written. We had a wonderful time.

Another beautiful event was seeing the northern lights…

I had told friends if they ever hear of the northern lights in the area to let me know…and one night, last week, she texted and said there was a good chance. I was in my nightgown, but threw on a jacket and shoes, and off I went (Gary was in bed already). I noticed several others out, along the way to my viewing spot. We were all hoping to see the northern lights.

We did, and they were beautiful. Basically there were streaks in the sky with a very faint tint of color, but when you took a picture the colors popped.

Looking out from our window down into the nest.

Blooming spring trees are blossoming all over town. I noticed, in our very own crabapple tree, there is a robin’s nest with three “robin-blue” eggs in it.

I say good morning to mama, every morning, and greet her several times during the day, as she sits in her nest in the tree right outside our bedroom window. It is a beautiful sight.

There is a family of foxes in our neighborhood…two adults and 8 pups. I’ve seen 8 of the 10 foxes. It’s a short and easy walk to go watch these playful and beautiful creatures, so I try and go see them often.

This farm is on County Road 9. I always look for the “Dutch-belted cows”.

A farm scene in spring, with red barn and cattle and blue skies and spring greens is always beautiful.

So grateful for beauty that abounds.

Sunset

We went out last night for the first time in a week. We’ve been sick at home. We were greeted with a spectacular sky and sunset.

Praise God for this amazing evening greeting.

Hadrian’s Wall Path

I didn’t know much about Hadrian’s Wall when we chose to hike it. I loved the idea of hiking from inn to inn, and I’ve enjoyed seeing pictures of England’s countryside, so why not there? We hiked a thirty-four mile section of the Hadrian‘s Wall Path, which is an eighty-four mile coast-to-coast trail in northern England.

It was interesting to learn about this path that follows the course of an ancient Roman fortification wall. The construction of the Roman wall began in AD122 under the orders of Roman Emperor Hadrian. It was considered both a defensive barrier and a marker of the northern reaches of the Roman empire.

The original wall was 20 feet high and 10 feet wide. At each one-mile interval they had stone structures called milecastles which housed 32 soldiers.

Evenly spaced between the milecastles were two stone observation posts called turrets. Additionally, the Romans had built numerous forts in proximity to the wall.

Back in its day, there was a garrison of around 20,000 soldiers from across the empire at Hadrian’s Wall. After three centuries the Romans left, and many stones were pilfered to be used to build stone fences, and stone houses, by the local people.

John Clayton, in the 19^th century, spent 50 years excavating Chesters Roman Fort and many other Hadrian’s Wall sites and is credited for saving Hadrian’s Wall. It is now a UNESCO World Heritage Site. There is a museum along the way, next to Chesters Roman Fort, with amazing artifacts that John Clayton excavated and collected. It was fascinating.

Today, the stone wall is intact in several places, up to 20 feet high, but then only a remnant stone, or nothing visible, in other places. Foundations and remnants of forts, milecastles and civil settlements were enroute with spectacular English country landscapes as the backdrop.

We hiked mostly in open countryside, although there were trees in the periphery… in the farm pastures and beyond.

One lone sycamore tree at the bottom of a gap along the Wall is very picturesque, and been seen in several movies apparently – one being Robin Hood. If you hike along the Wall path, it takes you down the gap to the tree, and then you walk back up the other side. The tree is stately and magnificent (and 300 years old!) The area is known as “Sycamore Gap”.

There was a small portion of the trail that goes through a wooded area…a fairy forest we called it.

And there was a copse of trees with protruding roots that provided a perfect place for us to sit and eat lunch one day.

Beauty surrounded us on our hike, and we were grateful for the opportunity to walk this Walk through this amazing setting.

Before the Cold Sets In…

Last week the snow started falling…sometimes it felt like we were living in a snow globe. It was, and still is, beautiful outside.

Out our front door…at dawn’s early light.

Looking out our patio door, early morning.

It has continued to snow off and on, and the “frosting” has stayed on the trees, and everything else for that matter. Wherever you look, it is stunning. A true winter wonderland!

We went on a cross-country ski outing at Riverbend Nature Center in Faribault before the freezing temperatures moved in. It was breathtaking…and hard to ski because I wanted to capture it on camera.

Other skiers enjoying the fresh fallen snow.

Recently, while in North Carolina, I read the chapter book “The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe, to my grandchildren.

In the book, the white witch keeps winter in Narnia all year long. The white snow-covered wonderland is gorgeous, but I wouldn’t want to live in it forever.

Now the freezing temperatures are moving in.

“And mamma in her ‘kerchief, and I in my cap,
Had just settled down for a long winter’s nap…”

It’s time to settle into the cozy house by the warm fire. I’m so grateful we can do that, knowing full well that’s not the case for everyone.

Leaves hanging on trees, some individually covered in snow!

This scene in Riverbend reminded me of the cotton fields we saw in South Carolina last month.

Bees on the Trail

These past few days have been glorious. Bright sunshine and low humidity and comfortable temperatures. Great days for bike rides.

The new mile markers on the Sakatah Singing Hills State Trail.

We were bicycling on the Sakatah Singing Hills State Trail on one of these fine weather days. The trail is in good condition. We rode out several miles, stopped for lunch and then turned around and rode back. It’s a delightful, easy ride.

There are about 70 species of annual and perennial flowering plants in the daisy family Asteraceae commonly known as *sunflowers*.

Once again, this time of year, we were surrounded by yellow daisy-type flowers and goldenrod and yellow cone flowers. It is pretty, especially with blue skies.

This field of yellow flowers were full of bees. I couldn’t capture them on camera, but there were hundreds of them.

We stopped for a water break and noticed one field of flowers bursting with busy bees. It seemed as though there was a little bee on every flower, collecting nectar and pollen. It was a good sight to see.

I appreciate these colorful, autumn bike rides, especially during the week when there are few riders on the trail. We saw more bees than people!

Boats in Norway

We boarded a few boats during our time in Norway. First, we were cruising along the western coast of Norway on the ferry/postal ship, the Hurtigruten.

We also took a number of ferries as part of our road trips. It’s just a natural and reliable way of life, and transportation, in the area where we were.

On the ferry…you can get out of your car and stay out on the deck or sit inside.

And, we took two more intimate rides in a boat that Heine and Kari have at their cottage. It seats six comfortably, and they graciously took us for rides on the Norwegian sea.

I love the water. I love being on it, or beside it. This was a special treat.

The scenery was stunning.

The scenery was breathtaking.

The scenery was colorful.

The scenery was pastoral.

On one trip we docked in a town called Fitjar, where Kari grew up.

We disembarked and found ice cream treats, before getting back on the boat to continue our fabulous ride.

The scenery included many styles of boathouses along the sea shore…

and hilly and rocky shorelines.

What a pleasure it was to be on the water, taking in a different perspective of this absolutely, beautiful country.

The Island of Stord, Norway

After saying good-bye to Brita’s house in Kaldestad, we took the ferry to the island of Stord, where my second cousin Heine and his wife Kari live, and work, and have a “cabin”. Heine works for a company that makes oil platforms for the north sea.

Kari manages a delightful home decor/gift shop, The Five Hens.

We stopped by their home in the southeast area of Stord, on the way to their cottage on the sea, located in the northwest part of the island. That day we went from my grandfather’s house, built 1882, to Heine & Kari’s house on the sea, built 2012.

The cottage was a gorgeous home, with floor to ceiling windows and it sat right on the water’s edge, offering a great view. The six of us, Jomar and Bente, Gary and me, Heine and Kari, spent three nights there and had an enchanting time.

Besides being at the “cottage looking out over the water”, our mealtimes were memorable. Gathering around the dining table each morning, and every night, was fabulous. Not only was the food delicious, but the camaraderie was sweet.

Breakfast buffets in the hotels in Norway are amazing with breads, jams, soft-boiled eggs, egg dishes, meats, cheeses, fish, yogurts, oatmeal, trimmings, waffles, salads, cucumbers (and more)…they’re bountiful!

We had a lot of these same foods for breakfast at the cottage, except they were all set on the table in front of us. We passed the array of food back and forth, and enjoyed our leisurely breakfasts.

Dinners were fantastic too. Scrumptious food including elk, beef ribs and a pork roll, and chicken. Yum. We would eat a late, leisurely dinner, with good conversation.

Heine grilling elk from his hunt last fall.

Lunches were eaten outside; on the deck, or on the boat.

Our enchanting mealtimes made for some wonderful memories at the cottage.

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!