Tuesday, June 19, 2007

Norway Photos

I called my dad on Sunday evening to wish him a happy father's day and he said it was really nice that I'd called, but what he'd really like for father's day would be for me to finish my Norway blog entry. Okay, only for you dad. Here's Norway in pictures! Finally! Sorry... it has been a busy week (but that's another entry altogether.)

My dad in Oslo with Nanna and Jan-Erik, at the top of the Grand Hotel. It looks dark out, but that's only because of the flash.

Here's how it really looked:

The following morning we got up very early to start our "Norway In A Nutshell" tour. Highly recommended if you have 12 hours to kill and don't need to get between Oslo and Bergen particularly quickly. (I flew back... took 45 minutes.) The first train took 5 hours, and we saw some amazing views.


Including random snowdrifts between regions of green. This looks cold, but it was VERY WARM. Well, the temperature... not the snow.

Our second train, which we rode for an hour and which took us through some incredible canyons and valleys.

Next up, a ferry ride for 2 hours... my favorite part of the trip. All of these fjords have names... I only remember Narrow Fjord.




After the ferry, a bus took us to the top of a mountain and stopped at a hotel for an amazing view before taking us to the next and final train.


Finally we arrived in Bergen at 8:30pm.

And it was totally worth the wait! What a beautiful city.
I took the funicular to the top of the mountain for some breathtaking views and was surrounded by midwestern Americans searching for their Norwegian roots.


A midnight beer... just what the doctor ordered.

After a night in Bergen, we headed out of town to stay at the summer home of Egil and Ingrid, colleagues of my father's. We stayed in their boathouse on the fjord. SO. COOL. Our view:

And we ate every meal outside. So relaxing!

Thank you to Egil and Ingrid for a fantastic weekend near Bergen and to Nanna and Jan-Erik for their hospitality in Oslo! I hope to be back soon!!!

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

And this long-awaited blog update was equally well worth the wait. Sign me up for a tour of Norway for my next vacation. Thanks for finally getting back to your fans with an update of your travel adventures. Bravo to your dad for requesting this for his father's day gift.

Anonymous said...

Oh my god, it looks wonderful!! You know I would have loved being there!

Surfmonk said...

Hansal beer is so hot right now.

NoellieBellie said...

Ilmi you are a god.

Anonymous said...

wow, what a breathtaking journey, now I need to go to Norway :)

NoellieBellie said...

Huy, you definitely would've loved it, and I would have loved to be there with you! And Gabriel, definitely try to visit someday... preferably in summertime!