Our train
trip, besides the beautiful scenery, was an adrenaline rush – at least for Ash. The train washroom door had an automated lock
on it that could be activated by pushing a red button. After using the washroom Ash pushed the green
button to release the lock – but it wouldn’t unlock. After several attempts at opening the door,
pacing, and noticing there was no emergency button, Ash full on panicked. She stuck her finger in between the closed door
and wall and with troll like strength pushed the door off the hinges so that
she could stick her face in about a half a foot wide hole and wave down someone
in a nearby car for help. This image
conjures extreme embarrassment for her and caused JD and Britt to deteriorate
into laughter and wish they were there to take a photo. When help finally came
it took two men to put the door back on the hinges and let her out – they
thought the door worked perfectly and Ash just didn’t know how to follow
instructions – oops! Her heart rate returned to normal before arriving in
Bergen.
Where we
stayed: Augustin Hotel – which was super (or as JD would say ‘sups’) nice. As we are used to staying in low budget
hotels or hostels, staying in a real hotel with a minibar, tv, heated bathroom
floors, wake-up calls, complimentary breakfast AND a packed lunch if you
take a day trip and miss complimentary
breakfast, is quite a luxury. Our hotel
was also a close walk to shops and restaurants and the quintessential Bergen
view.
What we ate
and drank: So many things! JD got his
appetite back. We tried three excellent
restaurants: Ruccola, where we ate porcini mushroom risotto and spinach and
ricotta ravioli with broccoli sauce; Kitchen & Table, where we ate American
fusion dishes prepared with Bergen produce; and Bryggeloftet & Stuene (we
know you were wondering whether we ate anything else Norwegian – the answer is
of course) where we ate overcooked Monk fish and perfectly cooked lamb with
yummy veggie sides. We also found great
lunch spots, Ash the fish market and JD and Britt a ‘quaint’ sandwich shop
which turned out to be a chain but had delightful spreads.
What we
did: We ran into many trolls in the forest at Floyen – the lookout point. The day had fogged over casting an eerie
calmness in the air. Plus it was raining
meaning many less tourists. Poor city visibility but perfect for troll hunting. We strolled along Bryggen – the Bergen wharf
– and explored the back alleys of dilapidated buildings that have been turned
into art shops. We staked out good
picture spots, waiting for tourists to leave so that we could make it look as
empty as possible. We probably don’t
need to mention but for old times sake – Britt took 1000
photos of the wharf in different lights during our stay – but now it’s blue! But
now it’s grey! But now it’s a different shade of grey than that other time it
was grey! We found ourselves in a near empty city when all the 50 year old plus travelers (of which there were many in Bergen) went to an Elton John concert. We
never really learned what a fjord actually is though we took an awesome tour of
two – Aurlandsfjord and Naeroyfjord - named by National Geographic as the most beautiful fjord in the world. As we traveled to Flam to catch the tour we were entertained by an elderly woman standing up and placing her Ipad directly in front of Britt... We also spent much of the train ride wondering if we would end up bouncing out of the speed boat and into the fjord (we are not adventurous people!) and were happy to be donning giant waterproof jumpsuits. Our guide Olaf told us Norwegian folk tales, proposed marriage and a honeymoon, and navigated us around the fjord with ease. We saw the fjord that inspired the movie Frozen but we still couldn't let go of our obsession with the song Let it Go. JD sang it at the breakfast table on our last day, joined by a 5 year old at a neighbouring table.
Lessons
learned: Never judge a book by it’s
cover – sometimes when you think a restaurant looks empty that’s actually just
the hotel lobby and a bustling restaurant sits right behind it.
Best line:
The elderly women (aged 90 plus) on the train to Flam yelling “You’re too late!
You’re too late! I shouldn’t have listened to you!” at her husband on the
train, when he didn’t get up fast enough to take a picture of the 18th
waterfall on the right hand side.
Some
questions for Iceland…
Will the
last accommodation – and the one we stay at for longer than any other in our
history of travelling together – live up to the standards of the rest from the
trip?
Will the geyser explode while we're on our Golden Circle Tour? We hear it goes off every 10 minutes or so, but it would be just our luck to miss it!
Stay tuned!
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