Bergen - Boarding Hurtigruten MS Nordnorge

We had a leisurely breakfast at the Thon Orion Hotel and checkout was at noon, so we rugged up and went for a walk around the fortress just next to the hotel.  Some wonderful views from the top of the hill.

Our luggage check-in for the Hurtigruten cruise on MS Nordnorge was from 1.00pm, so we checked out and got a taxi to the ferry terminal where we eventually unloaded our luggage.  But we couldn't board until after 3.00, so we had a lot of time to kill.  We wandered around the streets of Bergen in quite miserable weather, grabbed coffee, then finally boarded around 4.00pm.  

We're on level 6, in an Arctic Superior room, and although small, It's quite comfortable and has everything we need.

Dinner was a buffet with fish, fish and more fish - baked, grilled, raw, pickled, every which way!  There was plenty of everything else, too. Delicious!  A great introduction to our cruise through the Norwegian Fjords.

NAEROYFJORD and GEIRANGERFJORD

Next morning was our departure on the electric powered boat cruising Naeroyfjord and Geirangerfjord to Gudvangen.

We sailed through pristine waters, surrounded by towering snow covered mountains.  Words can't do justice to this journey - breathtakingly beautiful, spectacular, awe-inspiring.... all of these and more.  The water was like a mill-pond, and I took some amazing photos with great depth to the reflections.  

Around every turn in the fjord was another stunning vista.  We eventually came to a junction where the fjord veered left into the Geirangerfjord.  Another spectacular trip until we reached Gudvangen, where this part of the journey ended.

We retrieved our luggage then boarded a bus to Voss.  Another interesting trip, going through small towns, villages, ski resorts and caravan/camping parks, and beautiful lakes, some of them frozen.  The bus was warm and  comfortable and the time passed quickly.

On arrival at Voss we had a short wait for the train to Bergen. I needed to use the toilets here and was directed to an area down a couple of flights of stairs.  However, I was surprised to find that I had to pay to use the facilities.  I had no local currency, and had to use my credit card to open the door - but I did something wrong and the door just wouldn't open. I was rescued by a young local girl who swiped her card for me, let me use the toilet, then she went in - a two-for-one pee, if you like. First time I've ever had to use a credit card for a pee!

So, the train arrived, and we were on our way to Bergen.  We got a taxi from the station to the Thon Orion Hotel.  Our booking included a light dinner and breakfast next morning.  Our room was lovely, with a great view over the river area.    The 'light dinner' was a buffet, with plenty of variety - fish, meatballs, pasta,salads breads and desserts, coffee etc.

After dinner we had a stroll around the Brygge area, which was colourful and charming, where I did indeed take a few photos.  

Then it was back to the hotel to get organised for our Hurtigruten Cruise  through the fjords the next day.

So far, everything has worked well and we've seen some stunning countryside.

NORWAY IN A NUTSHELL

We checked out of our room after another very good breakfast, then dragged our bags through the railway station to Platform 3 to await our train from Oslo to Myrdal. 

We failed to read our ticketing instructions properly, and just grabbed seats in any carriage, then discovered we had someone else's seats - we were in completely the wrong carriage... aaagh!  So, we had to retrieve our very heavy suitcases and drag them 5 CARRIAGES DOWN the train to find our designated seats in carriage 6.  Exhausting, stressful, but at least we were on the right train!

As we travelled along, the scenery changed to vast areas of deep snow, higher mountains, and small towns.  Most of the houses were a pale colour, with the occasional glimpses of colour. 

On arrival at Myrdal we changed trains to travel on the famous Flam railway.  At least this time we knew which carriage to climb into.  And I do mean climb - dragging suitcases up 3 stairs onto the train. They seem to be getting heavier!!!

The journey from Myrdal to Flåm is 20 kilometres long with a ascent of 863 metres with a gradient of 1 meter in 18! The gradient is unique for this kind of ordinary gauge railway, and to cope with the enormous height difference, the track runs partly through  tunnels, which spiral in and out of the mountainside.   

Shortly after boarding, we had a short stop to get off the train to see the Kjossfossen waterfall which is supposed to be amazing.  It probably is in summer, but at the tail end of winter it is a spectacular frozen icefall.  Still lovely.

We arrived in the picturesque town of Flam which sits on the Aurlandsfjord and checked

into the Fretheim Hotel which was a very comfortable, high-ceilinged lodge style hotel, with amazing views.

We walked around the tiny town on this spectacular fjord, before returning to our hotel for dinner -  a 3 course set menu featuring dried reindeer, cod in seafood sauce, and dessert.  It was excellent.

OSLO DAY 2

Breakfast was excellent. Plenty of choices, eggs, bacon, sausages, many versions of salmon, tasty breads, yoghurts, fruit, cheeses, hams salamis etc.  We did not go hungry. 

We caught a bus out to the Viking Ship Museum which was spectacular.  It housed three Viking ships in a whitewashed, almost cathedral-like building with high curved ceilings.  In the corners of each room were steps up to viewing platforms where you could look down into the ships.  In one of these areas a movie about the Vikings was projected on to the walls and ceilings around one of the ships.   Brilliant.

Next we went to the Fram Ship Museum, which again was very well done with movies projected onto the walls, sound effects.  We went onto the huge Fram which was well-preserved, gave you an idea of how cramped and difficult sailing/living on a ship even this size would be.

From there we visited the Kon Tiki Museum which houses the original Kon Tiki balsawood raft and the Ra reed raft built by the famous Norwegian explorer, Thor Heyerdahl.  Most impressive.

We returned to Oslo central, and had dinner at Fjora where I had one of their signature dishes, a fish soup.  Not a great signature, fairly ordinary - the bowl contained some nicely arranged seafood, over which was poured the fish soup.  The soup was lukewarm, and the seafood fairly light on.  Disappointing, for around $40.  Trev was happy with his mussel dish which was much more appetising.

Next morning, another good breakfast before catching the train to start our 'Norway In a Nutshell' trip.

First stop - Oslo, Norway

After a very long trip (Canberra/Sydney/Dubai/Oslo) of about 22 hours flying time plus the interminable "sitting around airports time" we finally arrived in Oslo, Norway, to start our Norway/Finland trip in search of the Aurora Borealis, or Northern Lights.

We caught the airport express train to Oslo City - very fast, efficient, clean - and caught the first glimpses of white carpets of snow and stark black winter trees.  We arrived at central station in Oslo and found that our hotel, the Central Grand Comfort Hotel was actually located in the Central Train Station - so we didn't have too far to drag our luggage to the hotel.  

It's a funky, friendly hotel and we checked into our large room where we dumped our luggage, had a very welcome shower, and changed into fresh, warm clothes before venturing into the city.  My eyeballs felt like gritty orbs and we were both so tired, but we decided to have a quick look around before we gave in and crawled into bed.

All rugged up, we walked in the light snow, on slushy pavements up the main street in front of the station.  We checked the prices of food (high), walked past shops such as Jimmy Choo, Michael Kors, Louis Vuitton, Saint Laurent (beyond expensive), then had coffee and a snack at the Cathedral coffee shop, which cost around $40 AUD - ouch! 

So, back to our hotel for a long sleep, ready to start our holiday.....