On the Hunt for a Walk

This morning started like most others. We woke up to see a tiny fishing boat sitting in the middle of the fjord surrounded by seagulls. Then 10 mins later it was back in the little harbour, seagulls following.

I guess this explains why the boats are so small (1 person?) - they don't go very far!

What happened next was not quite so usual. The gulls started making a huge amount of noise and were chasing a large brown bird with white wing tips, some sort of eagle! They chased it all the way down the fjord before flying back to harass the fisherman.

After breakfast Stu opened his birthday cards and his surprise present, a Fit Bit (he'd opened what he thought all his presents before we left because they were too heavy to bring). We then set off towards Trømvik.  About halfway there's a deserted village and according to the map it shouldn't be too mountainous and more importantly there would hopefully be a track we could walk along the coast.

The snow melts along the coast first and the coast, although rocky, is relatively flat making walking possible without risk (by knowing what are stepping onto and that it will hold your weight!).

Unfortunately the closer we approached the abandoned village the higher the road went meaning it would be impossible to get down to the coast :-(

So on we drove, past a massive frozen lake, then a smaller one surrounded by a rocky outcrop with a waterfall. This looked perfect for walking so we pulled up on the side the road, tightened our boots and set off.

Upon close inspection the snow was starting to melt with river runoff from the cliffs into the lake. This meant whenever we heard water we had to be extra careful of our stepping as one wrong step could mean we would end ankle high in icy cold water!

After an hour or so of scrambling we got to the cliff edge to see an (inhabited) village, the ocean and of course a beach! Perfect for our lunch stop. There aren't many cafes around, and those that were serving lunch could easily cost £50 so we've had a delicious picnic every day.

After lunch we went for a walk along the beach - some of the sand we stepped on was frozen and gave way sending our boots straight into rock pools :-(

With cold and wet feet we returned to the car, and drove to Trømvik with the air conditioning blowing full force on my feet with the hope they would dry a little.

Trømvik appears to be a more industrial fishing village than Ersfjordbotn, with much larger boats, but then again the open Norwegian Sea is literally just around the corner.

With no more walking spots in sight we set back off to the cabin to get ready for Stu's birthday meal out.

I'd booked a table at one of Tromsø's best Norwegian restaurants which caters for locals and tourists alike.

Their signature dish is stockfish, a Norwegian specialty. It requires the fish to be hung outside, like those we've been seeing everywhere, in the artic wind for several months as a method of drying and preserving (the dried version was what Stu tried yesterday).  They then soak the fish for 6 days to rehydrate it and cook it. This results in a not too strong, very tender, slightly smokey tasting, delicious birthday dinner! I on the other hand went for the slightly more conservative, reindeer steak which was equally delicious.

For pudding we had chocolate soup with pickled carrots. A rather odd sounding but equally delicious dessert. The tiny little baby carrots tasted of cinnamon!

Full and happy we returned back to the cabin, through the sleet, for an early night - there's no chance the clouds will clear tonight either :-(

Bad Weather

Today the weather forecast is sleet for most of the day with two pockets of slightly better weather. A couple of hours in the morning and couple late in the afternoon.

We therefore decided to walk from our cabin this morning, round the fjord and then go into Tromsø this afternoon.

We started off towards the local town, Ersfjordbotn, keeping an eye on the clouds as we went. With the mountains either side of the fjord and the Atlantic in the distance, the clouds at the entrance of the fjord looked really dramatic. As the clouds entered the fjord they parted to form over the mountains on either side, occasionally leaving a little bit of blue sky or a puffy white cloud in the middle.

After walking through the town, with little to note, other than lots of pretty wooden houses, we headed along the edge the fjord as far we dared. Due to the beautiful sunshine we've had over the last few days the snow has begun to melt. As we walked along, the snow frequently ended up above our ankles with ice getting caught our boots and then promptly melting giving us cold, wet socks. Yuk!

Water has also started trickling down the rocks as the spring melt sets in. This also meant that occasionally we'd break through the ice into a shallow stream. Fortunately our boots are waterproof!

As the sleet suddenly started to get worse we decided to turn back and dry off our socks.

After lunch we set out into Tromsø. Every day so far that we've ventured out, the roads and streets have been empty. However today everyone seemed be out! We found some parking, thought we'd deciphered the parking meter, wandered off in the wrong direction, turned round wandered back, trousers already soaked (the weather forecast was wrong!), found place were looking for (apparently the falling dominoes building featured yesterday is the Polar Museum) and then realised the parking had run out 15 mins ago and we'd seen a traffic warden our travels.

We raced back to the car, wondering how on earth we had purchased less than 10 mins of parking. The machine said 15kr per hour or some other amount for the day. We had pushed the 1 button (not the 6 or 12) twice thinking this would give us 2 hours. It actually gave us 8 mins. No sticker was on the car so fingers crossed we don't get a parking ticket!

Cold and wet we, somewhat boringly, decided to head back to the cabin, stopping in the supermarket to pick up dinner on the way back.

The fish counter in the local supermarket (more the size of a UK high street supermarket shop) is a fish lovers dream. The fish counter and the bakery take up almost half of the shops total floor space!

The fish counter has every sort of fish you could think of, including fresh versions of the ones we've seen hanging up everywhere (see photo from 2 days ago).

We bought a fish pie (easy to cook given our limited kitchen), some traditional Norwegian cheese, the dried fish and straws that 'magically' turn normal milk into strawberry flavored milk.

When we got home Stu was keen to sample the Norwegian delights. I've had the cheese on my previous visit and had no desire to try it again. It looks like a golden cheddar but tastes sweet, frequently eaten with raspberry jam and waffles!

Stu cut a small chunk off and stuffed it in his mouth. A few seconds later he was running to the bathroom, mouth open shouting. Urghhh!

Cheese disposed of, he opened the dried fish and stuck it under my nose. Fortunately my nose is still blocked and I could only smell a faint hint of a horribly strong fishy smell. Stu once again popped some into his mouth and then the whole scene repeated again. Urghhh!

Having abused his pallet and with me in laughing hysterics Stu settled down to his strawberry milk (hard to believe he's 31 tomorrow! ;-) ). The magic milk fortunately was to his liking and the cheese and fish were both soon forgotten by his tastebuds.

With not much else to do because of the horrible weather, we settled down to watch a film together.

Unfortunately, even though the kp index is high tonight there is little chance of seeing the aurora as there is 100% cloud cover :-(

Troll Hunting?

With my ankle getting better and the boots supporting it well, today we were determined to do more hiking than yesterday.

However the first event of the day was quite spectacular. The 'road' between our cabin and car is covered in refrozen old snow and very slippery. Stu had the misfortune to find this out first hand...his legs went up in the air and arms out to the side, resulting in a very loud thunk as he landed on his bum. Owww! Fortunately he only got a few grazes and his pride knocked and we were able to continue on our way.

We headed off to Balsfjord on the next island, the long way round as there is a 100kr (£10) toll on the tunnel and driving around fjords is always picturesque.

On the way out of Tromsø I noticed a building that looked like fallen down dominoes. I'm not quite sure what it was - any ideas?

A little further outside Tromsø we passed somewhere called Sørbotn, quite appropriate after Stu's little accident this morning!

We stopped for lunch overlooking Balsfjord just outside of Nordkjosbotn. The view was magnificent. So magnificent that Stu even managed to snap a picture of me!

If you haven't already noticed, I like reflections and the views over Balsfjord certainly held lots of them! This fjord curves quite abruptly around meaning the water is beautifully still, reflecting the majestic mountains and sky in it like a mirror. Bliss!

By mid-afternoon (and few wrong turns later) we arrived at the bottom of the Fugletind mountain overlooking the fjord. Our map-come-guide suggested that the ascent to the top and back was just 2.5 hours and Stu and I have often been commented as being fast walkers so we thought it would be easy. How wrong we were!

The first hurdle we encountered was that the road was in such a bad and icy condition - imagine a frozen, slippery slushy ice rink in a VW polo! - we had to pull over, in traditional Norwegian style, and parked the car on the road, walking to the start of the hiking trail along the sloppy road.

25mins later we arrived at the gate mentioned in the guide and set off up the 'easy path' - surely this should take less than 2 hours?! We passed lots of footprints (trolls perhaps?), saw an artic fox chasing a little white rabbit and generally sank into the snow (frequently above our ankles), making the walking quite hard going at times.

After a further hour of a most enjoyable hike we decided to turn back; lots of dark grey clouds were closing in (we didn't have our coats with us as it was lovely and warm earlier when the Sun was out!).

About an hour later we made it back to the car and set off back to our cabin. As it was getting late we took the toll route (tunnel) back, saving us an hour of driving. 

The road to the tunnel was quite badly maintained (or there's been a particularly harsh winter); large areas of the road had turned to dust. There were lots of signs of attempted pot hole repairs but the road surface also had signs of being repeatedly scraped by snow ploughs with long grooves running along the length of the road (which had also ripped up any repairs) and most of the road markings were nowhere in sight.

By the time we got back to our cabin, the sky had clouded over and the kp index tonight is low, so once again it's unlikely we'll see the aurora tonight :-(

However, the solar forecast is relatively high for the next three days so fingers crossed the clouds will stay away at least one of these nights!

An Epic Landscape

I woke up early this morning (5.50am) with light steaming into the bedroom even though all the blinds were closed.

I felt quite awake so decided to have a look outside and saw a beautiful pinky-golden light on the mountains from the sunrise. After a few more minutes I decided it was too cold to stay outside and that I was probably best getting back to sleep so we could stay up late in the hope of seeing the aurora tonight.

A few hours later we both woke up ready to start the day. After opening anniversary cards we set off to find a walk on the island we are staying on, Kvsløya.  Part-way round the island we found a beautiful little beach in a fishing village and decided to brave the strong, freezing cold Arctic winds and go for a walk.

The first thing we saw were hundreds of fish hung out drying on a makeshift wooden rack with a little fishing boat at the end of a pier in urgent need of repair.

As we started our walk we were in awe at the beauty of the fjord. The water and sky were both brilliant blues set against the white, snow covered mountains only a stone's throw away.

The beach and grassy mound we walked along were littered with shells and sea urchins with spines still attached! It was so cold even some of the rock pools were frozen whilst little wading birds were scattered along the shore line.

Having walked round the small peninsula we found our way back around the top blocked by a fence and had to retrace our steps to get back the car.

We continued driving, stopping to eat our packed lunch and for any sights that took our fancy. There are handy, frequent laybys which seem to be there to let you just pull up and go off-piste skiing or hiking. Unfortunately without skis most of the area was impossible to hike in. Even the roads were lined with 2m high walls of snow and ice!

A little later we came across a glass art gallery. The owner and artist, Tove, showed us her workshop. Over the past 18 years she has built up her business, always earning enough to buy the next kiln rather than taking out a loan. Her biggest customers are the cruise ships which come every few days but she also maintains a well stocked shop on Kvsløya.

Many of her pieces were a really bright light blue, which I thought at the time were more artistic license than reality. Tove said she loves this time year because not only is there the aurora by night but in the evening everything is blue.

I didn't quite understand what she meant but when we continued on around the island with the road following the fjord I began to understand. The mountains and fjord were reflecting the brilliant light blue of the sky, making everything look vivid blue. I doubt any of the pictures I took will do it justice but none-the-less the the view was absolutely beautiful!

We got home just in time to change and go out for the surprise dinner I had booked in one of Tromsø's most highly regarded gourmet restaurants. It even hosted the King and Queen recently! On a weeknight they have a superbly priced (for Norway) and extremely delicious set menu. Although the dishes weren't something either of us would normally choose, each and every course was a pleasant and delicious surprise.

As Norway has strict drink-driving laws (even a small glass of wine is over the limit, with the risk of a very large fine or 4 weeks in jail for even minor offenses) only one of us could have any alcohol this evening.

By the time we got back to our cabin it was almost dark. Unfortunately there was also lots of fog descending over the mountains. No aurora tonight either :-(

Note: once again you'll find me (or at least a bit of me) in one of the photos - can you find me?

Moving On

Today is our last day on Oslo. This afternoon we are catching a flight to Tromsø which takes almost 2 hours flying north.

A couple of days ago I had gone slightly over on my ankle. I thought nothing of it at the time but yesterday it was becoming quite painful so I was kinda glad that Stu wasn't up to much yesterday, giving it a chance to heal. 

Unfortunately this morning the pain had got worse. I was hoping it was just a simple twist but it now feels like it might be a sprain :-(

I've also now come down fully with Stu's bug which I was hoping to avoid. Stu on the other hand is much chirpier today. An interesting, although slightly annoying fact we learned is that you can't buy cold and flu pills in Norway, just an ethanol-glycyerol drop solution that didn't seem to do a huge amount.

This morning we decided to go to the  National Art Gallery which was now open and had plenty seats for me make use of!

It had a good mixture of art from ancient Greece to much more modern works, including some from Munch, Picasso and Dahl.

We were not particularly impressed with Munch's early work which seemed a little childish in nature, but I guess it just shows how much art changes with time; one era's breakthrough is another era's primary school project. Comparable perhaps to the fact that Einstein's one Nobel winning equations are taught at first year university and at a basic level in secondary schools.

At 1pm it was time to catch our train back to the airport. By 5pm, having flown over beautiful snowy mountain tops we had arrived in Tromsø.

We picked up our hire car, drove to the nearest supermarket to pick up dinner for tonight and lunch for the rest the week then drove directly to our cabin in Ersfjordbotn where we were greeted by Henry.

The first thing to note is that it is beautifully (and dangerously) snowy in the Troms region. The second thing to note is the view from our cabin over the fjord and mountains is absolutely amazing!

Ersfjordborn is a small fishing village about 20km from Tromsø and should be spectacular for viewing the northern lights if the weather (both on Earth and on the Sun) is right. Tonight the kp rating (essentially the likelihood of seeing the auroras) is quite low, 1-2 and the moon is bright, but sky was forecast be clear.

We waited up until midnight, supposedly the best chance of viewing the aurora. The sky remained clear but no sign of the lights :-(

At 1am, we stepped outside on our balcony and looked up. We weren't greeted by the lights but did see a shooting star - a perfect start to our 3rd wedding anniversary :-)

Exhausted, we decided to call it a night and went to bed. Fingers crossed for tomorrow night.

An Unproductive Day

Today could have been a better day.

Stu's cold has developed into something quite nasty. It kept us both awake for most of the night and needless to say we both felt shattered this morning.

Our original plan was to go to Freikistad on the train, about an hour south of Oslo. However neither us felt up to a full day out (I was also now coming down with the dreaded lurgy) so instead we decided to stay Oslo.

We had one more museum on our 'To Visit' list in Oslo, namely the National Gallery which has Munch's The Scream on display.

After we had finished our breakfast in a nearby cafe we walked over the road to the museum to find it was closed on Mondays! This explained why we hadn't seen anyone even trying to enter whilst we were enjoying our breakfast.

With our back up plan foiled we started wandering through the cobbled streets of Oslo. We went past the City Hall, which had lots of status and engravings surrounding it that were reminiscent of a communist state. Further on we encountered Oslo's cathedral. The ceilings were amazingly painted with just enough to keep them interesting whilst not being overbearing.

Eventually we found our way back to the Opera House. Yesterday we had noticed that Don Giovanni was on this evening so we checked if there were any cheap tickets left for this evening's show.  Neither of us have been to the Opera before and thought we'd give it a go and luckily there were 2 seats available at just £10 each!

Given we were now going to have a late night as the Opera lasts 3h40 we decided to have a siesta.

Unfortunately even after a nap Stu's cold was an extremely nasty one so we decided to just wander down to the harbour front and sit in the sunshine (we didn't even need a coat!) and people-watch.

Whilst there we saw some strange things such as a mini electric car which you could only just about squeeze a single person lying down in and a bloke practicing skiing on wheels.

With the time for the Opera nearing we headed for dinner. Having only had lunch a few hours before we decided to have some delicious pancakes at Crepe di Mari, not the healthiest dinner but they had lots of fruit on them and they were absolutely delicious :-)

The opera, although an interesting experience is not one we are likely to repeat in the near future. Our cheap, restricted view seats meant we couldn't see around a quarter of the stage and Stu was feeling worse for wear so, at the interval (almost 2 hours in), we decided to call it a night.

The Sights of Oslo

After a slightly later (flight delayed), wet and cold start to our holiday yesterday, today we ventured out to properly to take in the sights of Oslo.

Fortunately the weather was better today with, so far, no sign of rain!

It seems the people of Oslo are late risers. We set out just after 10am in search of breakfast to find the city almost empty and everywhere closed. After around 30 mins of searching we eventually settled on a cafe in the train station to fill our tummies setting us up for the day ahead.

Our first stop was the famous Oslo opera house. The architect designed it to allow you to walk on the roof. At the top there are some picturesque views of Oslo, well at least there would be if the Sun was shining, but we can't complain, at least it wasn't raining!

Next we went to the Akershus Castle and Fortress. Originally built in 1299 to protect the Norwegians against the Swedes and to today it remains an active military base with guards in dress uniform 'protecting' it.

Within its walls are quaint cobbled streets and beautiful yellow buildings, enough to brighten up any winter's day in Oslo.

Having enjoyed walking through the walled fortress we set off past the Nobel Peace Centre where they decide who gets the Nobel Peace Prize then on to see the extraordinarily quiet parliament square and finally onto the Royal Palace where several more guards were patrolling.

Behind the palace was an assortment of beautifully architectured buildings, each and every one not just a different colour but a completely different design. However, perhaps more surprising, there was barely another soul in sight!

Hidden amongst these buildings, many then embassies, was a little wooden house with adjoining art gallery which was our lunch stop.

Two salmon and scrambled egg toasties later we briskly walked back to the 'crowds' near the palace. On our way we passed a slightly more notable embassy. It was dark grey (just what you need during the winter months here!), blocky (like a 1970s block of flats) and completely surrounded by its own fortress consisting of a mini police tower, an impenetrable looking grey fence with large vehicle barriers behind it. It looked like it had more security than the royal palace where the King of Norway resides! Obviously, this is the US embassy... 

Our final stop for the day was the Astrup Fearnley Museum which exhibits both Norwegian and international modern art. Perhaps the most notable permanent installation there is the one by Damien Hirst. His butterfly art was really beautiful and his attention to detail is amazing,  with the two halves of his collage being almost identical but solely using real butterflies. We shall saw a mother and baby cow cut in half and preserved so we could walk between the 2 halves...

From a local artist,  who also likes to work with real (dead) animals, was a little white rat staring down at his home. The final exhibit which caught my eye was a wall lined with empty picture frames, each with a gallery name on it from around the world, with a gold maid staring at them. However it was interesting because of the reflections rather than the blank canvases! 

Having seen the cow sliced in half (the stomach structure is really quite interesting!) and being freaked by a fat old lady in a revealing swimming costume walking around and then for some reason deciding to sit right next me (Stu graciously refused to move up meaning I was sandwiched between the two of them) we decided it was time to return our hotel.

In the photos shown in today's blog there are 2 with Stu in and 2 with me in. Can you find all 4? :-P