Rest of Norway: beautiful land, long history

August 2 

Another late morning, did yoga on the deck, checked out and put our bag in the PACKED luggage room before downing some yogurt for breakfast.  We took off down the street to go to the town aquarium.  It was 200NOK, which we realized later was about $40USD.  Yikes.  It was also pretty sad.  There was a seal show that made me think of the movie “The Cove,” about a place in Japan where they trap, kill and choose the few dolphins who perform for us at sea

Pretty crab back

world, Disney and the like—a very gruesome and important tale.  There was a seal that closed its eyes and chomped and vibrated it’s jaws.  I thought the behavior looked a bit pathological.  Also, many of the penguins were sitting or lying in these little raised circles of concrete with rocks in them.  I felt very sad and depressed sitting with them.  We went through the other exhibits where kids were running everywhere looking at the specimens, watching constrictors snatch up mice, seeking the hidden rays, or fish in the sand, and enjoying the movements of the crustaceans.  I found the whole thing pretty depressing.  Not many of them had room, but they made the best of it.  I keep thinking about those we put in quarters too small, with no freedom to roam.  I think of our beloved pets and wonder about where the line is before we are using someone for our own gain or pleasure.  It’s a tough place to know if you don’t really experience what it’s like from the other side.  Anyway, after the aquarium we went in search of a bag for putting Les’s backpa into during flights. It was a nice way to get to know the city a bit.  I bought a pair of pants at Salvation Army that fit me like a glove.  I need to hem them.  Dinner was some salad greens, mozzarella in oils and spices and corn.  Yummy.

August 3-4

We went up into the beautiful mountains, below the snow, on a one-lane road in a large tourist bus with not many of us in it.  The landscape was stunning, weaving around the hills and down into dramatic valleys with waterfalls.  We arrived at Mo, where we changed to a boat. As it turned out, their regular boat was being fixed and so we were transported in an ambulance boat.  The guide said that she almost delivered her son on this boat on the way to the hospital.  The wind on the bow was fierce, but I loved it.  I put my rain jacket so it covered my ears and turned into the Michelin Man because it puffed up so much.  By the end, my fingers were numb, but it was a beautiful trip.  We were able to see the place where the lake turned into brackish water and then sea.  The trip ended in the port of Bergen, a very distinct square end with large ships (including cruise) and loading docks.  I bought some marinated salmon at the fish market.  It was expensive, but really good to make into a salad for dinner.

We spent Thursday morning exploring the Homeotic Museum.  This was quite the place for the Germans and others to trade in the 13-1500’s.

The building was fascinating, with beds in little cupboards that slid closed all the way, bell pulls, tea kettle like pourers to wash hands and face, lists and letters noting what is being traded for what, lots of seals from various countries, cod for eating and getting liver oil and how all that was done (they didn’t have any heat in those buildings—I’m assuming because the cod liver lamp oil all over the place would have torched it), and only one office that we could see.  In another building, there was a warming area, kitchen and dining hall. The kitchen was great to see with a fire line down the middle with kettles hanging from things that you could winch up and down, a wooden well pump, lots of half barrels and pots.  Both places were very dark; it’s nice to be reminded that not much light came from candles.   You can see Les in front of an old painted wall.  Better than wallpaper!

We came home after some expensive espresso, and ate the rest of the crackers, cheese and salami, and some Bergen-made chocolate with our cranberries.  Les worked on his blog and I went for a walk up the mountain.  I loved the path that took me through the neighborhoods on the way up and through the dense, green, wood-smelling forest on the way down. 

What a view of Bergen and surrounding areas!  The place looked smaller than a miniature village—more like a painting of a village from so high up.  As I was journaling, it started to rain, so I started down, happily, with raincoat over my little backpack.  I collected some veggies and some kind of sliced meat to make a rice/stir-fry for dinner.  We listened to a guitar player down on the street sing as the sun set over the harbor as we ate.  Lovely day; lovely evening.

 Oh, I found a store for Juliet Forrest!

Check out this large dorm room!  How many beds?

Modern day chimney sweep.

Oh Really!

Norway: Rough Starts are Now a Tradition

July 31

Today was much about taking care of business and waiting and wandering around.  We finally found out where to go for tomorrow’s airport bus, and took the commuter train quite a bit south of town to “Tom Tit’s Experiment” theme park dealing with science—mostly physics. www.tomtit.se/english/ Kids were pressurizing water bottles and setting them off up a zip line; Les and I competed for who had the most relaxed mind and who could cycle so that the most electricity was generated, we saw ourselves in color by how hot we were, played with light and bubbles, slid down a sled that went through the 4 stories of the place, saw kids lifted up by their own pressure down like a yoyo; and looked at other physical phenomena in playful ways.  John Evans would LOVE it!  They also have all kinds of buttons and gadgets and no directions, so you can just play with the stuff to see what happens.  Curiosity is so strong; what happens in school that drives that instinct underground?  We were tired after the 45 minute commute and stopped at the grocery for deli salads and stuff for breakfast before going to our cave.

bus driver nice hair

Aug 1

We rushed around and caught the 7AM airport bus.  We weren’t sure which airport, or which terminal, but we got the right ones and were early for our flight.  We immediately caught the airport bus to Bergen and with only a couple of false starts found our hostel.  As usual, when we get to each new country, there’s a snafu.  Apparently, they emailed and cancelled our reservations because we didn’t specify if we wanted male or female dorms.  Well, they gave us directions to two other places and let us keep our bags there.  The first hostel was closed for cleaning.  We went back to use the Internet but we couldn’t book for tonight because it was too short notice.  Les found a nearby hostel that was nearly $90, so we decided to walk down to the YMCA hostel.  Fantastic!   

Got a room for 4 and we’re bunking with a newly married couple from New Zealand who have been backpacking and camping around Scotland.  This was their first bed.   I think we may have gotten the last two beds of the place.  We did some laundry, ate (fish soup—there’s a nice fish market right here!), and bought a tour for the fiords for Wednesday.  I bought a beer to share and we drank it on the upper deck outside by our room. Tomorrow we walk around exploring.

Sweden: rough start, going fine

July 28 didn’t go so well except we missed the most torrential part of the rain because we were so early for the bus to the airport, though my little bag got soaked waiting.  The lady who checked us in was really nice, and discovered that we didn’t know that each bag was to be charged about $75, so she gave us some tape to put them together into one bag.  It was a sad job, and she overlooked that it was then overweight, but we crossed our fingers and let it go.  We were the last ones on the plane because we didn’t recognize that the gate was down some stairs and didn’t understand the announcement.  We made it, but because of the rain, our plane got into Estonia the same time the other plane was to leave for Stockholm.  

They gave us vouchers for a cup of coffee and a candy bar and we waited for the next plane.  I started looking up the Avignon festival info, and it said it was going on for another day instead of the end of August like Les had thought, so we were disappointed that we won’t see any of those art events going on.  Then, we figured out where our Mosebackehostel was and got there very late, but somehow the Hostelbookers reservation never went through.  So there we were ready to sleep on the lobby floor, when we couldn’t find any other hostels for that night.  They gave us a $90 single room the size of two small mattresses, with no window and put an extra foam mattress on the floor.  One disturbing thing was that it had a button to push if there was a fire and you couldn’t get out.  You were supposed to wait for help after pushing the button.  We could hear conversations very clearly through the walls.  …one of those roll-with-the-punches days.  We booked another hostel farther from the center that was our next best price for the next few nights.

July 29

It’s wild waking up in a windowless room, as it could be any time and it would look the same.  Our next hostel was also windowless, but as big as a classroom with 6 bunks in it.  It’s very basic; the kitchen grosses me out a little because someone was cooking with tuna and it still smelled like it.  There’s no stove or heater for a pot; just a microwave, sink and frig.  There are 2 toilets for all the rooms, maybe a dozen like ours?  We bought “Stockholm cards” at the airport, so we have free transportation to just about anywhere, and lots of free entrances to museums and other tourist attractions. We decided to go take a ride on the boat tour, but the one then was sold out so we got tickets to two down the line.  In the meantime, we visited the very center and seed of Stockholm. 

St. George and Dragon

...from the other side

We ate like a tourist, visited an amazing church where they bury most of the royalty, walked to the chapel where there's a life sized sculpture of St. George and the Dragon (Les said he wanted to see what size a life-sized dragon looked like.)    

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

narrowest street

 

We saw the narrowest street, and when we returned for the boat tour, we found our watches were an hour off, and we had been early a 1/2 hour!  They generously let us on, and we learned through earphones about the area around King's Island. 

Les soaks sore ankle in ocean

We then went to the photo exhibit as our last thing of the day. 

http://en.fotografiska.eu/  It was a fantastic show with Robert Maplethorp in all his glory, and a fantastic documentary interviewing several of his models and associates.  Other artists were Jacob Fellander, Peter Farago/Ingela Kemetz-Farago (in cooperation with Chanel), Eleanor Coppola, Jacqueline Hellman, and my favorite Liu Bolin with “The Invisible Man” Series. www.odditycentral.com/pics/meet-the-real-life-invisible-man.html 

He’s from China, and he paints himself into a scene until you can’t see him very well.  It started in protest to the government tearing down a place where artists met and lived.  He thought that though the place disappeared, the artists’ spirits will remain.  Camouflage protects animals from danger.  This is his version. It’s pretty amazing; maybe we should get him to do a series in front of the library/Snell/Dietel areas, or Tangeman Apartments on our campus before they are destroyed.  (By the way, I’ve seen a lot of old ‘50’s flat-roofed buildings that are in great shape in this snowy cold place.)
When we got back to our metro stop, we didn’t recognize it, and it was barren.  We almost went back down in the metro to get our bearings, when we walked up the hill and found it.  We talked with our new young Hungarian friends about theatre and their lives ahead of them until late.

July 30

There are no cafés near us, so we decided to go to the metro stop nearest the old theater at Drottningholm summer castle. www.dtm.se/eng/eteatern/omteatern.asp  We found no café there, but there was a farmers market and I bought strawberries, nuts and banana. 

We found the proper bus and went on a tour of the grounds and then one of the old 18^th C theater (check out www.youtube.com/watch?v=EdRUdoKfPvo ); it shows some of the workings of behind the scenes.  Valerie, you would love this place; the architect was also the director.  That’s the way to make sure your theater functions as you wish!  We had a chance to buy a $100 ticket to see Don Giovani in that theater, but thought it was too steep.  The place is made of quite delicate wood, and has not been renovated, so it is still fully functioning as it was way back when. 

 Thanks to Gustav III’s mother, who came from Prussia to marry the king and thought that Sweden had very little quality culture.  She made this castle to help raise the identity of Sweden, by showing that it cared about the Arts and Sciences.  Since the king had died by the time she built the palace, much of the imagery was feminine.  It was quite striking and fun to imagine little Gustav III playing in the theater and eventually acting himself.  It was apparently shocking that he presented plays in the common people’s language (Swedish) rather than the usual French, but he wanted to unify the people with the court more.  The castle tour contained a wonderful history lesson for me.

After that, we went to see if there was a play we could see in town, but it was dark for the summer month (we were 3 days late for Romeo and Juliet). 
So we went to a park where they have Nordic animals and historic buildings. www.skansen.se/en/ I was charmed by all the animals, though a couple really did need more space (owl, seals, wolves).  I loved petting the farm animals and elk moose.

Last Days of Helsinki: Porvoo and Museums

July 26-27

Pulpit with hour glasses

Tuesday was a museum day.  We spent some time at the contemporary museum of art that had a large African exhibit.  The one bit of dance I saw was a film by a Ugandan with voices of 3 presidents promising more freedom and opportunity for the people that never came.  He was dancing in rubble: a large tube, mine-shaft opening, and dusty old construction site.  Another artist that I liked documented sculpted hairstyles of women.  There were braids drawn up into crowns, big bouffant hair, scarves in all sculptural forms, etc.   Then we went to the historical museum that was like a maze in form; we thought we’d never get out.  We started with pre-history (stones, graves, tools, lashings, etc.) to the stone-age, iron age, beautiful and basic other metal gear and ornament, the costumes, the furnishings, the weapons, the books, the rooms, the treasures, the harness’s and rakes that fiancées gave their wives to be, and finally doll houses big and small, stuffed and clean, horizontal and vertical.

Wednesday, we went to a quaint town named Porvoo that was about a 40-minute bus ride.  We walked in the sun across the bridges, through the cemetery, around the historic church where there was a wedding and then later inside, between the cute colorful homes with communal garden areas, and had some coffee next to the red ochre painted river homes in a café that’s partially on a boat.  After our walk-about, we got tickets on the passenger ferry back to Helsinki.  It was a lovely four-hour ride, with the warm sun low in the sky, cool breeze, lots of birds and interesting buildings to spy with my binoculars, and a spot inside where Les could lie down and work out his cold. 

Les wakes!

Guess what movie is out!

Jack at Church

A cold glass of wine sealed the blissful trip.