Lana62

I apologize to everyone first off...this entry will not be long. We arrived safe and sound and will be spending the night in Athens in a lovely hotel called Hotel Amalia. Very close to the Plaka and the Akropolis - 2 must sees in Athens. We arrived at 6:30 am Athens time and have already been to the Akropolis. So...I'm fading fast! It is super hot here and if I don't sweat off pounds it'll be amazing. Yippee!!! And to top it off, you have to walk to the top of the mountain to view these magnificent ruins. Yes...can you say "Kung Fu Panda"!? It is WELL worth the effort and I can't imagine coming to Greece and not seeing the Akropolis. We were also able to view the Akropolis from the top of our hotel ... read more

Gyda has corrected me - there are only 275 people in Fresvik and I do believe I am related to most. It's quite funny! Today Reidar introduced me to his parents, Kåre (pronounced Cora) and Ragnhild. Ragnild was a Høgheim...which was changed to Hoium when my Great Grandfather moved to Canada. Ragnild's Father, Peder is my Great Grandfather's brother. You should see the notes and notes and family tree I have taken. It's turned into a family 'forest' instead of just one 'tree'. Reidar's parents do not speak a word of English so that was an interesting visit. There were times when I understood what they were trying to say but the danger of that is then they really launch into Norwegian and lose me again! Reidar took me up to the Høgheim farm. Farms are ... read more

Hello My Friends! We have finally made it to Fresvik. This is where it all started for me folks! This area is truly the heart and soul of Norway. Very Very Scenic and full of traditions. This is a place where generation after generation still live in the same house and maintain thier farms. The Bøtuns (my relatives) are farmers and grow raspberries, apples, strawberries and raise sheep. We have discovered the raspberry patch and the organic apples!!! The raspberries are huge and the apples taste like none other. Fresvik lies right on the Sognefjord nestled in a valley with mountains all around and a glacier behind it. There is a good sized river that runs through which you can hear throughout the town. We went for a walk tonight up into the fields and Gyda ... read more

We have had a couple of really early days BUT well worth our while!! Our tour guide, Ørvind, has been FANTASTIC! The knowledge that he has of Norway is incredible - I guess he should, considering he's Norwegian. We have decided that we need to bring him home with us to teach us Norwegian and other things.......hmmmmm........ We left Loen and made our way to the Stalheim Hotel - which is at the very top of a mountain on a road full of switch backs. We have an amazing bus driver, to say the least. The Hotel over looks Sugar Mountain and the gorgeous valley below. It is nestled between two waterfalls and is full of antiques. Dinner was a buffet - AGAIN! (God, if I thought I was going to lose weight, I was mistaken) ... read more

We made it!!! We left Calgary at 1:30 pm on Thursday and arrived at 8:30am on Friday in Oslo. Air Lufthansa was great! Free Booze & roomy seats!! Very easy to make our way thru Frankfurt airport. It seems that Darlene and I have perfected the "deer in the headlights" look! We make a good team. She stands and spins and I stare wide-eyed @ monitors until some nice young man asks us if we need assistance.....works great!! We took the train from the airport to Oslo Central and then wandered the streets until we found our hotel. My new backpack is GREAT!! I'm definitely using muscles that I don't normally use. If I don't lose weight on this trip, I'll be shocked!! Everyone is VERY fit here! Inspiring, to say the least. Darlene's cousin, Arild, ... read more