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Published: September 10th 2022
Me, Bergen
From Mount FløyenDear All
If I publish something on the Internet today, it only feels right that I first start it off with a few words about our beloved Queen Elizabeth II. Thank you so much for all you have done for us Ma'am, for your people and for your country. You have been such an inspirational figure in my life, and I believe I speak on behalf of many of my fellow countrymen in saying that only now am I beginning to fully realise how much you have truly shaped this country and our identity during your lifetime of service. I have known no other Britain than that with you leading it, and these next few years will certainly be different. May God speed you on your next journey Your Majesty, and may your selfless example of servitude to others continue to be an inspiration to me, to the country, and to the world.
I write in this blog entry about my wonderful adventures in the western fjords of Norway. As I took the train out of Norway's capital city, I felt I was just beginning my Scandinavian journey, with Oslo having been pretty much just a warm up really.
While the city's location is beautiful, surrounded by fjord and forested hills, I think it may have been a combination of the city being quite similar to what I'm used to, European, western, modern, along with it not having too many diverting attractions, that made me feel excited to be moving on and beginning to explore Norway's star attraction: its stunning and raw natural beauty.
On a Thursday morning, I took a bus to Sandvika station, and then a train onto Oslo Sentralstasjon, to await my onward transportation - the world-famous Oslo-to-Bergen railway, a journey that I'd actually been planning and looking forward to for a few years already. It really is one of the world's greatest railway journeys, and I thoroughly enjoyed every minute, or seven hours, of it. The train arrived a few minutes later than its scheduled 10.09am departure, and I actually spent the time chatting with the train driver, a nice guy called Toby. When we said goodbye, I asked him to "please drive safely", which I thought was quite funny. After the initial hubbub of all the passengers, mainly tourists with their luggage, finding their seats and spaces for bags, it became much more
relaxing, as everyone settled into their journey. With a full train, I felt fortunate to have a double seat to myself at the back of a carriage, with a window view out of the right-hand-side, which is said to be best for the views. I wasn't disappointed, it was amazing! The journey went from forested lowlands and lakes, into valleys, forests, mountains and more lakes, and finally up into the high plateau of the central Norwegian mountains. The landscape is arctic tundra in the winter, and in the summer treeless, boulder-strewn, bleak and desolate. Up on the plateau, there were lakes also, but they were coloured light green with glacial meltwater, rather than the usual blue or dark green. There was still snow on the higher mountain ridges, despite it being 20 degrees outside, and it was just lovely. After several hours, the train passed through the fabulously named town of Ål, then Norway's highest station, Finse at 1,222 metres above sea level, and subsequently pulled into Myrdal station, where most of the tourists actually alighted to take the equally world-famous Flåm railway which I also had plans for later. After this, the train rapidly descended through valleys and alongside
lakes, descending around 700 metres in around 30 minutes, through the village of Dale, home to world-famous knitwear company Dale of Norway, and finally pulled into Bergen station seven hours later at 5.10pm. I took a quick walk through town, heading to a bus stop to take the number 10 up the northern slopes of Løvstakken mountain to the south of the city, and on to my beautiful Air BnB, at the very top of the urban area up the mountain. I booked myself into a gorgeous two-bedroomed top-floor flat, with its own balcony and stunning, but just stunning, views over Bergen below, and mountains and fjords. At quite a bargain price, I felt I had seriously landed a good one here - it was super comfortable, very quiet, with a dreamy bed, duvet and pillow, all lined up for a deep deep sleep after the amazing journey from Oslo.
My first full day in Bergen was just amazing!! I took a bus into town, and first explored the main streets of Bergen city centre while it was still relatively quiet. This place is a tourist hotspot, and it was absolutely chocca later. I didn't realise how comparatively peaceful
it was at the time, but I still enjoyed wandering its quiet streets with lovely views of old, colourful, terraced Norwegian cottages all around.
I then headed to the nearby Fløibanen funicular railway, one of Norway's best-known and most-visited attractions. This place was actually heaving, and there was quite a queue for the journey up. After around 20 minutes in line, I boarded the railway and headed up the 320 metres to Fløyen mountain with awesome views over Bergen below, its famous central peninsula jutting out into the Byfjorden fjord which the city sits upon, and beyond to stunning views of further mountain peaks and ranges, fjords, lakes and sea - it was certainly a sight to behold! Up there it was still heaving with tourists, particularly families with noisy children, so I headed out along with a handful of other hikers and walkers into the numerous forest and mountain trails radiating out of tourist central. I really enjoyed my three-hour walk up there, climbing the nearby Rundemanen mountain peak, the highest in the region at 568 metres, with a very satisfying and awesome 360 degree view all around. The hiking trail up was fairly busy, but I managed
to find a much quieter one going back down again, meeting only two other people on the way. I traded off quietness for difficulty though, as this was a rocky and muddy path, with lots of small boggy areas. It was still enjoyable, and very satisfying. On the way down, I also spotted my first red squirrel! I was elated! I had spent the previous summer unsuccessfully looking for red squirrels in my journey around Scotland, but this time I spied one, and was also able to take a photo - yay!
With weary feet and legs now, I headed back down the funicular again, and saw Bergen below transformed from a sleepy town waking up in the morning, to one that was positively alive and thronging with people having a good time on this lovely Norwegian summer's afternoon. The outdoor bars and cafes were teeming, and the air was filled with cheery laughter and people having a good time - there was a lovely mood. I walked along the Bryggen waterfront, the famous old Hanseatic trading centre of Norway, with its lovely colourful terraced trading houses lining the waterfront. It is an oft-photographed sight in Norway, and it
Ål Station
Oslo-to-Bergen Railway was picturesque and highly photogenic, particularly in the sun. I walked towards the Bergenhus Fortress and back again, with actually no inclination to take a seat at one of the many and welcoming tables to enjoy a nice, cool, crisp beer in the afternoon sun, as prices in this country are absolutely extortionate, and I wouldn't want my eyes to water with such a price. The going rate there is around £10 for a drink, and I'd already learnt so far to buy everything in supermarkets and take my supplies with me. No temptations from local cafes, not even for a coffee or an ice cream, had succeeded thus far, and my wallet remained clamped shut with the intention of keeping it this way. Seriously, how can a country be so expensive? I have since learned that Norway is the third most expensive country in the world, after Bermuda and Switzerland, and this is closely followed by Iceland in fourth place, and Denmark in eighth. This was going to be a summer of self-catering and tap water!
I then passed through the city's very interesting Fish Market, which was selling all kinds of Nordic fare from whale meat, to
moose burgers and reindeer sausages - aside from the price tag, I wouldn't have felt too comfortable consuming such delicacies to be honest. I was heading towards a tram stop to take me onto my final destination for the day just over three miles to the south of town. It was a short journey on the city's single tramline, which runs from Bergen city centre to the Airport and back, and it took me to the suburb of Fantoft, where lies the awesome, imposing yet deeply spiritual Fantoft Stave Church. Scandinavia is famous for its stave churches, built at the time the Vikings were converting to Christianity between the 12th and 14th centuries. They are famed wooden structures, with slanting and curving roofs representing Viking longboats, and highly noticeable motifs protruding from the roof corners, representing dragons breathing fire. They apparently symbolise the transition from ancient pagan beliefs in the Viking gods, to Christianity, and the longboat and dragon motifs were designed to encourage the pagan worshippers that Christianity wasn't all that bad, and to attract them to the new religion. This one in Fantoft was merely a reconstruction though, dating back to 1992, as the original church built on
the site around 1150 was destroyed in a disgusting arson attack committed by an evil occultist black metal group responsible for church-burnings and murders throughout Norway at the time. It was so sad that this had happened, but so amazing that it was reconstructed in all its glory, and is still a truly remarkable sight to behold. Both the imposing nature of the building from the outside, with is longboat and dragon motifs, and the wooden intricacy and carvings within, were wondrous. I enjoyed my visit there very much. From there, it was another short tram journey, then a bus, back to my accommodation, for some serious resting up after an amazing first day in Bergen. Again, I had the feeling that I was truly travelling now, and it was wonderful!
But oh my goodness, my second full day in Bergen was even better - what a day! I don't think anyone could fit more awesome beauty into just one day, but I think I did. This was so much so, that on my train ride back to Bergen again at the end of the day, which was the same route as the last part of my train ride
the day before from Oslo, I ceased taking photos out of the train window as the beauty just began to become the norm. It was a day filled with amazing perspectives and photo opportunities.
Unfortunately the morning began with a rather early 5.30am alarm call, in order to catch an infrequent Saturday morning bus at 6.50am which would take me into town in time for the 8am ferry departure for the nearby Sognefjord. This Norled ferry is part public transport for locals travelling to various villages along this huge fjord, and part tourist trip. I secured a good window seat on the ferry having been one of the first in line thanks to the ridiculously-early morning bus ride, and spent the wonderful five-hour journey either gazing out of the window there, or up on the top deck taking it all in in the fresh air. The first couple of hours of the trip headed along the numerous waterways interspersing the innumerable islands and peninsulas making up the jagged coastline of western Norway, before entering Norway's largest and arguably most dramatic fjord, the Sognefjord, the world's second longest at 200km, and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Breathtaking views were to
be had all around from the ferry. After traversing most of the vast fjord, we headed part way up the much smaller, narrower, and very cute Nærøyfjord, inspiration apparently for Disney's "Frozen" and the location of the fictional kingdom of Arendelle. I could see how the film got its inspiration from the lovely little fjord, and one of the photos I took in particular seems very reminiscent of the film. The ferry stopped at a spectacular waterfall emptying down over the vast cliff face and into the dark fjord waters below, and then stopped by some local goats as they were grazing. After this, we headed up another small and cute fjord nearby called the Aurlandsfjord, to the highly picturesque, but extremely touristy town, of Flåm. The village with its tiny population of 350 was just awash with tourists, though it was quite easy to walk beyond its borders and appreciate in solitude its amazing location on the flat bottomed end of the fjord and gorge beyond it, surrounded on three sides by vertiginous cliff faces, and on the fourth side by the fjord itself. Beyond the hustle and bustle, it was beautiful, and I spent a happy couple of
hours there taking it all in whilst awaiting my onward transportation, the equally spectacular Flåmsbana railway - one of the most, if not the most, beautiful railways in the world.
As the train pulled into the station from the afore-mentioned Myrdal station back up in the mountains on the Oslo-Bergen railway, it emptied its hundreds if not thousands of passengers. We were only around 100 passengers taking the train back up the mountain again though, which I appreciated as I had a whole double seat again to myself, with an open window for taking great photos out of. The train ride was only an hour long, but it really packed the punches! We ascended steeply up a river-bottomed valley, past numerous waterfalls, and one very large and impressive one called the Kjossfossen Falls. Here, the train stopped for everyone to get out onto a small metal platform to take photos, and then suddenly there was Viking-inspired music, and a lady with a blonde wig and red dress dancing expressively up next to the waterfall - rather unexpected, but surprisingly good!
I have since read that this lady represents the "Huldra", a local forest spirit who lures men into
the forest to seduce them. She is actually just a student from the Norwegian Ballet School, but I still loved the experience!
On the train, I got talking to a delightful Australian-Chinese couple who live in London, and who were also on the same fjord cruise as me earlier in the day. I heard them remark on a video being shown on a TV screen on the way up of a zipline somewhere along the railway. When we arrived at the top of the line at Myrdal Station, we found that our train which was due in 40 minutes back to Bergen was cancelled, and the next one was just over an hour after that one. This meant a wait of an hour and fifty minutes at a train station with admittedly an amazing view, but aside from this being literally in the middle of nowhere. On the way up I pointed out to the Aussie-Chinese couple the zipline they'd seen on the TV screen, which was only a mile or so below the train station, and they invited me to accompany them to check it out, which I did. When we got there, the zipline looked spectacular, and
went on for over a kilometre into the Flåm valley below. The only problem in taking it though, was getting back - you could either get the next Flåmsbana train back again from a station down below in the valley, the times of which the not-so-helpful zipline staff didn't know, or hike back up the steep zig-zag path, which we were told would take around 40 minutes. I was actually quite tempted to do the zipline, but with only an hour until the next train back to Bergen, it was really cutting it a bit fine for me to make it back in time for that. The zipline down would have been amazing, but I didn't really fancy a steep and hurried 40-minute hike back up, trying to make the train.
The couple decided to do it though - good for them! And I offered to take their photos on it, which I have since emailed to them. I honestly wasn't sure they were going to make it back. They sped down the zipline and looked, and sounded, like they thoroughly enjoyed it, and I was left alone once more to hike the mile or so back to Myrdal
Station again, ever-wondering whether they would make it back or not.
The train arrived in due course, and literally two minutes before it was due to leave, the couple arrived looking very hot and sweaty after their hike back. Although it really was touch-and-go, they had made it, and I was thrilled for them! We travelled the two-and-a-half hours back to Bergen together, and bade farewell at the train station. It was now 9pm, rather than my planned 7.30pm return to Bergen, and after running to get the hourly bus to my accommodation, I made it back to settle in for the night at 9.30pm. It was a very long, but absolutely incredible, day after the 5.30am start, and I hit the sack like a duck to water.
What an absolutely amazing few days I had had in Bergen! It really is so incredible to see the beauty in God's creation, and Norway, at least certainly this part of Norway, but I am pretty much led to believe the whole country is like this, is as good a place as any to drink it all in. I have been blown away by the beauty, and this is saying
something from a traveller who has now been to 84 countries. After seeing so many places, one might think that one gets tired of travelling, and that sightseeing may become tiresome and repetitive, but Norway certainly proved to me thus far that this is far from the case. Travel is addictive - I definitely got my fill of it in Bergen, but I continued to thirst for more. The next day, I was heading for more fjord lands, as I was taking a ferry further south to the city of Stavanger, which became my next base as I continued to explore the western fjords of Norway.
Until the next time, thanks for reading, and all the best! 😊
Alex
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D MJ Binkley
Dave and Merry Jo Binkley
Western Norway
Dave and I love riding the rails. We will absolutely add the train from Oslo to Bergen to our trip. Marvelous! I hope we can get seats on the right side. And ... a funicular.... We love, love, love funiculars! What a great trip. The scenery looks spectacular.... as you describe... raw and natural. I enjoyed your descriptions of the churches. Unesco sites, ferry rides, waterfalls and so much more. Wow, what a trip. I'm sorry you missed the zip line but I would have made the same decision you did as I would have worried about missing the train. Thank you for sharing your adventure.