Lysoen and Lysekloster Monastery Ruins

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Let me start by talking about the weather. I had looked at the long range forecast before we left and it was looking like 18-20 degrees and quite a lot of rain the first week. Well, it has been nothing but sunny (although cloudy and a little drizzly the very first morning) and warm every since! Today was 29 degrees at its hottest! The day started off slowly and we eventually headed to the ferry to take us across to Lysoen which is a small island near Os and is the home of Ole Bull (a famous violinist and composer from the 1800's). Once on the island, we saw the interesting home where he had lived and the gardens. Then we took one of the three walking paths around the island through the woods and past a couple of small lakes on the island. We picnicked beside one of the lakes which was very peaceful. Back to the docks where we sat near the beach area and watched the Norwegians jump into the freezing water! Nigel and I both ventured in up to our knees and my feet have just now thawed (it is now dinner time). After returning on the ferry, we drove to the Lysekloster Monastery ruins which is also known as St. Mary's Abbey. It was founded in 1146. There we also took a short hike around the surrounding farmland property, all owned by the abbey. Back home for some dinner and relaxing on this gorgeous deck with the view of the lake and mountains. Oh yeah, saw more shirtless guys today as well as a few women who wore only their bras. Interesting! Russell has really been enjoying being 200m from this amazing soccer facility. There are 3 turf fields and about 100 nets of various sizes as well as a large clubhouse. Pretty great for a town of about 20,000 people.

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