We're in Lillehammer, Norway

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Our last day in Oslo was raining, so we went to more museums. I finally saw "The Scream"; in fact we saw 2 versions of it at two different art museums. Frankly, I think Munch's other paintings and etchings are better than the "The Scream", but that's just my opinion. I'll post some of my favorite art that we've seen so far on a later blog, rather than bore some of you who don't share my particular taste.

Thursday, we picked up our rental car and headed out of Oslo to Lillehammer. It was an easy and scenic drive of about 2 hours. This is the furthest north either of us has ever been. It's the same latitude as Anchorage, Alaska.

We arrived around 3pm yesterday, and spent the afternoon walking around the town, which is easy since Lillehammer is not that big. We walked around the market place and are still just amazed at how expensive everything is. Lunches average about $80 to $100, and dinners, not at all fancy, average about $150. T-shirts cost about $36.
Lillehammer was the venue for the 1994 Winter Olympics, and there are Olympic reminders all over town. We can see the ski jump center from our hotel room. The hotel where we're staying is a remodeled flour mill built in the 1860's. Our room is in what used to be a grain elevator or silo, and it's right next to the mill stream. We have to close the windows to hear the TV, but hearing the water flow at night seems to make us sleep very well.

Today we went to another open air folk museum, which had buildings specifically from the area where my ancestors came from. How surprised I was when I saw the stave church at the folk museum moved from Lom, Norway, about 60 miles away, where my gggggrandmother was christened in 1780.

It was raining again today, so in the afternoon we decided to take a drive to the area where some of my ancestors were from - an area known as the Gudbrandsdalen, or the Per Gynt Trail. We found the exact farms in the village of Ostre Gausdal where they lived in the 1700's and 1800's. Not many of the old buildings remain, but the farms look the same as the have been probably for the last 300 years. It's a very rural area and very beautiful, even in the rain. Hopefully, it will be sunny tomorrow and the pictures won't seem so dreary. As a family researcher, I was in heaven, or should I say - Valhalla.

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Photos

Molla Hotel, Lillehammer
The yellow tall building is a converted grain elevator attached to the brick mill.

Lillehammer
View from our hotel room. See the ski jumps in the background built for the 1994 winter olympics

Lillehammer Folk Museum
Stave church moved from Lom where my gggggrandmother, Marthe Mikkelsdatter was christened September 17, 1780.

Gulbrandsdal
A valley north of Lillehammer, also known as the Per Gynt Trail.