Blogs from Southern Norway, Norway, Europe

This was a full day for us in Kongsberg. We enjoyed a wonderful breakfast of breads, cheese, jam, caviar, vegetables, coffee….delicious. After getting ready, we went for a little hike up behind Elisabeth’s house. The area is called Håvet. There are trails and fields and a local road that leads to a place called “The Crowns in Håvet”. From Wikipedia: This attraction (Kronene i Håvet) is a site where Norwegian royal monograms have been carved into the mountainside overlooking Kongsberg to mark royal visits to the city. In June 1704 King Frederik IV visited Kongsberg and started a tradition that is still celebrated. King Frederik also arranged for the monograms of visits from earlier monarchs to be recorded as well.The first monogram on the hillside property belonged to Christian IV who in 1624 founded Kongsberg at ... read more

Dear All This blog entry relates my travels around the southern coast of Norway, dubbed the "Norwegian Riviera" as it is very much the country's favourite summer holiday destination. I took a break from the highlights of the western fjords and cruise ships, and delved I feel into a bit of the real Norway beyond the picture postcards. I spent a lovely three days on Norway's southern coast, off-the-beaten international tourist track, and spoke in Norwegian for pretty much my whole time there, impressing myself with how much I could get by with it. I could certainly say things I needed to say, and read things, but when people spoke back to me it was a bit trickier to understand. But I loved being able to practise it there, without people readily speaking back to me ... read more

Castellano debajo... Ce sera notre dernier blog sur la Norvège... après ces derniers 230 km nous prendrons le ferry pour retrouver le Danemark... Mais en attendant il nous faut encore passer trois nuits. Nous trouvons facilement des campings... le temps s'améliore, les campings se remplissent plus facilement... les vacances scolaires ont aussi commencés... Nous n'hésitons pas à arriver tôt afin d'y trouver une place et en profiter pour nous reposer. Pour le premier il ne fera pas si beau, donc pas grand monde... Quant au deuxième... un endroit hyper-génial où tout est arrangé avec goût... Nous pouvons facilement nous installer face à l'eau et pourrons également reprendre Pollux pour aller faire un petit tour dans la ville de Mandal. Nous passerons encore par des endroits charmants... et le but de venir au Sud du pays, c'est ... read more

Norway has 16 roads that have been selected as having outstanding scenery. Some of them also can be a challenging drive with narrow roads and steep ascents and descents. Five of the routes are further north than we went. Of the others we drove all or part of seven of them and hope to do an eighth before the end of the trip. Here are my Top Trumps of Turistveger: Helgelendskysten - a several day's drive along a series of islands linked by bridges and ferries. Did about two thirds of this over 4 days. Views 5* Steepness 0* Hairy pins 0* Narrowness 1* Ferries 5* Bridges 4* Enjoyable drive 5* Highlights: Torghatten the mountain with a hole through Seeing an elk Helgelands Brua ( bridge) Lowlights: None Atlanterhavsvegen (Atlantic Highway) - a road about 36km ... read more

If you have been racking your brain trying to figure where to visit when taking a trip to Norway, perhaps my experience in Kristiansand will help guide you in making the right decision. We plotted up in the super Yess! Hotel and hit Kristiansand Touted as the largest tourist attraction in Norway, the city boasts some of the most magnificent must-visit attractions. From the Kristiansand Museum, to the Zoo, Fiskebrygga, the Gimle Gård Manor house amongst others, I couldn't get enough of what the area had to offer - all through my trip. I felt like being in some paradise on earth. Without keeping you in anymore suspense, here are 5 places everyone visiting Norway (Kristiansand in particular) should see. KRISTIANSAND CATHEDRAL www.kristiansanddomkirke.no As one of the largest cathedral in Norw... read more