Blogs from Norway, Europe - page 5

Today we left the glory of past Olympics in Lillehammer behind as Arpi guides the intrepid Insight Vacations Bus up the mountain road 4843 ft to the top of Mt Dalsnibba and the Geiranger Skywalk. But first we have to make a stop along the way. We left Lillehammer this morning at about 9:00AM following some unpronounceable river to Lom. Lom is a small town of 2200 residents known for having some phenomenal cinnamon rolls and for the Lom Stave Church. The Lom Stave Church dates back to the 12th century and is constructed entirely of wood and is one of the oldest remaining stave churches in Norway. Its unusual dark appearance is due to the fact that the exterior of stave churches are covered entirely with tar as a waterproofing agent and a preservative. Our ... read more

The essence of Norway’s appeal is remarkably simple: this is one of the most beautiful countries on earth. Impossibly steep-sided Norwegian fjords of extraordinary beauty cut gashes from a jagged coastline deep into the interior. Glaciers, grand and glorious, snake down from ice fields that rank among Europe’s largest. Elsewhere, the mountainous terrain of Norway’s interior resembles the ramparts of so many natural fortresses and yields to rocky coastal islands that rise improbably from the waters like apparitions. Then of course, there’s the primeval appeal, the spare and staggering beauty of the Arctic. And wherever you find yourself in this most extraordinary country, these landscapes serve as a backdrop for some of Europe’s prettiest villages. A Little Bit of History: Norway's history spans from ancient settlers to modern oil wealth, with many twists and ... read more

Hello everyone Sorry for the delay in getting in touch,but we have been very busy. We left Sydney on the 24th June and journeyed to Bangkok with a 8 hour layover ,we went into a Ist class lounge for 4 hours having a shower and refreshments,left Bangkok at midnight arriving in Sweden Stockholm,then we caught another plane to Oslo Norway so all up we travelled about 34hrs mammoth trip. We had a tour around Oslo,they first took us to City hall which was very dramatic and beautiful,then onto the sculpture park which was amazing. We had a tour of downtown Oslo and then back into bus to a ski Resort called Geilo arriving at 7.30 at night,lovely accomodation. We have met some new friends and everyone is so friendly This morning it’s Tuesday the 27th June ... read more

First: The photos from yesterday have been added to that blog. Hello from Andalsnes Norway. We had an early excursion today, so we got up at 6:00 AM. Wow, who sets an alarm for 6:00 when they're on vacation. We got dressed and up to the Horizon Court for a quick breakfast, and then down to the dining room to await our tour. They gave us a head start to the bus, but the walk was long enough that everyone else beat us to the bus. We actually got the seats in the back of the bus. Today was a scenic ride around the Norway mountains. Happily, it was not raining, although that had been the forecast. Unhappily it was cloudy all day without any of the sunshine we've had the past several days. At least ... read more

Let's start with last night's topic, but it was not good news. It was not foggy last night, but instead it was heavily overcast. You could tell there was a bright blob behind the clouds, but nothing worth a picture. That leaves us with a photo David took at 12:15 AM the first night after we crossed the Arctic Circle. It's not as perfect as he had hoped, but it is the sun above the horizon at midnight. This morning we arrived at our next port. It is a "tender port" though, so we did not have any excursions scheduled. We still had a 7:00 AM wake-up call when they lowered the ships tenders from below our balcony. Those mechanisms are pretty noisy. We went to the dining room for breakfast. After the excursion people had ... read more