June 3 ~Arlanda Airport~

Yesterday after we came down from Mt. Floyen, we walked back to our hotel picked up our luggage and flew from Bergen back to Stockholm.  We were staying at a Raddison hotel in the airport called Sky City. It worked out pretty good since we are leaving for home today and it has been very convenient.  We just got off the plane and walked to our hotel.  We did have a brief brush with the authorities.  In our haste to get from the plane to our rooms one of our carts with luggage was left behind on the elevator.  It took us about 10 minutes before we realized it was missing.  We checked all 3 rooms and then located our claim tickets and went out to search.  Ed was first to notice that security had blocked off the elevator next to the reception desk.  As he walked by I guess he happened to see Aunt Dood's purple suitcase on the cart.  He was able to explain how the cart was inadvertantly left behind and the Bomb Squad was cancelled.  Whew, that was embarrassing!

There were two play areas at the airport for the kids to burn some energy before boarding our plane for the states

This was the Junibacken play area from Pippi Longstockings

 Our flight leaves at 2:20 p.m. so we spent most of the morning spending all of our excess Kronor buying souvenirs.  The flight home was uneventful.  Lily slept the leg from Stockholm to Iceland and Luke slept from Iceland to Dulles in DC.  Iceland Air is a great airlines to fly.  They are very kid friendly and provide personal entertainment screens at each seat. The kids got a free hot boxed meal, adults had to pay.
 On the long flight I had time to reflect on what a wonderful opportunity I had been afforded.  We had always traveled when the girls were home and I thought we had visited some pretty neat destinations including Myrtle Beach, the Outer Banks, Florida, a western loop that included Pike's Peak, Mesa Verde, Salt Lake City, Yellowstone and Mt. Rushmore and once we even flew to the Bahama Islands.  In return, my girls have given us opportunities to see Hawaii and now Sweden, Norway and Ireland.  Yep, I am thinking that I am indeed blessed beyond measure.

Time to rest up!
This Icelandic Lullabye was written on the pillows on our plane.
Bye bye and hushabye
Can you see the swans fly?
Now half asleep in bed I lie,
Awake with half an eye.
Heyho and welladay,
Over hills and far away,
That's where the little children stray
To find the lambs at play.

June 2 ~Bergen and the Funicular to Mt. Floyen~

Last night we stayed at the Raddison Blu Royal Hotel near the Bryggen Wharf.  We took a taxi from the train station because it was cold, raining and a pretty good hike and it was close to 9 o'clock (21:00 hours) already.  We noticed a large crowd congregating around the outside and in the lobby of our hotel.  When we checked in we learned that there was a 60's Concert this evening and according to the young man that checked us in, "every old person in Norway" was here in attendance tonight!  We have learned that the Scandinavian countries are very green in their efforts to conserve energy and are actually ahead of the US in some of their technology.  When we entered the elevator, we could not figure out how to get it to work.  Someone, a very drunk, older person, showed us how to put our key card into the slot to make the floor buttons light up so that we could select our floor.  We had already encountered the room light energy saver in other hotels but this was new to us.  In order to get your room lights to turn on you must put your key card into a slot near the door.  When the key is in your lights will work as usual.  When you leave and take your key, the lights will go out along with the TV. 
  We could only find one place open at this late hour and it was a very nice, pricey restaurant, but at this point we really didn't care.  I had the Monk fish dinner, others had the chicken club and we all tried some dessert at the end.  It was after midnight before we got back to the hotel.
  We only had the morning to explore the city and unfortunately for Peg, it was Sunday and many of the shops were closed.  Ed, Trish, Sharon, Luke and I walked to the Mt. Floyen tram station to ride to the top of the 2nd tallest mountain overlooking the city of Bergen.  It was raining and we soon found out that the top of the mountain was blanketed in fog.  The views from the tram were very nice before we entered the cloud of fog.  On top there was a café, a gift shop and trails.  There was also a geocache hidden here so Luke and I headed off to see if we could find it.  I really wanted to get this one since he was a little disappointed when we couldn't locate the one at the falls in Flam.  After a short walk on the trail and a little digging around at the base of a tree we found a geocache box that held a Swedish ribbon of some sort, 2 futbol cards and several smaller items like hair clips and used tram tickets.  At first Luke was going to take the soccer cards but then he changed his mind and took the ribbon explaining that he wanted something special from his visit.  We left a key chain from the Columbus Zoo and headed back to the tram station.  Luke quickly spotted a play area that had at least 15 carved trolls in the woods.  All too soon we had to catch the tram back down to the city so that we could make the airport shuttle bus.  The airport in Bergen is about 22 miles outside the city limits.  Bergen is a very historic town with many museums and sights to see.  This is another place I would like to come back too and spend more time.

This is where we ate, we were going to eat at the Unicorn but the menu was limited and a little too adventurous for our group

Trolls were everywhere, and they seemed to draw Luke in each and every time

When we were kayaking, Wilhelm told a story about a Troll, Nokken, that would hide behind waterfalls playing his viola and when young children would come close he would reach through the falls and grab them. (my research shows a waterfall troll named Fossegrimen who played the violin, and Nokken was the Lake and Well Troll)
Never the less, Scandinavian folklore is rich in stories of giants, dwarves, elves and assorted folk faeries, but the most popular tales are of the rascals called the Trolls.

I felt a little guilty when we passed this church to go to the tram station across the street.

Mt. Floyen Tram Station

The view from the tram, going up

Finding the Floyen Geocache

The cache is in the base of one of these trees.  We don't want to spoil your fun!

A playground for children and trolls alike

Trolls had been carved into the dead tree tops

Heading back down to Bergen

Another disappointment, the Lego store was closed

Bergen's McDonald's

This building had 3 dates on it.  It must have been rebuilt twice or they added on.  Dates 1480-1712-1912

Colorful store fronts on the wharf

A sailing ship docked near our hotel

June 1~Ferry to Gudvangan~ part 2

After our kayaking trip we went back to the hostel to pick up our luggage in preparation for our 3:10 departure aboard the Gudvangen Ferry.  Our luggage had been stored in a room of the office so we merely had to pick it up and head back down to the dock.  One of our kayaking guides gave us a lift back and took the luggage and Peg, Doods and the kids down to the dock so we made it in time to have some lunch before we boarded the ferry.  The ferry was headed to the town of Gudvangen and we stopped at several small towns as we travelled the fjord.  There was a nice promenade deck, a solarium and comfortable seating inside that also had restrooms and a small cafe.  It was cold on the outside deck and at times it rained but the views were breath-taking.  Uncle Gary had given me a magazine once, nearly 30 years ago, that showed pictures of Norway and the fjords.  I always had thought that I would love to see them.  I never dreamed that I would have the opportunity.  I was not disappointed!

On the deck

Leaving the village of Flam

Today had not been sunny so the fog hangs above the fjords like a blanket. Only those of us under the covers can see the mystical beauty of the fjords.  I expect to see a Viking ship at any moment!

Undredal was one of the stops along the way.  The oldest Stave Church is here.  If I make it back to Norway I hope I can visit here.

Waterfalls surround us. Even Lily has tired of pointing them out to Sharon!  Sharon, on the other hand, jumps up and runs outside with her video camera in hand to record each and every one!

One of my favorite photos.

Small homesteads dotted the banks, each with their own waterfall

Leg two of our tour required a bus ride to Voss, the city where we would pick up the train that would take us in to Bergen.  We exited the ferry and 3 large coach buses awaited us.  Peg and Doods took the kids and headed out to save seats while the rest of us picked up our luggage.  We had the entire back of the last bus.  We made one stop at a hotel and then took the steepest road with hairpin turns that I would not want to drive in a small compact car.  The views of the valley floor were spectacular and we passed a very large waterfall.  Surprise, surprise!!  The rest of the trip to Voss was a leisurely drive through farmlands, pastures, lakes and valleys.  After boarding the train we noticed that we were following bodies of water most of the way until we entered the city of Bergen.  Bergen at one time had been the capitol of Norway as it was a very important sea port city that traded with the rest of the world.  It rained both days we were in Bergen and it was very cold as the winds whipped in from the Atlantic.

On board our luxury coach

Getting to the bottom was a little tenuous

But the waterfall made it all worthwhile

A sampling of the countryside heading into Voss/Bergen

The wharf in old Bryggen in Bergen