Following Her North

My daughter loves Norway. She visits whenever she can. For a while now, she has asked me join her on a trip as she wanted me to understand her deep longing for this country. The opportunity finally came this year when I started thinking of visiting friends and family in Europe. With the efficiency of a seasoned traveller, she booked the accommodation, organised the car hire and presented me with a two-week itinerary. All I had to do was get on a plane to Bergen.

My first impressions of Bergen were of charming timber houses painted red, yellow, blue and green but mostly an ochre red. Much later, I discovered that the prevalence of red had an economic reason; it was the cheapest house paint to produce. Now of course, it has become a tourist drawcard as people from all over the world admire the brightly coloured houses.

We began our trip in earnest following fjords along the coast, going through mountains or under waterways using the extensive arrangement of tunnels along the way. We began to count them and after a while we rated each one from 1-5. My favourite was tunnel number 14, which had an elegant entrance and a stunning view at the exit. It was a fun activity discussing the merits of each tunnel as we drove north through spectacular countryside.

Norway is exactly as you expect it to be from the photos you see. Majestic mountains, fjords and off shore islands wherever you look, dear little timber houses dotted on grassy slopes, virtually 24 hours of sunlight in summer. What you don’t expect, even when you have been warned, is the high cost of living as virtually all consumables are imported. Unlike in the rest of Europe where you can save money by going to supermarkets and cooking your own food, in Norway, even supermarket items are ludicrously expensive. Pretty soon our mantra became, ‘oh, it cost $100’, for it seemed impossible to buy anything below that price.

We stayed at a variety of Airbnbs, some of which will stay with me for the hospitality and kindness of the host. Two farm stays were the most memorable in part because of the surrounding countryside. We did small hikes, went up 1000 metres in one of the steepest skylifts at Loen, where the incline at times was 60 degrees. From there marvelled at the mountain vistas with glaciers in the distance.

From there we followed the road to the mountain plateau at Stigrøra, from which the descent was along the famous Trollstigen or Troll’s pass. While it looked hair-raising from atop the mountain, the actual trip down was quite enjoyable, but then I wasn’t driving down the hair-pin bends. Surprisingly, it wasn’t at all terrifying as I had feared.

Our trip ended in Trondheim, where we stayed for a few days. After spending time in the countryside, it was refreshing to get to a city with some cultural places to explore. I visited museums, churches, a synagogue and took a lovely walk through the old part of the city with my daughter and family before returning to a patisserie and treating everyone to a kanelsnurr, a delicious, twisted cinnamon scroll which I am determined to learn to make.

I am glad my daughter convinced me to go as I would never have gone on my own. There is definitely more to write about this trip but for the time being, it is enough. This holiday has brought me closer to my daughter as I have a deeper appreciation of her love of Norway now that I have walked along some of her favourite places.