Norway is a Scandinavian country encompassing mountains, glaciers and deep coastal fjords, Oslo is the Capital, population is 5 and half million, area is 125,004 km. Crime rates are low and they have a law called Allemannsrett which means you can pitch your tent or hike through any land that is unmarked (or non-cultivated). Which would be great if you wanted to hike around Norway. Norway is known for fishing, hiking and skiing.
Norwegian Flag
We flew into Tromso which is at the Top of Norway within the Arctic Circle, we were very excited as we had not been to the Arctic before, it was also the first time we would experience the Midnight Sun (24 hours of visible sun). Tromso is surrounded by jagged snow-capped mountains that plunge into ice cold water. I know this because M&I had to go for a swim, we had gone for a swim in the Antarctic, so we had to take the plunge in the Arctic. It was freezing but what made it so memorable was the small beautiful beach that we found to take the plunge. It did feel very strange to be walking around the town at 2am and it was still daylight. We asked the receptionist in the hotel when it would go dark again “he said September” it was now early June
Flying into Tromso and Tromso Harbour
Arctic Cathedral
Our swim in the Arctic
The beautiful beach we swam in
View from the beach
Tromso Mountains
From here we joined the MS Nordkapp cruise for 4 nights which took us down the coastline of Norway to Bergen. We stopped at lots of small picturesque towns, Trondheim being one of my favourites.
Trondheim Cathedral
The old town in Trondheim
The famous red bridge in Trondheim
Two beautiful sunsets on the cruise
The town of Bronnoysund with it beautiful church and a poster saying the BoomTown Rats where coming to town. Who would have guessed ?
Klippfiskkjerringa Sculptor on Kristiansund
A highlight was going into Trolifjord while a men’s choir sang. The acoustics within the Fjord and the Fjord itself were amazing.
We had organised to meet up with some friends from Australia on the cruise and it was wonderful to see and spend time with Elizabeth and Harold and four of their very close friends. I have known Elizabeth a long time, we met back in the early nineties when we both worked at Lend Lease.
Our five days in Bergen went by too fast, it is a beautiful City with lots of colourful houses and a lovely harbour, we had unseasonably good weather in Norway, if the weather was to continue like this, Bergen is a place I could live. The view from the top of Mount Floyen of Bergen city is a must see, it gives you a bird’s eye view of Bergen. You can take the funicular to the top and walk back down if you like or return on the funicular. It was wonderful to see the locals swimming in the harbour, lakes, rivers or any other water source they could find. The feeling was that spring was in the air and summer was just around the corner. We stayed just outside the city centre along one of the many rivers, it was a very trendy up and coming area. One thing I liked about the area is that it was close to water and although they have a lot of apartment living none of the apartment blocks were over 4 stories high. In most countries we have been to there are lots of high rise apartments and I think they look terrible, the secret is to keep them no more than 4 stories high (but then again I suppose the developers are more interested in making money than making the area look more desirable to live in)
Bergen had some beautiful gardens
The view of Bergen from Mount Floyen Bergen
View from our airbnb
A wonderful coffee shop and sculpture close to the airbnb
Our next stop in Norway was the Capital Oslo, it has a nice city with plenty of green space, one of my favourite places was the Vigeland Sculpture Park, it has amazing human sculptures the best I have ever seen.
We could not visit Oslo without seeing the famous painting ‘The Scream” by Norwegian artist Edvard Munch that sits in the National Museum, there were other paintings by Edvard Munch which I believe are far superior than the scream. There are several other famous artist paintings displayed here like Renoir, Rodin and Picasso.
The Scream
A second paintings by Edvard Munch
The view from Oslo Opera House
A surprise visit while our hiking in Oslo
Restaurant at the top of Grefsenkollen great for a beer after a hike
We loved our 13 nights in Norway and although Norway is expensive there are tons of jaw-dropping beautiful places to see.
Sweden is one of the largest countries in Europe, with great diversity in its nature and climate. Sweden is a sparsely populated country, characterised by its long coastline, extensive forests and numerous lakes. With its variety of landscapes, Sweden has everything from bears and wolves in the north to Roe deer and wild boar in the south. The country also has a wealth of flora and aquatic life, which contribute to its biological diversity, because of their limestone-rich bedrock and favourable climate, the islands of Gotland and Öland and parts of the Scandinavian mountain range have an interesting flora that includes numerous varieties of orchid. People in Sweden have a lot of room to move, with only about 23 inhabitants per square kilometre. For the EU, the average is more than 100 people per square kilometre.
Flag of Sweden
We spent 5 nights in the beautiful city of Stockholm it has lots of great bars, restaurants and tourist things to do. Stockholm Centre was the only place we found busy in Sweden, everywhere else seemed relaxed and sparsely populated. We did what most Swedish do in Spring, went hiking, swam in the rivers and lakes, and on nice evening eat outdoors.
Good restaurant for Lunch the Hairy Pig Deli.
One museum we just had to visit was the ABBA museum, it brought back wonderful memories.
We did what most Swedish do in Spring, went hiking, swam in the rivers and lakes, and on nice evening eat outdoors.
We spent 4 nights on Gotland island which is off the coast of Sweden, it has a beautiful old town that is steeped in history, the town is surrounded by a 3.44 km wall, it is amazing how the locals have blended the old and new architecture together.
Gothland Visby old town
Beautiful old church built in 1250 still being used today. Wonderful
We hired a car and drove around the island, it has quite a varied landscape, parts of the island reminded me of the west coast of Ireland, with it somewhat rugged coastline, barren fields, blustery winds and without the sunshine would have been quite bleak.
It has several fishing villages along the coast and although they seem quaint I am not sure how I would weather the winter.
The barren landscape of Gothland
Blue Lagoon on Gothland
Old fishing village
The rocks of Langhammars
Smoked salmon is something the Swedish love to eat, it was very interesting to see how simply they smoke it.
Smoking Salmon
Things to note, Sweden is not as expensive as Norway. If you do get across to Gotland, Car hire on is ridiculously expensive so hire a second-hand car from Lasta Gothland we did, and the car was fine, it saved us over $2,000 Australian dollars.
Denmark is a Scandinavian country comprising the Jutland Peninsula and numerous islands. It’s linked to nearby Sweden via the Öresund bridge. Copenhagen, its capital, is home to royal palaces and colourful Nyhavn harbor, plus the Tivoli amusement park and the iconic “Little Mermaid” statue. Odense is writer Hans Christian Andersen’s hometown, with a medieval core of cobbled streets and half-timbered houses
Flag of Denmark
Our last stop in Scandinavia was Denmark when we arrive in Denmark Copenhagen we noticed the relaxed atmosphere, lots of people on bikes, and things generally run smooth. A blend of old buildings and modern sustainable architecture speaks of a city that treasure the old but love experimenting with the new. Copenhagen is one of the most bicycle-friendly cities in the world – with priority bicycle green waves and bicycle-friendly traffic regulation.
St Nicholas Church and Amalienborg Palace
Hans Christian Andersen
The little Mermaid
Nyhavn is a 17th century waterfront
Opera House
Tivoli Gardens
Plenty of windmills in Copenhagen
Christiania Freetown is a self-proclaimed autonomous anarchist district of about 850 to 1,000 hectares.
Church of Our Saviour, Copenhagen
Dry dock apartment conversion
Botanic Gardens
A clean environment is important to the Danes and they are world leaders in renewable energy technology, including wind turbines and energy efficient waste management.
We had a great month in Scandinavia and can now understand why people love it here.