4.9.18 Norway in a Nutshell Tour.

Same thing, different day. Up, blog, breaky (good, but not as good as Cecil) then make lunch, back to room, cab to Railway station, ready to queue (we were a bit later than we’d planned) for about 3 minutes before they opened the train for first leg of tour. 

Here we are in the line. Our train is behind us. 

This one had some interesting and familiar graffiti 

Norway in a Nutshell is a self guided tour. We have about 16 tickets. It takes place in legs and utilises train, bus and boat. The tour can be done from Oslo, but we are just doing the Bergen to Voss to Gudvangen to Flam, then Myrdal then home to Bergen. 

We do the first five legs listed above. 

Awoke to overcast skies, it has rained lightly overnight, forecast is for between 18 and 20, so should be a good day. 

We snagged two window seats for three of us. 

Views from the train at speed. 

One of many little villages 

House by the line. 

After several stations along the way our first stop is Voss. Off the train and walk about 150m to a bus. There are lots of people with luggage so getting around and avoiding them is a bit of fun. 

There are lots of people doing the tour at least four buses of 45 passengers. Train was new, clean, quiet, smooth. The bus is new looking, comfy and the trip is about an hour around hairpin bends. Here’s hoping I’m not too queasy. 

This is what our first train looked like. 

Now we are on the bus. 

View from window. 

So many of these typical look buildings. We think they might house their animals underneath. Lots of the pasture had been cut for hay or silage. 

One of many waterfalls 

A Suzie shot of another cluster of buildings. 

Some of the road was super steep, super skinny and super bendy. Only room for the bus. 

High mountains and rocks and clouds and trees. 

Bendy hairpins. 

After the slow and not queasy bus trip we stopped at Gudvangen to change to our next leg and mode of Transport MS Vision of the Fjiords -a boat which was to take us down the a couple of Fjiords - Nærøyfjiorden and Aurlandafjiorden. 

Waiting in the queue for the boat. 


Still queuing up. 

Standing in the Norway in a Nutshell queue. 

There was a huge long low boat pulling out across the fjiord behind our boat. 

Turning to head off up the fjiord. 

Our boat beside the wharf. 

Lunchtime. Very comfy boat with several different levels and ramps outside to each level which had plenty of photo opportunities 



Again little settlements everywhere - some only accessible by water. 

The greens are amazing. There is a haze in the air that’s making photos a bit tricky 

During the 2 hour boat ride we are our lunch and the clouds cleared a bit. We passed many little famlets and several little and bigger villages. There were kayakers and a rowing boat ON the water, and some folk camping perhaps having hiked in. We were surprised by the number of Caravan, camping and cabin parks along the rivers, lakes and Fjiord. Obviously a very popular holiday destination. 

Village clinging to the side of the fjiord 

A waterfall at the back. 



Huge rocks 





The boat pulled in and hovered at this waterfall. Some amazingly rude people who are royally oblivious to anyone else. One particular family of Mum, Dad a teenage and younger son were just plain obnoxious as far as hogging the best spot for ages. 



The ship won an award. 

The internal of the boat was comfy, there was plenty of seats and clean windows to view from. 

Picture of the boat 

View with obligatory Norwegian flag. 

Passing the village of Unredal - home of beat goats cheese and smallest stave church. 

Pano. 

At the back of boat soaking up the sunshine 

Just magnificent really 

Another boat selfie. 

We arrived in Flam. There were two cruise ships in town a smaller Pulimatur ship and a huge Celebrity Solstice - man it was huge just dwarfed the poor town of Fram. Off here, we have an hour to look around. We looked for a coffee - to no avail, had something cool to drink and had a look at the shops - nothing to write home about - typical cruise ship shopping and same old same old as all the other tourist shops we’ve seen in Oslo and Bergen. 

Here we are having a drink. 

A map of where we sailed   From Gudvangen ( second red dot on left) up the Fjiord then turned right at the fork and came down to Fram at bottom of Fjiord on the right. 

From Fram we boarded yet another train - an older one - which would take us back to Myrdal. The trip was 20kms and took an hour. We stopped along the way to let another train pass, while we were waiting a helicopter came in and picked up some building materials stacked beside the road below us. We reckon they truck them to there and then airlift it in to somewhere without road access. 

We also stopped and alighted the train at Kjosfossen waterfall, where some mystical music was playing then suddenly a woman in red was dancing on a building ruin and diasappered only to  then magically appear some 20 metres back near the waterfall (there were two dancers) the story goes some mystical creature lured men into the woods. 

Another pretty specky waterfall where a dancer appeared. 

The train stopped in one of many tunnels at the waterfall. 



Back on board and ready to go again 

We soon arrived at Myrdal where we walked off the train and directly onto the modern NSB train at the next platform, for the return trip through Voss and back to Bergen. 

Here we are on our last train for the day. 

Coming into Voss. 



Here’s where we caught our bus from Voss to Gudvangen, with an old stave church behind. 

Some new construction happening at Voss station. 

Voss Railway station. 

Some town by a lake on the way home 

Farmland with round bales in the pasture - Id guess maybe silage. 

Bales beside the fence. 

More farmlands. 

We are nearly home. Done with taking pics and not even looking anymore - devices out. 

I too was feeling a bit weary and having spent some time blogging still could not stop looking and attempting to capture the stunning scenery as it whizzed past behind reflecting train windows and trees and fences and tunnels. So here are a few last pics from Norway in a Nutshell 

Home again a little behind schedule we arrived at Bergen station and caught a cab home to Hotel Thon Orion. Tracy headed straight for the Rema 1000 supermarket to get some tonic again (she lost the last purchase at airport) I unpacked and then headed out to Rema 1000 also but got distracted by the Fortress next door, and then decided to go and try to photograph the famous old Bryggen buildings. I phoned to let Suzie know and she came too. Then I went for a wander in the old buildings again and the to supermarket. And then found an old church at the back of our hotel. St Mary’s Church. 

The story of the Bergen Fortress. 

King Harold 

The cannons that used to protect the Fortress 

Church in the Fortress 

Two of the old buildings of Bryggen are under renovation, they are using the old style and old tools and craftsmanship to restore them. 

When they do this they excavate down to base that is the 1702 fire and these are some artefacts they found. 
G&T