Alesund, Norway

Waterfalls, strawberries and trolls, oh my!

I must admit, Norway is my favorite spot so far on this Viking journey. True confession – I was already scheming about how to convince the rest of our family to move to this gorgeous country when I heard that they are actually paying young people to move here. Are you kidding me? The entire country is home to a mere 5 million people and they desperately want to grow. They offer $200K Kroner, about $26K dollars, to anyone who can show by bank account or ability to work that they can support themselves and what do they require: a 5 year commitment to stay. Based on our upcoming presidential election, it may not be difficult to convince me to begin recruiting a large group of Texans to start a Tex-Norway community. Of course, the winters are brutal, but the northern lights, snow skiing and breath-taking scenery could offset frozen fingers, treacherous driving, and isolation during severe weather. The tiny villages are delightful! So, here we go.

The fishing port loaded with colorful boats…

Driving through the mountains toward waterfalls, strawberries and trolls…

Waterfalls.

Our first stop in Norway, Alesund, captured both my eyes and my heart! Since the snow is melting, gravity blessed us constantly with waterfalls. The first was at the top of what they call Trollstigen or “Troll Road” – a switchback of hairpin turns up a perilous mountain. Arriving atop, a family of sheep greeted us, simply strolling the road with cowbells around their necks. As I set out on the walkway to view the scenery, namely the waterfall and mountains, God met me in a precious way. Tourists everywhere walked, stopping mainly to shoot a photograph, to make a memory, yet all of the sudden, I looked over and noticed small seats on one of the overlooks for photo ops. So, I sat down. I looked out, savoring the beauty, and then I just sat and prayed, thanking God for the beauty, for the people, for this country. I began meditating, attempting to simply be still, to be present here. God met me, bringing a calming peace and a rousing joy.  Message received, too: stop and savor each moment. Be careful not to simply view these gorgeous sights through the lens of your camera, but feel and be present and always remember to thank your Creator, the Creator of this gory! Thank you, Lord! The following day, I surprised myself and stopped again, soaking up the moments and beauty at yet another in inspiring waterfall without the lure of a seat this time!

      

The hairpin turns of the Troll Road...                                             Visitors stack rocks into personal                                                                                                                          Ebeneezer towers of remembrance!

Strawberries.

Stopping for lunch after scouring troll country filled our tummies with delectable strawberries and delicious traditional Norwegian foods: large meatballs with brown gravy, cloudberry ice cream, and the best part – the strawberries. More true confessions… I returned to the strawberry bowl three times (after I filled my first plate). Sweet, savory strawberries. Because of the long, sunny summer days in Norway (it stays light until around 11 pm) the berries thrive. People travel for miles to reach the farms growing these strawberries, and my favorite comment from a local was that the venders leave baskets of the berries on an unmanned table on the side of the road and hikers and travelers - on foot, bicycle or car – simply take the berries and leave an amount of money they feel is appropriate. Such trust. I love it!

   

Jeff's group ate upstairs in the red barn                                         Adorable purple bicycle as decor

                                                                                

Trolls.

Troll bridges and troll roads - the Norwegians speak of trolls as if they’ve always existed and still exist deep in the mountains today. Stories and tales abound! Fun, playful talk for sure based on folktales, but Jeff’s tour guide joked that a troll is simply a wife who treats her husband badly. Yikes! Watch out for trolls…

What a delightful day in Alesund and beyond!