Short and Super Sweet

Since venturing north through Norway last November on my way to the Arctic Ocean, I have had a hankering to see a bit more of this Nordic country.  After crossing the border, I remember the landscape changing dramatically into rocky mountains dotted with wonderfully simple and colorful houses.  Therefore, upon finding 7€ tickets online, it was a no-brainer to once again return to this country over the Easter holiday and explore its southern latitudes.  Not only was I excited to have the opportunity to return to Norway, but I was also thrilled that my Finnish flatmate, Maria, could join me!  For pictures from the trip, you can visit my Picasa site here.

Our adventure started in Tampere, Finland.  We had a free afternoon in Tampere before our flights left, so Maria and I wandered over to the Moomin museum.  For those of you unfamiliar with the Moomins, they are a very popular hippo-like character developed by Tove Jansson, a Finnish author.  At the museum, we got to see original drawings from various scenes in the Moomin books.  We also partook in some children's games and acquainted ourselves with the dress-up closet.


Maria and I enjoyed a game of
'Ring the Hattivattit.'

From Tampere, Maria and I traveled west to Oslo by plane.  There, we were met with beautiful weather and many glorious signs of spring—flowering trees, vibrant green grass, and tiny leaves lacing deciduous branches.  We spent the afternoon enjoying the city bells while meandering through the streets.  Some of the highlights of the afternoon included the king's palace, Slottsparken (palace park), Akershus fortress, the Edward Munch cemetery, bustling harbor and botanic garden.

Maria stands in front of the Oslo Palace.

This was one of my favorite scenes in Oslo.
A small boy rides his training-wheel-equipped bike
up and down the cemetery sidewalks while ringing his
bell and sporting an over-sized cowboy hat.  Lovely.

The next day, Maria and I left Oslo traveling five hours by train west to the fjords.  We arrived in the snow-covered town of Myrdal at an elevation of 867m.  From there, we took the acclaimed Flåmsbana train partway down the valley, hiking the rest of the way to Flåm.  This small town sits at the base of the world's longest and deepest fjord, Sognefjord.  The hike was absolutely beautiful.  En route, we witnessed deep ravines, cascading waterfalls, lush mountain farms and quaint Norwegian establishments.

Maria and I enjoyed seeing all the waterfalls.

The hike took us down through this magnificent valley.

We spent the following morning wandering around the town of Flåm.  The water on the fjord was still, allowing for really nice reflections.  Maria and I also came across some ridiculously adorable baby goats, and had the opportunity to send off a few postcards.

Gotta do it.  A good ol' air guitar.

The baby goats were eager for attention.

In the afternoon, we took the Flåmsbana train back up the valley.  I fully understand why this train has been rated as being one of the world's ten best train rides.  Not only is the scenery gorgeous, but the engineering feat of winding the train through 20 tunnels so that it can rise 800m along a 20km track is impressive.

Maria enjoys the views from the Flåmsbana.

With a series of train, bus and plane rides, Maria and I eventually made our way back to Oslo, then Tampere and finally Joensuu.  Having the opportunity to once again see Norway's spectacular scenery was amazing—and getting to do it with Maria made it that much better.  I think it would suffice to say the trip was short and super sweet.