I’m embracing every last minute I have visiting this beautiful country for free (free, as in travelling here for free with work). The nature and atmosphere here is just so different from home, and just amazing. Imagine living so close and it being so different. And as a person who loves clouds, I just can’t get enough of the skies touching the mountain tops and the lakes and fjords. With or without snow, it’s just beautiful. And the silence… It’s everywhere. Even when you can hear the traffic or people, it’s still just a very quiet place to be. Stress free. Even in the capital, Oslo.
The beauty. The calmness. The nature. This country is a gorgeous breathtaking place to visit. A few years back I visited Lofoten in Norway in the end of the summer. And it took my breath away. Crossing the boarder by car, from the north of Sweden, was the most beautiful trip I’ve been on. On our stay at Lofoten, we went out on a guided boat tour in the fjords to see waterfalls, mountains, trolls etc. We went on a whale safari trip to see sperm whales. Stayed in old fishing huts called ‘rorbuer’, which is a have-to when visiting Lofoten. But… We missed the northern lights even though we had the perfect weather conditions. We tried to drive around to find the perfect spot for it, but for no good. The day after we found out it had been seen all over in the villages close by. Typical. So either way I have to go back up north to catch it.
The nature is amazing in this fairytale-like country. What hits me every time is, as I mentioned, the silence, the mountains and lakes, the sky and its just so stress free atmosphere! Even Oslo, the capital city of Norway, is stress free. It’s not big, and doesn’t really offer any great adventures maybe. But still: WOW! It calms you down being here. And it almost makes you cry on the inside (if that makes sense) because of all its beauty and ‘untouched’ nature. It really feels like a fairytale being here! Except the prices that is… Well, they do seem like made up funny ‘haha’ prices and, more often than not, feels like a joke. A pizza and a 33cl Coke could cost you 179 NOK (local currency)!! But to me, it’s still worth it though…
Had a day out in snowy Oslo today, and we had a walk down to Aker Brygge in the harbour of Oslo. It gave me that Christmas feeling I don’t get back home in Malmö. And that feeling is spelled: Snow. And the snow in city centre of Oslo is… Still white! We normally don’t have a white Christmas down in the south of Scandinavia. It’s mostly grey and windy, just plain boring. And if we get snow they put salt on the roads and just makes it look… Sad… And the light in Oslo (in Norway in general)… It’s just wow! Yep, I do love this place.
After a cup of coffee at Aker Brygge we decided to head back to the ship, trying to remember to watch our step not to fall in the water. All those perfect Insta-moments to capture… And there’s just so many. Everywhere. I also had to take some photos of the street art outside the terminal. I’ve been looking at them through a window for over a year now. So add the word ‘cool’ to this beautiful country, and city, too!
This is a perfect little getaway from all the stress back home, and I have to remember that. If there will come a moment in the future where I really need a break from reality, from stress, mundane day-to-day life or whatever, Norway is definitely where I would and should go. Relax, rethink and recharge.
One of many fun facts about Norway: In 2008, Norway knighted a penguin… https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nils_Olav Ok, one more: In the Norwegian city Longyearbyen, it’s illegal to die… http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/7501691.stm
Long live funny Norway! In Sweden we have a lot of jokes about Norwegians and Norway. Probably like the Danes have jokes about us Swedes. But Scandinavia is great!
