Norway, Part II, Notes from my Travel Journal

Norway, Part II,
August 13, 2025: Longest and deepest fjord and glacier museum
On Wednesday, we boarded a cruise boat to traverse Norway’s longest and deepest fjord, the Sognefjord. It was truly beautiful—lots of fog-draped mountains, waterfalls, farmland, and villages of houses, some roofed with grass, many colorful. The mountains rose so spectacularly and so near to the fjord as to take your breath away. The water in places was quite blue-green and placid, broken only by the motion of the boat.

Then we visited a glacier museum, where we saw exhibits about a man from 5000 years ago preserved in ice, about glacier formation, and global warming and the dire predictions about the future of the planet. We resumed our drive and stopped to photograph a glacier (Jostedal), and later for another spectacular viewpoint.

The hotel in Loen is fancier than the others, the Alexandra. Dinner was another buffet but even better. Lam was delicious, and desserts mind-boggling—tiramisu, cheesecake, fresh berries, ice creams with toppings and whipped cream, crème brulee, chocolate cakes, and on and on. Way too much!

Thursday, August 14: Loen
Free day today in Loen. Norm didn’t feel well, so he slept until 9:30. We went to breakfast late. They had oatmeal, which I always enjoy. I’ve started drinking coffee in the mornings again, as decaf is hard to find. Doesn’t seem to be causing a migraine.

Around noon we headed toward the gondola ride, for which Judit gave us tickets. As we neared the spot, we saw a very long line; so we turned back and sat in the lobby for a time. We played wordle, quordle, and sequence, and I started blossom. Then we decided to try the gondola again.

The line was much shorter and moved pretty quickly. Extraordinary views of mountaintops and glaciers. Sunshiny day except for a few minutes of rain. The colors of the fjord and the mountains light up my heart, and we took several photos though they never quite capture the essence.

We’ve been communicating with both Nikki and Clay by text, as all our grandkids have just gone back to school (and Silas to pre-K, though they call it something else). Clay and Sarah were worried he did not get into the same school as Frankie, which is more highly rated than the one they are zoned for. At the last minute, they got a call that a spot had opened up for him. They were very relieved, so we are too.

“Finn had a band event with his praise ministry at our new church yesterday,” Nikki tells us.

“How did that go?” I ask.

“Well, although he dropped a piece of sheet music and couldn’t reach it.”

“How do they like their teachers so far?” I change the subject. Having been in band through high school, I know you can survive without your sheet music. I don’t fare so well on the piano if my book decides to shut itself in the middle of a song, but it’s easier to hide your mistakes in band, it seems.

“Good. They both seem happy.” Here a sigh of relief.

Norm and I ate only a small ice cream cone for lunch atop Mount Hoven. Views included Jostedalsbreen Glacier, Olden Village (with a cruise ship docked), Lake Lovatnet, and Nordfjord. Our descent (and ascent) took only 5 minutes to cover 3000 feet.

We more than made up for a light lunch by overeating once again at the hotel (Alexandra) buffet. So much chocolate, always my weakness, on the dessert bar. And we tried reindeer, which was surprisingly delicious once I convinced myself I wasn’t eating Rudolph.

After the gondola (skylift) excursion and before dinner, I went to the pool and hot tub. There were indoor pools, outdoor and swim-through and kiddie pools, a long slide, and more. People were instructed to wear the hotel robes and slippers to the pool area, and it was rather amusing to so many people walking the halls in robes and slippers, carrying baskets of towels, as though we were in some sort of cult.

Friday, August 15: Geirangerfjord and Seven Sisters
I’ve been reading Lucy by the Sea by Elizabeth Strout, and it’s interesting to remember how very careful we all were about germs in the early days of the pandemic—washing clothes and groceries after a trip to the store, only socializing outdoors and at a distance, avoiding having plumbers or handymen in one’s home, etc.

My friend Sue Broder, who was the most extreme and cautious of anyone I knew about these precautions, has still not caught Covid (to her knowledge). Her doctor told her she needed to be in the best shape of her life, and she started a habit in 2020, which she maintains to this day, of spending an hour a day on her elliptical machine watching tv or reading. I fear I’ve used my knee as an excuse too often for not exercising as I should.

On Friday, we drove up a long and twisty road to lofty heights after first taking a ferry cruise on Geirangerfjord. Because of some mishap (or weather), we ended up taking the ferry roundtrip. On the cruise, we were hard pressed to find seats for the first leg but lucked into a couple of stools with a decent view. A lot of people got off, and we found more comfortable seats for the return. Norm went outside to take a few photos, but it was cold, windy, and rainy. We saw a waterfall called the Seven Sisters, among others.

By the time we reached the summit of the drive to Geirangerfjord Skywalk, the weather had cleared, and the views were stunning at 4500 feet above sea level.
As we left, I asked Norm, “Remember the time we were in New Zealand with Clay and we’d driven up this winding, twisty road in a heavy mist?”

“Yep. We thought the whole drive was in vain. Then we got to the top and, just like a miracle, the mist lifted, and the view was spectacular.”

“Like this. Amazing how that sometimes works out. Like a gift from God.”

Because of the delay with the ferry schedule, we were late getting to Lom for lunch. Norm had a beer, and I ordered a lava cake. Yummy, but too many sweets on this trip.

Dinner was on us in Lillehammer, and we shared a vegetable pizza, really loaded with veges including avocado and mushrooms, two of my favorites. Then we searched for an ATM to get money for tips tomorrow. We also did a bit of souvenir shopping.

Saturday, August 16: Olympic Ski Jump
Last day of tour. We stopped at the Olympic ski jump where games were hosted in 1994. Then we explored an open-air museum, with lots of old preserved farmhouses, a lovely stave church, and an interesting exhibit of the history of Norway back to the Ice Age. The church dates to the 1200s. We missed an opportunity to see the childhood home of Queen Sonja, about whom we recently watched a limited series, by spending too much time in the historical exhibit to do both.
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Farewell dinner tonight. Not too exciting, but the dessert was good—mango cheesecake. The couple who went to Sonja’s house said it was very fancy for the period—built in 1935. I saw photos on my phone, consistent with my impression from The Commoner that her family was quite well-to-do, making the title of the series feel a trifle ironic.