Norway Day 5 and 6
This morning, on this day, I will never forget. As the time got closer in the pregnancy when we could find out the sex, we started discussing our options. Patrick was against finding out, and I wanted to know. I told him my idea for a cool way to find out, and after some thought he acquiesced. So on this morning after a wonderful breakfast, Patrick and I made our way out to a bench by the water to discover that we're having a little boy. It was one of the most wonderful and touching moments of my life. It is a morning that I will never forget.
After our very eventful morning we set out to explore Balestrand, and after about an hour we discovered that, while very beautiful, there's not an awful lot to do. There are quite a few hikes around the area, but I wasn't really up for that. I saw that the tourist office was open and thought that I would pop in to see if there might be anything for us to do. We opted on a tour to the Jostedal glacier, the largest glacier in Western Europe. We took a small boat about an hour and a half away on one of the fingers of the Sognefjord. After arriving in a small town known for it's bookshops selling antique books and current reads, we took a bus to the glacier museum and on to the glacier itself. This surprise spur of the moment trip turned into our favorite jaunt on our journey.
On this trip I was so surprised by the few houses scattered here and there at the very bottom of mountains. I was debating whether these people live there year round, and what the conditions must be like. There were quite a few that so obviously had no roads leading to them. I can imagine sitting in the living room, with a fire roaring, reading a book. I'm sure that they are very peaceful homes.
As soon as we got back to Balestrand we hopped on the hydrofoil for a five hour trip to Bergen. The scenery was beautiful and we enjoyed the last leg of our trip to the west coast town. We arrived at Bergen around 9 pm, so we immediately checked into our hotel, and I talked Patrick into taking me over to the Japanese restaurant across the street. I was so happy to see that they had a few cooked sushi rolls and could hardly wait to get some in my belly. The roll that we had was pretty similar to a roll that we always used to get in Jacksonville, the Baymeadows (Christine if you read this, YOU know what I'm talking about!). Granted I did eat about three quarters of it, but Patrick ordered some whale sashimi to try, so he was happy.
The next morning we got up to explore Bergen. I've always thought that it was fun to arrive in a city at night, when you see it in the daylight it's kind of like Christmas morning. Bergen is most famous for the Bryggen, a group of Hanseatic commercial buildings that line the wharf. A few of the buildings date back to the early 1700's, but due to fires and buildings made from wood many were destroyed. The Bryggen is now full of tourist shops, cafes, and restaurants. However, it is still a very charming stretch of buildings.
After walking through the shops we went down to the Fish Market to catch some lunch. The fishermen and women set up shop along the wharf and sell their wares to tourists. We sampled a mixed fish grill, some grilled shrimp, and a shrimp sandwich, each was wonderful. And naturally this was one of the best and cheapest meals that we had the entire trip. Our bellies full we continued to the local museum, it was nearly full with modern art, which is not my favorite. But I enjoyed people watching while Patrick got his fix of Klimt and Picasso. This was the end of our first day in Bergen.
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| A celebratory kiss. |
After our very eventful morning we set out to explore Balestrand, and after about an hour we discovered that, while very beautiful, there's not an awful lot to do. There are quite a few hikes around the area, but I wasn't really up for that. I saw that the tourist office was open and thought that I would pop in to see if there might be anything for us to do. We opted on a tour to the Jostedal glacier, the largest glacier in Western Europe. We took a small boat about an hour and a half away on one of the fingers of the Sognefjord. After arriving in a small town known for it's bookshops selling antique books and current reads, we took a bus to the glacier museum and on to the glacier itself. This surprise spur of the moment trip turned into our favorite jaunt on our journey.
 |
| I thought it would be fun to put my feet in the water. Surprise, surprise! It was frigid. |
On this trip I was so surprised by the few houses scattered here and there at the very bottom of mountains. I was debating whether these people live there year round, and what the conditions must be like. There were quite a few that so obviously had no roads leading to them. I can imagine sitting in the living room, with a fire roaring, reading a book. I'm sure that they are very peaceful homes.
As soon as we got back to Balestrand we hopped on the hydrofoil for a five hour trip to Bergen. The scenery was beautiful and we enjoyed the last leg of our trip to the west coast town. We arrived at Bergen around 9 pm, so we immediately checked into our hotel, and I talked Patrick into taking me over to the Japanese restaurant across the street. I was so happy to see that they had a few cooked sushi rolls and could hardly wait to get some in my belly. The roll that we had was pretty similar to a roll that we always used to get in Jacksonville, the Baymeadows (Christine if you read this, YOU know what I'm talking about!). Granted I did eat about three quarters of it, but Patrick ordered some whale sashimi to try, so he was happy.
The next morning we got up to explore Bergen. I've always thought that it was fun to arrive in a city at night, when you see it in the daylight it's kind of like Christmas morning. Bergen is most famous for the Bryggen, a group of Hanseatic commercial buildings that line the wharf. A few of the buildings date back to the early 1700's, but due to fires and buildings made from wood many were destroyed. The Bryggen is now full of tourist shops, cafes, and restaurants. However, it is still a very charming stretch of buildings.
 |
| The Bryggen |
After walking through the shops we went down to the Fish Market to catch some lunch. The fishermen and women set up shop along the wharf and sell their wares to tourists. We sampled a mixed fish grill, some grilled shrimp, and a shrimp sandwich, each was wonderful. And naturally this was one of the best and cheapest meals that we had the entire trip. Our bellies full we continued to the local museum, it was nearly full with modern art, which is not my favorite. But I enjoyed people watching while Patrick got his fix of Klimt and Picasso. This was the end of our first day in Bergen.
 |
| I did enjoy this painting titled 'Mother and Child.' |
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