Who doesn't want to visit Norway?  Ha ha.  I had no intention of visiting what I thought of as a "big block of ice"!  But then something magical came along...called Ryanair.  The "no frills" airline was our answer to inexpensively exploring new places.  So when a round trip ticket to Norway only costs $25 dollars, why not give it a try?  And that is what we did last weekend.

We flew into a little harbor town called Sandefjord. (I still don't know how to pronounce it).  At the airport, we searched for our ride, a huge Norwegian man, named Sven.  He and his wife Mariana let us stay in their guest house in Sandefjord.  Now, I am usually a planner, but I didn't do too much planning for this trip beyond finding a place to stay.  I did, however, download a few words of Norwegian, which I tried to throw into the conversation on the ride from the airport.  It didn't work too well.  So, the only word I used most frequently while we were there was "Takk," which means Thank you.

I cannot begin to describe how surprised I was at how beautiful Norway is!  This was not the block of ice that I thought it would be.  Don't get me wrong, we were in the arctic area, and the temperature was cold.  But there was no snow on the ground, and the leaves on the trees were turning all sorts of beautiful colors.  But the best of all was that the sun was shining, unlike some of our recent overcast days in England.

On one hand, we felt like we were visiting a new state, maybe Vermont or something on the East Coast.  But on the other hand, I felt like I was home in Colorado.  The air was crisp, the sun was shining, the aspen trees were golden yellow, it was heavenly relaxing!

Before we went, people warned us that Norway is one of the most expensive places to visit.  We didn’t know whether to believe them or not, but we found out that it is true…partly.  It all depends on what you decide to spend money on.  We found an inexpensive guest house to stay in (with Sven), instead of the ritzy hotel.  Our first evening, we took a nice stroll through the town, and then went to a local grocery store to buy some food for our meals.  

It really wasn’t that expensive because we chose not to eat out for every meal.  However, we decided that we had to have at least one Norwegian meal.  But first, I have to give you a little bit of history…

Sandefjord is one of the primary fishing spots in the world…and it is known for whale fishing.  Yes, perhaps the most influential era in Sandefjord's history is the whaling period when Sandefjord was the centre of international pelagic whaling.  Even the city’s manhole covers proudly display their history. 

We learned more about Sandefjord the next day, but back to our restaurant…

We found a very nice looking restaurant right at the water’s edge.  It was decorated in sea and boating décor, but in a very classy way, not cheesy.  Though we didn’t have reservations, the waitress still found a spot for us.  I ordered Monk fish, and Mark had the “Hval Bif,” Whale Steak! 

Mark and I had never tasted anything like it.  It was cooked like steak, and tasted like steak, except that it had an overpowering fishy taste to it.  I am glad that Mark liked it.

After a restful night, we got up the next day and explored more of the town.  We saw old churches,

grave yards,

ships and ferries, parks, and stores with long Norwegian names on them.

Our next stop was the international Whaling Museum!  It is amazing how much information you can learn from this little museum in Norway.  We saw all the methods they used for capturing whales, and how it evolved over time.

 We saw items that they made out of whale bone, blubber, and oil.  We saw whale skeletons, and I even got eaten by one whale! 

And to top it off, we had a live music to listen to, since there just happened to be a concert in the museum that day.

Lastly, we decided to go for a quick hike up one of nearby hills.  We were able to see amazing views of the city from there.   It was really a special time.

Finally it was time to go home. Sven and Mariana drove us to the airport.   I said a short, “Takk Sven!” and then we were off on our plane soaring above the fjords (tall coastal cliffs) of Norway.  What a great trip!