Norway - Part II or Fjord Fiasco

The "Norway In A Nutshell" tour consists of a five hour train ride from Oslo which drops you off at a little station in the tiny town of Myrdal. From there you take an ancient, fun little train to the town of Flam which is at the start of the Fjords. Then you jump on a boat and enjoy the spectacular scenic wonders of the Norwegian Fjords. Sounds wonderful and relaxing, right? What could possibly go wrong? Funny you should ask: Changing trains in Myrdal,I had to ask 50 people which was the correct train track, just to be sure (keep in mind, there are only 2 tracks). I paced around a little, then decided to use my Norwegian Krone coins in the vending machine for coffee and hot chocolate. Carrying the drinks back to Kyle, I tried not to notice how my fingertips sizzled on the scorchingly hot paper cups. Starbucks this was not. The quaint little train is fun to ride, kind of like a Disneyland attraction. It is very old and hugs the sides of steep ravines, chugging through snow covered mountains. The train makes a touristy stop at an unbelievably gorgeous waterfall and an announcer tells you to look at the lady on the cliff. Music is playing and she is dancing, luring you to join her and plunge to your death in the churning water. (?) Back in the train, we stared in wonder at the snowy terrain. If this is summer, what does winter look like?? As we descended into the valley, the snow disappeared and was replaced with picturesque little villages along a rushing river. OK, here is what is supposed to happen. All the happy tourists get off the train, walk around the corner and get on the ferry boat which takes you on a peaceful ride through the Fjords. Here's what really happened (and this could only happen to me.) I suggested to Kyle that we cleverly avoid the stupid tourist crowd and walk the other way through the gift shops before we caught our boat. We looked at souvenirs for a while until we heard an announcer say to get on Boat #1. I looked out the window and saw a boat with a big "1" in the window and we headed there. Waiting in line, we rolled our eyes at some of the people who were obviously silly tourists, not travel pros like us. The captain looked at our tickets and to my utter astonishment and profound horror, said, "No this is the wrong boat. That's your boat over there, floating away, you just missed it." Now here's the part that I really don't want you to know about but it's just so typical of Diane The Traumatic Traveler. I spent the next hour running frantically back and forth between the train office and the boat office (neither knows the other's schedule although they are right across from each other). If we waited for the next boat to tour the Fjords, we would miss our train back to Oslo. I tried every which way I knew to find another option but it all boiled down to this: we either got back on the train right away and missed the whole Fjord experience, or we spent the night in Flam. This meant I would pay for two hotels in one night, pay to change my train ticket, and would have to rearrange our whole trip when we got back to Oslo. At the last minute, and with much eye rolling from the boat and train people, I booked a hotel for the night in Flam and we jumped on the boat for our scenic Fjord ride. I bought a bottle of wine for me and a beer for Kyle and we stood looking out the window at the waterfalls cascading dramatically down the sides of cliffs. I was dumbfounded, a stupid, nervous mess, and still couldn't believe that this had happened. A Norwegian man who worked on the boat approached us and asked if Kyle was 18. Kyle said "yeah" before I could open my mouth and the man said good because the drinking age here is 18, not 14 like uneducated Denmark. I am a terrible mother. Seeing the Fjords was definitely worth the hassle of rearranging our trip. Our boat floated lazily along, and we ran from one side to the other, snapping pictures of water rushing down the steep cliffs into tiny, isolated villages. What do these people do here? Our hotel in Flam was cozy and we had a waterfall view from our window. We ate dinner in a fun restaurant next door with carved wood tables and an inviting fireplace, then hunted for souvenirs in the little shop that had lured us in that morning, causing us to miss our boat. They say everything happens for a reason. Did the first boat sink? No, but we had the great pleasure of spending the evening in this memorable little town. Stay tuned for more exciting adventures and nail biting mishaps in our next stop, Sweden.

Norway - Part 1

It sure does rain a lot in Norway. We sloshed around Oslo, jumping on ferry boats and subways in rain soaked jeans and sneakers to see all the sights. At the Hollenkomm Ski Museum, a glass elevator takes you to the top of the ski jump where the Olympics were held. The jump is impossibly vertical and I got dizzy just thinking about skiing. I pictured myself pushing off from the jump, pitching forward and tumbling head over heels, crash landing with body parts in various locations. OK, enough of that. Great view of the city from up there though. The museum has a breathtaking video of skiers being dropped off by helicopter on top of craggy, steep Norwegian mountains, where they happily strap narrow boards on their feet and jump off the peaks, free falling until their feet land in the snow. It can't possibly be real but it is. The Norwegian Resistance Museum depicted a proud and defiant nation when Hitler invaded their country. The Norwegian king refused to give up power until he was forced out and defiant school teachers refused to teach what they didn't believe in. Many paid the ultimate price with their lives. The Nobel Peace Museum had a mesmerizing fiberoptic light display with plaques honoring the award winners, dating back to the early 1900's. Kyle almost destroyed the whole thing while he was messing around with the fiberoptic chords.(!) There were also videos of American soldiers experiencing battle in Afghanistan which were hard to watch because they were so emotional. Also a video of an American actress dressed as an Afghani woman while driving a car through the city. The video shows the hostile stares and reactions of the local men who don't think women should be driving a car, I guess. We took shelter from the thunder, lightening and deluge in the Hard Rock Cafe to enjoy some good old fashioned American food and drinks. Next stop: the Norwegian Fjords. Stay tuned for my heart stopping account of how I messed up and turned a wonderful day into utter chaos.

Copenhagen Part II

The stylish new boots I bought for this trip have rubbed attractive sores on my heels and ankles. I asked the front desk for bandaids and they brought me some gauze.(?) Luckily I found a Danish version of bandaids at the train station and limped around Copenhagen in my comfortable but unfashionable tennis shoes. My hair is a frizzy mess in all this humidity. So much for looking good. It's also pretty cold and windy here. We did a lot of walking because we kept getting lost. The Danish Jewish Resistance Museum was full of pictures and videos of survivors telling harrowing stories. There was even part of an electrical fence from around one of the concentration camps. The sun came out in the afternoon as we walked along the ocean to see the Little Mermaid. A delicious aroma lured us to a woman stirring a vat of hot roasted candied almonds. It was useless to resist them. Yum. A 10 story cruise ship took us on an overnight trip from Copenhagen to Oslo. We left in the late afternoon and sailed into the setting sun, which, by the way, never did really set. We had a tiny little room with two bunkbeds. These cruises are very popular and always sold out. There are duty free shops, lots of entertainment, singers, kareoke, disco, even a theater, and big buffets with every kind of food imaginable. Next stop: Oslo, Norway.

Copenhagen Part 1

We arrived in Copenhagen on a Tuesday morning. We rode the metro and marched along cobble stoned streets, hauling our luggage behind us. Luckily everyone in Scandinavia speaks English as I was forced to ask for help and directions over and over. For the most part, Scandinavians are pleasant and helpful and some kind souls even stopped to see if we needed help when we were standing at a corner staring cluelessly at a city map. Kyle seemed to enjoy riding the subway and local buses and started learning a few Danish words right away to help us get around. We discovered a huge indoor mall nearby with all kinds of stores, boutiques, a supermarket and restaurants. There was even a glass elevator to the top floor with a beautiful view of the city. Lunch was at a restaurant recommended by our Danish friend from the airplane, a sushi bar at the top of the Tivoli Hotel. There we enjoyed a panoramic view of Copenhagen and Kyle was delighted to discover he was old enough to order a beer in Denmark. It was very strange to have a drink with my teenage son! We walked all over Copenhagen, enjoying the Nyhaven (new harbor) area the most with its lively, outdoor restaurants, rows of ancient, colorful buildings on one side and the channel with boats on the other. Our last stop was Tivoli Gardens, an amusement park I have always loved. We walked around the beautiful grounds admiring the ponds with ducks and fountains and an abundance of shrubs and flowers. Children shrieked with glee from roller coasters and other rides spiraling overhead. A cozy restaurant beckoned and we found a candlelit table on the deck over the water for an early dinner. Our hotel room was on the top floor with a beautiful view of the harbor and Christianshavn directly across from us. You could even see the bridge that connects this part of Denmark with Sweden. At 9 PM there was still plenty of daylight. It seemed a shame to go to bed so early but we were tired and jetlagged and couldn't keep our eyes open any longer.

Traveling - Day 1

My son and I are traveling to Scandinavia and Germany together. This is a wonderful opportunity for us to see distant parts of the world that we remember fondly and to visit my adopted German family. Since I only had a week to put this all together, I have been in frenzied stress mode, hoping I have all the details covered. The Men In Black Shuttle Service picked us up at o dark hundred and deposited us at the airport. Why am I always such a nervous mess? Panic creeps up my spine and tightens my throat as a thousand worries sprout. Will our suitcases pass weight requirments? Did I forget anything at home? Do I have our passports? I check my purse over and over to make sure I have boarding passes, Eurorail passes, hotel confirmations. We get through checkin without any problems. Whew. We doze off and on on the way to New Jersey where we change planes for Copenhagen. Then we're off. We're really on our way! We sit next to a sweet young Danish girl who gives us helpful tips on things to see and do in Copenhagen. I usually suffer miserably from jet lag. This time I am armed with herbal remedies that I'm hoping will make this trip easier. The TV screens in front of our seats show an animated plane on a map of the world. We track our progress as we fly over Canada and Nova Scotia and over the Atlantic. I watch in envy as our Danish friend falls effortlessly and peacefully asleep. This presents a problem because Kyle and I have to use the bathroom. We have the middle and window seats and now have to figure out a way to crawl over the aisle seat occupied by Miss Denmark without waking her. We stare at her sleeping form and discuss strategies. After several false starts, Kyle decides to go for it and accidentally kicks her in the process (of course). She is startled awake and I apologize profusely. She is very forgiving and we all try to settle in for the evening, as much as possible while being crammed into a sardine can. This is the smallest plane I have ever flown to Europe on. There is absolutely no leg room or body room or breathing room. I worry how I will manage my restless leg syndrome during this uncomfortable flight along with all the other worries piled up in my head. Then I see the sunset. I have the best view in the world for the most beautiful sunset ever. I am 35,000 feet in the air viewing a wall of crimson that lasts for hours. This is bliss. My worries fade into the background and I glue my face to the window, determined to enjoy every last minute of this brilliant display.