2022
I live in Sweden. Neighbouring country to Norway. Although the countries are much the same in many ways the landscape are so dramatically different in Norway than in Sweden. In Sweden there are quite large areas that are plains. Perfect for farming.
In Norway there are no plain spaces. Or so it seems when traveling on high and winding roads. There are a lots of mountains. High mountains and many of them are 800 meters high or higher. When driving on these roads one should know that road accidents in Norway occur, but they are not the most violent because people drive rather slow and carefully. Top speed allowed are just 80 km/h (just under 50 mph). Some of the roads winds back and forth on the hill sides. Like the famous Trollstigen.
After driving up one of those horrible roads It is nice to have a break for coffee. Like at this place; 985 meter above sea level in the mountains over Håra.
Just 30 minutes later on the same road the darkness was upon us and the sun set in a beautiful scenery. This picture is taken from the Knut Vesthassel memorial. The man who in 1956-1960 extended the road from that point and all the way down to the town of Sauda. The memorial itself was not on Google Maps so I added it. 😉
On the way down from the mountains and in to Sauda town one passes som rather oddly shaped buildings. This is the Allmannajuvet Zink Mines. The mine itself are closed since the late 1860´s and after that this place fell out of people's memories. In 2010 the town of Sauda announced a competition for architects to remake this area in to something that would tell the story of the mine and the people that worked there. Swiss architect Peter Zumthor was awarded the task of designing all of the area. In my opinion it was the best thing I have seen in a long time.
This day ended by us getting to the small town of Odda. The port of Odda are actually on the Atlantic ocean although it is situated many miles inland. This is the Norwegian fjords. Long and narrow passages from the cost and stretching inlands. The passages may only be 120-150 meter wide but they can run down to depths of 300 meters.
When visiting Norway one thing you must nit miss is to visit one or some of the stave churches. Built all in wood in the 1150-1220 they are the signs of the nordic countries turning to christian beliefs. Today there are 28 of them left and the biggest of them are Heddal Stave church. If you goes here be prepared to meet a lot of people here. The church are open for tourists but you have to buy a ticket for that but with that ticket you could get a private guided tour of the church by one of the guides outside the church.
This is just a few things you can see and do when in Norway. I myself have already started looking for new places to visit in Norway and I am going back there as soon as possible.
What a great post @Andréas_S_Eriksson! Thank you for sharing your experience with us. How many days long was the trip? Was it easy to find facilities like gas stations, grocery shops or restaurants?
It is the first time I am looking at a church constructed with wood. The architecture and the interior of the church impressed me a lot.
The Trollstigen reminded me of Transfăgărășan in Romania. Here is a photo from there:
