Alesund, Norway

Wednesday August 16th – Alesund, Norway

 

The Plan:

 

We have booked a eight hour HAL shore excursion entitled “The Troll Path” which was quite costly, however, after watching a YouTube video of the road for this excursion, there was no way we would attempt it without “The HAL Umbrella”! Hopefully the weather will be clear and on our return we will be able to enjoy a drive through the city/town of Alesund.

 

The Reality:

The plan couldn’t have worked out better. By 8:30 we were at our first photo opportunity in Stordal.  Just a beautiful panoramic view of the fjord we were driving along, and as you can see the weather is a bit in flux.  During the day we had it all except when it was raining, then we were in the cozy confines of a very modern tour bus. As we sped through the magnificent Norwegian countryside we were regaled with tales, stories, and myths of our guides country….   And  of course, the mythical trolls. Stein, was the best

For the next two hours we motored through beautiful farmland, past pounding streams and waterfalls, small villages, and a countryside so pristine it looked like it had been freshly watered and groomed just for us. It is just amazing as to how intimate one feels in a modern tour bus….until you reach a major roadside attraction parking lot.  Busses everywhere, caravans, (European Campers) private cars, and motorcycles fill the parking lot, it is almost standing room only around the attraction…..and the gift shop. This stop was one of a kind, with a fresh, crystal clear, stream gathering itself for the plunge over the precipice and into the valley several hundred meters below.  One viewpoint extended out over the edge several feet and I was amazed to catch Barbara out there, the ever present camera in hand, shooting multiple pictures. 

After 45 minutes of being in awe of this marvel of Norwegian engineering we were ready for the ride of our life down the hillside, with vertical drops just beyond the guardrail, our professional driver, Oledinger, expertly navigating the eleven hairpin turns, all the while being very patient with, the oncoming “non-professional” drivers. 

After all that excitement we were all ready for our next stop; a Norwegian lunch of boiled potatoes, salad, salmon and very other side dishes and vegetables. Beer water, coffee, and soda were also included.   The restaurant was responsible for feeding all for tour buses serving nearly one hundred HAL tourists.

 

The ride home took us by the Troll Wall, a favorite site for Base Jumpers, back through the magnificent countryside, through a winding 3.8 kilometer long underwater tunnel, a quick, enticing look at the downtown area, and back to the terminal.

 

In my last post I sang the phrases of our beautiful home at sea, but I left out one very important improvement; the internet. I find the new system extremely easy to use and very fast for checking emails and posting to my blog. Thank you Holland America.

 

 

Jack W Cummings VOV 2017 –  sailing the Norwegian Sea toward Bergen, Norway