Backtrack to Norway

Right now I am riding a bus from Prague to Vienna, but it seems a good time to write a bit about Norway. I did not have my blog functional then, so I wanted to put down a few reflections before I forget!



This medallion I noticed above the water fountain as I was leaving Austin. I like it a lot. Horny toads are completely cool looking plus they can squirt blood from their eyes. They are one thing I love about Texas. Sadly, this was the last water fountain I would see. Europe is not big on free water.

A totally surprising and serendipitous thing happened in Chicago where I had a couple of hours to layover before catching my flight into Berlin then on to Oslo. My niece and I discovered through a series of text messages that we happened to be sitting just seven gates apart at the airport in Chicago (which is enormous)! I knew she was traveling to Buffalo that day and she knew I was on my way to Norway, but we had no idea we would find ourselves in the same huge airport laying over at the same time. We met up in the concourse and could not stop laughing in amazement! It was incredible!! My fav travel story since running into my cousin Jan and hubbie Greg in a casino in Vegas!



Here's Sarah in the O'Hare airport.

I boarded my flight to Berlin, then changed planes to fly into Oslo. Next was a train out into the countryside of Norway. My good luck continued as I spotted my cousin Stan just before boarding the train. I knew he was probably there to meet us, but had given up on finding him! The train ride passed lots of large bodies of water as well as rolling wheat fields and giant red barns.


After dropping off my stuff in my room we were off for a ride through the countryside to a charming little coffee house. The cute house was set in an idyllic setting among gardens, ponds, shady lanes, and even a pasture full of miniature horses.


That's a large lake there in the distance.














The coffee house





This is called Kringle. It is Norwegian specialty and it is super delicious.


This baby mini horse was just too cute.


The best part is that in spite of jet lag, I was able to stay awake and alert until about 9pm which is a major miracle. I credit the fabulous fresh air and sunshine of Norway. I really have never had such an easy adjustment to the time change. It was great!

Location:Norway