On the road again...Flam, Norway

Today's the day we're "on the road again"....driving the 230km scenic route, along the Hardangerfjord from Bergen to Flam in our little, electric, hire car. The car pickup goes well, and with a quick stop to pick up the luggage from our hotel, we're off with me at the wheel and Andrew navigating. Why do cars (both your own and those being driven by others) always seem so much bigger, and the roads so much narrower, when you are driving on the wrong side of the road?

From here on my blogs are going to be a lot more about the scenery and the experience, rather than the history, although all that we've learned so far will definitely add to our experience as we head deeper into Norway.

The first thing to know is that the speed limit in Norway very rarely exceeds 80km per hour, with speeds slowing to 50km (or less) when travelling through any type of town. The penalties for speeding, even marginally, are extreme and can include jail...hence we (and the vast majority of drivers) stick to the limit. The roads are generally in good condition but can be narrow, windy and (on one particular occasion that comes to mind) quite scary. The Norwegians also love a tunnel, a bridge and a ferry, which all help to navigate the hundreds of mountains and waterways along any route. Bearing all this in mind, a 230km journey can take up to 4 hours without stopping.

Whilst we had already been introduced to one fjord, sailing in and out of Eidfjord on the ship, we weren't at all prepared for the absolute grandeur of what was to come over the next week. Words, nor photos, do the scenery justice but, hopefully, will provide some sense of what we experienced on our first day on the road...that's ice on those lakes...

Our destination, Flam, is a tiny village of only around 350 inhabitants (and about 450,000 tourists a year) that draws people for its beautiful location on the Aurlandsfjord, a branch of the vast Sognefjord and because it is home to the Flam railway and the base for fjord cruises, both of which we will do the next day.

First, however, we will check into our accommodation for the next couple of nights, the Flam Marina Apartments, a short 10-minute walk from the Marina itself.

A number of other things to know at this point are related to eating and drinking in Norway....

Firstly, despite being the home to at least 14 Michelin Star restaurants, including Noma, we are finding it very hard to eat 'well' here. By well, I mean something relatively tasty that isn't too heavy on carbs (I don't even know how you could function with a gluten intolerance in Norway), even the menus in the very best hotels and restaurants we have reviewed all comprise, without any exaggeration, 4 different pizzas, 3 different burgers, 1 fish dish (mainly whale - no thanks - or salted cod), or steak. Lunch is tougher with nothing but bread and pizza unless you want to eat in a restaurant and then it's back to the pizza and burger options. It's very odd. Anyway, Flam doesn't provide a lot of dining options and the best appears to be in our hotel, so we eat there both nights....I had the burger one night and Andrew had the pizza and we swapped the next night...

Secondly, we need to speak about the alcohol situation in Norway and this, for a fairly sophisticated country, is where things get even weirder...other than in a restaurant or other licensed premises (pubs are definitely not a thing here) you can not purchase any alcohol with an alcohol content greater than 4.7% anywhere other than the one provider, the Vinmonopolet. Anything less than 4.7% can be purchased in a supermarket - hence there are literally hundreds of Norwegian beers with exactly 4.7% alcohol.

To quote the Vinmonopolet website:

Vinmonopolet is state-owned and an important instrument for limiting the damaging effect of alcohol in Norwegian society. Established in 1922, responsible sales of alcohol has been our mission for over 100 years.

A key element in Norwegian alcohol policy is removing private profit from the sales of wine, spirits and strong beer and regulating sales of all alcoholic beverages above 4.7 percent alcohol.

In all of Norway, there are around 300 Vinmonopolet stores - I'm sure we'd have more bottle shops than that on Sydney's north shore alone!

Anyway, back in Flam and the next day is bright and sunny and we have an action-packed day of fjord cruising and a trip on the Flam railway planned.

The cruise takes around 90 minutes and the views are spectacular...

It's back to Flam for lunch (something in or on bread I'm sure although I can't quite remember) and then we are off on the Flam Railway...

The 20km each way journey takes around 60 minutes to climb nearly 900m from Flam to Mydral and is described as one of the most beautiful train journeys in the world. It was certainly very beautiful!

There is commentary along the way, describing how the railway was built between 1923 and 1940 as part of the vital link between Bergen and Oslo and, among other facts, told the story of Huldra, an elusive forest spirit from Norse mythology who would lure men into the woods with her beauty and her beautiful singing voice.

Nearing the top of the mountain, the train stops for a 10-minute break for passengers to hop off and take photos. It's during this stop that music can be heard echoing through the valley and a mysterious woman with long hair and a red dress emerges from the forest, dancing to a Norwegian folk song. She also magically disappears and reappears in a different spot (there must have been two of them)...it was a little random but also quite lovely - you can just see her in the distance here ...

Prior to leaving Flam the following morning, we set off on a 5km hike that climbs around 200m to a viewpoint near a waterfall (you're never far from a waterfall in Norway) back over the town. It's definitely a challenging climb unrelentingly upwards and I struggled a bit, which I'll put down to the effects of the cold I'm still battling slightly, but it was worth it...

Everything seems amplified in Norway, the grass is greener, the mountains higher and the air crisper (and colder).

The walk done, we are packed and heading in the direction of Stryn, our destination for tonight, but not before embarking on one of the scariest 20 minutes of my life, the 8 km trip, uphill to the Stegastein Viewpoint. This is the steepest road in Europe and involves hairy raising bends on a very narrow road, which is single laned at best in a number of places and being driven by not just cars but motorhomes and large buses. In hindsight we would never have taken this challenge on - both Andrew and I were completely shattered by the time we reached the top, and we still needed to come back down again. Obviously, there are no photos from the journey itself as I was too busy holding on, but I think my face pretty much says it all here...

No view is worth that!

The rest of the day is a bit of a blur but ultimately we did make it alive to Stryn and our overnight stay in a pretty hotel that had been in the same family for 6 generations - plus offered a very nice 3 course menu of zucchini soup, trout and a pannacotta!

Ultimately a day full of adventure!