Christmas in Norway. What to do on Christmas here

Christmas time is here so I decided to give a little info what can you do/see/taste here on Christmas. 
As Norway is big on wintersports even without the permanent snow  there are a lot of places with fake snow where you can go skying near Oslo or take a trip to Geilo or Beitostølen where there are mountains for the real deal. If you're into iceskating then there are several places to go.  In te city center here in Oslo there is a free skating place, that is if you have your own skates but you can rent them and the price is not that expensive. 

Besides sports you can enjoy many Christmas markets not only to shop but also taste some local food and bavarages.
Speaking about Norwegian Christmas food -there are many different ways and places you can try the local Christmas food. I've asked Norwegians to tell me about their number 1 Christmas food and the answer always was Pinnekjøtt-a traditional dish made out of  smoked and dried  lamb meat mostly typical to Western and Northern Norway but gaining it's popularity through out the country. You can get it at any local grocery store or some of the local restaurants. This is usually served with traditional mandelpoteter- a type of boiled potatoes and kålrabistappe- mashed swede puree.  

Besides that pork ribs are also a traditional Christmas food.  Besides that there is the tradititonal  Lutefisk -fermented fish. This is something more traditional to Sweden and I can't say I've heard a lot of Norwegians actually eat this but this is also available in any grocery store. Now on to the drinks. In Norway I was surprised to find out that  Glühwein is not that popular and not really available in stores here but Norway has a variety of Christmas beers which are actually  quite good. Of course that depends on your taste but as I am from Latvia and we favour darker ale type beers these are pretty nice.  There is also the tradititonal Glögg which is a warm alcoholic or non alcoholic beverage -it comes in different variations . This is usually made  out of mulled wine and coniac or brandy ,heated up with honey and some fruits. All the spices are available in the grocery store as well.
The tradition in Bergen is to make a Gingerbread city  so you can also check that out. Bergen is a gorgeous place to be at Christmas.

There are also many concert and charity events you can attend and just enjoy the atmosphere here.
If you ask me what to do on Christmas in Norway here is what I would say- rent a cabin in the more mountainess area , get some food and stuff , get a Christmas tree and spend the time there. Offline. Just you and your friends  and family and I guarantee you will have the best time ever

The magical Møre og Romsdalen.

Møre og Romsdalen is one of the most beautiful regions in Norway.  This is where you find Ålesund and Atlantic road, Trollstigen and Geirangerfjord.
We traveled there in may but june is a bit better. The mountain passages are open and the weather is better. We stayed t the Scandic hotel in Ålesund which was great  but I recommend you do that only while you're in Ålesund when you're travelling around the region, you can find mountain cabins to stay at. Do rent a car. Travelling here with your own may be difficult due to the fact there is little to no highways going to this region and most of them are going through mountains so they may be closed.  We just rented a car and traveled the region this way. You can do it straight away at the airport.  The bus from the airport does not go past 8 pm so if you have a hotel near by , you should think about a car.

We started by checking out Ålesund. This is a wonderful small town, reconstructed in art-art nouveau style after a fire took place at 1904, when a large part of town center burnt down which made other cities reconsider safety of the tradititonal building style in Norway, the materials, the way the buildings are spaced and so on. Now the little town is as romantic as it gets- little art-nouveau  houses,  the view to the ocean from one side and the mountains from the other. The harbour is right in the middle of town center as well as fjellstua- a great look out point at the top of the hill with a restourant. The climb is fairly easy , there are stairs all the way up to the top.

Othet things you should visit is the aquarium, the Ålesund church and Storhaugen lookout point.

The next day we went to Geirangerfjord. There are different ways to get there but we drove via Sykkylven and Hellesylt then by boat to Geirangerfjord. There are some tours going to Geiranger from Ålesund  but as it was may and only the beginning of the season so that was not an option. Plus car gives you liberties that no tour can. Going through mountains in May in this region there is still a lot of snow and the scenery is beautiful. Taking the road number 60 after Sykkylven you will be passing the Sunnmøre Alps, gorgeous mountain peaks.

 Most of these road will go through mountain passages and verity of tunnels as well as ferries so be prepared to take a lot of them during your trip. On our way to Hellesylt there is a gorgeous look out point to the entrance of Geiranger. Here we took a ferry going through the  Geirangerfjord . On the way you can hear the story of fjord and local farmers which is really interesting.  All of the Geiranger farms are abandoned due to the conditions here but it is fascinating how these people survived here and what they needed to do so. 

Arriving at Geiranger we take a brief walk and up and down the stairs next to the waterfall and check out a local shops by the port. After that we tarvel a bit upwards in Dahlsnibba direction to hike up the Storseterfossen. This is a very interesting place where you can walk behind the waterfall.  The hike is not that difficult and there is a brick trail practicly all the way up to the top.  This place is breathtaking . The waterfall, the mountain view is just magestic. This place is so quiet at the top becausr the rock hovers over the waterfall and when you get to the waterfall it is just something. A definite must.

After that you can go further up the main road to Dahlsnibba. But we drove further up the Geiranger serpentine to the view point and further away to the Trollstigen national tourist route. This is the road that connects Geiranger to Åndalsnes.  This is the road you can find several waterfalls, the Trollstigen serpentine  mountain passage and Trollveggen. The wonderful nature sights are complimented by modern architecture making this a wonderful route to take. 

As it was may the part of Trollstigen was closed so we could only travel this much. But the region is very beautiful. The Trollveggen is the tallest vertical rock wall face in Europe and  eventhough we couldn't go through Trollstigen  we still came to see Trollveggen and  check out Trollstigen.  Trollstigen has always been an important trade route in this region.  The new road was only built in 1916 but you can still walk the old horse road which has been there for centuries.

We leave to travel back to Ålesund and come back the next day for Åndalsnes. Here is where we take a hiking trip to Rampestrekken via Romsdalstrappa. This hike is one of the most demanding I have taken because of the steep climb upwards. At the top you will find another lookout point where you will see the fjord and Trollvegen. The view is absolutely fantastic but the climb maybe difficult and scary if you have fear of heights, so be sure to take water and good shoes with you.
After that we travel to one of the most known attractions in Norway- Atlantic road. This is where you can find Storseisundbrua, the curved  bridge,

This road connects several little islands and fisheries . The region needed a better transportation route for  quite some time in order to transport the fish and sea products and so the road was finally finished in 1989 and was nominated in 2005 as construction of the century. A definite must to enjoy the views of Atlantic ocean and the beautiful constructions them self.
All in all the region is gorgeous and there are so many attractions and thing to see a book  would not be enough to describe it all. The main things I can advise you is to travel here in June so every attraction would be available, be sure to take at least one boat ride here so you can see the fjords from all of  the angles, take some time and hike somewhere in this region , it most definitely  will be worth the while and if you have more time than we did , check out the Mardalfossen which is gorgeous site on one of the tallest waterfalls in Europe, as well as Rauma railway ,Valldal and Tafjord. whether you like architecture, nature or just the athmosphere, this region is for you. 

Travelling around. The things you need to know

Norway is a beautiful country to see, but it is also not very densely populated and there can be great distances between cities and nature so there can be a lot of moving arround involved.
Usually plain tickets are quite cheap but when it comes to bus or train, it can get very expensive. You can also come to Norway by personal car with a ferry, but there are things to take into consideration. Any technical help in Norway is expensive,  so you need to have a great insurance but also be very sure that your car is up to technical challenge of driving in different terrains specially winter which is october in the more mountainess areas.
Which is why my suggestion is that you get here by a plane and rent a car. It is not as expensive as going arround with a public transport if you are more than one person and  it is much safer than going with your own car as these companies usually have better local ensurance and cover service expenses. There is also a considerable amount of electrical wehicles avaliable for rent but I would not advise them other than getting around the city because  mountains are a challange for them . As I hears from my freinds, the car lost about 20% charge by just going up the hill . So they are a good option in the city but not in the country side. If youare more fitness driven you can travel by bike. There are great routes around country and people are very tolerant torwards cycling.
The other thing is where to stay . Hotels in Norway are fabulous but also can cost a bit.  Another thing is that if you are not opting for McDonald's eating at restaurants can also be quite costly. That is why  if you are not staying in the city I suggest  mountain cabins called Hytta in Norwegian. They are usually cheaper than hotels and can accommodate more people, and they have a kitchen so you can cook for yourself.  You can book one through official sites like booking.com or others but I  suggest trying airbnb this time. Norwegians usually own a cabin themselves so you can get one for a cheaper price and better equipped. a cabin can usually cost from 50 to 100 euros and can usually accommodate 4-7 people. It depends.  If you stay in the city that can get tricky. But there are options. I recommend a Scandic hotels- they are great and have a wonderful breakfast option which can save you some money . It is also a bit cheaper to book it from their website . They have great location usually in more than one location in the city. Other than that a hotel room in Oslo for example will be about 100 euros for night, depending on where you are staying. Yet again Airbnb vil probably have cheaper options. 
If you ask me I suggest you start in one city , check it out for one or two days and then rent a car and drive up to another city, soaking up as much nature as possible. For example from Oslo to Bergen or Oslo to Ålesund. Rent cabins for an authentic Norwegian experience and also to save a bit of money.

Over Norwegian mountains- Geilo-Hardangervidda-Eidsfjod-Odda

This is quite the route but it is possible to do it in one day. As usual  we start from Oslo and I suggest you start early specially in the fall because the day is too short to see anything in the evening.  one stop you should make on your way to Geilo as we did is the Torpo stave church. This church is constructed as far as 1160. The church is very small and that is way there is a newer , bigger church built right next to it, leaving this as a tourist attraction. It is only opened in summer but church is pretty impressive all throughout the year. The best part about it for me  is the portal - the carvings are just magnificent. Hard to believe but in fact  this use to be the religious center of the region including the much bigger Ål town. This is only stavechurch that is preserved from middle ages in this region so it is most definitely worth stopping,
Next stop is just above Geilo, the Hallingskarvet mountain. Here is one of the best hiking places I have come across in Norway. There a 2000 steps built to the top of a 1600 m tall mountain where you can choose how you come down from it or whether you want to continue to a bit higher mountain. The rock steps where built by sherpas from Nepal and the hike is actually really easy and doable within 2 hours (round trip). What should be taken into consideration is that the steps can get very icy so you should have the right kind of shoes  to climb this. In a clear sunny day you are able to see Hardangervidda from the top of it.

From here we decided to go further from Geilo to Hardangervidda tourist route. As I have written about it before (check here) I won`t  focus on it here. 

Crossing Hardangervidda we come to Eidsfjord and this is one of the branches of Hardanger. Hardanger is also known as the fruit basket of Norway as most of the fruits are grown here. That is something you will see quite a lot here , people having fruitgardens. Of course that is when you will not be looking around at the breathtaking views. The tall walls of Hardanger , the blue waters of fjord are just gorgeous .  

Continuing on the road 7 we come to town Odda where the Trolltunga is located. If you have a second day to see it , do it but be sure to not do it in winter if you are not experienced enough and do take in consideration that the hike in total may take 8 hours so  if the day is shorter than that I do not recommend it. For full hike click here. 

If you do the one day trip you and the daylight is still there you can check the other Hardanger tourist route and see the waterfalls near Odda on your way to Oslo. If you don't turn back and do a round trip via Drammen you can check out the Heddal stavechurch- the biggest in Norway, which is lid up so it is possible to see it in winter as well.  Also take into consideration, the temperatures in the mountains are much lower and wintertires may be needed in the beginning of October.

The full route you will find here.

Norwegian mountains -Rondane national park

This october we did a two day trip to Rondane national park. As we live in Oslo , we started on saturday from Oslo and took the E6 road and through Lillehammer  went 300 km upwards to Otta town.  From here we drove to Rondavatnet which is the heart of Rondane national park. We wanted to hike one of the easiest  2000 m mountains in Norway  - Veslesmeden. The road to Rondavatnet was blocked approximately 6 km before  Rondavatnet . So we had to park our car and walk up to there. After that we walk those 6 km there was still 6 km hike to the top waiting for us. But the day is nice , the sky is so clear that you can actually see Jotunheim from here -the largest mountain Plato in Norway.

Rondane is Norway's oldest National park dating back from 1960ties . The name comes from Rondavatnet - the lake in the middle of these mountains. There are several tops to choose from for hiking over 2000 m . Even if you do not want to hike , you may still ho see the mountains , enjoy a nice walk and the stunning scenery and maybe even see wild reindeer.

We choose to do the hike. As expected, it was very time consuming and tiring but the view on the top is fantastic -you can see the whole Rondane. Technically the hike isnt that demanding as the path doesn't get that steep  that you have to use hands but be sure to get some hiking boots before that and be very careful with the rocks on the top as there are some loose stones where you may het hurt. I used running shoes and slipped  on a rock spraining one ankle and jamming the stone into the other .

The golden rule is that you get down from the mountain before 6 o'clock which we manage but beraly and the walk back to parking is done completely in dark.  The whole hike was about 26 km .

From there we go to our cabin in Skåbu hyttegrend - a traditional norwegian cabin for a great price and a very nice owner. There we rest for the night.

Next morning  we travel further north to Snøhetta utsiktspunkt in Dovre. This is a little viewpoint located in Hjerkinn.  Here you have to walk upwards the path 1 km . On your way there is some information given about reindeers in Norway as this lookout is supposed to be a place to safely watch reindeer.  The lookout is made by world-renowned Snøhetta desigh company - the same people to design Oslo opera house and Barcode buildings in Oslo. They got their name from Dovre Plato mountain Snøhetta. The view is fantastic and the lookout is very modern -all and all a great place to visit.

From here we travel to Rondane national tourist road. The road goes along side the Rondane mountains and offers wonderful views . The route is equipped with couple of modern viewpoints to enjoy the scenery. You can also visit an old watermill on the road. With a beautiful waterfall.

From her we travel through mountains to see  the wooden  Ringebo Stavechurch.  Parts of this church date back to 13th century and it is surrounded by a cemetery . Finding it may be a bit tricky if you come from Rondane, because it is not located in the center of Ringebo but a bit further on the way to Lillehammer.

From here we leave to see Lillehammer ,particularly the Olympic center. This is the town that people remember for different things- to some it is the place where Winter Olympics '94 took place, for me it is more about the Norwegian show Lillehammer - great  comedy show.
The town it self is not too big and located on the coast of the biggest Norwegian lake - Mjøsa.
Surrounded by mountains this was a great place to host the Olympics and there was a ski-jump trampoline built for this which rises right above the town, so some great views a guaranteed here.
Due to the lack of daylight and general tiredness we travel back to Oslo.
What you need to know taking this route is that the E6 is a great road from Oslo but the first few kilometers there will be quite a lot of toll stations and may round up to 300 nok fro a roundtrip. Rondane is not a road that closes in winter so this route is possible during the winter as well but keep in mind that for a beginner the mountains can be too dangerous to climb so do not risk it if you are not experienced in this.
  

Directions  and the route you can find here

A three day trip to Sognefjord-Hardangervidda-Jostedal

This weekend we took a tour around the biggest fjord in Norway as well as the longest in the world- Sognefjord. Located more than 300 km from Oslo in the municipality of Sogn and Fjordane , this place has the most breathtaking scenes to offer. 

We started on friday . There is a long way to go as Norwegian mountain roads do not allow to go fast as it is dangerous and the days in November are short so in order to be able to get the most out of daylight we decided to spend the night as close to our first sightseeing object as possible, So we traveled to Sogndal and got a nice cabin  50 km away from the  Nigard glacier. After  5 hours in  the car, we finally reached our destination. We spent the night in a nice traditional Norwegian cabin.

The next day we got up at seven and went to the  nearby Nigards glacier. The glacier is a part of the bigger Jostedals glacier, which is located over the mountain-es area and covers over 487 square km and reaches the height of 1600 m above sea level and at it's thickest reaches about 600 m . The branch we chose to visit is called Nigardsbreen which is located next to Gjerde town and is easily accessible by car. When entering the area you can choose to leave the car and walk for 5 km or pay 40 nok and drive up  to the parking spot  where it is only 2 km walk to the glacier.

Upon arrival you can see the impressive size and majestic coloring of the glacier from  far away . It seems to be much closer than it actually is. From the parking  you will have to hike to the glacier, but it is not a demanding hike, rocks can only get a bit slippery . When you finally reach the glacier, you will be surprised by the color of it - it is a beautiful shade of blue. This color is due to the weight and the pressure. Ice normally contains a lot of air bubbles in it, but the pressure in the glacier squeezes it out of it so it is more dense an thus blue. As it is raining the ice is slippery so we do not try climbing on it. 

Without proper equipment I would not suggest to do that. The size and the massiveness of this place is just breathtaking.  This place reminds of the processes that formed fjords, when giant glaciers carving fjords from mountains.

After that we leave for the Aurlandsfjellet national tourist road. The road is 47 km long , narrow path over the mountain plato and reaches up to 1300 m in height. The road is dangerous during winter so it closes in November because of the snow. We were unfortunate and the road was closed already. However parts of it are still accessible during winter such as the Stegastein lookout point. So we reach the closed part from one side of the road, then go down to the Lærdal Tunnel- the worlds longest road tunnel.

The design is unique - in order to help drivers with the 20 min drive and have them not falling asleep there are 3 cave-like stops  designed to resemble sunrise and split the road in to 4 sections so drivers can have a rest and continue the drive.  The tunnel is 24,5 km long and was designed in the 90'ies . Before that there were to ways to reach Oslo from Bergen- in the summer  you could use the Aurlandsfjellet road or take a ferry to Skjolden and then drive to Oslo from there.

After that we  went to Stegastein look out point. This  construction hovers over 30 m into air over 650 m height and offers a view over  Aurlandsfjord- a part of  the Sognefjord.

  After that ,the daylight is almost over and we leave for our cabin at Gudvangen.

From there the next morning we leave for Tindefoss next to Voss. The cascade is a magnificent staircase of waterfalls easily accessible from the e16 road.

We take a trun and cross over Hardangervidda- another National tourist route over mountains starting from Eidfjord and going up to a 1200 km plato ending at Ustaoset. On the way you can see the one of the most well known waterfalls in Norway- Vøringsfoss . This is one of the most  visited sites in Norway due to the amazing view from the cliffs that surround Måbødalen. The waterfall is located on Bjoreio river. The flow here is regulated by the the Sysendalen waterdamp located not that far from the waterfall.   There are 3 look out points to see the view-2min, 5 min and 20 min walk from parking. You should be extremely careful here as there are several people who have fallen to their death from the cliffs.

As mentioned before a bit further you can see the Sysendalen  dam with power plant. Also an impressive view to see. This damn was built in 1977 and is located 880 m above sea level.

from there we  finished the tourist route and went back  to Oslo. Due to the time limit and the short day time in November we did not have as much time but if we would do the same route in  august or July I would add the Sognefjellet route and Hardanger route but as it was the trip was great. There were many great sites and impressions to soak in.

Bergen: the lesser known Bergen: Toftøy power plant

Bergen is truly a wonderful city , with a lot of world- known  places tourists are eager to visit every year, such as, Brygge, Fisketorg and Fløibanen. But there are some  places how beautiful they may be yet slipped under the radar of common knowledge. Bergen has a rich history and there are a lot of things left by to remember it.
I want to start with the Toftøy power plant. This power plant was an experiment with wave power and was owned by two different  companies and had two turbines. The plant was built in  the 80`s  and destroyed by winter storms in 1988-1989. The waves were strong enough to destroy the bridge and rip a piece out of it to through it 5 m part from the bridge itself.

The destroyed bridge.

There are two sites where the turbines originally placed - one under the bridge and the other  right next to the cliff facing the ocean. Both of the turbines where removed. The site itself is an interesting, haunting place to visit, but be aware of  safety here.

Do get here you can take a bus from the center of Bergen to Øygarden right til the Toftøy stop. Make sure to check the schedule beforehand as the last bus back to the city is about 8 o`clock. To get to the location after that you should just take the Bølgekraftvegen right up til the plant. If you are coming here by car, you are going to need to park right next to this road because it is closed for cars,

resurses:

Bølgekraftverkene i Øygarden

Tur til Bølgekraftverket på Toftøy

Ocean wave plant destroyed by winter storm