It’s been zillion years since I logged in to wordpress, let alone blogging. I’ve been caught up with work and lost all the energy to write. It’s sad, I know. Adulting is hard.

On 13th May, I’ve got to have a break by taking a trip to… Norway!

It was an incredible journey to the far north, leaving warm Singapore to get showered by snow! :)

Why Norway?

Last year we saw a promotion from Lufthansa, all flat $700 return tickets to any destination in Europe. Bandi and I chose the furthest destination, Oslo. You would probably think Reykjavik (Iceland) is futher? Nope, wrong! Norway has the northest (I don’t think this is a word) point in the North, it’s called Nordkapp. We didn’t travel that far though. our furthest North point was Tromso.

Norway in the summer.

Being a super tropical species, I have a low tolerance of cold. Going to Norway in the summer seems pretty sensible to me. It was okay in Oslo (10-12 degrees) but once we reached Tromso, it dropped to ZERO! It was 3 degrees in the sunniest day though (yeah, like 3 degrees warmer makes a lot of difference). Guess what, I cancelled the hike (HAHA). I wouldn’t want to suicide.

I don’t like cold. I feel uncomfortable in the cold. Runny nose, aching bone, numb toes and cracked lips. I wasn’t built for arctic winds, that’s for sure.

Summer in Norway means 24 hours daylight. They call it Midnight Sun, when it was 12 midnight and the sun is still up. You can only see midnight sun in the Northern part, like Tromso. We literally had 24 hours daylight, we could have outdoor activities for 24 hours if it wasn’t so cold. :(

Fjords, Lakes, Waterfalls, Snowy Mountains, Fairy Tale.

I think Norway is like a Fairy Tale. It’s so beautiful beyond words. On the second day, we did a DIY trip from Oslo to Bergen using “Norway in the Nutshell” route. I made a vlog about it here.

I got chills in every turn, I couldn’t contain it, I teared once. Because it was just too much to handle. It was just so beautiful. Period.

Oslo has so many museums per square meters.

We ended up going to 7 different museums! National Gallery, Munch Museet, Vigiland Museet, Kontiki, Viking Ships, Astrup Fernley Museum and Noble Peace Centre. SO MUCH FUN! We learned a lot of stuffs too! :)

Smitten by Munch.

Edvard Munch had a sad story. He was a victim of death, disappointments and broken hearts. He poured his feelings in his art, he was a genius! He was considered as a very sensitive man in that era, being daring to express his feeling. So I guess, he was a feminist, eh? :)

I remember the moment I saw his painting named “Puberty” and I had goosebumps all over me (I still do now remembering it). The aura that the painting created was inevitable, as the whirlwind of emotion inside my heart. The young girl staring at me, wondering, questioning, scared, brave, what is it? I asked my self. What is it about puberty that is so sad that the dark soul left the young girl’s body.

I went to Munch Museum the next day to learn more about him. I watched his movie and cried when he talked about death. That people could be easily forgotten after they died. :(

What is the price of a soul?

Hiking the Pulpit Rock

Bandi and I spent the night in the mountain lodge, it was a bit scary because it was in the middle of nowhere and it has a haunting atmosphere. We had a very nice dinner, we enjoyed the scenery and relaxed, had a good talk and went to bed early to wake up in 3 am in the morning for the hiking. I will write a separate post about Pulpit Rock because I think it will benefit other people who would want to do a hike to understand the technical preparation.

Fun Facts about Norway (from a visitor perspective)

1. Norwegian people are generally loves to travel and adventurous. Maybe because of their country’s landscape that offers so much adventures and they are generally rich too so they can afford the time. My host at Bergen said that his dream life is to live in Bali. LOL
2. It’s the most pet friendly country I’ve ever known. Dogs follow their owner EVERYWHERE. Seriously, buses, trains, ferries, even planes. I met dogs everywhere! In a hike, in a restaurant, in the airport, you name it. What an amazing thing. ;)
3. Oslo is the most expensive city for a tourist (according to my opinion). Food in the restaurant costs 200-300 Nok ($30-$45) for a meal. A meal and a glass of beer can easily cost me $50, and it will be a whooping $100 for 2 persons. We mostly bought food in convenient store like Narvessen or 7/11 and also bought groceries from supermarket and cooked.
4. Their toilet paper are so soft and nice. Their toilet is always clean. Maybe the second best toilet after Japan.
5. Plastic bags are very rare. No paper tickets on our local flights, all sent to our passbook in our iPhone and just scan them. I love how environmentally responsible Norwegians are. They are very proud of being a green country.
6. Everything is self-service, another thing I like! Bandi and I love self-service because we get to do everything in our own pace. Living in Singapore, we were not really foreign with the practice, only whenever we had to pay something using cards, they would just hand over the machine. We had to use the machine ourselves.
7. Wifi are everywhere. And free. Seriously everywhere including IN THE PLANE.
8. It’s illegal to honk in Norway, as our bus driver told us.

The Northern Light Question

The most questions I got from people when they knew I visited Norway was “Did you get to see Northern Light?” Let me get the facts right. Summer means 24 hours daylight and Northern light (Aurora Beorealis) is only visible when the sky is dark. So you go figure.

More Photos and Videos

These are some of my favorite photos of Norway, and at the end of the post you can view my video of the Norway trip summary with a tune of Jack Johnson’s Better Together. :)

And now, the video! I hope you enjoy it! =)

I’ll update soon for another travel stories!

Cheers,

May, finally warm.