Kay and Sylvia's Norwegian Adventure 2015: Kvernes Stave Church and the Atlantic Road

Friday, July 10, 2015 (Day 11)

We got up around 5:30 am so that I could go to a hotel in Trondheim to do the blog. We docked around 6:30. Some went on excursions to the Nidaros Cathedral (which we saw on Day 3) or a walking tour of the city. I had a city map and found the Comfort Hotel & Congress Trondheim about 4 blocks from where the ship would dock. It was cold and a bit rainy, but it was nice to get out in the fresh air and walk. (Heard from someone on the walking tour that, despite the rain, it was great to be outside and getting some exercise!) This was not like any Comfort Inn I've stayed at in the U.S.! It was so swell that it took me some time to figure out how to get water from the 'sink' in the bathroom. Really elegant. Mother worked on the quilt and I did several more days of the blog.

We got back to the ship about 9:45, just in time to have a bite for breakfast. As we were eating, we passed Munkholmen, the 'Monk Island' just off shore from Trondheim. As I read on the back of the Trondheim map, there were a couple of places I would have loved to have gone for an excursion:

Sverresborg - Trondelag Folk Museum; it's an open-air museum of cultural history with more than 80 antique buildings from the region
Munkholmen, which I viewed from the ship; this was Trondheim's execution ground in ancient times; Benedictine monks built a monastery on the island in the 11th century - probably one of the first two monasteries in Scandinavia; today it is a popular recreational area
Nordenfjeldske Kunstindustrimuseum (National Museum of Decorative Arts); design and decorative arts from the 15th century until today
Stiftsgaarden - the Royal Residence; Stiftsgaarden was built during 1774-78 and is the largest wooden palace in Scandinavia; it is the official Royal Residence in Trondheim

Mother and I would have gone to one of these places on our own, but we were in Trondheim from 6:30-10:00 am; museums open at 10:00! Guess I'll just have to return on one of my student teaching trips.

After breakfast we ran into some of the people from Tasmania again (June, Alison, and Sue) and just talked. It was fun to hear about the success of their band, their tour, and life in Tasmania. They were so surprised to hear that Mother was 94; they guessed mid-80s! While we were talking one of them announced "We have internet!" After 10 full days with no access on the ship, that was a big news item. As one person we talked with said - "It was advertised that we would have internet We were told the band width would be narrow, however, we were to have access to the internet. Intermittent internet is different than NO internet!"

We had lunch with Louise and Gunilla, our dinner partners from Stockholm. We have enjoyed getting to know them and sharing our adventure with them. After getting up so early, I was quite tired so had to take a nap after lunch. It's ironic that I had to get up so early to do the blog off the ship only to have the internet finally working on the ship and I had to nap! Went to the Panorama Room at 2:30 pm to work on the blog. There were some French people playing rummicube next to us! I had planned to learn how to fillet a salmon and make gravelaks with the chef on the ship, however, due to a lack of interest, it was cancelled. They only needed four people and there were only two of us interested!

We arrived at Kristiansund at 4:30, which was the beginning of our final excursion - the Atlantic Road. Kristiansund is situated on three islands. People have lived around this harbor for at least 8000 years and the town now has about 24,000 people. Due to its location, the city has provided the town with a wealth of opportunities in fishing, shipbuilding, and oil industries. It is known as Norway's 'cured cod capital' because of its long time export of salted dry fish. Our guide told us the policy for living in Kristiansund: don't paint your house the same color as your neighbor's house! Due to the islands, we traveled through a tunnel 250 meters below sea level. This tunnel had a 10% decline - a bit more than the tunnel to Halsnoy, which was 8%. The Norwegians are amazing engineers with all the tunnels below sea level and through mountains!

We visited the Kvernes Stave Church, one of 29 stave churches left in Norway. Kvernes was built around 1300, a bit later than many of the other stave churches. Originally it had no pews, windows or painting inside. The inventory from 1600 included a medieval altarpiece. In the 1600s the inside was painted acanthus style on the walls and the ceiling; acanthus style looks like folk-like leaf scrolls. The church, painted red on the outside, fell into disuse during the 19th century. A new Kvernes Church was built adjacent to the old church. We had guides giving all the information in English, German, and French.

Before returning to the ship, we stopped for dinner at a small restaurant for bakaloa, a stew with reconstituted cod fish, onions, tomatoes, and potatoes, in a tomato 'soup.' For the first time while on the ship, we had flat bread and water! The dessert was caramel custard; it was topped with whipped cream and a berry for a nice presentation. As we were leaving, one of the servers was outside with a dried cod fish. Mother got all the information about lutefisk (originally made from dried cod fish) from this lady and our guide. The fishing season is in winter (January-March) and then dried; conditions are perfect in northern Norway for making stockfish. Dried fish like this can be stored for years.

We were amazed to see real forests and so much farm land. Along the way we passed where a doctor named Sandviken who collected treasures from the area and then gave his collection to Maihaugen in Lillehammer and is known as the Sandviken Collection, which Mother and I have seen. We also learned Jarlsberg cheese is from this area.

We then traveled on one of Norway's most visited tourist destinations, the Atlantic Road. It is five miles long, built on a total of eight bridges and surrounded by a picturesque landscape. The construction is amazing and has been recognized internationally for its beauty and construction. In 2005 the Atlantic Road was named the the Construction of the Century and one of only 18 national tourist roads in Norway. This was a lovely way to spend the last evening with the ship.