Norway Travel Tips
So, to be honest, I don't think we can really say that we've been to Norway. I mean, we were in a very small part of Norway and Norway is a VAST country. We were in the Stavanger area most of our time. We did travel to Røldal to see the Stave church there, and mostly to just get a taste of the countryside. It is a beautiful place that I am sure we will return to. Next time Oslo for sure, but I am also super interested in going to the very far north.
It is a very friendly country. We felt safe and welcome the entire time we were there. Stavanger is a quaint seaside town with a large collection of 18th and 19th century wooden structures. It used to be known for it's sardines, but is now the Petroleum capital of Northern Europe. Which is why we were there, really...since Bob was there for work.
I compiled a few tips. I didn't book much of the trip myself so I cannot comment on hotels/hostels, etc...but, here is some general advice.
1) There are a great many museums for such a small city. The Heritage Museum and the Canning Museum had a deal where you could buy one ticket and see both museums in the same day. So, give yourself enough time to see both in one day. The big bummer thing for me not being there in the peak season is that many attractions are not open year round. Some are open only on Sundays for most of the year. Make sure to plan your schedule around these limitations if you are not there in the summer. We did spend some time at the beautiful Petroleum Museum(given that Petroleum is the whole reason we were there really).
2) There are not really restaurants that serve breakfast there. Because of this, I believe most hotels have a nice breakfast buffet--far larger than we are used to in North America. For us, this was a money saver. I'm almost embarrassed to admit, but we took food for the day from there. Bananas, apples, bread, cheese...whatever we could sneak into our bag. I haven't done that since I was single...even then, only once or twice. Of course, we also bought some stuff at a grocery store, but here's the thing...restaurants are crazy expensive there. I grabbed my lunch from the breakfast buffet. Treated myself to an amazing coffee at lunch time and ate my snacks on the go. This allowed me to not worry so much about what I paid for dinner. Which was often $50-60 CDN an entree and $15-$20CDN for an alcoholic beverage. Pop was around $8CDN. Still water tastes unbelievable and is free.
3) If you are hoping to buy a SIM card for your phone or device instead of depending on a plan from your provider back home...don't count on it. It was really difficult to buy one as a foreigner. We just used hotel wifi. For that reason alone, a hotel with free wifi is a must.
4) For this north American driver, it is worth mentioning that the roads there are small. There is little to no shoulder and, in rural Norway, I found many two way, one lane stretches where I thought it was questionable to put such a road(around windy mountain bends, etc). I got used to it. But, I was happy when Bob finally finished work and could drive.
5) We took the Fjord tour and loved it...we even drank water right from a waterfall. We also drove around the fjords a lot and the views from the ferries are amazing, too. We highly recommend travelling the national tourist routes. Great views almost the entire way. We found when we abandoned the tourist routes, there were many tunnels. Travel was much faster that way, but not as scenic.
6) It really is as rainy as they say. Raincoats and waterproof boots are a must because much of the countryside is gorgeous, if not a wee bit muddy at times.
This was a lovely, unexpected trip this year. A nice break from the grind of regular life. I thought I'd share some of the images I took before I take off for our next adventure. As a family, we are headed to Honduras. We are excited to be staying at a friend's home there on the coast. Those images will have more people in them, I promise ;) And, I still have lots of cool Norway images that I could share...just keep checking the blog. The blog is where it's at ;)
~ Dana :)
PS--Just a reminder about my Photography Meetup email me for details!!! Come join us and have fun!
In case you didn't hear, I'm in Norway :) My husband's job took him to Stavanger, Norway this week and so I decided to tag along. Thought I'd share a few image from our time here so far. And, if you want to follow us along on social media, check out my
2014 Travel Schedule
So, I have some news.
Life throws you curve balls and sometimes you just have to go with it.
For almost a year, we here in Pughville have been planning a cross Canada trek. The plan was to take the month of July and go east from Calgary--hopefully, all the way to the Maritimes which is a bucket list trip for me. Then, the first week in January, everything in our lives came to a screeching halt. True story.
The company my husband worked for suddenly found themselves closing their doors. It was completely unexpected. Luckily for us, my husband has quickly found a new job(Calgary is nothing if not a prosperous place for engineers), but what it does mean is that we will not be taking our trip as planned.
Now, we will find a couple of weeks in our schedule to go somewhere, but right now, we just don't know where that will be. I did have a list of people who were hoping to have me photograph their families while we were on our trek...and I feel awful having to let some of them down. I have decided that...since most of them are in the Toronto area...I will make the trek to Toronto in early July by myself. Right now, I am planning to arrive on the 4th and stay through to the 10th. I will take 5-6 sessions while I am there. Priority will go to the people who are already on my list. These travel sessions will cost $2000(+gst) and will include my time to capture, as well as, the complete set of digital files. Additional things can be added to the travel package, but this will be the base. A $500 nonrefundable deposit will be required to reserve your spot.
If you have inquired about a session with me somewhere across Canada this summer, I will be sending you an email shortly detailing this change and giving you the first opportunity to book in Toronto(and area--I know Muskoka is on the list). If you live in the Toronto area and are interested in a session with me during that time period, please email and get on the list. Priority will be given in order of contact. Finally, if you are a photographer who is interested in mentoring, I would be open to half day sessions while I am there as well.
Thanks for understanding. The good news is maybe I'll get to go to a tropical destination this year after all now! The lock on my backdoor froze shut yesterday. It got me thinking that it might be nice to go sit on a beach somewhere.
~ Dana :)
PS--I will be in Vancouver at some point this summer as well(and all points on the road from Calgary). I just haven't firmed up those dates yet. If you are from the area and would like a session or mentor session with me, please contact me to get on the wait list. Thanks.
