A Little Ice Music

So, our Norwegian weekend.

We flew in to Oslo, where we had a couple of hours to wander about and admire the architecture, the blue skies, the buskers playing the most beaten-up hammer dulcimer I've ever seen and the cold! Brrrr. We were still dressed in British winter clothes, so high- tailed it back to the warmth of the station fairly swiftly, where we caught our train to Geilo.

 

 

We had a lovely log cabin to stay in, and we soon got the thermal underwear on, so were well-equipped to enjoy the snowy beauty.

Also the husky sledge ride alluded to in the previous blog.

And the Ice Music Festival, which was the hook upon which this holiday dangled. The amphitheatre is carved out of snow, the musical instruments are carved out of ice, pictures painted on sheets of ice and lit from behind by candles decorate the outside walls of the arena and candles set into holes in the snow line and light the path to the venue.

The whole thing is magical.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Then we took a beautiful train ride across the Hardangervidda plateau. We passed through the highest station in Northern Europe at Finse (altitude 1222 metres) and some stunning scenery to reach journey's end at Bergen where we had to get our flight back home.

 

 

 

                                                                                                            Altogether the best Christmas present I've ever had, and a completely unforgettable and inspiring experience.

 

Comments

[Ardbeg Dashper-Hughes]

It really was a very splendid weekend.

I would happily go back to Norway. The topography is breathtaking, the people are friendly, the architecture is charming, the trains are nice, everything runs on time... if only the booze weren't so darned expensive, theer'd be a fine case for emigration!

Following our return, Bananagrams has become a staple favourite game, we have become increasingly aware of the fact that our log burner is nowhere near as good as the one we had in our little log cabin and we only use the insult 'husky bum' very sparingly... we now know firsthand how mean an insult that really is!

Goodness knows what they were fed on, but that smell... eurgh!

I am delighted that you enjoyed it as much as you did. Thank you for letting us share in your Christmas Present with you!

xx