The train ride between Oslo and Bergen is considered to be one of the must do activities in Norway courtesy of the scenery. It certainly didn't disappoint. I really enjoy train trips as a way to travel, you get to see parts of cities and countries that you would normally miss in a car or on a plane. That's if you have the time to spare which I most definitely do at the moment. I just about cooked for the first hour sitting in the blazing sun on my side of the train. There was a blind but after 3 attempts to pull it down I gave up and was lulled off into a head lolling sleep as we sped out of Oslo. Things had improved greatly when I woke up, some nice older lady had done the blind while I was asleep and her and her friend sang away in Norwegian next to me. Not literally sang, but if you get a chance to listen to people speak Norwegian you'll understand what I mean. They sound like they are singing with all the changes in cadence and pitch as they talk, it's actually really nice to listen to even if you can't understand a word!
I hadn't been sure what to expect of the landscape, it was pretty different to home but beautiful. Lots of rolling hills and forest to begin with then it began to open up more with little lakes and bigger, steeper mountains. The further west we went the more sparse it became with bare rock poking through and patches of snow turning up. One thing I love about Scandinavia is most families have summer houses, or the kiwi equivalent of a bach. Often, and this was the case on the Oslo to Bergen route, they are in the middle of nowhere surrounded by forest with a lake nearby. A little slice of heaven during summer for walking, and winter for skiing. I attempted to take photos of this as it all zoomed by but every single photo has a lovely reflection off the window of me inside, need to practice my photography on train skills.
Bergen turned out to be a cute little seaside town that was bustling with what seemed to be mostly tourists. Once I found the hostel I was out the door again for a wander round with a gorgeous setting sun. The biggest attractions seemed to be the funicular up the hill and the old part of town. Being right on the edge of Norway I had considered attempting to get on some sort of boat cruise but the Norwegian prices quickly put a stop to my wishful thinking.
The next morning I was up bright and early courtesy of my room mates who left at 3am and 5am. Who plans to catch a train at 3am?!! I was thinking of going up the funicular and having a jog around up the top but that extra 2 minutes getting a coffee at breakfast meant I just missed the first ride up and would have to wait for another 30mins. So in typical Greta fashion I decided I could probably beat the next funicular if I ran/walked to the top. Success! Beat it by 10 minutes which meant I had the whole viewing area to myself and saved $40, winning! A wee jog/explore around the top filled up my morning before I had to be on the bus and to the airport. Next stop, Stavanger and Team Matty and Van.
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