First created 28 Nov 2017. Version 1.0 8 Dec 2017. Jerry Daperro. London.

Norway

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A Brief look at Norway

Oslo Area

Oslo City

Aerial view of Oslo city. The museums are across the bay on the top left outside of the photo.

Central Railway Station

Opera House

Town Hall

Royal Palace

Oslo Cathedral

Opera House, Oslo

The Opera House was opened in 2008. It has a sloping roof that visitors walk onto the roof from street level. It is also home to Norwegian national ballet and opera.

Vigeland Park, Oslo

Frogner Park popularly known as in Vigeland Park.

Viking Ship, Viking Museum, Oslo

Viking Longship from 800-1000 AD. It is made of wood carved with patterns and with cloth sails.

Town hall Mural, Oslo

Norway is a relatively young independent country. It gained independence from Sweden in 1905 but its history date back to the Viking Age (c800-1030). The Oslo City Hall was built between 1931 and 1950. It has a huge hall in which the Nobel Peace Prize ceremony is held annually here. The wall of the hall was covered with murals depicting Norwegian life, history and culture. The murals were painted by two Norwegian artist, Henrik Sorensen and Alf Rolfson.

Stave Church, Heddal

Stave church is a type of wooden church built in norther Europe, during the Middles Ages between 800 and 1200. There are 30 Stave churches in Norway. Other stave churches can be found in England, Iceland, Sweden, Poland and Russia.

Heddal Stave church, the largest in the world. Exact date unknown. Normal attributed to 12C but the exact date is unknown.

Royal Palace, Oslo

Built in the 19C, today it is the official residence of the Norwegian monarch.

Oslo - Bergen railway, Bergensbanen

After the railway left Oslo, it went along the Drammen Valley and started climbing to a height of 1237m. It is the highest mainline railway line in Northern Europe. The mountain tops were still covered by glaciers even in summer months, Once the railway passed Finse, it was down hill all the way, passing Myrdal and, Voss to Bergen.

Bergen waterfront, Bryggen

Bergen Area

Bergen is the second largest city in Norway. Its colourful wooden warehouses and trading houses along the old wharf were once a centre of the Hanseatic League’s trading hub for dried fish. The wooden houses date back to 1702, when the Bryggen was burned down by a fire.

Bergen warehouse, Bryggen

Bergen became an Hanseatic League’s trading hub (Kontor) in 1350. It remained for 400 years, an almost monopoly in the trade of stock fish and fish oil. Note the street is covered by wooden planks, presumably to keep the goods dry and for drainage.

Bergen Aerial

The harbour of Bergen. Bergen is also known for its research in aquaculture and oceanography.

Stalheim Valley

Stalheim is a village along the road linking Voss to Gudvangen of Naeroyfjorden.

Guvangan, Noeroyfjorden

Sailing from Guvangan to Flam, the Naeroyfjord is one of the worlds most beautiful and dramatic fjords. It is an UNESCO’s World Heritage site.

Flam, Aurlandsfjorden

Huge cruise liners come to Flam to get onto the Flam Railway.

Kjosfossen, Flam Railway

The Nymph of Kjosfossen, along the Flam Railway came out to charm the visitors.

Voringsfossen

Voringsfossen with a total of 300m drop, the photo shows the second leg of 182m drop, with a rainbow.

Ovre Eidfjorden

Traditionally, the Norwegian put pasture on their roof to insulate the house from its surrounding. When the grass becomes too high they put their sheep to graze on the grass.

Vineyard in Eidfjorden

Along the fjord are some of the northern most vineyard of Europe. The latitude here is around 60 degree north.

Trondheim Area

Sunrise at Ervik

This is the area immediate north of Bergen on the coast but south of the Arctic Circle. It includes cities like Alesund, Molde, Kristiansund, Tronheim, Rorvik, Brjonnesund and Sandnessjoen. There are fewer foreign tourists at these latitudes. One begins to sense that this the ‘real’ Norway.

Before Sunrise at Ervik.

Alesund

Alesund

Alesund is known for its art nouveau architectural style. The city was rebuilt in 1904 after a fire.

Geirangerfjord

From Alesund, sailing inland into the mirror surface water of the Geirangerfjord, an area known for its natural beauty.

Geiranger Waterfall

Just before arriving at Geiranger, the ship passed the Geiranger Waterfall, which is popularly names as ‘The Seven Sisters Waterfall’.

Kristiansund

The Nordlandet parish church built in 1914 in Kristiansung. The city has a population of 24,500.

Trondheim

Trondheim is the ancient capital of Norway. The city is surrounded by river and canals.

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Trondheim Cathedral was originally built in 1070 and extensive restored in 1869.

Trondheim Cathedral Interior

The interior of the Trondheim Cathedral.

Rorvik Sunset

Because of the high latitude, sunlight has to travel though a lot of atmosphere to reach the surface. As a result the sunrise and the sunset are more colourful.

Torghatten

On the island of Torghatten there is a mountain with a hole in its heart. It is a huge tunnel with a huge openings on the other side of the mountain.

Bodo and the Lofoten Area

Arctic Circle

The village of Ornes is virtually on the Arctic Circle. Places inside the Arctic Circle would experience days of 24 hours daylight in the Summer and nights of 24 hours of darkness in the Winter.

Ceremony of Crossing the Arctic Circle

The unforgettable ceremony of Crossing the Arctic Circle with ice pouring down your back, only for the brave.

Tonnes

A dull morning with cloudy sky and bare mountain.

Mountains of Ornes

Because of the rotation of the Earth, many anticyclones laden with rain from the tropics, hit the Norwegian coasts bringing rains and snows. Around Ornes are some high mountains covered with snow all year round.

Ornes

The village of Ornes has a population about 2000. There are several trawlers moored in the port and around the area are enclosure for marine farming, primarily for salmon and Rainbow trout.

Bodo

This is Bodo shopping centre. It is not a mall but a street with a roof. Bodo is well within the Arctic Circle. Prices are noticeable cheaper and people are causally dressed. This scene could be anywhere in Europe.

Sailing out away from the high mountains of the mainland toward the island peninsula of Lofoten. In the Arctic most of the mountains are desolate and bare. The underlying rocks are exposed.

Lofoten Islands Peninsula

Lofoten Stormy Sea

A stormy sea at the exposed Lofoten island-chain peninsula.

Svolaer

The Fisherman’s Wife standing at the entrance of the harbour waving at the return of the husband. Svolaer, on the south coast of the Lofoten Peninsula.

Troll Fjord

The narrow passage into the Trollfjord.

Troll Fjord

At the entrance to the Trollfjord.

Marine Farming, Raftsund

Marine farming is all along the coast of Norway, mainly for salmon and rainbow trout. It is the second largest export of Norway after crude oil and gas. As wild salmon is in decline. Bigger and bigger marine farms are planned. New marine farms can accommodate as many and 1 million fish with crews living on board at sea.

Stokmarknes

Tromso Area

The ship houses the Coastal Express Museum. The town is located on the northeast of the Lofoten peninsula on the northern Norwegian Atlantic coast.

Risoyhamn

The very narrow and shallow sound on the north of the Lofoten chain of islands. In the distant is the village of Risoyhamn with about 200 inhabitants.

Hadstad

This is Harstad with a population about 25,000. It is part of the northern Norwegian Atlantic coast.

Finnsnes

Leaving Harstad and sailing into Finnsnes back near mainland again, with rain cloud covered mountains.

Tromso

This is Tromso, the Norwegian capital of the north. with a population 74,000, the 9 th largest city in Norway.

Tromso

This is Arctic Cathedral on the opposite side of the town.

Tromso

This is Tromso’s traditional high street with its timber shops in Summer. Note that under pavement hot water system was being installed to keep the pavement warm.

Tromso

This was the scene of high street in winter during a snow storm.

Tromso

Snowing in Tromso during the day time, in winter.

Skjervoy

Sunset on the way to Skjervoy.

Oksfjord

Misty coastal mountains. Oksfjord.

Hammerfest

North Cape Area

Hammerfest Has a population about 10,500. It is situated in the far north of Norway, in the North Cape Area, a group of towns facing the Barents Sea instead of the Atlantic Ocean. Being so far north, it has long winter nights and long summer sun. It is also a good place to see the Northern Lights.

Hammerfest

Northern Lights, Aurora Borealis over the town of Hammerfest in winter.

Honningsvag

Honningsvag is the northernmost city of Norway. It has about 2500 inhabitants. It is near the rich fishing ground of the Barents Sea. The timber building is used for processing the catch and to dried the fish. There are few trees in such high latitude. The trees here rarely exceed 3 to 4 metres.

Honningsvag

Honningsvag has a thriving port with many different kinds of trawlers and fishing boats.

Barents Sea

The Barents sea rather shallow with average depth of 230 metres. It is an important area for fishing and oil exploration.

Kjollelfjord

Kjollefjord is a fishing village of about 1000 inhabitants. It is one of the largest fishing village in northernmost Norway. Like Honningsvag, the main commercial activity are fishing and fish processing.

Barents Coast

Because of the cold climate here, there is little vegetation. The bedrocks are exposed giving a sense of harshness and desolation.

Barents Coast

The exposed bedrocks is a geologist’s paradise

Vadso

Vadso has a population of about 6,000. It was once settled by the Finns due to famine in the 19C. Today Finnish is still spoken in some households. The harbour is full of fishing boat and the tall building in the background is the Vadso Church.

Vardo

Vardo has a population about 2,000. It has a star-shaped fortress built in the 18C overlook the Barents Sea. Today, it has an US-Norwegian radar system, used to monitoring the Russian naval traffic in the area.

Kirkenes is only about 15 km from the Russian on the E105 highway. It is the first town to be liberated from the Nazi during the WW II by Russia.

Kirkenes

Many Russian goods and souvenirs are on display at the market square.

Kirkenes

All rights reserved. Rights belong to their respective owners. Available free for non-commercial and personal

use.

The End

Music – Howard Shore, from the soundtack Lord of the Rings, Twilight and Shadow.