Norway, 2004

Norway (Feb 2004)

Bodo (pronounced like Buddha) is a beautiful Norwegian port city on the North Sea just north of the Arctic Circle. Bodo is at the mouth of a rather long fjord with the town of Rognan, our final destination, at the far end of the fjord. We arrived from Oslo on the morning flight and waited in Bodo for the rest of our group to arrive. The group eventually consisted of a few Saudis, a Belgian inspector, our Norwegian host and myself.

While we waited our host took us to the Bodo Museum. The museum contained an excellent set of displays that chronicled the local area’s efforts during the Second World War. If you’re ever in the area I highly recommend visiting the museum.

It was February but it wasn’t as cold as I expected for being north of the Arctic Circle. A light coat and a pair of gloves were enough to keep warm. I am experienced in winter driving so we divided up the group between my car and our Norwegian host’s car. We drove along the fjord heading east on snow-packed narrow roads that rose and fell with the contours of the land beside the fjord. The road would drop steeply from mountaintops to just a few feet above the fjord. There was a slight chop to the water and it was a very cold looking, inky blue.

I was thoroughly enjoying the drive but my Saudi passengers, not used to snow or winter roads, looked extremely nervous. The car was a front wheel drive VW Golf with studded tires so I wasn’t concerned about the back end sliding around a little. My passengers sure were, especially when we were close to the water.

We arrived in Fauske and checked into the best, and only, hotel in town. The hotel restaurant was excellent and I had a great slab of musk ox for dinner.

The next morning we continued up the road to Rognan, a town of about 2,000 people with around 5,000 in the entire area served by the town. The largest employer in town used to be the insane asylum but two moves by the Norwegian government in the 1980s changed that. It was decided that the insane would be better served in Oslo where they could be close to hospitals and their families. It was a reversal of the previous “out of sight, out of mind” philosophy. The government also thought it would be a good idea to diversify the remote northern economies and encouraged businesses and factories to relocate northward. I didn’t ask how many of the factory workers used to be asylum workers but I kept a running tally in my head as the week wore on.

Rognan is a relatively quiet town, even in the summer. There is one hotel and the downtown is four or five square blocks. The shops are all small and they close up early with most of them, including the beer store, closed by 4:00 in the afternoon. The hotel dining room had a great view of the fjord. The dining room served good, basic meals and I had a reindeer steak wrapped in bacon one night that was fantastic. The steak was extremely tender for game and the bacon kept it from being too dry.

I have never slept in a smaller bed than I slept in at the hotel in Norway. Even as a kid I had bigger beds. They were big enough, barely, that my arms would not hang over the sides. My calves hung over the end of the bed. One of our group was used to bigger, grander hotels and insisted on having a bigger bed. The hotel managed to rope two little beds together but he still wasn’t happy.

We spent 4 days in the factory and we impressed with what we saw of the place. The food in the factory cafeteria was simple but really well prepared and tasty. We would get a cut of meat, usually chicken or fish, vegetables, either potatoes or rice and a dessert. There was always a big jug of fresh milk on the table.

I make it a habit of getting out of the hotel and cruising the streets in the evenings when I travel. The fresh air and exercise are good for me and I get to see some of the town. Usually there is a little bar somewhere along the way a guy can stop in and have a pint. I found a pub in Rognan but it was nearly empty and I found out why when I got my tab. Beer was around US$9 per pint. Our Norwegian host explained that most Norwegians drink at home due to the excessive taxation on alcohol. Up until then I had enjoyed Norway.

We headed back to Bodo along the south side of the fjord, along a road that swung far from the fjord into the surrounding mountains. One of our hosts had a small cabin up in the mountains that they would cross country ski into for weekends during the winter. We parked on the side of the road behind him and he pointed way off into the mountains to show us where his mountain retreat was. Several people in our group expressed doubt over the wisdom of having a cabin that you couldn’t actually drive up to.

We made it back to Bodo and checked into the hotel for the night. I ducked the group that I had been with for the last week and walked through the cold night air along the waterfront looking for a decent bar. Apparently this was a unique waterfront in the waterfronts of the world as there were no bars. I found a coffee that sold beer and quickly ran up a large tab.

I would highly recommend a trip to northern Norway for anyone interested in mountain scenery, fjords, friendly people and good food. If you drink beer there are better, cheaper places to go.