- It was another early morning for the Olympic Questers. Breakfast was served at 6:30 am and we left at 8 am to walk to the train station to catch the 8:43 am train to Voss. The train ride was dark most of the way because the sun doesn’t rise until around 9:30 am. It was also foggy the whole way, making it difficult to see the views. We had an entire car on the train reserved for our group, and all the seats were facing backwards, which made it difficult for those who get motion sick (@kate). We played games on the train to pass the time, such as the broom game, cards, the camping game, and some were dozing off, trying to catch up on sleep.
It was an hour long train ride to Voss so we arrived around 10 am. We then had13 minutes to catch our bus to take us to the boats in Gudvangen. Our bus driver informed us that Voss is a town of 5000 and 11 of the citizens are olympic medalists in cross-country, and downhill skiing. Impressive, huh?! Fun Fact: the law in Norway requires all bus passengers to wear a seatbelt during transit. The hour long bus ride was very scenic and students were constant occupied taking photos, videos, time-lapses, etc; and as usual, some were sleeping.
After nearly 3 hours of travel, we arrived in Gudvangen!! (totally worth the trip btw) Gudvangen had amazing views of the fjord, a small shop, a cafe, an old viking ship, and an old bridge. We got to explore the city centre for about 40 minutes before we boarded our ship for a two hour tour of the fjords. You may ask, what is a fjord? Well let me tell ya! As defined by the Oxford Dictionary a fjord is: a long, narrow, deep inlet of the sea between high cliffs, as in Norway and Iceland, typically formed by submergence of a glaciated valley. Since Norway is literally mentioned in the definition, you can imagine how breath-taking they truly were. Fjord Norway was created by a succession of ice ages and has not changed much since then.
There were a few announcements about the history of the fjords and what we were looking at, as well as small towns among the fjords. The boat was huge! There was 2 levels of indoor seating as well as a deck you could stand on if you wanted to brave the elements to get the perfect picture. Our group saw eagles and seals while cruising the fjords, but whales are also prominent in this area.
During this experience we learned to always cherish the moment you are in. Our generation is known for rushing through things to get to the next thing, but I feel like during this time everyone truly enjoyed the present moment. We only had two short hours to take in this amazing place with even better views and it went by so quickly. We were all camera happy towards the beginning of the boat ride with our phones constantly in the air, but towards the end we realized photos can only do a place so much justice. Sometimes mental photos are better than tangible ones. Towards the middle of the ride, nearly everyone had put their phones down and was just enjoying and appreciating the beauty around them. You would be surprised how peaceful it is when you take a moment, step back, and enjoy the view.
On the way back, we switched trains in Flam which had a small shopping center, where a few gusties got Norwegian sweaters!! whoo hoo!! (Norway is famous for their sweaters ;)) We then took a two hour train ride back to Bergen, and our now back at our hotel, safe and sound 🙂
Our group grew closer together on this excursion due to people stepping out of their comfort zones, talking to new people, and less phone time.
If you are interested in look at more pictures or videos, check out our facebook page, J-term Olympic Quest 2017!
Tianna Raden & Cassie Smith