Prisoner of Hopes

Category: Uncategorized

  • Paradoxical: Travel Goals Norway

    Paradoxical: Travel Goals Norway

    We are walking and looking for a small museum called The Paradox. It is cold and misty. Although the gps ultimately got us to the right place, there was no visible sign. We walk by it twice before we notice a worker in a Paradox jacket in a doorway. We have arrived, even though we…

  • Parkering: Travel Goals Norway

    Parkering: Travel Goals Norway

    Norway is full of surprises. Everyday we find something strange (to us) yet wonderful. Brown cheese is the best! Skiing to town! And amazing public transport….America has a lot to learn from our Scandinavian friends. On almost every corner we find a sign that reads “parkering forbudt” which means parking is forbidden. Because public transportation…

  • Time Traveling in Oslo: Travel Goals Norway

    Time Traveling in Oslo: Travel Goals Norway

    I love outdoor history museums. The Norsk folk center in Bygdoy did not disappoint. The Norwegian King had entire neighborhoods and farms and other random buildings moved to this park so that visitors can experience life across Norway. Sounds like my idea of fun. I am excited to arrive at the Stave church before any…

  • Jump: Travel Goals Norway

    Jump: Travel Goals Norway

    Norwegians love skiing. In Tromso, they ski to work. In Oslo it is warmer, so they have indoor skiing and they have snow machines to maintain cross country trails. But the king of the mountain is the Holmenkollen ski jump. We take the tram up the mountain to Holmenkollen and then walk uphill to the…

  • Military History: Travel Goals Norway

    Military History: Travel Goals Norway

    We aren’t sure what to expect at the Akershus Festning (Fortress). We walked by the large park/military complex when we first arrived in Oslo (two weeks ago). But it is much bigger than it appeared from our walk along the harbor. The walled fortress houses a castle, a resistance museum, a military museum, outdoor amphitheaters,…

  • Tromso Love Is True, But I Hate Their Airport: Travel Goals Norway

    Tromso Love Is True, But I Hate Their Airport: Travel Goals Norway

    I mention in each travel day post that I dislike air travel. It feels chaotic and uncivil in ways other forms of transport avoid. Each airport and airline has its own system that you can’t possibly know about if you have not been there before. Sometimes your experience is extremely different due to the people…

  • Accidental Tromsø: Travel Goals Norway

    Accidental Tromsø: Travel Goals Norway

    Some days you just stumble into fun. Today we are walking to the polar museum, but run across a house that says restaurant and museum. So, of course, in we go. There are no people. None. A self pay machine let us in. The building has previously been a warehouse on the dock. It houses…

  • Traipsing through Tromso: Travel Goals Norway

    Traipsing through Tromso: Travel Goals Norway

    I am up early, charting our course. The sun is shining and the snow has stopped, at least for now. It is a beautiful day for exploring the arctic town of Tromso. We start our day at Polaria aquarium, solely based on the fact that it was one of the few places open earlier in…

  • The Struggle: Travel Goals Norway

    The Struggle: Travel Goals Norway

    Excitement is high as we land in Tromso, Norway. It is beautiful. Mountains and fjords merge together under a cloudy sky. Dramatic is the only word to describe the landscape. Here we disembark. We wait impatiently for others to leave the ship. Many only have a few hours to experience Tromso and we will stay…

  • Into the Arctic: Travel Goals Norway

    Into the Arctic: Travel Goals Norway

    I wake up quite early and realize it has been snowing throughout the night. Steady sleet pounds the windows and I smile. Just as dawn breaks, I emerge onto the upper deck. Today we cross the artic circle and venture far beyond. We entered the boat in Bergen and will not disembark completely until Tromso.…