GJENDESHEIM and BERGEN, Norway-- Marta and I went on twelve hour hike yesterday! We traversed one of the most famous climbing spots in Norway, Besseggen. We arrived in Gjendesheim from Oslo on Wednesday night at about 22:00 and began to pitch the tent, and the rain started simultaneously. We managed to get the tent set up fairly easily, started heating up some water for some much-needed hot chocolate and realized, though the sky was still light, it was well after midnight! After a short six-hour sleep, we got up and hiked and hiked and hiked. Our route left Gjendesheim, went over mountains, crossed Besseggen and then around a lake, finally (to our surprise) to again cross a mountain or two before reaching camp. Besseggen was the trickiest part of our route: it is the part of the path between two lakes, on a narrow ledge--two meters wide at its most narrow--and the lakes are at two completely different levels, about a 400 meter drop on one side and maybe 100 on the other.
The ferry we had planned to take in order to hike a different route was not running on yesterday--the season started today--so we were informed of the route around the lake which was a circle rather than having to walk to Besseggen and back-tracking the same route home. When I found breath to spare, I was inspired to sing various songs, among them were Singin in the Rain and Climb Every Mountain.
I also had some encounters with local wildlife. I saw a cute, patterned Norwegian mouse, a lemming! (disclaimer: it may have just been an over-size, chubby brown mouse, but I am pretty sure it was a lemming), something that appeared to be a seagull, mosquitoes and...a herd of wild reindeer! The reindeer were amazing: large, powerful and white with enormous antlers. We first saw a small pack of five and then as we continued walking, came across a large herd of about thirty! The only thing that would have surprised me more would be if Santa had shown up and given me a gift.
The first half was rocky, uphill, cloudy, rainy and awesome. The second six-hour stretch of the hike was incredibly beautiful and that is where we spotted most of the new creatures. We spent the latter half, after the breath-taking descent at Besseggen, walking around a never-ending lake. It was beautiful, snowy, mossy and extremely painful. My ankle, after years of sprains, decided to hurt. A lot. But what is that I have seen on football t-shirts? ´Pain is weakness leaving the body?´ I am strong now. Today, Marta and I are both rather stiff and my knees hurt from compensating for my lame ankle but it was totally worth it. During the hike, when we had an hour or two left, I remember dreaming up ways to be rescued: perhaps a helicopter? perhaps I could hobble down to the nearest road and hitchhike to Gjendesheim? In the end, we made it back to camp and then decided to make some headway to Bergen, so we hopped in the car, I mean limped, and drove for a little while before pulling over to sleep. In the Golf.
Yes, on a country road in Norway, we pulled over, fought mosquitoes over our dinner of Lapskaus heated on an open (fake) flame, and then reclined the seats, bundled in sleeping bags and awoke to the same clouds and rain as the night before and hit the road by 8:00.
Now here we are in Bergen, in a classy loft apartment of Marta´s sister. It is raining, as apparently it always is in Bergen. I suppose it is the Seattle of Norway.
I enjoy the fact that everyone here addresses me in Norwegian. Except on the trail, where Germans addressed both Marta and I in English, which seems to be the common language among the people in northern Europe. And it seems that everyone in Norway can speak English! Apparently they begin learning it in second grade. I cannot get used to the fact they all know it. It makes sense that they learn it, but it is such a foreign concept to an American. I cannot believe the world is learning my language, I would like to learn theirs. And I am learning some Norwegian. My pronunciation is improving and some words are becoming familiar. But after three and a half days here, what am I expecting?
I just wish I could say something, because I would like to at least be able to respond when people take a glance at me and assume I am Norwegian. I have the opposite problem in Spain. People take one look at me and address me in English, though our conversation would almost always function better in Spanish. And here, I make a quizzical face and they smoothly transition to their excellent English. I have to constantly remind myself I am not in the States.
I am really enjoying the cultural contrasts I find between the warm and sunny south and the cool, beautiful north: more to come on my observations.
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