If I Were Going...: Final Norway Leg

We began our final leg of our Norway adventure in overcast Bergen, where we picked up a rental car (just a few blocks from our hotel, making us wonder why we had to go to the airport to get the car the first time). Shortly after we left town, however, the sun came out. We were taking a southern route towards Oslo, with plans to stop in Kristiansand and then swing north.

The southern part of Norway (called its sunny side), is filled with lakes and farms with mountains in the distance.

Southern Norway

On the route, we saw more lovely churches.

Typical Norwegian Church

Lakes and fjords.

Pretty view

And, we pulled off the highway to visit, Feda, a beautiful little town we could see from the road. Not a tourist destination, it underscored the peaceful beauty found throughout the country.

Does everyone in Norway have a boat?

And a boathouse?

And, is everything painfully charming?

I think so!

Toward sunset, we reached Kristiansand, where we spent the night. It's port town, with an interesting mix of historic ...

An old ship

A contemporary town

And modern ...

Harbor view

We spent the night and then headed north along the Telemark Trail. It was lovely, very wooded with rivers and lakes.

Misty morning

Oddly, with all the driving on near-deserted roads, we never saw any living wildlife - no rabbits, no squirrels, no deer, no elk (which is what we call moose in the U.S.). We say warning signs and a dead mink and a dead badger. But, no animals. In over two weeks!

Scenery, but no wildlife

We did see more of the beautiful Norwegian houses with their millwork, porticos and tin roofs.

I love these houses

And, we stopped by an unexpected waterfall in a box canyon in Flatin, near Seljord, Norway.

A nice surprise

Our final stop on our drive was the Stavkirkja in Heddal.

The largest stave church in Norway

It was built between 1200 and 1250 and has interior furnishings from multiple ages ...

... including a bishop's chair that may predate Christianity and a pipe organ ...

Ancient (and slightly newer) stuff

Some of the wall decor is painted over ancient murals from before the reformation (see the feet peeking out?)

Layers

These date to when the parishioners didn't have their own Bibles and weren't allowed to read the verses. The murals helped them learn what was in the Bible.