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S2K
: Trondheim
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Craig Recommends
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In order to reach Trondheim, Norway and catch our Coastal
Steamer south to Bergen, we rode the overnight train from Oslo to Trondheim.
In mid June, locations this far north experience extremely long days
and our timing coincided with this natural wonder. Catching the train
around midnight, we watched out the window for the first hour and could
still see a faint glow of sunlight emanating from the horizon.
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Craig Enjoying Sink Seat
Oslo to Trondheim, Norway
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One of the simple joys of foreign country vacations is trying the local
cuisine. One of the simple joys in riding a train is the dining car.
However, these simple joys did not align completely during breakfast
while arriving in Trondheim. Not since new Coke in 1986 has a consumer
product successfully made it to market and received such negative feedback.
While rummaging through the dining car, at breakfast time, John
and I discovered Baconost: Bacon in a tube! In classic tourist fashion,
I stuffed two of them in my pocket for analysis back in the States... To
date I still haven't been adventurous enough to taste it.
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John Modeling the Top Bunk
Oslo to Trondheim, Norway
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Since we only had a 3 hour layover until the Coastal Steamer
departed, John and I scurried to our 2 Trondheim destinations: Cafe
Remis , a pub and discotheque coincidentally named after a local
Chicago 7-11 clerk and Nidaros Domkirke, a 12 century church first
built in 1070 over the grave of St. Olaf.
On the
morning that we arrived, the sky drizzled
enough to give the streets a slickness that made me glad that we
weren't driving. We stashed our bags in one of the train station lockers
and began walking through the deserted streets heading for Cafe Remis.
It was a Monday morning so there should have been traffic, but given
the size of Trondheim, less than 50,000, and the time of day, 8 a.m.,
I guess that we shouldn't have been surprised to pass less than 15 people
over 10 blocks. Our first stop was Cafe Remis.
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John Next To Cafe Remis
Trondheim, Norway
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Understand that Remis is one of our favorite characters at the
7-11 on the corner of Armitage and Sheffield in Chicago. In an unofficial
survey conducted after 5 hours of Goose Island consumption during a post
trip debriefing, Remis was our second most popular 7-11 employee trailing
only Smiley, the night manager who once dressed like a homeless, colorblind
pimp, drank enough liquor to put an alcoholic to shame and forgot his good
bridge before attending the Buddy Guy concert. Remis is a slight, well
dressed Phillipino who has a smile on his face even if he breaks a fingernail.
So John and I felt that it was only right to visit his namesake establishment
in such a remote location and bring back visual evidence of this magical
place.
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As you can probably imagine, after taking a couple of photos and
conducting a virtual toast to 7-11 Remis, we looked at each other, laughed
and went for the real prize of Trondheim: Nidaros Cathedral.
The drizzle falling from the extremely dark sky was a perfect backdrop
for Nidaros because there are many carvings around the sides that depict
some of the creatures from your worst nightmares. |
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The carvings are haunting images, like the monkey creatures on the left
and the priest holding a basket with 3 heads in it to the right. It
was a very eerie feeling at the cathedral, but still an amazing cathedral
to look at. John and I, unfortunately, didn't have the opportunity to look
inside but I can only imagine that it is a fabulous interior as well.
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With our narrow tourist window in Trondheim over, we went to catch
the Coastal Steamer for the 30 hour ride to Bergen. The drizzle ended
shortly after we boarded the cruise ship and traveled through the fjords.
It's quite awe inspiring to see the land drop straight into the water
and realize that you may only be viewing the 'tip of the iceberg' because
the fjord continues hundreds of feet further down below the water.
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Most of the people on the boat were either retired or couples with
children. I don't believe that I saw another person between the ages
of 20 and 35. Also suprisingly, there were many German tourists on the
ship and broadcasts were made in Norwegian, English and German.
Speaking of the broadcasts, the woman who made the announcements
had the most annoying voice to the point that when she spoke, it felt
like scratching fingernails on a blackboard. Waking to that woman's voice
is not pleasurable.
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John Fighting the Wind on Coastal Steamer
Coast of Norway
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Sun Shining Through Clouds
Coast of Norway
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As we continued throughout the day, the clouds parted and it became
a gorgeous afternoon and evening. After dinner, which by the way included
the best cream soup that I have ever had, we watched one of the group
matches from Euro 2000. Even though the match ended at 10 pm, the sun
was still in the sky and we ventured onto the deck to take a few photos
before the end of the day.
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Solfari
:
Places
:
S2K
: Trondheim
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Craig Recommends
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