Video
As promised, here are some videos taken yesterday. Well maybe they’ll post. My blog app, which is old and no longer supported, does not do well with javascript. I get the message “An error occurred”. I hope you do not have a similar fate.
New Years Eve Fireworks Kristiansund, Norway
Trondheim, Norway
We awoke to the ridiculous sound of my iPhone alarm at 7 AM; far too early after New Years Celebration a few hours earlier. We planned an early breakfast before heading out on our 8:40 tour. Breakfast on a Hurtigruten Cruise ship is an extensive buffet. Breakfast is unhurried with easy seating early (7AM) and late (9:30). This morning seating was easy. It seemed most people were recovering from the evening’s festivities. To avoid overheating, we dressed lightly for breakfast and dressed again for our outing. Though cold by San Francisco standards, the Norwegian weather has not yet been extreme.
To leave the cruise ship, you disembark at reception with your personal ID card. That marks you as off ship or on ship when you return. We found Dave and Kristen on our way out and boarded the bus for our Trondheim Tram Tour with them.
The harbor’s terminal is built on an artificial island created to allow large ships to offload at Trondheim. Crossing the bridge to Trondheim, we passed the old wharf buildings that mark the original wharf where sailing ships in the 1900’s offloaded. The buildings still have the hoists sitting atop. These buildings have long since been converted into luxury condominiums that command a steep price. Even the new buildings maintain the old style right up to the decorative hoists at the roof’s crown.
The Northern Most Tram in the World
The bus ride to the beginning of Trondheim’s tram was short. We were through downtown in a few turns and arrived at the tram museum. The museum houses historic trams that are maintained and put into service on occasion. One car had been taken out of the museum and placed on the tracks for us. Seating on the tram is two by two. The four of us took the last four seats on the tram. There is a side door at the very back of the tram with standing room for perhaps eight or ten people. Ellen and I gave up our seats for a mother and her young daughter. At the very back, we could open a side window and have unobstructed views as the tram climbed a hill.
The tram is dual tracked to to a a protected forest within Trondheim, where it becomes single track to the top. The city purchased land along the dual tracks and made it available to the people to build houses along the tram. This benefited the tram and gave people a convenient access to downtown. Those properties today are extremely expensive. At one point the city chose to discontinue tram service which led to an uproar. There were no roads to the properties and no means of access to downtown if the tram shut down. A private company stepped in to provide service and new cars. That company runs the tram line to this day.
Locals use the tram to access hiking trails throughout the forest at the outskirts of Trondheim.
The houses along the tram and in most of Norway are made of wood. Wood is a good insulator and not prone to cracking with extreme changes in temperature. In the past the wood exteriors were smeared with blood to seal the wood against the elements. Hence over time it has become traditional to have houses painted or stained deep red with window frames painted white.
Typical Wooden Houses along the Tram, Trondheim, Norway
A Modern Tram and near Fall, Trondheim, Norway
First dinner mates and now friends, Dave and daughter Kristen
Last Stop at the Forest near Sunrise, Trondheim
Historic Tram going back to the Museum
A View over Trondheim to the Fjord
Trondheim’s Ski Jumps
After our tram ride, we climbed back aboard the bus for a tour of Trondheim’s ski jump area. The town has an international ski jump and a locals competitive ski jump. The “locals’ jump was much smaller. We could see both jumps in the distance as we pulled down a slight incline into a parking area. Driving up a short moderate pitch toward the jumps, our bus driver slowed to downshift and the bus lost momentum on a sheet of ice! As the bus slowed, I didn’t give voice my immediate thought of “Oh Shit”. From years of driving in winters in New England I knew we were doomed.
The bus lost traction in the lower gear, lurched, and slid backwards gaining speed second by second. We were out of control with nothing the driver could do. We came to a stop at the side and near the bottom of the incline. We could not move forward. All exited the bus. We found ourselves standing on an inch sheet of ice with some gravel spots here and there and other areas of flowing water making it impossible to stand in places. Everyone was moving about randomly, some sliding, some doing a “human spider” walk, others slowly picking gravel spots to move about. At some point perhaps ten minutes into this misadventure, our driver suggested we all get back into the bus. Ellen and I were back aboard, when the bus slid on its own another ten or fifteen feet backwards. No driver, the brakes were set, it just let loose. The most horrible feeling in the world is that feeling of helplessness we humans get in the face of an emergency that is beyond our ability to manage. I was practically at the bus controls, but had no idea how to drive the bus had I even wanted to. When the bus came to a stop the second time, Ellen and I got off and stayed off.
Typical of Ellen, in a moment of levity, she made and threw a snowball. I didn’t have my camera ready so no photo. On the plus side, I was not close and was therefore not her target! We found refuge from the wind behind an outbuilding while waiting for a second bus. Another ten or fifteen minutes later a replacement bus arrived. We all piled in, our tour guide gave thanks to our bus service for rescuing us, and we restarted our tour.
That was short lived! Remember that slight pitch down into the parking lot when we arrived? This bus (with the same bus driver) failed to negotiate that incline as well. Rather than getting momentum to get up the pitch, our driver cautiously slowed about halfway up and never made the crest. Again we slid back on a sheet of ice, but this time we skidded into a parked car! While we waited for a third bus, a massive tow truck arrived to rescue the (now two) busses from the grips of the ice. A third bus arrived quickly. This time with a new bus driver we cut our tour short, visited the Trondheim Cathedral briefly, and reached the Cruise ship just before it departed.
Note our 1st bus in the background and a car wedged behind our 2nd bus
Help Arrives!
Dave grew up in Michigan and is quite familiar with driving on ice and snow. He knew we were in trouble when the first bus slowed on the incline. Joked about how the bus driver should back the first bus back to a relatively flat stretch of snowy-ice and perhaps drive away. While we were talking we watched the bus driver take chains from a rear storage compartment and drag them to the front wheels. We both laughed thinking the bus is a pusher configuration with drive force at the rear wheels. I felt sorry for this bus driver who was clearly out of his element. He did speak Norwegian and clearly knew no English or German.
A sheet of Ice, a Tow Truck & Operator, and our 3rd Bus
A digression: there is a German tour group on this cruise. All announcements are in both English and German. I am amazed at the amount of German I understand. Sometimes the German announcement precedes the English. The announcement in Norwegian is unintelligible.
Trondheim’s Cathedral
I would like to learn more, who is commemorated? Note the dates.
The Cathedral, Trondheim, Norway
It makes a statement, but ouch.
We’ve found a Radisson Blu Hotel in each town in Norway
Trondheim’s Old Wharf and some Newer Buildings
We did take time to visit Trondheim’s cathedral and the grounds of a nearby Modern Art Museum.
Back aboard ship, we had lunch, a long nap, a light dinner, and we went off in search of the men’s sauna. I found the Sauna forward on our deck (deck 8) and there was Dave setting up to enjoy an evening’s dry soak. I joined him shortly after. The Sauna area has coin operated lockers that everyone uses, but without locking. There’s a sense of honesty among the passengers that’s heart warming. The Sauna was wonderful. It has three floor to ceiling windows and a view over the sea when the lights are off. Dave (of course) knew how to turn the lights off. He also knew how to find the warm water setting in the shower. “Turn the temp valve counter clockwise until it stops, then press the button and turn a bit further. That’s the warm water setting. I left the sauna super relaxed, and after a long hot shower. What more could you want in the evening?
