Recently, Sten had meetings with colleagues at the University of Bergen. Having been there numerous times in the past, we looked forward to visiting familiar places once more. We boarded the train in Oslo around noon and enjoyed a beautiful trip over the snow-covered mountains for the first four and a half hours of the the trip -- until the sun set. (The entire trip is 7 hours.) I had brought along a book, my iPod, and some knitting for entertainment, but I spent most of the daylight hours looking at the views outside. Most of the following photos were taken through the windows of the moving train, so I hope you'll forgive the water droplets visible in some of them.
Nothing more striking than these red houses against the white snow. I wonder if I should paint our house red when we get back home.
The misty fog is outside, not on the windows.
These are some of the ski runs at Geilo, close to half way through the trip. The train reaches its highest point a little closer to Bergen at Finse -- 1222 meters (4009 feet) above sea level.
Some internet sites (http://www.theguardian.com/travel/2014/apr/07/ten-of-the-world-s-amazing-train-journeys) have called this trip in winter one of the most beautiful in the world. I can fully understand why.
Hytter -- mountain cabins -- half buried in the deep snow.
The sun setting sent up a straight shaft of light -- so unusual.
The view from the windows on the other side of the train was beautiful too, but I think our seats had the better views.
A few years ago Norway's national TV channel pioneered "slow TV" by broadcasting the entirety of this train trip. You can watch a TED presentation about this project by one of its producers at http://www.ted.com/talks/thomas_hellum_the_world_s_most_boring_television_and_why_it_s_hilariously_addictive?language=en. It's a wonderful talk. Enjoy!
What a beautiful ride you both enjoyed! Loved the pictures.
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