This time of the year is usually scheduled for the beach, natural tanning and relaxing. That's what normal people do. But not me. I am heading somewhere where the sunny days are a luxury and a privilege. I am trying to collect it as much as I can, never getting enough of it and sometimes not being really glad of sharing it with others.
Norway, known as one of the richest countries in the world, must be nothing but a perfectly organized social system where everything and everybody has some purpose. If you ask me, this social system is nothing compered to "natural labor division". All the work starts with the mountains, as the hardest workers collecting and keeping the snow, then the glaciers will provide the water falling down into the streams, rivers and lakes which maintain the green color of their queen- Forest as a nature's representative in the world. This system is not almost perfect. It is perfect.
If you ever take a ride through Norway, you will leave the camera out of your hands because the number of the lakes you're going to encounter is endless. I was jumping from one side of the train to another in order to catch them all. I missed only one of them because I needed to go to the toilet and I couldn't forgive myself. Next time I'll be wearing pumpers. Even if you skip your physiological needs and if you press "burst" button you still won't be able to cath a Bambi in the fields. I think, many of you are already making your way here.
Norway looks very attractive on the map, long and slim, just like the most wanted fashion model. But there's an edge of the country that is shattered into a small pieces where the fjords are created. Part of a fjord which is on disposal looks very simple but there's part below sea leavel, unknown and unconscious, the one that Freud was courious about very much. At the same time they look fascinating and frightening. The scarier they look the more attractive they are to me. That's exactly what I was going to meet in Norway, my alter ego. I wouldn't mind for some psychoanalytical valuation as well for choosing to wear a hat and a gloves instead of a swimming suit.
I was going down from jumping from one island to another like a game of hopscotch at school. I started going down from Ålesund where I was hosted by my friend Sneza from Serbia, her husband Nenad and their sweet four year old girl Nadia. It was all inclusive hospitality with a spacious room, private bathroom and Norwegian-Serbian food. Nenad has been doing some practice in the kitchen lately, so his last two projects - Norwegian salmon and barbecue with grilled vegetables should be in some popular cooking show. Nadia shared with me all her toys so we got along very well and why wouldn't we when it is only 30 years difference between us. Sneza told me how charming Ålesund can be when the sun comes out. If I didn't see with my own eyes I wouldn't believe it that the sun is literally tickling the sea, forming the crystal shaped reflection so strong and totally impossible to watch it without sunglasses.
Sunday is a day for not doing anything in Ålesund but fishing or hiking. I was fascinated seeing local kids with fishing kit rather than with smartphones or iPads. I asked Sneza if there's anything she dislikes here and she mentioned that people do the things automatically. For example, the kids are crossing the street without looking it because they know that everybody will stop on the cross walk. I agree with her because this rule is not equally followed everywhere.
Down the edge of Norway I got to the point where there's no more comfort. Places around trails are a kind of isolated, there are no food facilities around so I had to make sure I had already had enough food when I got to the place where I was supposed to stay. I just made sure I already had had enough food but I didn't care too much about water because I knew I was going to collect the fresh one from the glaciers.
In order to finish this trip my way I went South. Hiking to Trolltunga was certainly one of the most interesting hikes. Trolltunga means Troll's tongue. Trolls are "natives" here in Scandinavia. Usually they live, beside the mythical stories, deep in the forrest. I am not really sure to who is this tongue pointed at, maybe to human beings who took their land. To revange their kind, Trolls made here, believe it or not, 11 km long trial that takes six hours of walking, only in one direction.
First hour of hiking, the most difficult one is up the stairs. Whatever you've red on the internet about the hiking time don't take it for granted. Even though I've got some experience climbing the stairs I always freak out when I see them. This stones made me through out all the precious food I had that morning thinking it would give me the energy for hiking. The stairs destroyed the energy but they couldn't break my spirit so I just kept climbing. I was going in the opposite direction of the glacier water which is found very often after first hour of hiking. But the higher I got the more interesting it was: a part of the trail is still covered in snow which becomes a small stream or waterfall in some parts or just moisture the ground a little bit so the trail gets muddy. My mom would be so glad if I brought her muddy shoes to wash as a hiking souvenir. Of course, nobody expects a red carpet when hiking!!! It was really exhausting walk, but believe me, my hiking libido was totally satisfied. The view was beautiful from the bottom as well as from the top. Yes, Freud's right, I did it just to satisfy my appetite for the nature.
Preikestolen, another precious piece of hiking art, was a resault of the odd circumstances that had happened.
1. In Stavanger a Russian guy slightly drunk approached my husband to ask him something.
2.The hotel I stayed is a part of the city hospital.
3. It was a rainy day and I got up late so I couldn't go to Kjerag because it was far and very difficult to deal with on a rainy day.
What connect all these circumstances into the whole is a girl slipping down the cliff into some rock fracture. My husband jumped in to get her out while everybody else just stayed staring in the girl until a group of Russian and Ukrainian guys came down to help us. One of them was a guy who approached my husband at the station the night before. I put my scarf around the wound to stop the bleeding and gave her painkillers. I took this scarf from a friend knowing it was special for some greater goals. Our small group of medical amateurs did everything to keep the girl warm and safe from the poring rain until the helicopter came after two hours. We gave her all our clothes, water and attention. It was really horrible weather and we were all soaked even with the waterproof jackets. Russians apologized us because they didn't have any vodka to keep us warm and to celebrate our achievement. Of course, apology was accepted. On the way back it crossed my mind that Kamilla, might be brought at the same hospital next to my hotel. I was right. I found her and went to visit her. She started crying when she saw me. I asked her if all the pricings and tattoos on her body hurt more than the wound. My joke made her laugh. She's waiting for a surgery at the moment.
From all the hiking trails, I saved the most challenging one for the end. Hiking through Kjerag mountain was the last adventure on this trip. It was approximately two and a half hours of walking but the trail is so steep and sometimes I behaved like a four legged animal supporting myself with my hands. I think that nobody would mind for an extra pair of legs at that moment. It may sound weird, but climbing up was a piece of cake compered to going down. I was not sure if I was going to make it alive sliding down the rocks more than thousand meters high. I've heard that people do the jumps from the top. I believe more in Trolls than I believe that somebody can jump from such a place. Unlike the day before, the weather was perfect for such a hike otherwise it would be impossible to climb because of the slippery terrain. Kneragbolten is a big stone stuck in between two rocks and nothing underneath but an empty space but people were still waiting in line to take a picture standing on the stone. I felt dizzy just from one look down so I decided not to do what everybody was doing. Kamilla occurred to my mind and I didn't want to be the one who would need the attention. Chinese girl whom I met on the way to the stone was so deferment to have a picture even if she is afraid of height. She did it and now she suffers a post traumatic stress disorder. She couldn't stop crying and shaking. She was begging me not to go because it was terrifying experience for her. I don't want to do the things no matter what so I stayed admiring the stone, height and landscape from the distance and everything was equally beautiful as if I were standing on the rock. I did it my way!!!
My trip has come to an end and I think I haven't miss anything. Norway is a perfect place for all my solitary soul mates who are looking for a shelter in the nature. If you hesitate to take a picture from the rocks do not hesitate to visit Norway and DO NOT HESITATE TO TRAVEL!!!
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