Day 27: Of Tunnels and Mountains

The day started much more relaxed with a homemade breakfast at the hostel. After making sandwiches, washing the dishes, and packing our backpacks, we checked out at 11 o'clock.

In Flåm, we immediately noticed the large cruise ship that was anchored in the harbor. The small village was suddenly full of tourists who visited the many shops and boarded small boats. We watched the hustle and bustle from a bench at the harbor and were glad not to be a part of it. 😄

After a while, we gathered ourselves and visited the free Flåmsbana Museum, where the history of the railway is presented.

We realized that transporting goods by horse-drawn carriage through the mountains used to be quite difficult, and the establishment of a railway line, even though 18 of the 20 tunnels had to be dug by hand, was sensible and necessary.

Then we boarded the waiting train and were relieved that it wasn't completely overcrowded. With slightly better weather than yesterday, we traveled the same route back to Myrdal, this time sitting on the other side and even opening the window for better photos.

At Kjosfossen, we encountered the dancing Huldren and friendly English people again, who took a photo of us.

In Myrdal, we immediately got on the regional train to Bergen, which was waiting on the opposite platform. A very nice train attendant gave us tips on which side to get a better view at which point, which we naturally followed.

The regular route between Myrdal and Bergen is also very beautiful. It repeatedly goes through tunnels into different valleys, where rivers wind their way over the rocky terrain or lakes have formed. In addition, we often had sunshine on this stretch, which allowed for good pictures.

After two and a half hours and countless tunnels, we finally arrived in Bergen. The walk to the accommodation turned out to be longer than expected and partly uphill, so we were quite exhausted when we finally arrived.

There was hardly any time to rest, as we had to quickly go to the Hurtigruten pier to meet Anne's friend's parents there. They are starting a cruise in Bergen today, and we were actually able to say hello briefly before they boarded their ship.

Afterwards, we took a look at the old town with its many old wooden and other houses, sat briefly at the harbor, and then visited a supermarket on the way back home. Now the pasta water is boiling and we are waiting hungrily for our dinner.

Tomorrow afternoon, we will be taking the overnight ferry to Denmark - so we are already on our way home...