From the Fjords to the Coast

After a couple of days in small town Fläm, it was time to continue the westward journey toward Bergen. This time our method of transport was ferry. Considered the "queen of the fjords" for being widely considered the second most famous fjord in Norway, Aurlandsfjord is deep, surrounded by waterfalls and glaciers on both sides, the shorelines occasionally hosting a town too small and picturesque for it to even be real.

Looking up the fjord.... Hard to believe this is actually salt water until a pod of dolphins swam past.

A waterfall spills into Aurlandsfjord next to an old dock...

And another waterfall....

An impossibly small town or compound... Can't imagine how lonely this place must get in the winter...

Sheet glass water... A beautiful but cold day...

After de-boarding the ferry, we hopped a bus from another small town and zig-zagged our way through deep canyons, around glaciers and over rivers in the now pouring rain. At one point the switchbacks got so sharp and steep, I thought for sure our bus was going to plow over the edge...

After leaving the bus and boarding another train, we finally arrived in Bergen, competing the Norway in. Nutshell route.

As Norway's second largest city and former capital, Bergen is a big city (for Norway) that retains a lot of small town charm. The most famous attraction in town is probably the Old City, a row of wooden buildings originally built in the 16th century that still stand today.

My luck continued with stumbling into random events and I managed to engorge myself at a food fair going on on the waterfront.

On the hills behind Bergen, there's a natural park that offers great views of the city below once you clear the thick forest. You'd never know you're in a city from up there!

Forest behind Bergen.... And below the view of the city...