Fjords, Fashion and the Return of the Scarf

 Days 5, 6 and 7, I think.  Our last full day of hiking was a killer—and I took the easier path!  We started a little later that morning and the information given was that we would finish the hike and have the afternoon to relax in the beautiful town in which we were staying, Balastrand. I started the hike on fire, walking at a fast clip, just behind the guide, my daughter and her fiancé.  After a while as we ascended, I listened to my future-son-in-law and the guide have an animated, LONG conversation and I began to wonder how either of them were breathing because I was having difficulty doing that very act. I focused on inhaling and exhaling because idle chit-chat was, as they the saying goes, “not in my bandwidth.”  I realized that I needed to be with the “slow but steady” folks at the tail end of the group.  I had found my people but by the time we finally returned to the hotel, there was about 45 minutes left to my “free afternoon.” 

The  next morning, we took a four hour high-speed ferry through the fjords, back to Bergen.  Upon arrival, we had to say goodbye to our wonderful group of fellow hikers.  It is amazing how close we all got in just six days.  When not gasping for breathe on uphill climbs, the women had incredible, intimate conversations about our lives, ranging from our previous travels to family highs and lows.  In general, the men’s conversations covered what they all did for a living, and that’s about it.  

I wanted to make a brief mention of Norwegian clothing. Norway’s “f” word is for “fjords” clearly not for “fashion”  Regardless of location, most Norwegians usually look like they are going to take a hike—literally! Daily wear appears to include a lot of Lycra and hiking boots. Instead of using canes, I saw a lot of older Norwegians using hiking polls to get around town.  Imagine my surprise today when I met our tour guide for our walking tour of Bergen.  He was, to put it bluntly, chic.  He was thin, wore tight jeans, a nice Oxford and beautiful but functional leather shoes.  But the biggest clue that he was not Norwegian was that he was wearing a lovely scarf! And yes, he was from Italy where scarves are a staple of any fashionable ensemble.  (I too had one on, but mainly because it was cold this morning. I’m sure no one was confusing me for chic) And he was a great guide to boot—-no pun intended. 

We were supposed to go home tomorrow but we will stay one more day thanks to the Scandinavian pilot strike.  The only way we could get home was via Edinburgh—not a bad place for an overnight layover. 


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