Alesund, Norway - 14 JUN 2016

Alesund is set across several islands stretching out into the Atlantic Ocean.

We got a bus ride and didn't have to take the 418 steps up to the Aksla viewpoint.

The Norwegian Fjord Horse is one of the world's oldest and purest breeds. They are small but very strong, used for both harness and saddle.

Based on Viking burial sites, the Fjord Horse has been selectively bred for over 2,000 years. 90% are brown (tan) in color. The mane is white but dark in the center it is cut short to stand erect making it look like a dark line on top.

 The Borgund Church was rebuilt in 1904.

It was originally a stone structure built in the 14^th century.

We walked from the church to the Sunnmøre Open Air Museum.

They have over 50 well preserved old buildings displaying various architectural styles and lifestyles from the Middle Ages to the early 20^th century.

Brønnøysund, Norway – 13 JUN 2016

Brønnøysund is a coastal town located in the middle of Norway.

The curved bridge connects the small island of Torget with the mainland.

Tårnskolen, the old school house was used to hold POWs during WWII.

Brønnøy Church, 1870s neo-Gothic stone church just south of city center. The choir wall and entrance date back to the Middle Ages.

Old Claus Jensen Organ, 1879

Our tour guides also entertained us with folk songs.

Torghatten

According to Norse legend, a giant troll tried to kidnap a beautiful ogress at mid-night. When she ran from him, he raised his bow to shoot her. The King of The Mountains, deflected the arrow with his hat. When dawn broke, the hat (with the arrow hole) became Torghatten. As we sailed away, we got to see the arrow hole.

Bodø, Norway - 12 JUN 2016

200 years ago, Bodø was granted township.

Dee's photo of Bodø from the ship

Again, we get a warm welcome:

Dee and I went for a walk, in search of a museum and walked into a time wrap.

Dee's Image

Erected in 1903, it is one of the oldest buildings in Bodø, as the town was leveled by the Nazis.

My Image

Nordlandsmuseet (Nordland Museum) was a step into the pass, before computers and plexiglass. We loved it!

They had the largest stuffed eagle I've ever seen:

I thought it was a Golden eagle but the largest in Norway is a White-tailed eagle. I found an article about Norwegian Golden eagles taking out full-grown reindeer.

TW gets artsy with a switchboard and a milk separator.

A thousand year old treasure was discovered in Bodø in 1919. Among the silver pieces, coins and jewelry was the largest (42.3 oz.) Viking ring brooch ever found.

The town began to prosper in the 1860's with the boom in the herring industry.

They had two dioramas the displaying an aerial view of the town before and after the May 27,1940 Luftwaffe attack.

3,500 people lost their homes, but because everyone had fled to the mountains, only 15 people lost their lives.

You walked through a reconstruction of a cellar room of a house hit by a bomb.

3 images from DeAnna:

How to Swaddle a Baby

There was a carved wooden item that caught my curiosity.

It was about 5 by 24 inches, with, a curved claw like a back scratcher. I was told it was used to flatten out sheets or bedspreads.

The pièces de résistance was what the guide called, their dry-aquarium in the basement. It covered the entire wall.

It had buttons, each with a different fish name (in Norsk) and when you pressed the button, the eyes on that fish would light up.

Walking back to the ship, we saw interesting manhole covers...

 ...murals...

...and a future art projects:

Fridthjov Anderssen, Composer

Haakon, Crown Prince of Norway

That night they bused us to the Bodø Cathedral for a concert. The original church was destroyed during World War II.

This basilica was built in 1956 in the Gothic style. A standing bell tower is very unusual in Norway.

It has a 40 foot stained glass window.

Home to one of the country's largest organ with 5,200 pipes. 

Cathedral Door Handle

I was thrilled that they opened the concert with one of my favorites, Bach's Toccata and Fugue in D Minor, the quintessential Halloween music.

There was a girls choir singing Norsk folksongs, dressed in traditional attire.

 The different colors represent the different regions.

 One girl was dressed in Sami attire, and two in Swedish.