August 26, 2006: Jerry and Charlene boarded a plane in Redmond, Oregon. They were joined by Sue at SeaTac Airport. Thence departed for Scandinavian adventure! On any page, click on plane to return to main Scandinavia page.  
August 27, 2006: Overnight plane trip. Stopover at Copenhagen Airport. Arrived at Årlanda Airport, near Stockholm. Bus and taxi into Stockholm. Lodging at Hotel Wellington. Met the guide and the rest of the group. Got matched up with our "buddies." Sue's buddy was Bill; Jerry's was Brenda.  
August 28, 2006: Walking tour of Stockholm. Royal Palace, Gamla Stan (Old City), boat ride, Vasa warship museum. Free time in the afternoon; many of us walked through Skansen, a large open-air museum, and took a boat tour of the canals. The first of several "cocktail" hours on the patio of the hotel. Free dinner offered by hotel.  
August 29, 2006: Tour of Stockholm City Hall. Bus ride from Stockholm to Kalmar. Stopped in Söderköping for lunch, near the Göta Canal. Drove through pretty birch forests to Kalmar. Lodging at the Frimurare Hotellet in Kalmar. Happy hour in hotel's warm and bright sunroom. Candle-lit dinner in cellar restaurant.  
August 30, 2006: Walking tour of the town of Kalmar, on the way to Kalmar Castle. Guided tour through castle. On the bus again to Copenhagen. Drove over the amazing bridge between Sweden and Denmark. Arrived in Copenhagen. Checked into Ibsens Hotel and had a little tea party. Late-afternoon walking tour of the city. Ran into Hans Christian Andersen on the way to dinner. Dinner at an almost-300-year-old restaurant, Det Lille Apotek. Yum!  
August 31, 2006: Walking tour of Copenhagen. Went into Vor Frue Kirke, Copenhagen's medieval cathedral. Toured Rosenborg Castle in the morning, then had the rest of the day and evening free to do as we pleased. Lunched along Nyhavn, one of the local canals. Toured the canals by boat. Pre-dinner function in someone's hotel room, for lack of a better place. Dinner at a nearby restaurant, where most of the group ended up. After-dinner visit to Tivoli Gardens. The braver souls went on the roller coasters. Whee!  
September 1, 2006: Tour of Viking Ship Museum and Roskilde Cathedral. Lunch in Roskilde. Ferry from Roskilde to Ærø. Group split up for lodging at three different places in the town of Ærøskøbing (hotel, B&B, and pension). Dinner was a feast at the local hotel.  
September 2, 2006: All day to explore. We rented bikes and headed north. Met up with the non-bikers for lunch in Dunkær. Afternoon bus tour of Ærø, including ancient portal tomb and Rise Church. Rode bikes back to town, continuing on to the beach. Went wading before heading to tea party with proprietress of pension. Dinner at local hot dog joint.
September 3, 2006: Local ferry back to Roskilde, and hence to Copenhagen. Had a few hours to explore Copenhagen some more; went to the Danish National Museum. Stopped to see front side of (underwhelming) Little Mermaid. Boarded LARGE ferry for voyage to Oslo. Spent remaining Swedish and Danish money in the duty-free shop. Checked e-mails at on-board internet cafe. Happy hour with duty-free booty, then a hearty seafood dinner before hitting the hay in our ... cozy little cabins.  
September 4, 2006: Arrived in Oslo. Walking tour of Oslo. Norwegian WWII Resistance Museum, Nobel Peace Museum, and Gustav Vigeland's amazing sculptures at Frogner Park. Unbelievably good weather. Lodging at Hotel Stefan.  
September 5, 2006: Bus ride up to the Holmenkollen Olympic ski jump, panoramic view of Oslo fjord. Cruised across harbor to Bygdøy peninsula, site of several interesting nautical museums: Thor Heyerdahl, the Fram, the Maritime Museum, and more Viking ships. Boat ride back across the harbor. Spent the afternoon wandering around Oslo. Guess what we did before dinner.
September 6, 2006: Headed northwest out of Oslo to Lillehammer. Stopped for a latte in Hamar, site of 1994 Olympic skating events. Toured Maihaugen Open-Air Folk Museum, then had lunch in Lillehammer. Toured ancient stave church near Lom. Spent the night in the rustic luxury of Elvesæter.  
September 7, 2006: Drove over Sognefjell Pass, the highest in Norway. Paused for lunch before taking a cruise down the impossibly scenic Sognefjord. Exciting bus ride up Stalheimskleiva, with 13 hair-raising hairpin curves. Paused for refreshment at Stalheim. Stopped at Tvinde Falls. Arrived in Bergen. Stayed at Hotel Rosenkrantz.
September 8, 2006: Self-guided tour of Bergen. Visited fish market and other local points of interest. Guided tour of the old town of Bryggen. Chowed down at an open-air food fair. Rode Fløibanen (funicular train) to top of local mountain. "Last Supper," where we shared our "Wow Moments" and a few other thoughts about the trip.  

September 9, 2006: That's all, folks! Plane trip from Bergen back to the U.S. by way of Copenhagen.

 

©2007