We touched down north of the Arctic circle yesterday afternoon to drizzly conditions and promptly hopped in our Suzuki Vitara (after a moment of panic at the size of the trunk... Tetris again). Europeans are still all about manual shift, so there was another tinge of panic as I unshelved my archived manual-driving skills I once had before the children arrived. Took all of 1 second for the skill to come rushing back.
To avoid a five hour drive, we found a rustic family resort about 90 minutes towards our final destination. My first impression was... It's kind of grey here, and, frankly, nothing special. But the clouds were memorizing and nothing like we see in California.
Fortunately, first impressions are not necessarily lasting impressions. We woke up to blue skies with a patch work of perfectly placed cumulus, and, I dare say, warm weather. A quick breakfast, another couple of runs at the Zipline (again, foreign playgrounds continue to impress), and we we're back on the road.
The nearly three hour road trip down to Leknes was a treat for the eyes. The beauty of Lofoten lies in the juxtaposition of towering granite mountains, and what appears to be a tropical shoreline. Turquoise water lapping up on white sand beaches and tide pools, turn to forested hills, turn to waterfall sliced granite cliffs, and ultimately turn to snow speckled peaks - all in 3,000ft. Sprinkle in some cute little red homes, farms, and churches, and it's picture perfect.
The drive, as we've come to expect, was littered with tunnels, each opening up to it's own scene, like a larger than life viewfinder, with every click transporting you to a different part of the world. Look kids, Grand Tetons... tunnel... Caribbean... tunnel... Cape Cod...tunnel...Serene Lakes... tunnel...Monterey Coast... tunnel... Swiss Alps...tunnel...
Had they managed to encase the tunnel that went under the ocean in glass, that would have made my head explode. Yeah, as we drove toward the end of an island, the roadway fell away and we plunged under the sea...
We arrived at our home for five nights, a fishing hut on the water called a rorbu. Almost immediately, the kids darted for the waterline under the huts in search of living and dead things alike, and emerged with a bounty of cool shells and severed crab appendages. I think they're going to like it here.
The owner is a wonderful fella named Eirik, who kind of looks like Will Sasso of Mad TV (loved that show, btw). We talked for a solid hour - I really enjoy exploring who people are and how they got there. We have a laundry list of adventures to take, the least of which, a fishing expedition on Eirik's boat. The boys are fired up for that one!
Let the adventures begin...
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