Final Day - Oslo, Norway

Here are a few more photos of our lodging taken this morning.

entry

Nordic flags

It was so windy I couldn't get them all to show.

breakfast buffet

view from the table

a very narrow hallway

I don’t know whether or not you can tell the slope of the upper bunk from this picture. It had a rail to keep you from rolling off, which was a good thing. No matter how many times I pushed myself up against the wall, I still ended up next to the rail.

When I sat my water bottle down on the desk it slid to the middle.

I didn’t notice the rocking so much lying down but when standing or sitting it was quite obvious. It’s been very windy here so there was a good bit of movement. No one required to muster though, Colleen.

I can honestly say I’ve never before fallen asleep listening to the waves from the Baltic Sea slapping the side of my room.

Speaking of the Baltic Sea; it is brackish water, meaning part salt water and part fresh. The Baltic Sea is one of the biggest brackish seas in the world with limited exchange with the open sea through the Danish straits. The salinity of the Baltic Sea east of 13°E ranges between 13 g/kg at the bottom in the central Baltic Sea and 2 g/kg at the surface in the Bothnian Bay. The Baltic Sea salinity is driven by freshwater supply due to river runoff and net precipitation and the exchange with saline water from the North Sea. Due to its higher density, new saline water accumulates mainly at the bottom of the Baltic Sea and reaches the surface via vertical advection, entrainment, and turbulent diffusion. How’s that for getting technical? Most of the salt is transported into the Baltic Sea during so-called major Baltic inflows. These events happen sporadically, mainly during winter, with a maximum of a few times a year. Since 1887, frequency and intensity of major Baltic inflows did not change systematically. Therefore, long-term changes in salinity are likely driven by changes in wind and river runoff. Accumulated freshwater supply by the rivers explains about 50% of the variability of the Baltic Sea salinity.

We were up at six am, had the car loaded, and were waiting for breakfast to open at 7. We have about a 6 hour drive to Oslo, Norway and must have the car turned in by 4:30 so we are off and running by about 8:30.

We stopped at a small outlet center and picked up a couple of things. Kim bought some more knäckebröd, a flat and dry type of cracker, containing mostly rye flour. Crispbreads are lightweight and keep fresh for a very long time due to their lack of water.

We stopped for fuel, conveniently right next to a second hand store. I ran in to take a quick look while Kim filled up. Finally, a thrift store as it should be. I could have spent hours pouring over the goods but no time for tarrying today. We’ve had some road construction slowing us down.

This is one of the more interesting road signs. It's like a faux overpass. Since no left turn is allowed (notice the yellow and red symbol), you exit on the right, make a half circle, come to a stop, then cross the highway at your own peril. Since it's a single lane, it keeps the traffic from backing up. Clever, huh?

Jo Anne, two final marshmallow pics for you.

and a few more country churches with cemeteries

We finally found a place for lunch about 4:30 and this was the view.

some beautiful farm land

Norwegian style at the new Oslo Airport terminal.

Kim took this sunset photo when he returned the rental car to the airport. It has two airplanes in it, but you'll have to really zoom in to see them. They are in the upper right quadrant.

I took this one from the window in our room.

I read this quote somewhere on this trip and wrote it down. I looked it up so I could give credit where credit is due. Apparently, it is a quote from the book "Don't Go To Sleep" by Bryce Moore. Unless you like true-crime murder mysteries, set in the early 1900's in New Orleans during WWI and the Spanish Influenza outbreak, I wouldn't recommend it. So, here's the quote that I've been pondering and trying to make sense of:

"Worrying does nothing and doing nothing just because it feels like something is only a waste of doing."

It's a short post today with not many photos because it was a travel day. I should make up for it tomorrow when we see the sights in Oslo, our final destination on this Nordic Sojourn.

"God is not satisfied with informing you about the work of his kingdom. He transforms you to participate in the work of his kingdom." PDT