After the Flåmsbana, we had a little over a half hour to spend at the Myrdal station before catching the train to Oslo. Being the day before the day before Easter, which is actually named (Good Friday), the train and the minimal coffee shop were the only things open. And the Greater Metropolitan area of Myrdal consists mostly of the aforementioned two items, plus the gift shop in the station. It's not exactly a big place. We picked up the train and about 4 hours later arrived in Oslo. We had a 4 person table to ourselves, so both of us had window seats. I spent a lot of time by the doors of the train taking pictures of the winter wonderland landscape just beyond us. It felt amazingly remote—cold and empty. I knew it'd be cold, but I wasn't even sure if there'd be air there. At the same time, the landscape was strikingly beautiful. People got on and off at some of the stops, most of which seemed to be winter ski areas. It was a beautiful train ride. Friday April 19, 2019 000-DSC_3153-header: At Myrdal Train Station 000-DSC_3153-headertext:
000-DSC_3153: One sign points to Bergen, the other to Oslo. 001-DSC_3154: Our train to Oslo is second to arrive. 002-DSC_3155: The train to Flåm that we took to get here is ready to depart. 003-DSC_3156: OK Bye, Flåmsbana! 004-DSC_3157: And then it's just us...and the mountains. And a bunch of other people too. 005-DSC_3158: Take the train to Myrdal and then bike down to Flåm. Sounds fun! 006-DSC_3159: Noble Viking Warrior. The gift shop was closed so I just too pictures. 007-DSC_3160: A kooky Viking. Kind of Asterisk and Oblisk style. 008-DSC_3161: Trolls. 009-DSC_3162: More trolls. The sort-of cute, family kind. 010-DSC_3163: More noble warriors. 011-DSC_3164-header: Viking Winter Wonderland 011-DSC_3164-headertext:
The trip across some of the higher terrain by the mountains in southern Norway was really beautiful. It was mid-April and sunny but it could be winter anywhere else. There were ski resorts and cabins at some places, but others seemed way more inhospitable. I know it'd be cold, but it looked so far removed from normal life that there might not have been an atmosphere beyond the train doors. Amazing to think how the train lines were built (and maintained year-round). 011-DSC_3164: 012-DSC_3165: 013-DSC_3167: 014-DSC_3168: 015-DSC_3170: 016-DSC_3171: 017-DSC_3172: 018-DSC_3173: 019-DSC_3174: 020-DSC_3175: 021-DSC_3177: Finse, a mountain village on the short of Lake Finsevatnet. 022-DSC_3178: Finse 023-DSC_3179: An action shot of Frank and Stephanie on the train! 024-DSC_3181: A slice of life shot of Frank and Stephanie hard at work on the train! 025-DSC_3185: 026-DSC_3186: 027-DSC_3187: 028-DSC_3188: 029-DSC_3189: 030-DSC_3190: 031-DSC_3191: The village of Ustaoset. 032-DSC_3192: Ustaoset, a small high valley resort town. 032-snow_train_Panorama: We paused briefly in the middle of nowhere, so I took this panoramic photo from inside the door of the train. There are high voltage towers going along the hills looking tiny. I was probably facing south-ish. A blue sign on the tower on the right identifies it as Ustaoset. So we probably stopped right before the station. So we weren't quite lost out on the ice away from all life and civilization. 033-DSC_3199-header: Approaching Spring and Oslo 033-DSC_3199-headertext:
As we proceeded eastward, and presumably not as high up, the scenery started to change. The snow was melting, there was green poking through or the area was mostly grass and trees and ponds and rivers, with only a few spots of ice and snow. We went through some tunnels too. 033-DSC_3199: The snow is retreating. 035-DSC_3204: 036-DSC_3206: Spring is here. 037-DSC_3207: Rustic springing scene in Norway. 038-DSC_3208: A picture of me, since I couldn't take a picture outside, while in a tunnel. 039-DSC_3209: 040-DSC_3210: 041-DSC_3211: If I knew where we were I could identify the road. I'm guessing it's Route 7. 042-DSC_3213: 043-DSC_3216: A lake with a thin layer of ice over it. 044-DSC_3217: 045-DSC_3218: The ice is starting to melt~ 046-DSC_3219: That intriguing big blue box is completely boring. Nothing to see here. 047-DSC_3220: Houses backing up to the train tracks with BBQ grills and stuff. Note the white house has a big drop from the patio doors. 048-DSC_3221: More backs and backyards of various houses near Oslo. 049-DSC_3222: Still more back yards and creepy-trees. 050-DSC_3223: Roa Station. OK, we're not quite at Oslo yet. 051-DSC_3224: 052-DSC_3225: Entering Oslo S, the Central Train Station of Oslo. 053-DSC_3226: In hte train yard. There are a dozen or so parallel train tracks. 054-DSC_3227: The Barcode District buildings in Oslo, near where we'd be staying. 055-DSC_3228: Arriving at Oslo Sentralstasjon! Bottom: