Capturing the Moment

  I've always had a soft spot for trains, ever since taking a train from Savannah to New York as a kid with my family. There is something quite romantic about them. So I was quite excited for this next leg of our Scandinavia trip. We planned to travel from Oslo to the western fjord lands by scenic train. It involved two trains, first Oslo to Myrdal, then Myrdal to Flam. We started in the hub of Oslo Central Station, but quickly made it out past the suburbs into the rolling farmlands. That was pretty, but it soon became quite beautiful as we headed up into the snowy mountains, past waterfalls, lakes, and even a glacier, barely visible through the low clouds. At Myrdal we switched trains, just as the rain really started to come down. Little did we know that this train ride would be a slow motion cinematic experience with massive waterfalls, huge valleys, and incredible scenery. We made a stop at one waterfall, where they let everyone get off the train to get a better look. We heard t...

  As we head up the mountainside, the fog starts to thicken. Soon we head off into the mist for our hike to the ski jump. On our last full day in Oslo, we planned to hike to the Holmenkollen ski jump. When this was first suggested to me to add to the itinerary, I have to admit, I had to look up what the big deal was about this place. As someone who didn't grow up following skiing, I had never hear of it. And even for ski race fans that do exist in the USA, most of them have never paid much attention to ski jumping, other than every four years at the Olympics, when we see Europeans flying for hundreds of meters off these huge jumps. But I will say something, when you are standing in front of this thing, this Holmenkollen Ski Jump, it doesn't matter what your background with skiing is, you will be in awe. First off, it is a modern engineering marvel. The top of the ski jump looks like it magically floats off the ground, heading up diagonally into the heavens. The encompassing mis...