Koselig is a Norwegian word that means cozy, but you can say it about everything.
We stopped once again at the port of Trondheim that was the capitol of Norway long ago but was called Nidaros.
There is a university here that specializes in oil extraction and bridge and tunnel building. In fact, twenty percent of the population are students.
The Trondheim Cathedral had at least seven churches built on the cathedral site. Fires are a constant concern in Norway. The Crown Regalia is located here.
There is beautiful rose window. It was unknown that it was made of stained glass until it was cleaned because of so much soot covering it.
After the fire of 1682, the city decided to widen the streets which makes for lovely pedestrian streets today.
We passed Ormen Lange which is one of many gas fields in the Barents Sea. This gas is exported to England and Germany.
Romsdaldalpene is a mountain range in southern Norway. The name means white mountain. The city of Molde located nearby has an annual Jazz Festival in Week 29 every year.
Kristiansand is a beautiful and unusual city located on four islands each with a different purpose.
KIRKELANDET has Norway’s only working shipyard museum Mellemværftet.
INNLANDET has the oldest preserved parts of the town with the first customs house, hospital, and school.
NORDLANDET has the only remaining gale warning in Norway still in use.
GOMA has an extensive exhibition of old and modern photographs in the clipfish warehouse Milnbrygga.
Clipfish was once dried on the sea cliff. That is where it got its name. The women have been responsible for the preservation of the fish since 1690’s by splitting them into triangles. The clipfish were exported to Spain, Portugal, Italy, and South America where they make the dish bacalao. The Portuguese have a different bacalao recipe for every day of the year.
I signed Rob up for a bridge tour.
Our lecture today was about Roald Amundsen and the South Pole.
Amundsen knew that he wanted to be a polar explorer from an early age. As a child, he slept naked outside in the cold. His goals were to be famous and find magnetic north.
His 1903-1906 expedition had known how to prevent scurvy from the indigenous people who ate raw meat. In 1910 scurvy was proven to be from a lack of Vitamin C.
“Can I borrow the Fram? I want to go to the North Pole.” Fram means forward.
Amundsen prepared an expedition with Nansen’s polar ship Fram in order to be the first man to reach the North Pole, but changed his plans upon hearing that Robert Peary had reached it first. Instead, he secretly changed the direction of the expedition to reach the South Pole first. Only on the way south did he inform the crew and via telegram his British competitor, Robert Scott, of his intentions. All explorers know what other explorers are doing and where they are doing it. The South Pole was the last great unexplored polar region.
The crew had signed on to go to the North Pole so they literally did a 180 and headed south. He asked each crew member if they were onboard so to speak with the change of plans. Only one crew member declined. The crew stopped in Madeira to write letters home.
The Fram had a diesel engine and was made for ice so in the open water, she rolled from side to side like a walnut.
They traveled from Madeira to Bay of Whales which was 8,700 miles. This is a very long distance, and the two locations are on opposite sides of the globe.
Scott used Shetland horses on his expedition. They starved once their feed ran out. Shackleton didn’t like dogs since one needed to have dog handlers. Amundsen was 100% dogs and specifically Greenland dogs.
Snow kept the buildings insulated. Tents did not have bottoms. One would track in snow, and then it would melt. Amundsen had learned what to do and what not to do from the Inuit.
There were four sledges pulled by dogs. They were fanned out rather than in a line. There were five men headed to the pole. One man led the way for the dogs to follow.
They left on Oct 9, 1911. On Oct 21, they encountered bad weather. Tents were restful to their eyes. The crew tried out new blindness sunglasses and nose covers. They built a snow wall at the base of the tents. On Nov 17, it was warm but they had to help the dogs during a steep climb. By Nov 22, they made camp and butchered and ate some of the dogs. The men had to kill their own dogs, and the weakest ones were chosen.
The high altitude was starting to have effects. The ice covered-tents needed to be handled carefully.
They arrived at Devil’s Glacier. On Dec 12, they were only 30 miles away. The dogs were excited. (How did they know?)
On the eve of the 13th, they prepared the Norwegian flag. (Of course.) It felt like Christmas Eve to the men. They took the next 24 hours to determine the correct spot. On Dec 14, 1911, a sledge meter was set to mark the spot. There were sun sores on their faces. All hands planted the flag.
A letter was written and left for Scott … in case they didn’t make it back. In addition, a sextant and spare mittens were included and placed in a spare tent. They held a solemn ceremony at the South Pole before leaving.
Amundsen said that their success was good planning not good luck. This was a moment of pride for a young country. They reached Hobart, Tasmania, on March 7, 1911 to a heroes welcome.
The movie Amundsen released in 2019 was partially funded by Hurtigruten. David Attenborough made a reenactment called The Explorers that was well done.
In 1926 Amundsen wanted to explore the North Pole by the use of a Zeppelin. He never made it back home and was lost at sea.
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