June 8 – Svolvaer – Trollfjord Cruise – Lofoten World War II Museum

Accommodations: Thon Lofoten Hotel

Breakfast at the hotel was really nice – probably the largest buffet so far. Allan had dried whale on a cracker and I had the yogurt that the fisherman from yesterday told us he makes and sells to the hotels. It was delicious with blueberries.

We are on the Lofoten archipelago, a beautiful place, where artists from all over come to sketch the scenic highlights.

After breakfast, we boarded an electric catamaran for a three hour Trollfjord Cruise over the beautiful blue waters and through the majestic mountains. We saw little hamlets along the way, where the fishing homes, painted the iconic red and white, are nestled into little coves. It’s amazing to think the people live here through the harsh winters.

We sailed into Trollfjord, a narrow inlet with a large population of sea eagles. We were very lucky to see many of them fly by. They are beautiful, with a wing span of about 8 feet. They are found in coastal areas, fjords, and around islands, where they hunt for fish and other prey.

We enjoyed a sweet potato soup with bread as we cruised along and it was truly a wonderful morning.

After the cruise, a few of us went on an almost 4 mile walk along the coast. On the way, we saw where stockfish are hung to dry. Stockfish (tørrfisk in Norwegian) is a traditional Norwegian fish that is actually dried cod. The fish is dried outside on huge racks.

As we passed by, you could smell the fish that were hanging on the racks. The bodies had apparently already been dried and removed and all that was hanging on the racks were the fish heads. The heads take longer to dry out and could be on the racks for months. The fish isn’t salted, but rather gets the salt content from the sea. Stockfish has been a major Norwegian export for centuries, even dating back to the Viking era.

We walked to the end of the coastal path and saw the statue that stands in the water – The Fisherman’s Wife. This is a statue by Per Ung, depicting a woman looking anxiously towards the sea, waiting for her husband’s return from fishing. It is rather sad when you think that many of the men that went out to fish in the rough seas, never did came back.

On the way back to the hotel, we were very excited to see a pod of orca whales swimming around. They usually leave the area in May, so we were extremely lucky to see them today.

When we returned to the hotel, we had an hour to rest and then we went off to see the Lofoten War Museum. The museum is small, but has an enormous collection of artifacts from World War II and William Hakvaag, the curator, has amassed an extensive collection of military and civilian items from the war, all on his own. It was unbelievable to see the actual uniforms, bombs, eating utensils, typewriters, and to hear the story of the Nazi invasion and occupation of northern Norway from 1940-1945. He even has a Gestapo room on display, with a prisoner handcuffed and hanging from a hook, while the Gestapo agents stand by in authentic uniforms, deciding the prisoner’s fate.

William has a signed watercolor, painted by Adolph Hitler, that he purchased from a young girl whose grandparents had it in their possession for many years. She had tried to find out its worth, but since it was dated 1940, everyone believed it was a fraud, since the thought was that Hitler only painted watercolors for about six years, in the beginning of the 1900’s.

William bought the picture from the girl for 250 euros and it was delivered in a fairly new frame. He took the frame apart and took out the watercolor, and behind it, were four other watercolors. Three were of three of the seven dwarfs and one was of Pinocchio. All four renditions are signed A H and dated ‘40’. Apparently, Hitler did paint in the 40’s, so the landscape William bought from the girl is signed and is apparently authentic.

We toured the museum and then we all went for dinner. Our appetizer was whale and it was excellent. It tasted like beef jerky and was very salty. Stockfish was served for the main course, which as you now know, is dried cod. Apparently, the dried cod is reconstituted with water and then becomes “fresh” cod. Dried cod can actually be kept for 30 years.

Well…this was the first fish here on the trip that everyone thought was positively awful! It had no taste and the texture was chewy and hard at the same time and tasted like…. Wait for it…. Dried fish! Yuck!!!! It smelled fishy too.

After dinner Allan and I did laundry in a little outdoor building with two washers and two dryers, but one washer wasn’t working. We downloaded the app…GoMarina…which allowed us to pay with a credit card and then get a PIN number that you enter to get the washer going. Then after the load is done, you put everything into the dryer. All this for $5 and change! A bargain!

Except…when the washer cycle ends and the door to the washer won’t open. Yikes!!! We tried everything, to know avail. Another couple came to use the laundry facility and they couldn’t figure it out either. (But in talking with them, they said they loved stockfish… so could I really trust them to know what to do???)

I finally contacted Heidi who contacted someone who runs the facility. The guy came and put a coin into the slot and the machine started up and finished running and voila, thankfully the door opened at the end of the cycle and we could move our laundry to the dryer, where the clothes could have the time of the lives after being ransomed, frolicking and dancing in the non-existent heat. Yes…after an hour and a half, the clothes were still quite damp. Fortunately, I had my trusty clothes line with us and we strung the clothes to dry in the bathroom. The man who came to our rescue to release our clothes from the washer said that the broken washer would work, but you’d have to stand there for the entire cycle and hold the door shut. So one washer door won’t stay closed…the other washer door won’t open. Go figure!! The man who came to our aid said they are having a lot of trouble with the app, and he also said that new machines would be coming, probably within the next three months. Too funny!!

At least the cost of the washer/dryer was a bargain. Remember the cost of our beers the other night? $25?? Our wines tonight were $16 a glass…and definitely not a big pour. After the laundry adventure, we treated ourselves to a Guinness at the hotel bar. It was 10:30 at night, but the sun was shining and it seemed like midday.