Trondheim is the most Norway place possible

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Our first full day in Trondheim, Norway was fairly quiet for Masayo and I. In the sunny afternoon we walked to the giant cathedral near our hotel, and then checked out some yarn shops for Masayo. It snowed in the evening as we were out walking around.

My BG after the excellence that it was yesterday began well again today: 89 at 4:30 in the morning. I don’t know why it woke me up, but in case it was creeping lower, I had a half a Snickers bar and went back to sleep.

I felt good in the morning when I woke up for breakfast, so I didn’t check. We went down to check out the famous breakfast buffet in the hotel, and it didn’t disappoint: all kinds of breads, spreads, cereals, meats and cheeses, fruits, beverages, pastries, and everything else. We each got two large plates full of stuff, but I didn’t get to sample even half of what they had out.

Trondheim Cathedral

In the afternoon we saw that it was sunny and we went to the big cathedral that was near our hotel. It is a massive and impressive structure, and is a symbol of Norway and the symbol of Trondheim. The grounds around it include a cemetery, an archbishop’s palace with the crown jewels of Norway (too expensive for us to get in and see), and nice plazas and lawns.

Around Trondheim

After that we went to the tourist info office in town. They didn’t have free maps of Norway, like almost every other country had on the trip so far; theirs were nice but cost about $20 each. Even the smallest one was $12. I passed. Tourist maps of the town were free, at least.

We also asked the lady there about the Northern Lights. She said tonight might be a good chance, and suggested a place in the next small town over that we could try. It was along the southern shore of the fjord and was away from light sources that could make it hard to see the aurora. How exciting!

Then, since I just wanted to stroll aimlessly, we spent the rest of the time going to some yarn stores that Masayo had found online and marked on a map. We also found a Salvation Army that had some records. No Ray Charles, but they had Street Legal by Bob Dylan and Songs Of Leonard Cohen, the Beck cover of which we had just listened to a few hours earlier as coincidence would have it. I checked after this, and my BG was 155.

Masayo finally bought some yarn at one of the stores, and having seen some of the town we returned to the hotel. Our lunch was some stuff still sitting out from the breakfast buffet — cookies, small croissants, and little pastries. I also had some hot chocolate, all free from the buffet. I took a shot and wondered if it would be enough.

Snowy pizza for dinner

At 7 pm we decided to get some cheap(ish) food from a pizza place we had passed. My BG was indeed high — 211. But it’s my first 200+ of Norway.

Before we reached Mir Pizza, it started to snow harder. We went in and I got a pizza and Masayo ordered a pita thing. Waiting for the food to be prepared, we watched the big snowstorm outside. How exciting, and us with no umbrellas!

The food was ready and cost about $12 each — not bad for Norway. We trudged home through the snow, my pizza box getting covered and soaked.

We ate in the room, and I shot up a lot of Humalog since pizza is always packed in carbs.

And then it was Northern Lights time.

Trying to see the Aurora over in Lade

Cloudy skies, such as the kind that bring snow, make it impossible to see the Northern Lights, which occur above cloud level (when they occur at all). But it was no longer snowing, and I knew I’d be upset if we didn’t at least try.

We went to the center of town to get the bus towards the town of Lade. Bus stops in town were nice, and each had a TV monitor with easy to see explanations of what buses were coming and when. Ours came on time, and we had purchased tickets at a little machine on the street which is cheaper than buying them directly from the driver. (About $7 each, good for 90 minutes.)

The big, modern bus rolled over the snowy streets (at one point appearing to slide a little) and we got off at a small little backstreet stop called Ringve Museum. After that, the bus took off and it was quiet. This was a little residential area, with street lights and cute, warm-looking houses, but it was still snowing a little. Everything was covered.

We followed the map to an area behind some houses (using a flashlight), and then we heard water. The edge of the fjord was there, in front of us, somewhere in the darkness! Our eyes spent a few minutes adjusting, and we could see the water and the path. We waited.

It was snowy, and I suspected the clouds might prevent us from seeing the Northern Lights. But I also had faith that maybe the clouds north of here might not be so thick, and would possibly allow us to see the horizon, which is where the light show would be. In the meantime, I experimented with the settings on my little Olympus camera to capture good photos in the very low light.

NOTE: The photos in this section were lightened quite a bit. Live, it was pretty much dark black, and the little patches of Aurora weren’t as visible as they are here.

We waited about 45 minutes, but didn’t see much. Just falling snow, the cold waves hitting the rocks, and, after a while, the lights of a town on the distant shore. So the sky was clearing up some, but still no Nothern Lights.

We finally started to see some odd clouds here and there, lighter than the surrounding mist. And what looked like a faint green color — we strained our eyes hard to make it out. Was this the Northern Lights?

It was, but it was very, very faint. I took several photos, which all came out dark black. Reworking them digitally, I was able to see that we were in fact seeing the Northern Lights. That’s a victory!

Our last bus was leaving at 11:35 pm, and around 11 pm I decided to get a low-light photo of my Lantus injection with the snowy shore and dark fjord behind me. But I didn’t have any Lantus — I had used up this pen last night and forgot to change it. I came all the way out here to the shores of an icy fjord in Norway in February, saw the Northern Lights, and had to go home because I forgot to bring enough Lantus. Stupid mistake!

Since I had no Lantus and the lights were extremely murky anyway, we headed back.

Back to Trondheim, semi-victorious

We got an earlier than planned bus, and were able to use our original tickets since it was still in the 90-minute window. So that was nice, but we had failed to catch the Northern Lights.

But I didn’t mind much: it was so much fun being out at the edge of the fjord, freezing but with nobody else around, watching the skies and listening to the icy cold waters moving. It was such a Scandinavian experience, the relative lack of a stellar light show didn’t really matter!

I finally took my Lantus shot back in the room, and despite the pizza and the delayed basal shot, my BG at midnight was a respectable 180. I left it, and went to sleep. Another fun day!

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