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D6 | THE STRAITS TIMES | TUESDAY, JANUARY 23, 2018 | | TUESDAY, JANUARY 23, 2018 | THE STRAITS TIMES | D7 A travel series every Tuesday. The stories are also available in sgtravellers.com BON VOYAGE SPECIAL | SPH CONTENT LAB Making trails across Norway Joanette Teng experience. I sat on a huge boul- hour more of climbing, and der by the riverbank, closed my we reached the top where we is rewarded with eyes and listened to the sound could touch the cascading spectacular views of the rushing water. Strangely water. enough, I found it more daunting Surviving mainly on energy during a recent than sitting at the tip of Troll- bars and chocolates during tunga. the hikes, we were craving hiking trip As we did not have professional for a hot and hearty meal, equipment and an experienced especially in the cold weather. NORWAY is home to countless guide, we did not attempt to At the Aegir BrewPub, a local fjords, mountains, valleys and ford the river to get up close to brewery in Norse Viking style, PHOTO: CRUISE ARENA glaciers. And since there are the Folgefonna. Hiking on the we had the famous Viking hiking routes comprising all glacier’s azure blue ice and even plank platter, which consisted levels of diffi culty, from the easy ice-climbing inside the crevasses of fi ve local dishes with beer SAIL INTO SPRING marked trails to the challenging would have been another high- pairings. To see the cherry blossoms in climbs that are well off the beaten light, but we will have to go back The smoked reindeer and Japan, Cruise Arena is offering a path, I decided that hiking was a again to do it. shellfi sh soup were delicious, special 7N Spring Flower package good way to explore its wild and and were made even better by starting from $1,659 per person. untamed landscapes. Brekkefossen – a Hike to the fl avourful beers. Indulging This round-trip voyage, on board the Waterfall in Flåm in these Norwegian delicacies the Diamond Princess, will start and Trolltunga - Hightail to Our last hike brought us to Flåm, was a great way to reward end in Tokyo (Yokohama), stopping the troll’s tongue a picturesque little village nestled ourselves post-hike, and the in the ports of Kanmon Straits, Our fi rst stop was the Trolltunga, in the innermost sidearm of the perfect ending to our holiday. Busan (South Korea), Sakaiminato, a dramatic cliff rock that juts out Sognefjord. Nicknamed the “King Tsuruga and Akita. 700m above Lake Ringedalsvatnet of the Fjords”, this is Norway’s The trip will commence on April in the municipality of Odda. longest and deepest fjord. 13, 2018. Legend has it that sunlight is With its rugged mountain GUIDELINES For more details, go to www. deadly to the trolls (mystical crea- peaks, cascading waterfalls and cruisearena.travel or call 6317-2707. tures of Scandinavian origin), but idyllic farming villages, it is said We fl ew from a defi ant troll decided to mock the to be one of the most beautiful Singapore to Oslo * Terms and conditions apply. sun by sticking his tongue out at destinations in the world. on Thai Airways, sunrise and was turned to stone. The journey along the with a stopover in Bangkok. Geologists, on the other hand, say Sognefjord to reach Flåm was From Gardermoen Airport that the 10,000 year-old rock for- spectacular, and the sight of a in Oslo, we rented a car for NEXT WEEK mation was created from glacier massive cruise ship docked in the six-hour drive to Odda. Stay fi t on erosion. this tiny Nordic village was no a cruise Trolltunga is one of the most Clockwise from top: Sitting by the raging river at Buarbreen; Sampling the Viking plank platter; A Surreal view less amazing. You have to drive on popular hikes in Norway, and of Flåm and Sognefjord. There are several walking the right-hand side arguably the most photographed tracks in Flåm, with Brekke- and most rental cars rock in the world. It is a strenuous fossen waterfall being the top have manual transmission. and demanding hike, covering a the tongue, and the way down was of our trip. It was tremendous fun excellent, with the blue ice favourite. The hike was short but The scenic roads are often distance of 22km and an ascent all the more brutal on the knees. scrambling over large boulders, becoming clearer as we steep, and the rainy weather on narrow with hairpin turns, of 900m. Most people would That said, the awe-inspiring crossing the suspension bridge approached the top. However, the previous day had made the so drive with caution. require at least eight to 12 hours Trolltunga was worth the effort. and climbing steep inclines with what really blew me away was path muddy and slippery. to complete the return hike. If I were to do it again, I would the help of support ropes. In the view of the Buar valley sur- After climbing for over an Weather conditions By 7am, the trail, which was camp overnight on the mountain contrast to the Trolltunga, there rounded by steep mountains, hour, the rocky trail opened in the mountains can marked by ubiquitous red “T” to experience a quiet sunset and were no other hikers in front of with the raging river fl owing up to a grassy ledge, offering a change quickly, so letters painted on cairns (rock sunrise. us and we had follow the red “T” out through the valley into Lake panoramic view of the waterfall, bring warm layers and rain piles), was already crowded. markers to make sure we were on Sandvinvatnet. Flåm and the mighty Sognefjord. gear, and wear waterproof It took us through various ter- Buarbreen – to the Edge the right path. The fact that we had the whole The low clouds added a surreal hiking shoes. rains, climbs and stream cross- of Glacier The view of the glacier was place to ourselves added to the touch to the landscape. A half- ings, and there were incredible Also located in Odda, the Buar- views at every turn. We reached breen is a majestic glacier arm of the legendary cliff before noon the Folgefonna, the third largest and queued for half an hour to glacier on Norway’s mainland. get that epic picture at the tip of There are full-day guided tours the troll’s tongue. to walk on the glacier itself, or a The wait was not boring, three-hour round-trip hike to the though, as we were entertained glacier’s edge and back. Since our by people doing all sorts of legs were still aching from hiking stances at the ledge, such as star the Trolltunga, we opted for the jump, handstand and yoga poses. latter. I mustered the courage to sit with This underrated hike turned my feet dangling over the edge, out to be an unexpected highlight and it was certainly not as scary as it looked. At the top of Trolltunga or, as legend has it, the troll’s tongue. PHOTOS: JOANETTE TENG It was an arduous journey up to HolidaysHolidaysd made to measure, at your own time, at your own choice, ✔ at your own budget ❑ DESTINA Worldwide TION SUPERVISING EDITOR Serene Goh www.ChanBrothers.com/Customised ❑✔ ceh@chanbro EDITOR Beatrice Ang TRAVEL DATE nbrothers.com.sge Anytime, no more rigid departure dates CONTRIBUTOR Joanette Teng ✔ ❑ ITINER CHIEF SUB-EDITOR Uma Venkatraman Pers ARY onalised to your reequiquirementsrements ART DIRECTOR Chris Tan ❑✔ ASSISTANT MANAGER PRICE Wee Ngiap Hiang According to your budgetget ADVERTISING SALES Angeline Foo, Oh Say ✔ ❑ GROUP Tuck, Serene Tang, Patricia Peh, Veronica As few as 2 travellersSIZE ✔ Chong, Priscilla Tang, Cindy Hiang (6319- ❑ LANG 2048) MultilingualUA tourGE guide (TA 109) For reproduction of articles or reprints of photographs, call SPH’s Information Resource Centre: 6319-5508 or 6319-5726. 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