We arrived at the airport in plenty of time to do a little tax-free shopping, so we took advantage of the wine prices and loaded up our backpacks with the legal limit (3 bottles each). The wine we bought was only about four euros (around five dollars at today’s exchange rate), but in Norway, the cheapest wine possible to buy (and it tastes pretty cheap, too), is around 25 dollars a bottle. Six bottles won’t get us through the next three weeks as we have several dinner parties planned, but it helps.
The flight back to Norway was smooth and uneventful, just like one would hope a trip thirty thousand feet in the air would be. We arrived smack dab on time at three in the afternoon and even then we knew we were pushing it to get home by midnight. I figured the drive home would take longer than the drive to the airport on Monday, but I had no idea just how much longer it could be. There was much road construction, lots of camping vehicles, no place to pass, and even a huge accident that delayed us nearly an hour. I was starting to worry about driving so late, being so tired, and dealing with the last few hours to Aalesund being the most dangerous, but I trusted God for safe travels.
When we stopped to eat a quick dinner at a grocery store cafeteria, I was a bit stressed about how long it was taking Kaleb to finish his dinner, as I was in a hurry to get home. Kory had already driven two hours and was nearly sleeping at the wheel, so the plan was that he would sleep after dinner and I’d drive for about three hours, then he’d take the last two. Well, my three hours turned into five because of all the aforementioned delays. God surely heard the cries of my heart, and then my phone rang.
One of Kory’s relatives heard we were taking that long drive from Oslo to Aalesund in one stretch, and they thought it sounded a bit too dangerous. They just happened to be spending the weekend at their cabin in the mountains about two and a half hours east of Aalesund. They called and invited us to stop over for the night and have a good sleep, before we finished the journey home. Both Kory and I shouted a loud HALLELUJAH in the car, as it was more than a perfect solution to our dilemma. Hotels around these parts are few and far between, and at three hundred dollars a night, not really an option for us anyway. We were elated and so thankful for the invitation. Kaleb put up a little resistance as he was still thinking we’d get home at midnight and that wasn’t too late to go to a friend’s house. He finally understood the gravity of driving late when we were so tired, and he relented. I began to prepare him for life in a cabin, and I told him we might have to use an outhouse, but I was pretty sure they had electricity. I had no idea what was in store.
Walking into their “cabin” was like walking into a Norwegian travel brochure with all the classic knotty pine walls, floors, ceilings, decorations and feeling (see photo of just the kitchen). It was like heaven. Really, it was another blessing beyond our ability to accept it. The place sleeps 15. We asked them how they even knew we were on this trip, and they said their son, Bjorn (our old neighbor, Kory’s second cousin, and step-father to Tobias), told them. We stopped by his place last Sunday to check on the condition of the volcano in Iceland (he’s a pilot and has access to all kinds of websites) and he showed us on Google earth the cheapest place to park our car near the airport in Oslo. In talking to his mom yesterday he told her our travel plans and she decided it wasn’t too smart to make such a long drive after such a long flight. Lucky for us, she knew better. And this is why I love Norway so much – it’s not just the beautiful scenery and high standard of living – it’s the whole “it takes a village” mentality where everyone watches out for everyone else. People REALLY care about other people.
Once we arrived at the cabin, an entire “kveld’s mat” (night food) meal was waiting for us, along with a bottle of very good red wine. We slept well.
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