Stavanger Norway- Exploring

We take a day to explore the outskirts of Stavanger via the local ferry. We board a commuter ferry boat that services the small outlying islands.

It is tempting to get off and wander one of these picturesque islands. The problem is the ferry only stops on the return route if it is “called”, literally called, by telephone. Doing this is not a risk we decided to take, if you can’t get a hold of the ferry company you could get stuck on the island. Instead, we get off at the “main” stop of Hommersak.  

We hike around a lake, over a waterfall, through a small little village, and have a picnic. The perfect kind of day for us.

From here we take a bus to Sandnes, check out the city and then the train back to our cozy accommodations we are calling “home” for the week.

With a stop for coffee, where the barista happily brings out our coffees and then adds the milk to our liking.

Our experience is the Norwegians are extremely friendly and kind. Everywhere we have had great service, kindness, and patience when we ask a bunch of questions trying to better understand things. No one seems to be in a hurry, you never hear car horns, people yelling or see people rushing around. There is this overall sense of calmness that is very appealing.

The next day we decide, despite the thrones of tourists, we should see the most famous fjord here in Stavanger. At first, we tried to figure out a way to take the local ferry up the fjord, but the connecting bus has a two plus hour delay on the return to the city. I can’t help wondering if this is designed by the big fjord tour companies to discourage tourists from attempting to avoid the expense of their services. Costs: Ferry boat approximate $8, tour boat $60.

We pick a day when there are no cruise ships docking to minimize the crowds. It was still crowded. The tour is guided in several languages. It passes under the famous Pulpit rock featured in the latest Mission Impossible movie with Tom Cruise hanging off the edge the cliff, (1982 feet), then close to a waterfall, we are treated to a wild goat viewing, and travel under a historic bridge (no pic). There is no disembarking.

It was interesting and we had a good time. We both prefer to be on our own and getting more physical activity. It was a day of mostly sitting on the boat.

Airbnb now has excursions and other touristy options available through their site. On a rainy morning we signed up for a bread baking course. More than to learn about bread baking, (Gary is already well skilled), the idea was to spend time with locals. Turns out Benno is Italian, his wife German, there seems to be many transplants here in Norway. We spent the first hour chatting with Benno in Italian and then after the bread making had an amazing breakfast with him and his family, which included eggs, homemade jams, various spreads, cheeses, cured meats and smoked fish. It was a delicious meal and delightful experience.

We will be packing up soon and moving on to Copenhagen, Denmark.

To start our next post we will show a contrast of the Stavanger city streets early in the quietness of morning and then later in the afternoon filled with strolling visitors.