Back to Scandinavia - The Magic of 'The Lofoten Islands' - Norway

When I talk about the Lofoten Islands in Mumbai this is what I say .. “A road connects the islands ,It is a road on which when u drive ,it is difficult to decide in which direction to look at”. A road which is only 140 kms in its most scenic section but which takes 5 hours to cover with stops that are governed by where the bus can find parking.  So to do justice with it one has to cycle through it. Cycle, and stop where your heart tells you to and not where the parking sign is. Stop to take in the crisp air and what lies in front of you. Don’t have an itinerary in mind ! Don’t have a time line to follow.. Just follow your instinct. I assure you this will be the best drive you’ve ever undertaken.  

The E 10 as it is known is dotted with beautiful fishing villages. Fishing the cods is big here. It is so big that the fishermen here were partly responsible for Norway not joining the EU. Now aren’t they glad about it ..

Coming back to the E10 ,There are detours that you can make on smaller roads that lead to still pretty settlements. On clearer sunny days when the bay waters are still ,the house by the sea speaks through its reflection on the water. When I look at it ,I hear the words ‘this is where I want to be, now and forever’ .. Well I think the same thing about the people here. Fishermen folk ,whose children sometimes wander off elsewhere in the world in search of a better life, but come back one day ,come back because the life that they lead here can only be described as pure ! Norway calls them home as it does to a wanderer in me. 

If Norway is on the top of the world .. The lofoten Islands top Norway in Summer. I say summer because in winter there is Tromso that takes over due to its close proximity to viewing the Northern Lights. Well ,winter is far and Summer is at its full ..

It was amazing to see my tourists wearing sun glasses at 0030 hrs and take pictures against the midnight sun.  It feels humbled when they thank me for bringing them to this part of Norway.  Scandinavia is so much different than the continental Europe they say. And when they don’t say anything ,they are looking out of the window .. looking at the Lofoten Islands !

Today I leave from Bodo ,the first big town above the Arctic circle in Norway and the last train station of the Norwegian Railways to the North. I head to Bergen ,the salmon capital of the world. Bergen is beautiful ,with its port and a line of wooden houses lined by the sea. But when the guy at the reception smiles as I check in and asks me “ from where are you coming today” .. Even he is happy to hear the words .. Lofoten Islands !