Ask – Again

After reporting to the ladies on the hotel booking, taxi/shuttle options, luggage storage, train tickets and more, I asked for aid:

"If anyone has the opportunity to practice driving stick-shift: "go-for-it" and let me know. I will try to find an opportunity for myself before we go."

I referred them to the blog entries about our rental vehicle and request for driving help from Tora.

A year ago when our group met, no one claimed recent experience driving a manual-transition vehicle. In recent months, I hadn't had an opportunity to try and hadn't heard that anyone else in our group did. Therefore two weeks ago, I wrote Tora and casually asked for help if someone was able. To cover the bases, I expanded my request to our group.

To my surprise, I received a reply that one gal's last car was a stick-shift. She and another gal planned to practice before the trip.

Hooray!

Now we will work on familiarizing them with road signs and driving rules in Norway – giving us a little more independence and flexibility with that 3-day leg of our journey.

How things open up when one decides to Ask Again.

Bergen Booking

Over the July 4th weekend, I researched Bergen lodging options online. I weighed the benefits of a money-saving hostel over a classic hotel, emailed both for information on late-night check-ins, a luggage-check area as well as convenience for a shuttle vs. taxi drop-off from the airport located 30-45 minute from the city center.

All things considered, I booked us at a hotel located about 1 km (a 10-minute walk) from the famous Fish Market and next door to the famous composer Edvard Greig's home. Who knows? We may be able to sit out in the hotel garden and catch the end the concert held each evening at Greig's home.

One thing's certain: we will have our one-night hotel "treat" – including an American breakfast the following morning. After checking out of our rooms, the hotel allows guests to stow their bags in a luggage-check room. That means we can travel "hands-free" during our day-tour of the city. We'll also be able to order taxi service to take us out to the Hurtigruten terminal where we'll board our cruise ship and sail that evening.

Through an international hotel website, I secured three rooms for our Bergen Booking!

Ask

I have a problem. I like to do things myself. It is difficult for me to ask others for help. Why? I don't want to be a bother.

That's one reason it took me two weeks to write Cousin Tora with the latest information on our trip. I thanked her the card she sent in April extending her generous arrangement for lodging, site-seeing and a family gathering during our visit. I answered her questions about us six ladies. I also explained details of our arrival in Trondheim. I included my host dad's appraisal of the rental vehicle situation, including the manual transmission.

I put down my pen and I prayed:

If this trip was reversed – so that I was waiting for incoming visitors – would I help? Of course, if I am able – was my reply.

Most people like to help. But if no one asks, those needs go unknown.

After a long meditation, I wrote on to Tora.

"That means we must practice driving a stick-shift car because such vehicles are not so common here in the USA. If there is someone who can help us with the driving, that would be suitable. But we'll take it all in stride."

I asked Tora's advice on whether we should wait two hours at the pier for the rental agency to open and come with the vehicle or if we could walk on a leisurely site-seeing tour to the station.

A huge burden lifted, as I signed, folded, addressed and mailed this envelope at the post office. Whatever, Tora's reply matters little compared to the giant step taken for me to ASK.

God has a plan!

Vehicle Verification

Today my host dad sent me a short email verifying the rental vehicle situation.

Whether Svein spoke to the Trondheim representative before or after I did, I may never know. But in his email, Svein verified the Trondheim representative, his telephone number and the reservation number – all information I had gotten four days ago. Svein also noted he used his own credit card to hold the vehicle until we arrived and could present the card used for payment.

He arranged for us to be picked up at Hurtigruten pier with a vehicle for six adults and their luggage. His only regret was that such a rental vehicle comes only with manual transmission...

I am touched and wonder what all this means. One thing is for sure: Time to brush up on stick-shift driving skills or ask for help.

Vehicle Secured

"There's nothing like waking up to (someone speaking) Norwegian in the morning," Dan chided. I sighed, "Sorry, but I had to call the Trondheim office before 7 AM here to take care of our rental vehicle."


Two weeks ago, I emailed the auto-rental agency in Verdal to confirm prices and availability on a van for six. The representative replied everything was as stated in the quote I received from her in March. However, she did need a credit card number to secure the booking. I refused to send the information in an email and tried the telephone number at the bottom of her message. That number failed. She ignored my next email question for her direct number. Instead, she asked again to email my credit card information.

Frustrated, I called my host dad and asked for the number he used months ago to speak with this Verdal representative. My host dad said he would try calling and get back to me. I waited a week. Then I began researching the Norwegian telephone system and discovered, the number on the Verdal representative's email was "toll free" – in Norway, of course. I googled the Verdal office and found a direct telephone number. I emailed the representative, explained the "toll free" number trouble and asked whether the telephone number I'd found on the website would connect me to her.

She replied: If you want to call direct, use this telephone number xxxxxxxxxxx. I researched the city number and discovered it to be a Trondheim number. Since it was late in their day, I decided to call the next day – today – in our early morning hours.

"Well, at least that's settled," I told Dan. "I talked to a man in the Trondheim office. He listened to my story and understood my concern about sending my credit card number in an email. He took my booking, answered my questions about a drop box for an early return so we could catch the early morning train to Lillehammer, gave me the reservation number and said he didn't need my credit card number.

"What?" I said. He replied: "Just bring your credit card along with the reservation number when you come to the city-center station."

Rental Vehicle Secured!

Web Research

This past week I've surfed the web looking for answers to questions such as:

How do we spend an 11-hour layover in Iceland?



Perhaps by catching the FlyBus from the Keflavik Airport into Reykjavik?






Maybe riding
a double-decker
bus for
a hop-on/hop-off
tour
around the
capital city?











Or heading to
the Blue Lagoon
hot springs
for a dip
in the
therapeutic
waters?






Another question entails:

How do we travel from the Bergen Airport to the City Center for overnight lodging: Taxi or Shuttle Bus? Much depends on where we decide to stay: in a hostel or a hotel?



If I can secure in a rental vehicle in Trondheim, I will book a single train travel ticket for six of us to traveling from Trondheim to Lillehammer.

Without wheels, we may need to take the train to the relatives – then, a buying Norway Pass for several days travel might be more cost efficient.

Telefon Ringen til Norge

This morning I called to wish Happy Birthday to my host mom.

I also explained that tonight we would celebrate 17. mai – Norway's Constitution Day – at our church with a Scandinavian Dinner and Music. Dan would be one of two "torsk" masters and I would wear my Norwegian-inspired costume to welcome about 100 attendants and sing the Norwegian table prayer. Gunn told me to greet everyone and then turned me over to my host dad to talk about our upcoming Norway trip.

Many area people I know there want to connect during our last days of this tour. Uncertain, I asked his advice on scheduling. Svein suggested taking the train from Trondheim to Lillehammer.

There the two of them will meet us with a mini-bus – which he will lease and has a license to operate. They will show us around this 1994 Olympic city and its sites, drive us over to Hamar for a look along Lake Mjøsa, through Kongsvinger, and south into the community where they live and work.

They plan to house us at their lake cabin during our stay and will also show us around local points of interest, arrange a gathering and help us through Oslo and to the airport for our departure. He assured me that we can take into account everyone's well-being and stamina when we arrive and make final decisions at that time.

With "pappa's" assurance, I "let go" of these details and felt refreshed – having a clear picture of how to navigate through my responsibilities – after this Telephone Call to Norway.