Norway - especially along the west coast where we were most of the time - is known for its seafood. In Bergen, there is a market set out in open walk areas with fish plucked from the oceans and fjords that surround. I was worried that I would have a hard time finding veggies, but those were abundant as well. All kinds of berries, including "cloudberry" (didn't try it, but maybe it is to Norway what vegemite is to Australia). Raspberries were growing wild while we were there. Sheep and goats graze near their keepers' homesteads, frequently without fences. It looked like some were wild in the mountains too. I even saw cows just roaming about.

Additionally, there are open cabins scattered around the countryside that anyone can use. There's a network of locals throughout the country that maintain them on a basic level, so hikers, skiers, and cyclists can have someplace to stay. We saw many people on the trains with bikes, packs, and dogs that would just get off the train, seemingly in the middle of nowhere, and set off.

Norwegians pay a great deal in taxes, and if this hadn't been tied into Troy's business trip, it would have been hard to afford. But they are also known for incredible humanitarian efforts, giving more per capita than anyone else in the world. As expensive as it is to live or visit there, you also get a new level of freedom. Open cabins and no fences, there's that raw feeling that you could just walk off into the woods and eat berries until you were sick of yourself. I wouldn't be surprised if some people do.

I loved it there, and hope to have a chance to go back someday. We didn't have a chance to go very far north, which will be a very different experience I believe from what we think of as typical Norway. Oslo is the most known city in Norway, and we only spent a couple days there. It was more Bohemian than we imagined. Maybe it was just the time of year - drunk on daylight. Everyone was having a great time.There are cool museums, parks, and wildness, but I was most drawn to the Fjords to the west.