I see - the white stuff on the hills really is sheep?
But don’t forget that a proper facewash always must end with at least a metric ton of snow stuffed down the victim’s neck. 
Prolly not; we’ve had one of the mildest Novembers in quite a few years 
…is something you should stay away from. It’s not much better than the average industrial lager in the US. Try the standard Mack, or their Haakon beer, they have a bit of a personality
If you can stomach lutefisk at all, no. But the food you usually get in affordable cafes is one of the least appealing things about visiting Norway. Frankly, I’m embarrassed about it. :mad:
I just checked the aurora forecast on a local weather website. You’ve got to be a bit lucky, 'cause the activity is rather low right now. Even if we disregard the risk of overcast weather. But if you get out of the city and away from the light pollution, the starry sky is quite nice 
Yup, those who were lucky enough to have a clear sky were quite happy with the activity last week.
2SquareForYou, I can’t read Norwegian so a lot of that map I can’t fathom- does it indicate how the activity will be next week? (We’ll be in Lofoten then).
Thanks for the map- I hadn’t seen it before.
Sorry 'bout that. I just stumbled over the page right now and couldn’t find any English language version.
It seems as if the company gets their data from NOAA, who have an aurora forecast page as well.
I’ve tried to look for longer-term forecasts, but it seems as if those aren’t the easiest things to compute. I guess those solar storms are rather unpredictable on a more detailed basis than the general trends in sunspot activity. I found a page, though, that talks about predicting the aurora. Maybe you’ll find something there.
Thanks. I dropped you a PM- I did visit those sites but it must be very difficult to predict as they have nothing (that I can find) that extends beyond today. In some ways that is good, as they are not saying they won’t occur.
Also, I’ll check the site before I book a tour. They are quite expensive and I won’t spring for one if the chances are low.
They are the sheeps’ reflective safety vests.
AGH - I think I had managed to block out all memories of that part of the facewash ritual!
Can kids even give each other facewashes any longer, or would they be arrested for assault?
Arrived in Lofoten and the hotel is superb. Views from our ninth floor room over the harbour (they provide binoculars). Super modern.
Cool, which town? Svolvær?
If you need something to do on a rainy, day, I can heartily recommend Galleri Espolin in Storvågan, some 10 minutes’ drive west of Svolvær. Kaare Espolin Johnson is perhaps the artist who best has captured the atmosphere of Lofoten and the surrounding areas. Great pictures from one of my favorite Norwegian artists!
The Lofoten museum and the Lofoten Aquarium are located next door to the Galleri Espolin, so if you want to, you can kill more than one bird with just one stone 
Yes, we are in Svolvaer. Thanks very much- you may have just solved what we do tomorrow.
I have a hire car. I have never driven a left hand drive and thought as the population here was pretty small, it would be a good place to becoming accustomed to driving one. How wrong I was! It is okay where the road has a centre line, not having to judge distances on the wrong side and put up with the gear shift and indicators all on the unusual side.
However, when you have narrow roads aith no shoulder so not much leeway if you don’t get it right, it is very difficult when it gets dark at 2 pm and you are putting up with rain, icy conditions and mountainous conditions.
I take it you haven’t considered scaling the summit Svolværgeita (the Svolvær goat)
I haven’t considered it either
ETA: If you’re up for a slightly longer drive on even narrower roads, you could also see the small fishing town Henningsvær. It’s quite picturesque, but I don’t know how much there is to see this time of the year. It’s rather popular among tourists during the summer season, though.
I needtoreadyour posts moreclearly- I didn’t even see the reference to Henningsvaer.
This morning we trundled off to see the Galleri Esponal and whatever. Bought our tickets and were almost out the door when the guy said “Sorry, Galleri won’t be open today…” Got a refund and all that so it was no big deal but I did want to see the Galleri.
The other museum and the aquarium I found more interesting rather than compelling. However I would add that is probably because we have had so much exposure to everything marine/ Viking/ fishy since we have been here.
And then, as we had spare time I suggested we go to Henningsvaer (as you said anyway). Very pretty and a nice drive, but as the driver, passing other cars- especially on the bridges- was different.
Our last day tomorrow- we fly out on Wednesday- a beautiful country. It has been an amazing two weeks.
Aahh, too bad. Oh well, at least take a peek at some of his pictures on the net.
I agree, and that’s why I recommended the gallery before the museum. To me, the most interesting part was the details and the handiwork on the artifacts from the coastal culture. But since I’m feeling a quite strong attachment to that culture and also try to do some handicraft myself, I can see that those details aren’t too compelling for others.
ETA:
And you’ve visited here on a rather non-touristy time of the year. Not necessarily as nice as in the summer, but also a very large part of Scandinavia. This time of the year has its own rugged charm, and it’s been (only half-jokingly) suggested Norway should market the cold and the rain as something exotic and worth seeing for people from warmer parts of the world…
Have a safe flight home **Cicero **- glad you’ve had a good time!
I’ll try and use the space bar a bit better here.
Not going home just yet Cinnamon Imp (thanks for the wishes). We have a week in London before then. And went back to the Galleri again today and sadly it was still closed.
We are going to the hotel restaurant tonight- now to decide on the lutefisk or bacaloa (lofotlao).
And many thanks to 2Square4U and Gukumatz for their help in planning the trip.
I can’t say I had heard about it before your post, but yesterday I happened to see it from sea level on TV (in the summary of last year’s one week live broadcast from Hurtigruten) and it did not beckon to me to climb it.