Tuesday, 1/22 - Narvik & its battles in WWII
We are beginning to hum (VERY softly) "Homeward Bound." We arrive Narvik around 9AM, but only one of us can work up the energy to get moving at 11:45. It is, for better or worse, another little town on a fjord, where the steep cliffs surrounding provide panoramic views. It has a charming, old white wooden church (this one octagonal in honor of the eight beatitudes). Its future was determined when the railroad arrived, bearing high-quality iron ore from nearby Sweden (where the port was NOT ice-free all year).
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octagonal church |
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View of Narvik from across the fjord |
Route E-6, dubbed the longest road with a single route number for its entire length, runs through the town (and all the rest of the places we visited). They boast the second-longest suspension bridge in Norway and the 22nd-longest in the world, which replaced ferry service in 1964.
There are three types of stone carving currently pursued, and Narvik is the only place where you can observe all three in use!
As we've seen frequently, many apartment balconies are glass-enclosed. Single-family homes, most of which have working fireplaces, have a ladder up the side and then across the roof to enable the chimney sweeps to have easy access. There's a hospital & a university (focused on concrete & space technologies). The town is lobbying to host the world ski championships in a few years, but this year was a low snow year and the ski trails are being covered with artificial snow.
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Ski trails, well-lit |
In addition to battle stories, there were very sad tales of Russian & Jugoslav prisoners of war working under fatal conditions, as well as mass executions of the populace. Difficult times indeed.
The Germans never quite had time to torch the town as they did others nearby, so many original homes survive. Again, there's a "Swedish town" with pre-fabricated homes built from lumber generously donated by Sweden once peace was returned.
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A typical house at the shoreline |
Back to the ship for dinner and an 8P departure ... the long run south.
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