(Not-So-) Wordless Wednesday: Mom's 1953 Europe Road Trip: Sweden

From Mom's Europe trip diary, in the "PLACES VISITED" section:

September 10, Thursday – Road between Sarpsborg, Norway, and Kungsbacka, Sweden

Left Norwegian home and drove to Halden [Norway] where we ate breakfast.  Spent about 45 min. in a bank trying to get a traveler's check changed into Swedish money.  Quite a complicated process which I won't do again.  Went through Norwegian and Swedish customs without inspection again.  Drove on to Kungsbacka where we spent the night.*

* According to the "HOTELS STOPPED AT" section of the trip diary, my mother and her friends stayed at the Stadshotellet in Kungsbacka, Sweden this night.

Stadshotellet i Kungsbacka [City hotel in Kungsbacka, May 1948] / Fredrik Daniel Bruno via Swedish National Heritage Board / CC Public Domain - no known copyright restrictions

Here's another image of the hotel, from a postcard postmarked in 1952, used with permission of its owner, Leif Gustafsson, from his website:

And here is a May 1948 image of the Kungsbacka church and the Town Hall at Stortorget (the Main Square) in Kungsbacka:

Kungsbacka kyrka och rådhuset vid Stortorget i Kungsbacka / Fredrik Bruno via Swedish National Heritage Board / No known copyright restrictions

This is the 34th in a series of posts transcribing entries in my mother's 1953 Europe Trip journal.


© Amanda Pape - 2014 - click here to e-mail me.

Travel Tuesday: Mom's 1953 Europe Road Trip: Passport Stamps

From Mom's Europe trip diary, in the "PLACES VISITED" section:

September 9, Wednesday – Road between Lillehammer and Sarpsborg, Norway

Rained all day so didn't get to see countryside at its best.  Drove to Oslo, but no hotel rooms available.  Went by American Express for Joye's mail and decided to drive on.  Drove to Sarpsborg where all hotel rooms were filled, but we managed to get three beds at the home of a Norwegian family.  Place was very clean, but people could speak no English.  Went out to eat and afterwards went to bed.

At left is a page from Mom's passport, showing the stamps for September 5 through 18.

This is the 33rd in a series of posts transcribing entries in my mother's 1953 Europe Trip journal.

© Amanda Pape - 2014 - click here to e-mail me.

Mappy Monday: Mom's 1953 Europe Road Trip - A Little Tired of Driving in Norway

From Mom's Europe trip diary, in the "PLACES VISITED" section:

September 8, Tuesday – Road between Geilo and Lillehammer, Norway

Went through the same old stuff, just less spectacular and not as interesting.  We stopped to eat by a lake but it was so cold had to eat in the car.  Arrived in Lillehammer around 3:30, went shopping and bought 2 wooden egg cups and some enamel jewelry cuff links.* 

* From the PURCHASES section of the trip diary, it indicates Mom bought these items for a total of about 25.75 kronen.

According to the "HOTELS STOPPED AT" section of the trip diary, my mother and her friends stayed at the Victoria Hotel in Lillehammer this night.

Here are a couple of maps that show the terrain from Kristiansand (September 6) to Lillehammer, and the location of the Hardangerfjord and Sørfjorden areas where they drove yesterday:

This is the 32nd in a series of posts transcribing entries in my mother's 1953 Europe Trip journal.

© Amanda Pape - 2014 - click here to e-mail me.

Sentimental Sunday: Mom's 1953 Europe Road Trip - Along the Hardangerfjord

From Mom's Europe trip diary, in the "PLACES VISITED" section:

September 7, Monday – Road between Haukeligrend and Geilo, Norway

After breakfast of prunes, egg, and coffee, we started on our way.  Went over terrific mountain--in fact, fog was so thick could only see about 20 feet ahead.  Road was narrow and curving.  Took about 2 hrs. to get over it.  Drove along Hardanger fjord where Sylvia stole some delicious apples.  Were they good.  Then drove over a terrific mt. and for a while we were on top of the world.  Everything is turning fall colors and the countryside was all yellows, reds, and rusts.  Gorgeous scenery.

According to the "HOTELS STOPPED AT" section of the trip diary, my mother and her friends spent this night at the Ustedalen Hotel, Geilo, Norway.  

If they drove along the Hardangerfjord en route to Geilo, they probably drove along the Sørfjorden (a branch of the Hardangerfjord), through Odda and Lofthus, an area with many apple orchards:

Odda in Hardanger, Norway [1 January 1950] / David Hunter / CC-BY-2.0

"By the Hardangerfjorden in Norway, near Lofthus. Looking to south, see some apple trees" [20 May 2005] / Sondrekv / released to public domain

This is the 31st in a series of posts transcribing entries in my mother's 1953 Europe Trip journal.


© Amanda Pape - 2014 - click here to e-mail me.

Mom's 1953 Europe Road Trip: In Norway

From Mom's Europe trip diary, in the "PLACES VISITED" section:

September 6, Sunday – Between Kristiansand and Haukeligrend, Norway

After a breakfast of eggs, corn flakes, and a crab, started off on route Mr. Olson had picked out.  Went through spectacular country, perpendicular mountains, small waterfalls jutting out, streams developing into fjords, roads quite narrow, hair-raising road curves, tall trees.  Just too wonderful for words.  We stopped at this hotel * and after a meal of tea and a fried egg, went to bed.  Am certainly glad we came to Norway as this country is like our National Parks in Western part of U.S. 

* According to the "HOTELS STOPPED AT" section of the trip diary, my mother and her friends spent this night at the Haukeli Turistheim, Haukeligrend (now Haukeli), Norway.

My mother captioned the photo at right as "Gerrie stone-walking in Haukeligrend, Norway"


This is the 30th in a series of posts transcribing entries in my mother's 1953 Europe Trip journal.


© Amanda Pape - 2014 - click here to e-mail me.

Mom's 1953 Europe Road Trip: Ferry from Denmark to Norway

From Mom's Europe trip diary, in the "PLACES VISITED" section:

September 5,  Saturday – Between Hirtshals, Denmark, and Kristiansand, Norway

After breakfast, drove down to boat where we went through customs and immigration.  On the boat* I promptly lost my breakfast, which you might know would have to happen after I had done so well.  After docking and going through Norwegian customs, we went to railroad station to eat.  The Olsons joined us there.  After we ate, we went to the hotel** and checked in  They took us down to restaurant where we had wine and then coffee.  They are wonderful people, fellow Americans from Forest Hills, Long Island, & they certainly did take care of us.

* This was probably the M / S Jylland [Jutland] of the Kristiansand Dampskibsselskap (KDS) line.  Although the photo below indicates that today's ferry ride is a little over four hours, it was probably a lot longer in 1953 with a slower ferry boat.

** According to the "HOTELS STOPPED AT" section of the trip diary, my mother and her friends spent this night at the Hotel Ernst, Kristiansand, Norway.


The map at left shows the rough route from Hamburg, Germany (on September 2), to Hirtshals, Denmark, while the map below shows the approximate route of the ferry boat across the North Sea from Hirtshals to Kristiansand, Norway.



This is the 29th in a series of posts transcribing entries in my mother's 1953 Europe Trip journal.


© Amanda Pape - 2014 - click here to e-mail me.