The Most Epic Bus Trip Ever

Today we caught a bus at 9:45am and hit the road!  We had reserved our seats well in advance and paid a little extra to score front seats in the upper level of a double decker bus. 

We had an unobstructed view for this 4.5 hour epic trip from Stavanger Norway to Bergen Norway, and the bus rides 2 ferries so bonus!  

The views were amazing and just when you started getting tired of sitting, you got on a ferry and had to leave the bus. 

The first ferry was the Mortavika–Arsvågen ferry. 

This van went in first and the floor opened up and it went to a lower level. 

Then we drove on. 

The first ferry ride was about 25 minutes. We had enough time to buy a milk and relax before getting back on the bus. 

The views continued to be amazing. 

Zoom!  Enhance!

They knew I was coming!  

The bus follows E39, a major highway passing through Denmark and Norway with a series of impressive tunnels and ferries connecting the segments. In total the highway is 830 miles long. We only traveled about 268 miles. 

The tunnels were, at some times, long. The first tunnel was 6 Kilometers long and that was exiting. This was one of the other various tunnels we went through. 

We went over some cool bridges too. 

Our 2nd ferry crossing came just as we needed a stretch. 

We drove on

and pulled right up to the front. 

This ride was about 45 minutes so we had time for photos and a snack. You can see our bus there in the front on the right. 

We saw a fish farm

and I got a tasty bacon wrapped, cheese filled hot dog. The dogs here are so snappy and delicious. 

Soon it was time to get back on the bus for the last let of our trip. 

As we sat in the bus, the nose of the ferry opened. 

It was weird seeing open water right in front of us. 

This is a charger for the electric ferries. 

Soon we were back on the road again. 

The longest tunnel we passed through was The Lyshorn Tunnel at 9.6 kilometers or 5.7 miles long. It's the longest auto tunnel in Norway 

The tunnels had cool lighting that showed you where the emergency exits were.  Now I'm not sure where these exits lead to because you are under the The North Sea, but head there in case of an emergency and you will be in good company, probably. 

As we approached Bergen, the hills began to show snow. It's still pretty cold here. In fact when we arrived it was hailing and snowing even though it wasn't sticking. 

When we arrived at Bergen Central Bus Station, we bought bus tickets online in their app and rode Bus 13 to our hotel. 

Our stay in Bergen is broken up into 2 hotels in 2 locations. We have been staying at Home Hotels (this deserves a separate blog post), and the chain offeres steep discounts if you don't stay on a Tuesday, which I know is weird. So we are at a Radisson Hotel until Thursday morning. 

Our first hotel is weird. It's proudly decorated in late 80s / early 90s decor. 

Anyway, now our Bergen adventures start!  The adventures will include a private pinball club, a funicular ride, a museum, and some seafood. 

Portland -> Victoria, BC

 Victoria, BC

We're on a boat!

Leaving Portland

The other day we packed up and left Portland.  It was a great stay.  It was nothing like the media or scared suburbanites portray it.  Yes it has its problems, but everywhere has its problems.  The media doesn't talk about all of the good work Portland is doing to help improve the problematic areas and they don't talk about how awesome the food is or how great the public transportation is.  Anyway, we packed up and left Portland and drove up to Gig Harbor where we were meeting a friend for dinner.  We picked up Teriyaki chicken and went to Beth's house in Gig Harbor.  It was a bit rainy and we couldn't find a great place to have dinner with Francis so Beth invited us over.  It was a great evening of cathcing up and having delicious PNW Teriyaki.

Our post dinner selfie.

After a short dinner with Beth, we headed to Belfair State Park, about 30 minutes away.  We arrived just as it was getting dark so we struggled to find our campsite.  We talked to the host and they pointed us in the right direction.  It was our first time setting up camp in the rain and darkness but it went pretty well and soon we were in the van and ready for bed.  The next morning was nice and dry so making coffee and breaking camp was pleasant.  While we broke camp, Donna realized we were in the wrong campsite.  It ended up working out so no harm no foul.

The Olympic Peninsula

Today we have a 2pm ferry reservation from Port Angeles to Victoria, BC.  We needed to be at the ferry no later than an hour prior to departure so we had a bit of time to kill.  We decided head to Poulsbo, WA for a pastry.  Poulsbo is a cute town in Northwestern Washington that is heavily Norwegian.  It was "founded" by Jørgen Eliason in the 1880s.  It has a strong Viking theme.

We parked and walked to Slyus Bakery.  It's a great place that is very popular with locals and tourists.  Happily the line was short.

Downtown Poulsbo is VERY cute.

Black Ball Ferry to Victoria

Our next destination was the ferry port in Port Angeles.  We made the drive and only hit a bit of traffic near the end due to an accident.  We arrived at the ferry landing just about an hour before sailing.  We have driven by this ferry landing a few times and each time I wished we had the time to go to Victoria by ferry and now we do!  We have been to Victoria once before but we flew on a sea plane, which was really fun as well.

The M.V. Coho is the ferry operated by Black Ball Ferry Lines.  It's a very popular crossing and has been for many years.  While we were on the ship they played an old song talking about the M.V. Coho so I looked it up and here it is for you to enjoy,  Black Ball Ferry Line by Bing Crosby featuring The Andrew Sisters.

The Ferry crossing was great.  Everything went smoothly including getting through customs.  Luckily our last crossing on the way to Winnipeg prepared us for this crossing.  I had all of the answers to their questions prepared like, what are you carrying?  Do you have any Alcohol or tobacco?  When was the last time you were in Canada?  How long will you be in Canada?  I nailed all of the answers confidently and we were allowed in.

Our van was dwarfed by some of the camping rigs onboard.

You can't stay in your car during the crossing but we were allowed to leave Francis.  He was happier in the car than he would be in the deck.  The crossing was only about an hour and a half.

It isn't a mustard station...

A beautiful day for a boat ride.

I was glad the ship was secured in these times.

Oh wait, it isn't very secure.  No worries, it was just a kitchen for the galley.

You could buy Duty Free Bud Light at the Coho Duty Free Shop.

We decided to split a beer 

Their selection of food wasn't very appetizing.

This isn't the way...

We got a Port Angeles Craft Beer.  It was very good.

We got photo bombed or are we the bomber?

We mostly sat in solarium.

I took a screenshot as we crossed the border.

Our Tiny Condo

Our Airbnb is right in the Chinatown area of Victoria next to all kinds of food and bars and pinball.  It's very small, but it was in the right place and it has secured parking.  We were met by the host and given the tour and keys.  We are slowly getting settled and finding a place for all of our stuff in this 400ish sq. ft. condo with a Murphy Bed.

The dining area is also the bed!

See!  The bed!

A cool sign in Chinatown on our evening walk.

That's it for today, but stay tuned for our Adventures in Canada for the next 9 weeks.  If you missed "Visiting a "Haunted Mansion" Themed Bar" check it out.