Norway | three little birds travel

Calling all travelers – are any of you huge fans of Pinterest?? If you love traveling, then you should absolutely love Pinterest because they go hand in hand! I’ve found the coolest places to visit just by signing up and creating my board – Andiamo (It means ‘Let’s Go’ in Italian).

One of my favorite finds was Pulpit Rock (Preikestolen) in Norway. Below is what I initially pinned. Does this even LOOK real??? I didn’t think so! So after some research I realized it WAS a real place that you could hike and I needed to go ASAP!

Getting to Pulpit Rock is easy! When traveling to Norway in the summer, you’re probably going to visit the fjords anyway! Stay in Stavanger (we stayed at Victoria Hotel) and take the Rodne Fjord Cruise through the Lysefjord. The cruise is so breathtaking!

While traveling through the fjords on the cruise, you make some interesting stops. My favorites were the goats (cause we had to feed them, of course) and the beautiful waterfall (we got to drink the fresh water)!

The cruise drops you off at Tau, where you catch a bus that takes you to Pulpit Rock. This was very easy to figure out, but if you have questions, feel free to ask in the Comment section.

Traveler Tip: Pulpit Rock took me and my sister about 1hr 45min to hike. We brought a small backpack filled with water, sun screen and snacks. We wore ordinary gym shoes which were just fine for the trail.

Hiking Pulpit Rock is REALLY fun! Very scenic and a ton of friendly international hikers along the way! Very different from my Camelback hike in Arizona! At every turn, there seemed to be a different type of path which made the time go by pretty fast.

Getting to the top of Pulpit Rock was SUCH an adrenaline rush! The view was nothing short of incredible and I know it was a moment in my life that I will never ever forget. The beauty went on for miles with clear blue skies and royal blue waters.

After you get over the view, the people watching and pictures start! PEOPLE WERE SO BRAVE!!!! “What are they doing?” we said. “That person has their DOG up here!” I screamed. “Oh, we could NEVER get that close to the edge!” we declared. After about 10 minutes….we were doing the same crazy pictures! We couldn’t help ourselves!! You’re LITERALLY leaning off the edge of this cliff taking pictures. Crazy. We turned crazy…and I’m glad we did!

Have you been to Pulpit Rock? Wanna go now? Share your comments below! I’d love to hear about hikes that you love from your adventures!

During my two weeks in Scandinavia I had one goal in mind….I was determined to try as many Scandinavian dishes as I could! When I travel, I make it a point to try the local cuisine because it’s authentic and it helps give me a sense of how food changes when it gets to America.

Example…In Greece I didn’t hear one person scream “Opa!” when serving my saganaki. In Italy, I was never served olive oil and parmesan cheese for my bread. Maybe somewhere this happens, but I ate A LOT and it never saw it!

All I knew about Swedish food was from IKEA in the form of their meatballs (no judging). If I’m being truthful…I’ve never even tried a Swedish meatball from IKEA (gasp)!! I also heard rumblings that there was going to be a lot of fish, whale and reindeer meat. I don’t eat fish and I’m not sure about you, but whale and reindeer meat isn’t part of my normal diet.

All in all, I was absolutely DETERMINED to hunt down these foods and try them once and for all!!

First up…Whale! I found this at the famous fish market in Bergen, Norway. My sister and I walked up and down the market until we were sure we found the best tent! After a little help from the crew, we chowed down on a small portion of whale and potato salad (sorry PETA). I expected whale to taste like fish, but it actually tasted more like gyros…kinda.

A short distance away from the fish market, we were lucky to come across the hot dog stand that was on our list – Trekroneren Hot Dog Stand. This isn’t your ordinary hot dog stand though…this one serves REINDEER hot dogs!! I confidently walked up to the stand, paid my 55 NOK and nervously ate my first bite. I thought it would have a gamey taste, but it actually tasted like a normal hot dog. I was a little bit unimpressed, but happy that I had now crossed two items off my list!

Last on the list…meatballs! We found these all over Sweden, but decided on a small restaurant close to our hotel in Stockholm. Swedish meatballs are traditionally served with potatoes and lingonberry jam and that’s just how mine were served! They were tasty and I promise that the next time I go to IKEA, I will order some and officially compare the two!