July 3, 2026 by arletelouise - 0 comments

To Kilkee

After breakfast, time to ride.

Three groups left at about the same time. Three Australians, six women from Colorado, and me. Each group rode at their own pace.

My mantra all day: stay on the LEFT side of the road!!

Narrow roads! This single lane is for two-way traffic. If a car was following me, I would pull over when there was a patch of mown grass. All the drivers were so patient, no one ever honked.

About 35 miles today with a 20-mph headwind made for a tiring ride.Temps in the 60s, perfect riding weather.

I have the cutest tiny room.

July 2, 2026 by arletelouise - 0 comments

Exploring Ennis

I wasn’t able to stay at the same hotel for a second night, so packed up, walked around the corner and checked into Old Ground Hotel. Later, I followed a sculpture trail and saw quite a bit of the town.

I couldn’t find “Weathered Woman,” and must have looked lost. A woman about my age asked if I needed help. After I told her the title, she said with a smile, “Well there are quite a few of us walking around town.”

River Fergus:

I met the tour company people at the hotel to get the bike – a Trek! – and an overview of the upcoming ride.

Ready to go!

July 1, 2026 by arletelouise - 0 comments

To Ennis

Mid-morning, I walked about 20 minutes to the Dublin Coach bus stop. Along the way: entrance to St Stephen’s Green Park.

Trinity College:

River Lyffey which divides the city into “north of Lyffey” or “south of Lyffey.” Looking east:

Looking west:

The fastest route to Ennis was by bus, a 4-hour trip on the “big green bus” which was actually a white bus.

What luck: the Ennis bus stop was right in front of the hotel:

My room wasn’t ready, so I wandered around a bit.

Excellent dinner at the hotel watching England beat Congo in World Cup.

Ending with an Irish Irish coffee!

June 30, 2026 by arletelouise - 0 comments

Moving on

Mid-morning, I took a train to Schiphol Airport.

The security checkpoint had impossibly long and slow lines. To make my flight before the boarding gate closed, I wormed my way to the front of lines, apologized profusely, and ran! I arrived at the gate, no one was there! The gate had been changed at the last minute and was just a few feet away. Relief! They’d just started boarding. An hour and 10 minutes later, we landed in Dublin. These signs were everywhere in the airport:

Tonight’s hotel: Harrington Hall.

June 29, 2026 by arletelouise - 0 comments

Amsterdam

4:15 am, we’re a bit blurry-eyed and the taxi is late. If it looks somewhat bright outside, that’s because it never quite gets dark dark at this time of the year.

By 9a we were in Amsterdam for a happy family reunion.

A day of exploring was ahead.

We were a group of 12. Besides Thais and Lenin’s family, Leah (Lenin’s sister), Jeff and Lauren were there plus Gina (Lenin’s aunt), Hans (whose family is from Amsterdam), and Harper.

On our way to the Van Gogh museum.

Because city taxes were based on the width of the house facing the street, this house is only about 6’ wide.

The fries are a must-try in Amsterdam!

Late afternoon: a tour of the Anne Frank House.

I am tired. I walked 21000+ steps today after getting up at 3a. Time for bed!

June 28, 2026 by arletelouise - 0 comments

To Sunde

Our last day of riding! Just 20 miles to the ferry which will take us back to Bergen.

Last chance to take fjord pictures.

Sunde. It was a bit tricky to guide the ebike and pull a suitcase onto the boat.

In Bergen, the bike rental people met us and took back the bikes – really nice people. We took a taxi to the hotel with our suitcases, then walked back to Olivia for pizza.

June 27, 2026 by arletelouise - 0 comments

To Rosendal

No shortcuts today. We had to ride. Thankfully the sun was mostly out, no rain, and an expected high of 80 degrees. Woo-hoo!

Sophia and Avery consultation about the route. They are excellent navigators and strong riders. I’m the one lagging behind.

Mailboxes inside a bus shelter – a typical sight.

I think we went through 7 or 8 tunnels today.

In Arsnes, we took a ferry across the fjord to Lyngstranda.

We rode about 45 miles today. Time for a good rest. View from hotel balcony.

June 26, 2026 by arletelouise - 0 comments

To Øystese

There were 4 options for today’s riding. We chose the option with the least number of miles to ride. We lazed around until about 4 in the afternoon, then took a ferry.

One of the longest suspension bridges in the world.

Two+ hours later, we arrived in Northheimsund and rode about 5 miles in the rain to our hotel in Øystese, pronounced “oyce teh seh.” Easy, almost restful day. It has been cold and wet every day so far.

June 25, 2026 by arletelouise - 0 comments

Exploring

We decided to forgo today’s bike riding choices and took the ferry to Eidfjord.

It was a 30-minute trip, just enough time for two celebrities to emerge. There were MANY Chinese tourists on board and Avery’s hair caught their attention. Everyone wanted their picture taken with him.

Soon Sophia was pulled in.

A green tour bus was waiting for us in Eidfjord.

First stop: a really nice nature center.

Next stop: Vøringsfossen, the site of two waterfalls converging from opposite sides.

They dropped into the river flowing through the Måbødalen Valley.

Also at top, the Fossli Hotel. Opened in 1891 and still owned and managed by the original family.

June 24, 2026 by arletelouise - 0 comments

To Ulvik

Our first real riding day.It would turn out to be a cold wet day.

We rode on frontage roads, bike paths and secondary roads.

There was a bit of a climb to this vista point, the top of the Skjervsfossen waterfall.

The descent. Steep and twisting and we followed skate boarders participating in an extreme sports event. Crazy!The curves lined with stacks of tires for those wiping out. There was a bridge crossing the middle section of the waterfall.