We have lots to do in the coming week before Mom and I are flying back to Vancouver...Barb, Nancy and Auntie June will be leaving a couple days before us though. Tomorrow will be our last full day in Selje and Fure so we will be sure to make the most of it!
This morning our hosts' here laid out a beautiful table at 9:00AM filled with Lox, bread, veggies, scrambled eggs, jam, various local and imported cheese and fresh pressed apple juice and coffee! We totally forgot to bring our camera down to grab a photo...oops!
After freshening up and doing a little shopping in the store here we started on our way to visit Fure! The road is very windy and follows the coast line closely. There are more areas with narrow single lanes than there are double lane roadways. We did pass some first century landmarks on the way there. June pointed out a giant cross made entirley of slate stone. This was also the site of an open amphitheatre...I will try to capture some photos tomorrow of that :)
Here's Fure!
This cluster of houses are what consist of Fure...some of the first homes were from the 1300's and they were situated closer to the top of the mountain/cliff but now there are a total of five homes in this cluster. Three of which are occupied all year long with a total of five people and the other two homes have family that come and stay on occasional weekends during the summer season.
This photo below is the view of Fure from the wharf...this wharf was built and paid for by the government and luckily before the big oil discoveries here in Norway...after oil was discovered Kjell explained to us that all surplus monies went to support the oil industry. Schools, Hospitals, cities all had funding decreased so that the government could develop their new oil industry.
Here's a write up about the area if you are interested in some of the first known history of this area...if you can believe it, the first settler was a farmhand that rented the farm for 2 cods...as in fish! Read on...
When we first arrived we were welcomed by Marit and Kjell, who are distant cousins of ours and are dear neighbours of Else's...their house is very lovely and surrounded by beautiful flowers and fruit trees...they have a food house (store food over the seasons), a greenhouse and a large garage and wooden deck overlooking the stunning view of the water and surrounding areas!
If you are a lover of roses then you would be in paradise...their home is literally surrounded by stunning rose bushes...even some wild rose bushes with tiny buds and blooms...their front porch will have an amazing scent of Sweet Peas in another week or so as they are all growning up the trellis you see and ready to be in full bloom!
Else explained to us that the reason for the stepped rocks with the large circular slate stone on the top is to keep the rodents out of their food houses...by keeping the house off the ground and having this large round piece of slate, I guess it minimizes invasions and keeps everything secure!?!!
Kjell likes to go out in his boat and fish regularily...he built a lift onto the wharf to help get his boat out of the water for the off season, but otherwise all his gear is here!
Today was hot and the visibility across the water into the distant mountain was tough as you can see from this photo above...as the wind picked up and it cooled later in the day you could get better definition across the way.
Mom was having a chat with Kjell and Marit's daughter Heidi who was visiting her parents with her daughter for the weekend...if you look into the distance you will see lots of cars! They are mostly tourists/locals who come to Fure to enjoy picnics and the beach in the area and to take the one hour hike to Outer Fure...Fure has been added to the list of places to visit in all the tourist information and has been highlighted in Norway...so this means that even though these five residents live a life of solitude...they are frequented by many visitors over the tourist season and warmer weather.
The most unusual thing I have seen so far...slate roof tiles...some of them are 12x12'ish and the others are rounded scallop like tiles...looks a lot like fish scales to me, ironically...really makes for a beautiful roof!
Now, onto supper! Marit and Kjell were kind enough to set the table at their home...they have a larger house for this many of us and they would have been included in the meal at Else's house anyways...so our cousin Berit, from Maloy, came to help Else prepare for us and made all of the food! It was a feast in typical Norwegian fashion and the table was set just beautifully too!
Marit's centerpiece was gorgeous...obviously an antique silver container and all flowers from her gardens...
Marit is making the final touches to the table here...
Ok, so we have Lox, potato salad, bread, feta and tomato salad, scrambled eggs (eat with the Lox), fishcakes with fried onions and mushrooms, salmon pate and Mackerel...
...and I can't forget the HUGE bowl of shrimps!!! My hubby would've been thoroughly enjoying this meal for sure!!!
We had a guest in the room with us! Isn't he cute?!!
Now after this meal, Mom and I lounged out on their lovely wooden deck to enjoy the sights...Kjell put an umbrella up to shade us a bit from the sun and of course the two of us had a little nap!
Dessert and coffee were going to be served at 6:00pm...seeing as we didn't finish our supper until around 4:00pm...we had time to rest before more food...are you detecting a trend here??? We have been well fed to say the least! So lucky :)
Else showed us her weaved pieces...many in the home were made by her mother and some by Else...she has tablecloths, blankets, table runners, decorative pieces...all just amazing! What a talent they all had!
Onto dessert and coffee! Berit made a lovely Apple Cake and they picked a Rum Cake from the bakery...there was also some brownies and of course whipped cream for a topping on the Apple Cake!!!
We had a day full of wonderful foods and wonderful conversation...I feel so lucky to be able to be here and to be able to connect with several different generations of our family...I have heard so many of their names over the years and it is great to be able to say I have met them and have a face and memory connected with them now too!
We need to start the trek back to Doktorsgarden in Selje, where we are sleeping, as it is approximately 45 minutes of windy and narrow roads...we need to rest up for another day of activities tomorrow...stay tuned :)
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