For those who are in search of a place with an outstretched earth combined with widely expanded lucid water Norway is the ultimate destination

I was scorching from top to bottom.
New Delhi, the capital of India too was scorching with more than 40 degree Celsius. What about a trip to Europe? To get away from heat and cover some places as well. There were many places to take shelter if you choose to have solace in the coolness of Europe. But the problem is, many countries there are heavily industrialized and many cities are much crowded. But still some cities and places are right there in this crowded continent where you not only find refuge in this sizzling season but can also make your trip professionally fruitful. My friend advised me for some Scandinavian country and I think he was right and then decided that it is Norway which has to be the ultimate choice and nobody could deny it to be as one of the best places at this time.

The journey was comfortable with a little head ache bugging the brain but that was my problem and so never caused the flight any delay in reaching Oslo, the capital of this fascinating destination. A modern looking city of Oslo was there with mixed breed of buidings both new and classical. I was tired and therefore, decided to go straight for my already booked hotel to have a nice amount of rest before anything.

Beauty has always been alluring me in many ways. Sometimes I feel that in metro cities with big buildings and posh malls, sometimes I find myself admiring the it at classical towns with history scattered everywhere but many a time my whims resemble to those who are in search of a place with an outstretched earth combined with widely expanded lucid water and I think Norway is the ultimate destination in that case. It is a country that draws tourists mostly by virtue of its impressive and divergent landscapes that extends far north across the Arctic ocean.. It is famous for its fjord-indented coastline and its mountains, skiing rinks, lakes and woods. Notable cities in Norway include the capital Oslo with its castle, its cathedral, its beautiful landscape and interesting architecture. On the west coast there are the cities of Bergen ,the Hanseatic city and Stavanger, each of them set alongside a fjord. Preikestole is located in Lysefjorden right outside Stavanger.It is a cliff hanging 604 metres directly above the water. In the south you find the city of Kristiansand which is the fifth largest in Norway, which is a favourite holiday city for many a tourist..Trondheim, Norway’s first capital, is home to the largest medieval cathedral in Scandinavia, Nidaros Cathedral. Tromso gateway to the arctic is located 400 km north of the arctic circle in the middle of an amazing landscape of hills and fjords.

Norway for culture freaks
In one particular way my whims are similar to my fellow Indian Tourists who, true to their nature, are always interested in something relating to culture or pertaining with tradition. Are you too one of such Indian tourists interested in making your trip as one absorbed in cultural enjoyment? Don’t worry; you are in the right country. Norway has a rich cultural heritage that has been resultant to the country’s thin and sparsely located population, its isolated status in the continent of Europe and of course of its exacting climate .As a tourist destination it is therefore, distinct from other countries in Europe. It has fewer pompous palaces and castles, smaller agricultural areas, and longer travel distances. But all such things will hardly make you lose your interest in this unique land. On the contrary you will be able to find stupendous architecture, a rich cultural heritage, and beautiful natural scenery.

How nice it is in our profession that our journeys easily become someone else’s joy, a journalist can take you where you never bothered to go at all and that too by the sheer power of his words and your helpful imagination. Okay. Let me take you somewhere ahead in the arena of art and all. The visitors who are looking for visual arts and music and also theatre, the country will not be disappointing as the people here are so fond of such things. Some of the most noted cultural events and attractions in Norway include:
Visual arts - in Oslo, the National Gallery, the Munich Museum, and the Henie-Onstad Art Centre offer classical and contemporary art pieces for viewing by the public.

Music:
Classical - the Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra and Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra offer regular programs, as does the Norwegian Chamber Orchestra. The Risor Festival of Chamber Music is a week-long event held in late June/early July in the southern town of Risor
Jazz - most cities in Norway have jazz clubs, and the Molde jazz festival is held in mid- to late July in Molde
Dramatic arts - laying claims to playwrights such as Ludvig Holberg and Henrik Ibsen, there are several theaters that offer high quality fare. In addition, there are numerous historical reenactments, especially during the summer months.
One may select his preference and can give a cultural and artistic tinge to his trip. As for me I opted for a Jazz club and that was as enjoyable as I found it in Caribbeans and for some time it made me feel relaxed of the tiredness of a long journey and took my long persisting head ache away,
I had to cover the country extensively and I found to my sheer pleasure that Norway is still a raw, natural land to a great extent and is still not spoiled by human hands and lets hikers experience the harsh, hilly and beautiful landscapes it is known for. Norway has lots of skiing resorts and parks and the country’s free nature offers one of the best skiing experiences. The modern Jotunheimen national park is central in southern Norway, and remains a completely unspoilt wilderness with no roads or permanent residences within the park boundaries, making it an emerging destination for walking holidays. The Lofoten Islands are also a famous destination with splendid towering landscapes, and allowing visitors to experience the midnight sun during summer months.

Access to the tourist points
There is a bad habit in me, perhaps born out of my journalistic character, of wandering deep inside the destinations at my disposal and for that I most of the times do away with flights and go for buses and trains and if circumstances demand for ferries too. I was afraid that in such a sparsely populated country the transport might be a problem but a wiser and more experienced traveler told me not to worry at all and I found out he was telling me the truth. Now I can tell you that if you have reached Norway then feel comfortable. There is hardly any trouble in roaming around the country and its famous tourist points. You just have to decide your place of interest and a very efficient transport system will take you around. Norway has a great highway system, covering more than 90,000 kilometers of which more than 67,000 is paved. The highway system includes ferry transit across waterways, numerous bridges and tunnels, and several mountain passes. Some of these mountain passes are closed during the winter months, and some may close during winter storms but they are the delight of a tourist who can not only see an unspoilt nature but can also feel it through his passage through very convenient Buses. Other popular ways to roam around the country include a domestic air travel network with airports in all major cities, covered by several domestic airlines, The Rail transportation. a 4,058 km rail network that connects most of the major cities south of Bodo and a Waterway transportation, especially Hurtigruten, that connects cities on the coast between Bergen to Kirkenes. Several cruise lines also make port calls in the fjords of Norway.

Accommodation too is not a problem in Norway and a varied accommodation is offered in the country in the form of: Hotels, of varying standards are easily available. Chains such as Rica Hotels, Choice Hotels, Rainbow Hotels, and Radisson SAS have a number of hotels, and in addition there are privately owned hotels. Historic Hotels of Norway offers an overview of the unique and historic hotels in Norway Cabin rentals, typically these are offered through local services Shared cabin accommodations, in the mountains - the Norwegian Mountain Touring Association offers simple accommodations for trekkers across the mountains.

Famous connective points for the tourists
The tourist points of Norway as I mentioned early are well connected and a visitor never find himself in any kind of trouble to reach there or to plan his ideal and time saving itinerary. Between Oslo and Bergen there is a famous railway line, the Bergensbanen. It offers an ideal opportunity to discover the countryside. Near Bergen, the Flam Railway branch line run from Myrdal (at 866 metres) down to Flam by the Sognefjorden, a distance of 20 kilometres. It is one of the steepest railway lines on normal gauge in the world. A speciality of Norway is the Hurtigruta, a mail ferry line along the coast from Bergen up to Kirkenes. It offers the chance to see all of Norway’s famous coastline. Its most famous area is perhaps the fjords of Western-Norway home to such places as Sognefjorden and Stryn. Near Stryn lies the Briksdalsbreen glacier, the most photographed natural feature in Norway, if not overall. It is part of the Jostedalsbreen glacier, which is the largest glacier in mainland Europe.
The journey toward northern part was much memorable. There was no problem in arriving at this remote area thanks much to an efficient transport system. It is a Zone with a very thin population but with very thick jungles. It reminds one with Northwest Canada and its chills. But I was enjoying everything as I am always comfortable with the places with less human interference. Let me tell you honestly that Northern Norway is cooler and isolated but still for its chilling beauty an ideal place for a visitor who is in love with isolation and destitute A great many tourist is attracted to the far north of Norway and cities like Narvik and Tromso The tourists travel to far off places like these because of the special features of the region - especially the Midnight Sun, sport fishing possibilities, the aurora borealis which is special attraction for the visitors from Japan as they have a special tradition concerning such sights and the rugged sea to mountain landscape. And one thing is more to add to make your trip complete in all senses, Norway has quite a number of World Heritage Sites to visit and which are Urnes Stave Church, a stavkirke in Luster municipality, wooden church by the Sognefjorden. Stave churches were built from the 11th to the 13th century, and are a great example of traditional Scandinavian wooden architecture.
Roros, a mining town in southern Sor-Trondelag county has about 80 wooden houses which give the town a medieval appearance due to the dark pitch-log facades. Rock carvings at Alta are petroglyphs in the Alta fjord, in Finnmark County, north of the Arctic Circle. Thousands of paintings and engravings into rocks gives us the impression of what it must have been like living in the Far North before 4200-500 B.C.
Vegaoyan/The Vega Archipelago in Nordland County, just south of the Arctic Circle is the name of a dozen islands, where fishermen and farmers have been living since the Stone Age. There are fishing villages, quays, warehouses, eider houses (built for eider ducks to nest in), farming landscapes, lighthouses and beacons.
Is it not enough? According to my Outbound vision it is. Norway as our wise readers might already have made out is a destination with vast variety and that too with a good accessibility and affordable prices. it is not only representative of the naive beauty of Scandinavia but also has many an interesting tourist point inclusive of its famous world heritage sites which make Norway a complete destination. So what are you waiting for?