Day 4: Gardermeon to Haug Pilgrim Hostel

If this post appears without photos please accept my apologies.  I’m sitting outside in the bright sunshine and can barely see the screen.  I suppose I could use that, and my fat fingers as an excuse a reason for all the typos.  

Apparently it is high school graduation season.  The celebrations of which involve driving around the town, playing loud music and congregating at the 24hr McDonalds that happens to be about 50m from my bedroom window.  The party kept up all night, and the hardy survivors were demolishing their McBreakfast when I left the hotel at around 7am.  I’d made myself a pack lunch or two as, after tonight, there are no shops for a couple of days.  The breakfast buffet had whole avocados available, I’m just hoping the one I picked up ripens before I have to fly home.  I also made up a snack cup, filling a take away cup with seeds and raisins, before sealing it with KT tape.  

The first 10 or so k of today’s walk was mainly on roads or well maintained tracks.  It was gently undulating, an easy, relaxing time.  My walking poles were only used as my secret defence against oncoming vehicles.  I am convinced that vehicles give me more space if the poles are in the hand nearest tth.  At one point I passed a memorial to a young man who was executed by the Nazis during the occupation, and was very aware that, in the woods nearby, hundreds of Norwegian men had been murdered by the occupiers.  

At about 19k I stopped for coffee near Eidsvoll Mansion where the constitution of Norway was signed in 1814.  Lovely little cafe attached to a visitor centre.  As I walked in the waitress asked if I was a pilgrim.  I always feel a little self conscious as, for many, this is a serious religious undertaking, whereas I’m just here to get ouf chores that need doing at home.  Anyway, I said yes, and she said that meant I could have a free hot drink!  Yay!

After that there was a lovely section along the riverside, lots of information about the paper, iron and tile industries that flourished in the past were displayed.  Then the terrain changed! I could barely see the path! In the fields the crops were waist high and in the woods the nettles and brake  threatened to take me prisoner.  

 Eidsvol is a small town that seems to span three time zones!  I passed my first ‘welcome to Eidsvol’ type sign well before I stopped for coffee and the hostel I’m staying in is just on the outskirts of the town.

I was a little nervous about tonight’s accommodation.  I thought I was booked in the ‘main house’ but my reservation had been changed to ‘the greenhouse.’  The reason being is, I assume that there is only one bed in the greenhouse house and two bunks in the house and there are two Norwegian girls staying there.  In the ‘annex’ there is a couple from Australia.  I’d had a message from the lady from Oz via Facebook discussing issues with booking, and when I walked in here today she said ‘Are you Toria?’  So, on day 4, I finally meet some other pilgrims.