Tuesday June 16th 2015. Mo I Rana (Norway). More than 100 km hitch hiking

16- 06- 2015   |  
Harrie Huijben
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Now 9.33 a.m. In 30 min. dog sitter David will come and pick up the first half of the nanny costs for dog Tosca. Now I must check out as soon as possible, making a sign to hitchhike to Mo I Rana in Norway and then hope I’ll  get there in time, before the evening. Perhaps I can anticipate my flight home of next Tuesday, perhaps to tomorrow. So flashing to Mo I Rana, 1.5 hours by car. And then find there a shelter, but I do not worry about it. To be continued.

Picture at the frontier stone of a group of rally drivers from Dusseldorf (Germany) who are driving around the sea 

Een brookszadel!

A “Brooks” seat!

Grens Noorwegen-Zweden

Frontier Norway-Sweden

Felix bevloeit vanuit Zweden de Noorse grond

Felix pees from Sweden on Norway

Felix en Daniel zetten mij af bij vliegveld Mo I Rana

Swedish Felix and Daniel drop me off at airport Mo I Rana (Norway) and afterwards go fishing at midnight in the sun.

Eh eh, this was quite a day. Now 4:37 pm. in the service- and gas station of Hemavan (Sweden). The day started very promising. Getting up this morning, packing my back pack, checkout, waiting for David, who at 10 o’clock would come to pick up the first half of my payment for hosting Tosca and next trying to hitch hike to Mo I Rana, Norway, 100 km. from here. Because it’s really cold, I still went to a store to look for a coat, but I found nothing that I liked. There he was, David, with Tosca. Tosca had gotten a toi from her provisional boss. Good sign. I gave David the blanket that Tosca had ripped apart, so she could lie a little warm. Fine, said David, but not really necessary, because she slept with me in my bed! Then you probably will not have a girlfriend, I thought. David also had provided a blanket for Tosca. I handed him the money.

On the way to my place for hitching, I met three people who had been helping me looking for a place for Tosca to stay. No longer necessary, I informed them. But they already knew, two by the tam tam gossip and one by facebook. I had already seen on facebook, that I was invited to become one of the 200 or 300 facebook friends of David. Well Tosca, stay fine. 

I’m looking for a spot at the end of the village for hitch hiking. It is a few degrees above zero C., but the harsh, wet Northern wind makes it feel much colder. Half past ten in the morning. Let’s see how fast I get out of here. Occasionally a shower with cold rain. Very cold fingers, and hardly any traffic. Trucks can not take me because of the passenger insurance. After a few hours of shivering I saw a Norwegian car parking at the adjacent supermarket. Now or never, I thought. I dashed to it. Could you please give me … Of course they must have seen me standing there at the side of the road. No, we stay here a long time, the Norwegian said. Yes, I might as well, I thought! Indeed. At 2.30 p.m. I was not yet quite frozen, still trotting up and down not to become a snow man. Come on, time for coffee. At the gas station, 500 m. away, where I was known to everyone through the dog, facebook, I did complain about the poor hitching capabilities. I ask very stupidly: How much is a taxi to the Norwegian airport? The people in the gas station called for me, but I knew the price already. One has to be smart! Boooh, that expensive! One of yesterdays candidates for hosting my dog, says, tonight I want to go fishing with a friend. For half of the taxi fare we take you 100 km. further, to the airport in Mo I Rana, Norway. Jeeeh! O.K., fixed.

 When I try to hitchhike again tomorrow, I’ll have to pay another night of lodging plus food. So paying those guys is a good alternative. But what about your fishing plans, I ask? Felix: I discussed it with my friend Daniel who comes with us too. We can also fish in Norway. It is clear all night. I had to wait a few hours until Felix, that’s the name of the guy at the gas station, had finished working. During those few hours of waiting I had time to try to forward my flight of next Tuesday to …. maybe tomorrow. Wifi did not work, phone indicated that the monthly ceiling had been reached by all my previous international phone calls, so out of service. No, this way my plans can’t work out. I called Scandinavian Airlines in Germany, Sweden, Norway. Again and again answering machines in foreign languages ​​with “if this, then press that” and if you did you got new options, but no one on line. Go to hell. I’ll handle the forwarding of my flight at the airport at the desk of SAS Scandinavian Airlines, at least if there is someone in Mo I Rana. Tonight it will be closed. Felix said: you saw that blonde girl come running along the gas station with Tosca? No, I missed it. But I was happy that Felix’ whole gang engaged in Tosca. Then anyway Tosca will not be neglected.
Finally Felix finished working. He took me to his house. On the floor lay a piece of Tosca’s belt, bitten in pieces. So Tosca has been here too  with her new boss David. Good, at least she gets attention. In front of the house was a bicycle with an antique Brooks saddle, with two of those big metal curly springs behind it and usually one in front. Jeee! Photo. During my student days bicycles could be compared to ball pens. Almost  ready for cash and carry. I’ve had as many as 10, like many of my fellow students. We were all small cobblers. When, if walking in the woods, or under a bridge,  I saw a discarded old, apparently thrown away bike, I usually put a lock to the wheel. If the bike was still there after a week, you knew he was a res derelicta (discarded thing) and you could give it a new life. Similarly 45 y. ago with my rusty old bike with Brooks saddle. A year later or so someone rang the door bell at my student house and said: my bike is at your door. I answered that anyone can say so. I tell the guy my story, tell him he can have the bike, but I want to keep the saddle. Agreement. I put the Brooks saddle on my next bike. A year or so later, living elsewhere in Nijmegen, I leave my appartment, see my bike, but without antique brooks saddle. Stolen of course, by an unholy plebeian. Yes, these were beautiful. Well, here also a Brooks, only less beautiful than mine. Photo.  I got food and drinks offered and we had fun until Felix’ friend Daniel arrived after an hour or so. He has dark curly hair, brown eyes and is more than average tanned. Therefore they call him the Pole, Felix explains to me. Daniel could borrow the car of an above average pretty looking girl. Hi, she says, when she came to bring us her car. This afternoon I went jogging with Tosca. Oh, it was you who ran beyond the gas station? Some chatting. When she was gone I pointed Felix out that she was the prettiest girl, I had seen lately. He thought so too and so did David, yesterday’s dog sitter. Well, for me was just important that we could use her car. At the outside of the car there were flames painted, inside the dashboard was stained with curling tendrils, around hearts and many were rimmed with beads. On to Mo I Rana. Candy bars passed, cans of cola. The Wall of the Doors was playing, may be for me, Aint No Sunshine When She’s Gone by Bill Withers, something of Metallic, and the atmosphere was good again.

We drove through a distinct winter landscape to Norway: No leaves on the birches, ice at the edges of lakes, snow along the way, reindeer at many places, until my handy indicated welcome in Norway. Felix protested, it will take at least 10 km. before we are in Norway. Just notice. In Norway the roads are much more curved and tortuous. And the rivers flow there in the opposite direction (to the North). The frontier between Sweden and Norway is the watershed. At the border post we stopped, fraternized there with a group of Germans from Düsseldorf, who were rallying around the Baltic sea. Photo. Hardly any trafic. At my hitchhiker spot passed more cars. Both Felix and Daniel found it necessary to piss from Sweden across the frontier on the 50 cm. beyond Norway. I’m used to staying neutral in this kind of political actions. Moreover, they would have to wait much longer for me to finish peeing!   

And thus we arrived after eight p.m. at the airport, some 10 km North of Mo I Rana. It was nowhere indicated, so it was still hard to find. While I went in to look if I could find anyone inside the airport, the boys went skating outside . We will still bring you to Mo I Rana they said helpfully, to a place to sleep. After some calling I found a lady in uniform, who was crocheting behind a computer. She got another lady from a corner of the building. Yes,  forwarding a flight by a Dutchman, from Norway, booked by a German office in Germany, which was paid in Euros to Scandinavian Airlines, that’s very difficult to change. Here was no office of Scand. Airlines, the difference in currency seemed unbridgeable, I should like to address the German office etc. etc. Anyway, after a lot of talking back and forth, and after two others from other corners of the building were tumbled in, they would see what they could do. You go sit in the waiting room. Well done. The waiting room looked like a living room, with a sofa, armchairs and a table. Finally time for my sandwich.
Felix, Daniel and I had said goodbye already , because they wanted to go fishing and although it doesn’t get dark throughout the night, I found that I  couldn’t let them wait any longer.  Maybe you also want to pick up Han and me here in two weeks and bring us back to Hemavan-Sweden, I suggested. Yes, but please get in touch, said Felix. A selfy and they were gone. And now I’m at my stopover, half the agreed price again and tomorrow night home in the Netherlands, a week earlier than planned. Ha, ha, ha, ha.
And everyone else really, really thank you for the contribution to Mama Alice, because we have crossed the magic threshold of 10,000 E. Wow!
And now it’s already 11:37 pm. Time to lie down in Morpheus’ arms.

 
 

 
 
 

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