Norway Fjords/Sweden - Final Thoughts

 I just want to compile my thoughts on this vacation.

1. Length of the trip: On the last leg of the journey, 3 days in Stockholm, I wish I had just done only the 2 weeks in Norway and gone home from Oslo. The Trondheim to Oslo journey was definitely worth it. The last three days felt a bit tiresome. It could also be that Stockholm is a larger city and much more busy than Oslo, and I am just feeling overwhelmed. I am glad I did this, but I will not do this again.
2. Hotels: All hotels have been good. I just wish all of them had hot water kettle and tea/coffee provided in the rooms. Comfort Karl Johan (in Oslo) and Queens Hotel (in Stockholm) did not. As much as I appreciate that there are rooms with a single bed for one person, I find them small compared to the double bed rooms. Things sometimes are not in the right places (electrical outlets), but I can manage. I am tired of using one body/shampoo soap for body and hair provided in the hotels. I feel like my hair needs some TLC now. Breakfast in these places could use a bit of mashup. It's always the same boring stuff. The only one I really enjoyed was Thon Hotel. And their light dinner was amazing too. I have found these hotels to be so much more quiet than American hotels. USA the AC is buzzing or the fridge is making noise. Here ..nothing.
3. Transportation: It is always inundating in the beginning, but once I start it, I really love the buses, trams and subways of these cities and I always get a pass so I can use these transports without thinking twice. And these days Google map has become really good in guiding which route to take including bus and walking routes.
4. Google: Speaking of Google maps - it has been such a life saver for me to use this in my journey. It has told me where I am walking, told me which bus/tram/train to take. It was worth it for me to pay the $50 to T-Mobile for data just so I could not run out at anytime. The only thing I wish I had a bit more of was battery charger. Google Lens was awesome to help me identify buildings, translate ingredients in foods. Wow!! Life is so different now. Luckily English is not a problem in either Norway or Sweden.
5. Money: It was great not using cash anywhere. I was ready with my phone this time. I had my card on the phone wallet, and my credit card ready to use. I was impressed how easy it was to use everywhere. Even the toilets were hooked on to electronic payment! There was just one food truck where the vendor's machine was not set up, but he managed by borrowing his neighbors. So no cash needed unless you need to give cash tip.
6. Apps: Everyone has Apps. Trains have apps, buses, cruise, city cards, museums...all have apps. And most are good. I used them and uninstalled them as I went. 
7. Cruise: The Hurtigruten cruise was both good and bad. Good because the journey from Bergen to Trondheim was perfect for me to see the fjords and some sea life. It was great except for the rain and cold. Good also because I got a taste of what it could be like to be on the cruise by myself, which was a bit boring, but doable. Bad, because in this case, it was what they call a "port to port" journey and don't cover food. That is pathetic I feel. For what they are charging they can always provide at least breakfast and one buffet lunch or dinner. They are just an expensive cruise. But Norway cruises are like that, others were even more expensive. 
8. Charging Electronics: Some trams and buses in Norway had USB chargers. But most did not. One of the trains had an electrical outlet but the other one did not. So a lot of hit and miss on the transports. Hotels were quite good though, they all had enough electrical outlets. My converter I got was perfect for me to charge my three things - computer, phone and camera. 
9. Water: It was hard to find places to fill up water bottles. One can do them in coffee places but of course you have to buy something before you can enter these places. Museum cafes were okay since their cafes are kind of open.
10. Restrooms: They are called Toilets or WC here. After living in America for so long, this is the hardest thing. WC are available for free in museums, no problems, but gardens, train/bus stations and in general city is hard. One has to pay anywhere from 1 to 2 $ to use the WC. The problem also is that sometimes people follow you after you leave without paying, so you are sucker who paid for everyone after you. Generally the restrooms are clean. Yeah...and one last thing...a lot of the WCs are unisex. It's strange walking into a toilet with men in it!
11. KimKim: The agency which booked all my hotels and transport and some tours. I am not sure if all the contractors are like the ones I got or mine were just new. The charge was definitely higher than I expected but this time its okay because I had too many places to visit. The drawbacks of KimKim were
    a) they were too slow in making bookings;
    b) they did not pay attention to details - first they missed the 18 nights I requested, then they missed that my booking was not for 18 nights, then they missed that the cruise was for 2 nights not 3 (even though I had asked them to confirm);
    c) the vouchers were uploaded 2 days before I left, which made me nervous and planning for me a bit hard as I was planning out my day activities;
    d) the maps and recommendations were not uploaded till the day I was in Sweden. By then I had already planned out my day,
    e) they could have recommended how much time I spend in different places. The only one they recommended was Flam, and I took it, and I am glad I did. I wish they had done more.
    f) they had too much of their personal stuff going on - child vacation, sick child, death in the family. I understand all this, but this is their job and they could have juggled it better.
    
    The good things were
    a) I did not have to worry about calling 10 different places for bookings,
    b) I had spent the bulk of my money ahead of time so the rest was just my personal tours, food and souvenirs, (I could have booked museum tours with them, but I think I would have been overcharged for them).
    c) all the vouchers for reservations were uploaded in one place which reduces my organization headache,
    d) the layout of KimKim is really nice and they provide a lot of information about the city, places to eat and visit,
    e) I will get a printed photobook of about 80 photos of my trip. I don't have the book yet, I am looking forward to seeing it,
    f) they keep in touch and want reviews to improve services. I think they are more like Uber of tourism - they connect you to local people to make program.