Mama went to Norway ... for business.
My Project includes nearly 7 miles of subsea cable which was manufactured in Norway. It was a requirement for someone representing my Company to attend the final factory acceptance tests, alongside 2 Navy representatives. So, in mid-October I received an all-expenses paid trip to Drammen Norway. Sounds very sophisticated until I point out that I spent 5 full days inside a manufacturing facility and really saw nothing of Norway. But, it does seem like a very nice Country and one that I wouldn't mind returning to with my kiddos.
This was my longest strip away from the kiddos yet ... 9 very long days. But I had turtle to keep me company! As I started traveling for work Della spontaneously brought me this random rubber turtle insisting that I take him with me to 'remember her by'. Now Turtle lives in my travel bag and always accompanies me.
Nearly 20 hours of travel with my longest flight clocking in at 9 hours ... the company splurged for business class. It was very nice.
SAS airlines takes their meals very seriously.
Picturesque Drammen Norway. A sleepy port town approximately 60 minutes south of Oslo by train. Drammen is undergoing significant growth and improvements as the younger generations are looking to raise families outside of Oslo yet close enough to commute.
Classic European lodging.
Approximately 6 miles of power and telecommunications cable soon to be delivered to Portland ME, barged to our Cutler ME work site, and buried 1.5 meters into the seafloor.
One end unwrapped for testing.
Testing by running massive amounts of electricity through the cable to see if it would short out. It didn't so the tests were actually pretty boring.
Testing the Fiber - 48 strands equates to 6 hours of testing. The QC team took turns ... very tedious.
More Testing
After all the testing was complete and the cable officially accepted it began the transfer to a shipping basket staged on the nearby pier.
It took 3 full shifts to lay all the cable into the basket.
More testing to ensure the cable hadn't been damaged during transfer.
Resealing the ends for shipping
Did I mention that it was very cold in Norway. Right at freezing the entire trip.
It took 2 vessel cranes nearly 2 hours to pick the cable basket from the Pier and set into the vessel.
Generally we ate meals at the hotel or at the manufacturing plant but one afternoon we splurged and went out to a local establishment ... built in the 1600's. Food and drink are very expensive in Norway. This is my one and only $30 hamburger and beer. It was very good.
Turtle exploring the manufacturing plant.
I found the vehicle hitches rather odd looking. Not much resemblance to our American version.
After the cable was loaded and the ship underway, Turtle and I headed to Oslo for one day of exploring ... in the cold.
National Theater
Lots of people traversing the city with skiing gear
A unexpected piece of American history.
A really old castle/fort still used by the Royals for ceremonies such as baptisms and formal meetings.
Turtle testing out his Cannon skills.
I'm guessing they still get fired off occasionally.
Like I said, this trip to Norway was a business trip and I really didn't get to explore much. Next time I'll take the family and we'll see more of the country. I hear they have some beautiful Fjords and Mountains.
Upon my return I was ambushed so no pictures of the kiddos until later when Della decided to unpack my suitcase and dress herself in my cold weather gear. Silly Della.
