FLAM STATION (NORWAY)

Spirits of forest, lake welcome passengers

Photos by Yomiuri Shimbun Photographer Yasuhiro Takami

By Kazuhiro Katayama

Yomiuri Shimbun Staff Writer

The train stopped at a wooden platform after a 10-minute ride from Myrdal Station. The passengers were treated to a splendid view of a nearby waterfall that threw up spray, and they soon noticed a woman dressed in red dancing by the waterfall.

Alfhilcl Kristine Jacobsen has given dance performances there during the summer since she started going to a dancing school in Oslo five years ago.

"We play the role of a pixie called Huldra. The pixie is an incarnation of the spirits of the forest and lake that sends people a message from nature," the 24 year-old said.

The Flam Railway connects the Bergen Railway, which runs across Norway from its capital, and the world's longest and deepest fjord, Sognefjord.

The Flam line runs 20 kilometers between Myrdal and Flam stations, descending 864 meters. On the ride, passengers can enjoy magnificent scenery such as deep valleys, tunnels and streams of water from melting snow that flow down valley slopes. After the train emerges from green thickets, the passengers are awed by a view of a fjord port surrounded by steep mountains.

During the hourlong train journey, passengers are entranced by the natural beauty outside.

The line used to be operated by Norwegian State Railways, but Flam Utvikling, a company created by investment from local municipalities and private businesses, took over the line in 1998, making it a privately owned enterprise. Since then, the railway has offered added services, having refurbished its trains and printed brochures in 16 languages. As a result, the number of passengers on the line increased by 38 percent to about 460,000 annually in the eight years since the privatization.

The dance performance is part of the services for passengers on the Flam line.

Despite its success in attracting tourists all over the world, the station itself is simple looking.

Juan Miguel, a 26-year-old Spaniard who teaches kayaking on a nearby beach, said Japanese who visited there were always in a hurry, and city dwellers in his home country were the same. But Norwegians enjoyed a slow life in harmony with nature, he said.

Perhaps thanks to efforts by nature-loving Norwegians, many of whom have their own mountain cottages, the Flam line continues to retain simple natural features although a large amount of money was poured into redeveloping the railway.

"I feel like I'm part of the fjord. I can't relax without breathing the air here," Jacobsen said.