-Funding for this series has been provided in part by the following.

[ Wind whistling ] Seafood from Norway.

♪♪ -Telemark -- a world of culture and history where nature knows no bounds, with the flavors of local delicacies.

Adventure awaits in Telemark.

[ Jet engine roaring ] ♪♪ -I'm here with Stig and Frida, and we are going to explore the historic part of Norway called Telemark.

This is the Telemark Canal.

Through our journey in this wonderful part of Norway, you will learn the many things Telemark is, like...

This and this and this and this and this and this guy and this stave church.

-Welcome to "People of the North."

♪♪ Join me on a journey where we will meet people who live, work, and enjoy life right here in the Far North.

I'm Arne Hjeltnes, and I'm looking for exotic places and interesting people.

-I'm Stig Bareksten, and I'm looking for the good drinks and exciting flavors.

I'm Frida Ronge, and I'm looking for the best local food.

-Welcome to "People of the North."

Linnea.

-Hi.

-Hi.

-Linnea.

-It's fantastic that you are going to be our guide here at Rjukan.

You're a famous Norwegian pop star.

But you're also from the town itself.

And what kind of town is it?

-It's a special town that came from the development of Hydro, later Yara, when they built the whole city from scratch during a short period of 10 years.

And that's why all the buildings are built in the same style.

And also has earned us a place at the UNESCO World Heritage List.

-One of the places in Norway that's really worth taking care of.

-Yes, we try to do so by preserving the historical buildings and keep telling the story about the industrial revolution, how it started here.

-Rjukan is not only famous for the industrial development that built this city, but also for one of the most important and successful sabotage operations during World War II.

-So we are now at the actual place of the bomb that went off from the heavy water sabotage mission that was accomplished by a group of young men from Rjukan to prevent the Germans from making the atom bomb.

-Oh, it went off.

-Yes.

-And it was a very successful operation.

-It was very successful.

Not a single shot was fired, and no lives were lost, not even the operational guy who lost his glasses.

They took the time to find them so he could get safely out.

-He helped them out because he was a Norwegian working here.

-Yeah.

-And they got away.

And it was a big success for the Allied forces in the Second World War.

-Yes, it was very significant.

[ Muffled explosion ] -[ Laughs ] -But more peacefully is the energy revolution that came with the taming of waterfalls into pure hydropower.

-Hydro is the reason that Rjukan was built into a small city.

It was nothing here before they started what was the beginning of the industrial revolution.

It all began with Sam Eyde and Kristian Birkeland had this idea that they could solve the global hunger problem in the beginning of the 1900 by extracting nitrogen from the air and making sulphated acid that could be... -Fertilizer.

-...fertilizer, but this was all a theoretical concept, and they needed a lot of energy.

So they picked this spot because they could get the energy from the waterfall.

-This was really an innovative project by these two gentlemen, Eyde and Birkeland.

What can we compare it to in our days to fully understand it?

-They actually raised one and a half nation budget size of capital.

So I think if we're going to compare it, a similar thing today would be like in Elon Musk territory... -Wow.

-...in terms of having grand visions and ambitions.

-While Stig and I are impressed with their entrepreneurship a hundred years ago, Frida is discovering another part of Telemark traditions -- the farm and trade fair Dyrsku'n, which goes back to 1866, today still a huge attraction, with more than 200,000 visitors and a feast for a Swedish chef.

-Tell me a little bit more about your food concept here.

-If you put pizza on the menu, it's easy to combine different flavors.

It's also divided in regions here, and then you can kind of travel through the pizza menu through the oven.

-Fantastic.

The funny thing here is that I'm gonna cook something similar to pizza.

Have you heard about okonomiyaki before?

-No, never.

-So okonomiyaki is like a cabbage pancake, and you can add any toppings that you like.

And I want to use something from Telemark region, of course.

And you are the expert here.

So I -- if you have time to show me some specialties from this region, I would love to see that.

-Of course, I would love to show you that.

We have so many good producers in Telemark, and if you want, we can just walk over and have a look.

-Perfect.

♪♪ -They are lamb that comes straight from the mountains here in Telemark.

It's sort of like pulled pork with this lamb.

-Mmm.

Super tasty.

Maybe I can use this for the okonomiyaki.

Let's see.

Yeah.

Thank you very much.

-You're welcome.

-Okay.

Thank you.

-For more inspiration, visit our website, peopleofthenorth.net.

Stig and I are on historic grounds in Rjukan and also enjoying Telemark specialties.

This goat cheese is from a farm called Stordalen just nearby here.

It's sweet and brown.

It's a very special tradition we have in Norway.

-You kind of know everything.

-Yeah, the guy who served just told me.

-Ah.

[ Both laugh ] ♪♪ Kevin, what's the story behind this building?

-The building is built in 1908, named Rjukan Admini.

But it's not actually an administration building.

It's more of a broker house that some either used for brokering some of the biggest deals.

-He needed money to build all the hydropower and everything.

So it used to be a part of the industrial history, but now it's a little luxury hotel for people like us.

-Yeah, that wants to come close to the history.

♪♪ ♪♪ -Frida is on a unique adventure and has been given a special guided tour by Halvor Haukaas on Gaustabanen, a railway built inside the mighty Gaustatoppen mountain as a NATO project in 1959.

Linnea, Stig, and I will meet Frida on the top.

♪♪ Frida!

Aah!

-This is the iconic Gaustatoppen, 1,883 meters.

From here, you can see 1/6th of Norway's land area on a good day.

-[ Laughs ] -We're waiting for a better weather for Stig.

We had a plan of making a dry martini for ourselves with our local guide, Linnea.

But at the moment, it's not that promising.

-Maybe I can cook something for you instead.

-While we're waiting for the view.

-[ Laughs ] -I think that's a good plan.

-Okay.

Let's go.

♪♪ This is gonna be a fantastic lunch with local game from the area and local other produce.

♪♪ Mmm!

So good.

-Mmm.

This is the kind of restaurant I would recommend, especially when there's just nothing to see outside.

[ Laughter ] ♪♪ Despite the fog, we could not depart Gaustatoppen without showing you the breathtaking view from the summit of this iconic mountain.

♪♪ And as the evening is approaching, Stig is required to do his magic.

-Finally, dry martini.

Today, I've chosen to do a kind of sweeter variation.

I'm going to use cloudberries, a little bit of aquavit, gin, and some honey.

♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ -This looks like something powerful.

-Yeah, this is a kind of fruity martini with cloudberries.

I've used a gin from Kongsberg, just an hour from here.

And the ice is actually running through that mountain.

-Permafrost ice.

-Exactly.

And, of course, an aquavit with some heavy water in.

-Wow.

-Wow.

-That's an autumn martini.

-Wow.

-Nice with a little flavor of heavy water.

-Yes.

Feeling a little bit more heavy now?

[ Laughter ] Skal.

[ Laughter ] ♪♪ -Jimmy Lappalainen.

-Hi.

Hello.

How are you?

-I'm good.

I'm so glad to see you.

-So happy to see you.

What brings you here?

-You have created a menu for us tonight, I guess.

-Yeah.

We've put together a new autumn menu that we started a couple of weeks ago.

So it will be a nice little three-course dinner for you guys tonight.

♪♪ Here's the appetizer for tonight.

We have a charred Froya salmon, lemon beets.

Hope you enjoy.

-Looks amazing.

Thank you, Jimmy.

-You're welcome.

My pleasure.

-Thank you.

♪♪ -Good.

-Mm.

♪♪ -Everybody heard about the Loch Ness Monster.

This.

Did you know, here in Seljord, they have their own?

-Really?

-Yes.

We're gonna meet a guy that will explain us.

-Kidding?

-No, I'm not kidding.

I just told Frida about your monster here in Seljord.

-[ Laughs ] Yeah.

It's a sea serpent that is supposed to be here.

It's a phenomenon.

You cannot explain it, but you cannot explain it away.

-Uh-huh.

Have you seen it?

-I've seen the phenomenon.

I can't say that I saw a sea serpent, but I saw something moving, making waves.

But some people have seen physical head with a neck coming up from the water and then diving and disappearing in the deep.

One of the men who saw it, he said, "I stood there the whole day looking for it, but it didn't come up again."

-So it's like the Loch Ness Monster.

-Yeah, it's in the same class, so maybe they are related.

-Scary.

[ Both laugh ] -But the sea serpent here in Seljord is not a bluff, and I hope that we one day will find proof of what it really is that people have been seeing for 300 years.

♪♪ -It's a cute little hotel.

-And this time, it's only me and you.

-Yeah, it's only me and you!

[ Both laugh ] ♪♪ What is the concept here?

-It was built as a coach inn, a place where you can come and relax your horse, eat, sleep and then, go further the next day.

-But you are running it by yourself, or...?

-I'm the fourth generation.

It was actually my grandfather and his brother that bought it together in 1917.

We have very many visitors of artists that came to this place.

It was popular, especially in between the two World Wars, and it was popular also because the artists at that time, they wanted to, in a way, find the Norwegian soul.

What is it to be Norwegian?

Because here in Telemark, the culture have been very conserved.

So it hasn't been changed that much because it was not so accessible.

♪♪ -For more inspiration, visit our website, peopleofthenorth.net.

-Amazing dinner.

The menu has been fantastic, and we are so impressed.

-Oh, thank you.

That's very nice to hear.

Thank you.

-Go on, Stig.

-Skal.

-Cheers.

[ Glasses clink ] ♪♪ -Not all farms in Telemark are easy to find or as luxurious as new time.

Stig and I climbed the hills from Dalen to see how life could be in old times.

♪♪ Wow!

-We are now at Rui, one of these strange Norwegian farms that's, like, in these remote areas where no one actually could live.

-And it's steep hillsides.

And this farm they settled here, 600 feet from -- from down in the valley.

And it must have been a tough life.

They were -- they were mother, father, six children.

-They didn't have any machines, no horse, so everything is built by a strong back and a good will.

-And two of the children, Ingering and Gurine, they lived here until the mid '60s.

They didn't go anywhere but here, but they wanted to meet the Norwegian king.

And they did.

And they came back and lived happily ever after.

And I hope the rock came after they built the house.

No, I hope the rock came before they built the house.

[ Laughter ] History and old traditions is really the core of what Telemark is.

You discover this everywhere in this region.

♪♪ ♪♪ Ole Bjorn, we're at the Vest-Telemark Museum, and Stig is kind of curious on this building.

-Yeah.

What kind of building is this?

-It's a loft.

So in the first floor, they store the food, but in the second floor, they stored valuable things, like their jewelry or their nice clothes.

-Who built this loft?

-It was three young boys.

The sons of a woman named Ase Stalekleiv.

Every day, they went up into the forest and they herded the cows.

And when they came back in the evening, they brought with them some timber.

So day by day, the loft got a bit and a bit bigger, yeah.

-So this is one of the nicest, more valuable lofts we have, and it's quite old.

-This was built in the 12th century, so it's one of the oldest wooden buildings in the world.

-Wow!

-But you have more wooden buildings here.

You have a stave church, as well.

-And these stave churches are wonderful medieval masterpieces.

Definitely a must-see treasure on a trip in this timeless landscape.

History has also been made in the waterways of Telemark.

We are going by bike alongside the Telemark Canal.

-It's so beautiful.

And also nice to do some activity.

-And because of the locks, you can do hop on, hop off.

[ Chuckles ] -Yeah, that's perfect.

♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ -Thor Filip, we are on board your ship, the Henrik Ibsen, on our way through the Telemark Canal.

What kind of experience is this for travelers like us?

-This was the highway between the Norwegian capital, Oslo, and Bergen on the other side, before the Oslo-Bergen railroad.

It's a journey or a waterway through the mountains from Skien, the coastal city, to Dalen.

And from here, you would go with horse and carriage over the mountains, down to the fjords on the other side.

And you can see here this is the old part of the canal.

You operate the locks by hand.

That lever closes and opens the water intake.

-And it closes behind us, and then we just float up.

-Then we float up, just like an elevator.

♪♪ -What do you want us as passengers on the Henrik Ibsen to experience while on board?

-The point of the journey -- travel up the canal, feel like you're traveling back in time.

Everything's been crafted this way.

And then, slowly but steadily, let the nature pass by and then end up at this legendary Dalen Hotel at the very end.

-And that's how we want to have this journey today, Frida, Stig, and myself.

♪♪ -Welcome to the restaurant at M/S Henrik Ibsen.

Today, we are going to serve you a little bit of a variety here.

So for you, Stig, you're going to have the wonderful shrimp sandwich a la M/S Henrik Ibsen.

Frida, we've organized for you the excellent fish soup.

And for you, Mr. Hjeltnes, we've of course organized a Telemarksplanken.

It's a tapas of different sorts of meats and cheeses around the area so you can taste a little bit of everything.

Enjoy.

-Thank you.

-Cheers.

"A little bit of everything" is actually my middle name.

♪♪ -I'm so happy that you take us around to these fantastic places.

-Air is crisp, and the colors are beautiful.

-Yeah, I agree.

-A little bit of coffee and chocolate while on this timeless travel.

-A perfect moment together, Arne.

-Thank you, Frida.

♪♪ ♪♪ At the end of the rainbow, there's always a treasure.

♪♪ ♪♪ [ Breathing quickly ] Hoo-hoo!

♪♪ Waah!

Ice cold.

But what a magnificent view.

This beautiful fjord Bandak, I haven't had a nicer jump in the ocean for a long time.

♪♪ -Mmm!

-Oh, yi yi.

-Oh, yi yi.

-Wow!

This is a fantastic afternoon tea.

-[ Speaking native language ] -Cheers.

-Skal.

-Skal.

[ Glasses clinking ] -Mmm.

It's a perfect place to have an afternoon tea.

This dining room is actually then protected as a cultural heritage.

-You guys impress me all the time.

And also the different parts of Norway.

Thank you so much.

-Skal.

[ Glasses clinking ] -Skal.

♪♪ -We aim even higher to one of the many really steep mountain farms where the farm couple, Malin and Ola Midjas, can offer what I will say are the real rooms with a view.

-Now we are inside one of your glass houses or mirror cabins or I don't know actually what you call it.

-We could say that it's a glass cabin.

We have a few here at the farm where we live.

It's a mirror cabin on the edge of a mountain.

So you could see the Telemark Canal and Dalen and the Bandak Lake.

So the view is quite spectacular.

I really hope that people could come here on a mini vacation and just breathe in and breathe out and relax, I guess, from the hectic, everyday life.

-Finally, it's time for Frida to show us what she has picked up from the incredible abundance of local food.

-Today, I'm going to cook one of my absolute favorite dishes okonomiyaki.

♪♪ It's a pancake filled with a lot of white cabbage, and you are using different toppings on the pancake when you have fried it on the fire.

I'm using, of course, local produce, and I'm going to cook two different okonomiyaki, one with Mangalica pork and the other one with deer.

♪♪ -For more inspiration, visit our website, peopleofthenorth.net.

-We have just been sitting here admiring this fantastic view of Dalen.

-Yes.

-And we are very hungry.

-Absolutely.

As always.

-So this is the two okonomiyaki I've been cooking.

It's two sauces in the bottom, one HP sauce with some Japanese flavor and mayonnaise.

Then it's scallion, furikake.

And here is Mangalica pork and sausage and some game, bonito, and roasted nori.

And this one is with a deer salami and smoked dried deer heart.

-Ooh!

-Sounds good.

-Yeah.

So, dig in.

-Yes, it looks fantastic.

My kind of pancake.

-Yeah.

-Yeah.

-Mmm.

-Crispy.

Nice.

Sauces and the meat.

-Yeah.

-Wonderful combo.

-Extremely tasteful.

-Thank you.

-This is the perfect way to end our Telemark adventure.

What's your favorite of what you have seen and experienced?

-I mean, I have to say that I love to cook with local, high-quality produce.

So today's been a very, very, very fun day for me.

-Stig?

-I will say the journey, but we also found some kind of local gin, some wild berries, made some fantastic fruity martinis.

-I would say that, when you look at this, the autumn, the wonderful colors, coming to Telemark this time of year, it's really worth the trip.

♪♪ ♪♪ -For more inspiration, visit our website, peopleofthenorth.net.

Funding for this series has been provided in part by the following... -Seafood from Norway.

♪♪ -Telemark.

A world of culture and history where nature knows no bounds, with the flavors of local delicacies.

Adventure awaits in Telemark.