We realized early why TrollActive rafting was half the price of other companies.  The length of the river that they use for the rafting is minimal and we even walked back and did the main rapids again.  Nevertheless, it was fun and the guides tried hard to make it fun with games and stopping to jump off a small cliff into the river.  We did have a good time and it really wasn’t our fault that we couldn’t do another rafting trip but the lack of tourists.
After rafting, we drove down to Kristiansand from where we planned on taking a ferry to Denmark the next day.  We checked into our hotel which was pretty much next to the Ferry port.  We went to the grocery store to buy some Norwegian treats such as the brown goat cheese for Hendrik’s parents and “smash” which is a snack like bugles but they are covered in chocolate and also taste a bit of peanut butter.  We then wanted to find something to eat and wandered around the cost which was surrounded by some brilliant apartments, lovely playgrounds, and a beach.  It looked very pretty compared to some of the other parts of town.  We found one restaurant near the marina which had open air seating, a great view, and was reasonably priced, considering it was in Norway.  At least the portions were quite large as well.  Of course we did not have any alcohol or our bill would have been double.  On our way back to the hotel, we followed a walking tour outlined in one of our many guidebooks.  The center of town was rather cute so we were glad we went.

McDonald’s in Kristiansand

When we were about three blocks away from our hotel we saw another playground.  There was no lack of playgrounds in Kristiansand.  There, there  was a swing which was more like a ½ a basket in which you could practically lie. Hendrik swung me on it and I noticed I had to keep my legs stretched out as after all it was meant for children and even though I’m short, my legs would still scrape the ground.  Since it was quite fun Hendrik had a go.  He is quite taller than me and in one swift moment he let his guard down and in one rapid swing he let his legs drop and his foot got bent the wrong way.  I’d never seen Hendrik in so much pain.  I immediately stopped the swing and he just laid there turning a bit green.  Eventually, he managed to make it to a nearby bench with my support, which was a good sign since it meant it was probably not broken.  He sat there and I went to get the car since he would not be able to make it back to the hotel.  I went to get the car and he was able to hop into it on one foot which was impressive.  I didn’t know he was such competition for kangaroos.  In the lobby, I asked if they had ice, they did not.  I quickly went into the store next door and at first couldn’t find ice so I debated getting a bag of frozen peas but then noticed that the ice was right next to the peas.  I was able to buy it just before the store closed.  We iced his foot a while and the next day he was feeling slightly better and was even able to drive his share of the 10 hour drive through Denmark, Germany, Holland, and finally Belgium.