Connor and I had been dating for 21 months before we got engaged. During the summer of 2014 we started planning a trip to Norway to visit his brother. While we were in Norway we went on adventures to different cities, visiting Bergen, where my great-grandfather was from – a perfect opportunity for a proposal but it didn’t happen. We then flew to Estonia where we had a romantic couple of days in the beautiful fairytale town of Tallinn – another perfect opportunity for a proposal but it didn’t happen. Because this was our last alone time together, I had given up the idea of getting engaged during this trip and was planning on having a long talk when we got back to New York. We had one weekend left in Norway and it was going to be spent hiking with a couple that I had never met.
After a long morning of flying from Tallinn to Oslo, an hour bus ride back to the city and a crowded tram ride to his brother’s house, we only had an hour before we got picked up for a 6-hour drive to Odda – where the trailhead for Trolltunga is. The three of us and a husband and wife that knew Connor and his brother, spent the night in a grass roofed cabin about 30 minutes away from the trailhead. We woke up early the next morning to prepare for our 9-hour hike.
The hike was difficult, the first two miles were straight up an unused tram track, when we got to the top of the track we were exposed to the cold and freezing mist blowing in our faces. The beauty of the place made the cold and mist bearable, I had never seen anything so beautiful. About four hours after setting off we arrived at this rock that juts out from the side of the mountain. The rock feature is called Trolltunga (Troll Tongue) and it is stunning. From the tip, the fall is nearly 2,000 feet into the valley below. It overlooks a beautiful lake and in the distance you can see a huge glacier.
Trolltunga is a popular hike and there are over 100 individuals at the top, taking photos, eating lunch and enjoying the scenery. Because everyone wants to get their photo taken on Trolltunga alone, there’s a line that forms before you go out on the rock. I went with the married friends to wait in line while Connor and his brother staked out the area to take photos from. Connor joined us in line and pretty soon it was our turn. I was really nervous to go out, it was windy, raining, and I’m not a big fan of heights. Connor grabbed my hand, we walked out on the rock, turned and smiled for Connor’s brother. As I was looking at the camera Connor tugged my hand for me to look, when I turned around he was on one knee holding my beautiful ring. The request was simple, no poems or fluff, he just looked at me and said “Kourtney will you marry me” he had watery eyes and I was frozen. I was shocked, the first thing I said out of my mouth was “are you serious?” I couldn’t express the joy, surprise, and all other emotions I felt. The hundreds of people up on the mountain and waiting in line all cheered and clapped. We were in one of the most beautiful places in the world, I was standing on huge rock hanging nearly 2000 feet over a valley, and the man of my dreams asked me to marry him. Life couldn’t get any better. The four-hour hike back down seemed to take no time at all.
