Solstrand is one of Norway’s most beautiful hotels, located just outside Bergen, surrounded by fjords and home to over 125 years of history. “It looks like a yellow castle, almost. It’s very beautiful. And it’s a very quiet place, no traffic, it’s by the sea,” Ida tells CNN Travel. Every year, Ida’s Bergen-based workplace decamps to the dreamy surroundings of Solstrand for a few days of remote work. That year, 2014, was Ida’s first at the company. Her colleagues had regaled her with stories of Solstrand and she was excited. But her excitement wasn’t really about escaping the city and relaxing among the mountains. It was all about Hanna Aardal. Hannah was Aida’s best friend. When Ida started at the company, the two quickly clicked, but were in different places in their lives. At the time, Ida was married and focused on her relationship and settling into the new job. Meanwhile, Hanna was a single parent whose teenage daughter had just moved to the US to study for a year. But as the months passed, their circumstances changed. Ida’s relationship fell apart and she got a divorce. Hannah adjusted to her daughter being abroad and began spending more time socializing with colleagues. Over time, Hanna and Ida grew closer. “Our energies matched,” so says Ida. “It was always more fun to be at work when Hanna was at work.” “I think we had the same kind of humor, so we became fast friends,” Hanna says. Hanna and Ida began working together on a fun project, a short mockumentary in the vein of “The Office,” showcasing the quirks of their workplace. The film was to be screened at the Solstrand retreat. The historic Solstrand Hotel in Norway played an important role in Hanna and Ida’s relationship. Solstrand/Monday The two worked on the project around the clock and began sharing regular dinners and drinks. They texted regularly, often texting each other good night. Reflecting on this period today, Ida and Hanna suggest that they were “dating without realizing it.” “I was used to dating men and never been in a relationship with a woman,” says Hanna. “Looking back, it’s obvious we had feelings for each other.” Ida didn’t know if Hanna would be open to dating a woman. And she didn’t know if her feelings were reciprocated, or if it was all in her head. However, Ida felt they were signs that the relationship was more than that. A few weeks before Solstrand’s trip, the two had stayed up late at Hannah’s house, chatting. When, at 2 a.m., Ida suggested she go home, Hanna had grabbed her hand and asked her not to leave. It felt like a “turning point”, at least for Ida. But it went all the same — they had both been drinking, and he felt the conversation should be approached under different circumstances. Solstrand, Ida decided, was the perfect opportunity. Especially when Ida and Hanna were randomly chosen to room together. “I had feelings for Hannah and I definitely adored her,” says Ida. “But if it was all in my head, then I had to clear it up. And we were going to work together. So I just decided that if we end up in the same room, that’s a sign for me to do something about it. .” Plus, Solstrand was a beautiful, romantic setting. “At least if he had rejected me, I wouldn’t be somewhere like this dump. I’d still be in a nice hotel,” jokes Ida.
Opening
Ida raised the issue at the end of the first day in Solstrand. It was late at night and the two women were lying in their separate twin beds. Hannah’s answer surprised them both. “I started saying, ‘I know we’ve become close friends and everything, I love you as a friend.’ But then, while I was saying it, I realized that of course it’s more than that,” Hannah recalls. “I was horrified when he told me that,” says Ida. “I was like, ‘Wait a minute. That’s not happening.” After the initial shock, the conversation continued. “We talked, we kissed. And then we kind of calmed down and decided we’d find out eventually,” says Ida. The next day, Ida and Hanna were busy with a busy day of meetings and presentations. They didn’t mention what happened the night before, but it was a tradition in their company that everyone present greeting cards to their roommates in Solstrand at the end of the trip. In Ida and Hanna’s cards, they put their growing feelings into writing. And Ida excitedly texted her close friends the news. “I texted, like, three thumbs up, ‘Got it!’ says Ida. “But other than that, we kept it quiet for a long time.” Solstrand is surrounded by Norwegian fjords and mountains. Solstrand/Monday Hannah needed some time to come to terms with her newly recognized feelings. “I had been in some relationships, but mostly I was a single parent and very self-sufficient in a way, and not very good at close relationships. So I think it was really scary and exciting at the same time — and confusing.” Both Ida and Hanna also knew that they were risking not just a friendship, but a working relationship. For Hanna, this added to her terror. “I think I was really afraid of messing things up between us,” Hanna says. “Because we were working together, there would be greater consequences if I messed up — which I guessed I would — at some point.” Ida and Hanna took it slow, but gradually grew even closer. Exactly one year after their conversation in Solstrand, the two returned to the fjordside hotel on their annual work trip and decided they were ready to tell their colleagues. Later, back home in Bergen, Hanna shared the news with her daughter. “She was very happy for us,” Hanna says, recalling that her daughter joked that it would be weird to have a man in their women’s house. “He came to us, two years later, so it’s a very gay family,” Hanna adds.
Back to Solstrand
Ida proposed to Hanna on a return to Solstrand. Solstrand/Monday Hanna and Ida moved in together in 2015, not long after they shared their relationship news with their loved ones. They began discussing marriage and decided that when the time was right, Ida would be the one to propose. “I love surprises and Ida hates surprises,” Hanna explains. Ida knew exactly where she wanted to propose: Solstrand. Three years after voicing their feelings for the first time, Ida and Hanna find themselves back at the historic hotel for the company’s annual retreat. The company had just aired the traditional office mockumentary when Ida interrupted proceedings. “He just got up in front of everybody and said, ‘There’s another video,’ and he gave me a box of Kleenex because I cry, I cry all the time. And then he had this really sweet and romantic music video, depicting our relationship and ending with the proposal”. Wiping away happy tears, Hannah said yes. “I would have been very uncomfortable if I hadn’t,” he jokes today. Hanna (left) and Ida got engaged at Hotel Solstrand and married in Bergen in 2022. Ida Skibenes “I was very nervous,” Ida recalls. “Maybe I told a few people before we went, but five minutes before I went to show the film, I ran and told everyone.” Her colleagues were excited and encouraged a panicked Ida to do it. “I had a complete meltdown, had two glasses of wine and two cigarettes, and then I was ready to leave,” says Ida. “It felt so right to do it in that hotel with these people, because they had tagged along throughout the journey of our relationship. So it was exciting and a lot of fun. Especially where we got to celebrate with so many people who love us and want to be happy.” After some postponed pandemic wedding plans, Ida and Hanna tied the knot in the summer of 2022. The long-awaited ceremony took place outside in a Bergen park near the couple’s home. “It was a really special celebration,” says Hanna, recalling a day of sunshine and festivities.
Starting a journey
Ida and Hanna hope to one day celebrate 50 years of marriage together. Ida Skibenes Hanna and Ida are no longer working together. When Ida left the company a few years ago, her colleagues gave her a gift card for a romantic weekend in Solstrand. The couple can’t wait to return and hope to one day celebrate 50 years of marriage at their favorite hotel. Hannah and Ida describe their years together as “an exciting and fun journey”. “It was that feeling of having your best friend there, all the way. Like, no matter what happens, you have your best friend and it makes you feel like things are going to be okay in the end,” says Ida , who adds that becoming a foster parent has also “changed her life” and taught her a lot. Hanna says she has learned a lot from Aida as well. “Ida is very brave,” Hanna says. “She’s much wiser than I am when it comes to relationships and feelings. And she’s very brave in being brave enough to talk about things when the going gets tough.” “We got close very quickly and have this absolute trust in each other so we can be ourselves. I have never had such a close relationship before and it has changed my life in so many different ways. And also to have a partner who also loves my daughter and to be a family — a bigger family.” Top photo of Hanna, right, and Ida, left, courtesy of Ida Skibenes
