Exploring Bergen on our own....
After breakfasting on the balcony in our stateroom, we went into Bergen proper. We weren’t bothered that it rained on and off for most of the morning as it was nice to be out and about…. besides, umbrellas are an exceptional invention! We shopped for a while. One thing for certain: Scandinavia, and in particular Norway, is an expensive part of the world!
We did our “scouring” for gifts in the old renovated timber warehouses and trading houses of old. It’s a maze!! This is the Bryggen area I noted in my earlier journal entries. For centuries Bryggen has been a vibrant and important part of the city. Walking through these wooden wharves was “adventurous” …. one has to mind where to step as the floorboards are undulating and doorways are low.
In 1360, the German Hanseatic League which dominated Northern Europe trade for almost 400 years, set up one of its import and export offices here at Bryggen. To stroll through the narrow alleyways and overhanging galleries is to step back into the mists of time and a bygone era. Whilst quite a few people about, you can’t help but stroll casually and take in these bygone buildings….
Mt Floyen & Funicular
We decided to take a risk on the weather and go up Mt Floyen via the Floibanen Funicular. This was a very good decision as the rain was intermittent. We arrived at the top of this mountain for the best views of Bergen. Arriving at the top we moved out across the belvedere and headed to the extreme point where the best photos could be had…. and appropriately on taking the shots, it started to rain.
We sheltered until the rain squall passed and then moved on to other parts of the mountain for different vistas. In one of these parts, we came across some goats. These were duly photographed…. from a distance😊.
Mt Floyen sits atop the Bergen peninsula with an unbeatable view.
We decided to sit on a bench at the highest visible point and just gaze across the views as the sweeping panorama changed with the moving showers, shifting sunlight and switching colours…. We stayed on this bench for a long while…. don’t know for how long but it wasn’t long enough…. I must say this is a most beautiful, personal and intimate period of time for us.
Reflection time over as it was past lunchtime (1.00 pm.!) so we had lunch at Café Floein and while we ate, Nanna wrote up her usual bunch of postcards to the family and ended up posting them when we came down back to Bergen itself…. The cafe itself was somewhat disappointing! Menu selections were limited and mostly unappealing…. prices were exorbitant even by my high standard!…. and just too overcrowded….
Strolling thru mid-Bergen
By this time, it’s just after 3.00 so we decided to take in as much of what this UNESCO Heritage listed city has to offer. We wanted to visit the Hanseatic Museum however its closed for serious renovations as the structure seems to be sinking and requires propping up…. shades of Venice!! …. for the next couple of hours, we walked leisurely around this lovely city whilst it basked in warming sunlight as the rain held off.
We strolled past the “Ole Bull Fountain” (dedicated to the legendary Norwegian violinist), then into the central park which today was playing host to a large Thai Food Festival. Despite the lateness of the afternoon, each stall (yes there were many!) appeared to be doing considerable trade…. perhaps many of the customers were the ones who were at Cafe Floein😊….
Once we finished browsing the festival, we roamed around the lake located centrally in this well-kept park. The lake, with its fountain in the middle, has a shoreline blooming with breathtaking beds of flowers in a kaleidoscope of colours and interspersed among the flowers, the occasional interesting sculpture. Some of these sculptures need one to have a very active imagination in order to decipher what they’re trying to project!! Others are simply straightforward…. nothing wrong with straightforward is there??
Stopping at a bar on the “Ole Bull Plass” we spoke with a local was “informed” that Norway has 5 seasons NOT 4 like the rest of the world😊. According to this resident, Winter is split into (1) The Dark Time Season and (2) The Light White Season.
Eventually we found ourselves back on the main street and enjoyed a street rock-n-roll concert (very good actually) before we started back to our ship.
On the way back we passed The Seamen’s Monument which was built in honor of Norwegian sailors covering the era from Viking times to the 20th century and it included an infinity pool fountain. Nearby to our left, we found Nygardsparken Park which apparently is the largest park within Bergen city. Its beautifully maintained and appears to duplicate an English park.
We then cut through the Fish Market (explore tomorrow) and with the weather threatening, headed back to the ship….
Bergenhaus Fortress
The next day the weather was kinder though still overcast and cool. It wasn’t raining….a good sign😊.
First stop was a visit to the Rosenkrantz Tower which is part of the Bergenhaus Fortress. The gardens surrounding the fortress and the many excavated foundations of other buildings within are a delight to stroll in. As for the tower, its the most prominent renaissance building in all of Norway. Its oldest part dates back to 1270 but only received its present form and renamed Rosenkrantz around 1563. At that time, it became a fortified castle complete with dungeons, storerooms and other buildings (the tower was the residence of King Erik Magnusson until he died in 1299). King Erik Magnusson was the last king to have his seat in Bergen.
St John’s Cathedral, Bergen
After spending about and hour exploring the fortress, we moved on and walked through the Fish Markets and window-shopped our way towards the Den Nationale Scene which is the largest theatre in Bergen and is also one of the oldest permanent theaters in Norway….
Moving on, we made our way upwards to St John’s Cathedral (centre of Bergen Parish and built in 1894)…. spectacularly placed and an essential to visit and admire. The “boulevard” leading to this church is wide and pedestrian friendly, with large marble flower pots and fountains adorning the way. It’s the largest church in Bergen capable of holding 1,250 worshipers but we couldn’t enter to look inside as there was a service going on…. in fact, peeking through the glass door, the church was very full!
Bergen Fish Market
By this time, it’s after 1.00 and so we wound our way back to the Fish Market where we explored the many seafood eateries vying for one’s patronage. It was a very difficult choice to make as the seafood displays were incredibly enticing, the aromas were tantalizing and the waterfront atmosphere inviting.
We finally settled on our eatery and enjoyed a delicious lunch of BBQ’d prawns, lobster, oysters, fish sticks and scallops together with smoked salmon, salads and a couple of local beers. It was simply a delightful way to spend a couple of hours watching the world go by.
By around 3.00, we leisurely made our way back to our ship BUT not before more “shopping therapy”😊
Twilight in the Bergen
Dinner this evening was at 8.00 at the Chef’s Table on the Viking Sun and the menu was Scandinavian. It was delicious and excellently presented.
We decided to stay up and witness sunset and part of twilight. It was a late night so we opted to spend most of the waiting time in the Explorer’s Lounge (yes again😊). Finally and incredibly, the sun set at 11.10 pm and twilight continued on for another 50 minutes. This is immensely difficult to comprehend…. so “alien” to us from Australia!!
By 11.30 pm we were quite weary and retired to our stateroom where we barely lasted out the twilight before our bed won us over….
