Norway in a Nutshell - Bergen

Leave the first response June 19, 2009 / Posted in Travel

Mai with Bergen city, Norway on the background

Bergen is one of the UNESCO (World Heritage site) famous for its shipping port and cute wooden houses. It is really a beautiful city. I arrived really early in the city - thanks to my overnight train from Oslo. I could not check in to my hostel (Jacobs apartment). If you are not aware, EVERYTHING in Scandinavia is very expensive. A very modest 1 single bedroom will cost you a good AU$200-$250/night (approx US$180-$235). Let alone the cost of alcohol. If you are thinking of de-toxing, its probably a good idea visiting Scandinavia as the price will resist you from drinking - a standard Gin and Tonic costs AU$20 (US$18). Having said that, being sober is essential to making the most out of your travel experience :).

I spent most of my morning and early afternoon around the Fish market. I know it sounds bizarre but being in Norway it is almost a given that you sample their fresh seafood, especially Salmon. I also saw some whale meat being sold which sunk my heart (yes, Im against the Japanese killing whales). I managed to take fresh Scandanavian wild Salmon Caviar for my dinner party (with a little bit of bargaining as always). The fish market has existed since the 19th century. As it is today it is a great place not only to buy seasfood but a great place for tourists to buy local handicrafts and handmade souvenirs which are more than just trolls and vikings.

Norway is famous for its knits. I managed to break my credit card balance by acquiring a couple of unique handmade knits by local artists. You do not really have to spend that much cash, you can always buy their beanies which are also beautiful. However, as this is Scandanavia, it is slightly more expensive than your average shopping.

On my way to spend time in the Bergen House and the fortified walls overlooking the sea, I walked past cute Bergen wooden houses site which is also a world heritage (UNESCO). These houses commonly get the fire brigade busy as they are often on fire. I witnessed this later in the early evening from my evening stroll. They do not use firetrucks but fireships instead which I found quite interesting.

Early afternoon, just a quick 5 minutes stroll from the fishmarket, I decided to catch a finocular up the mountain to get a bird eyes view of the whole city. I also managed to spend a good hour up the mountain to enjoy their national park.

In Bergen, there are plenty of things to see and do. One of them which I decided to give a miss is their Aquarium since I have a very limited time in the city.

We went to visit Knosesmauet located in a district called Klosteret. What is unique about this site is, it’s full of claustrophobic style wooden houses close to each other and cute doors half my heights. The locals call this area being a fire combuster as they are all made of wood and its not uncommon if one house caught fire, the rest of the districts are in a big inferno. I really enjoy strolling around here as you get the cute wooden houses very close to each other with the backdrop of Bergen harbour/sea. We went back just in time for dinner and party with the rest of the hostel occupants and hoping we could wake up for our morning train to Voss to continue our Norway in a Nutshell trip.