Bergen 4 & 5 December 2017

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Monday 4 December 2017



Once at Bergan, arriving at 9.30am, we hopped into a taxi van with a fellow Australian who was doing the same tour as us, arriving at the Clarion Admiral Hotel.



We loved Bergen when Tom and I drove there with our motorhome in 2014 so was looking forward to seeing it in the winter.



On arrival, we could feel the cold but is was crisp and dry. Our hotel room wasn’t ready but Sheryl’s was, so we used her shower. It felt great after flying for 24 hours. Norway is such a tricky country to get to from Australia. There is no short path!



As it was forecast to rain the next day we decided to take the funicular up to Mt Floyen. There was snow everywhere, and the site down on the city was spectacular. We wandered around for 30 minutes or so, checking out the tourist shop/café before catching the funicular back into the town.



Bergan city CBD hugs the waterway/fjord and with its colourful old wooden buildings, it’s a pretty town, and surrounded by snow-capped mountains and water, made it seen more special.



We also visited Christmas House which was on the water’s edge in one of the wooden buildings. It consisted of 3 floors of Christmas decorations.



Our Danish friend Tea who lives in Brisbane told us about a special Christmas display in Bergan as well as the Christmas markets. Unfortunately, we were 3 days too early for the Christmas markets, but the gingerbread village was open. There was a large theatre-like building which housed the miniature village all made of gingerbread. This has been developed every December since 1991, but this was the biggest display ever and it gets more extensive each year. All the town’s people are invited to make a building or structure for the display. It is set out similarly to Bergen. I hope you enjoy the photos.



That night we chose a lovely restaurant along the water which was associated with the fish markets. Tom had coral fish, Sheryl had salmon and I had king chilli prawns. All meals were magnificent which was accompanied by a crisp white wine. It was a great start to the holidays. We were however, looking forward to a long sleep!!!!



We had to get back to the hotel by 7.30pm as we were going to meet our tour guide from Bentours as well as our fellow travellers. Inger Stina Palmet was from Estonia and a very experienced tour guide who was in her mid 30s. We learned that her mother was also a guide. She was excellent and couldn’t do enough for us to ensure we had a fantastic tour.



That night … oh the bed was so good!!



Tuesday 5 December 2017:



The next morning, Inger introduced us to the local guide who was going to take us on a city tour of Bergen. He was a very tall Dutch man who had lived in Bergen for a long time and was an excellent guide.



The day was sprinkling with rain some of the day and therefore overcast. He took us to the Bergen St Mary’s Church, the wooden village and wharf called Bryggen which is a large open air museum in many ways, the Fantoft Stave Church, and Edvard Grieg’s summer house (he was a famous Bergen composer). After a short drive there was a stop at Troldhaugen, the home of Norway’s most famous composer Edvard Grieg. Troldhaugen consists of the Edvard Grieg Museum, Grieg’s villa, the hut where he composed music and his gravesite. We couldn’t take any photos from the bus due to the rain.



We learned about Bergen history and how the city developed, including the fire that burned 90%!o(MISSING)f the city as all the houses were built in wood. He also told us about how the wooden buildings were sinking, and we saw through the window, how the buildings are being propped up so that they stop sinking.



The tour ended at the Hurtingruten wharf where our ship, MS Finnmarken was waiting for us. This ship was one of a dozen working ships, transporting people, cars, and goods up and down the Norwegian coast.



MS Finnmarken cruise ship deck plan has a total of 282 staterooms for 628 passengers (max capacity is 1000 guests on Norwegian coastal voyages), served by 75 crew/staff (all Norwegian).



This ship had recently been refurbished so was in excellent condition. We were on the 5^th Deck which was a long way away from the noisy deck where cars and goods were loaded and unloaded throughout the nights.



We soon learned the food was of high standard and beautifully presented. Inger was on board with us, continuing to guide us and advising us on which tours to book and which ones she would provide as an inclusion on the tour we were on, rather than pay extra for tours organised by Hurtingruten.



At 9.00pm we had a “meet & greet” of the executive staff, including the Captain and Head Chef and at 10.30pm a “Sail Away” party which was low keyed compared to the bigger cruise ships. We sailed north from Bergen along the Hjeltefjord, the same route the Vikings once sailed to the Shetland Islands and beyond – heading to the high north.



Tom, Sheryl and I went up on Deck 8 (top deck) to watch Bergen city go by. Tom was too tired to wait to go under the large, beautifully lit bridge. Shery and I stuck it out for the team!!! We were away and ready for our “chase the lights” tour….. very excited!

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