Blogs from Bergen, Western Norway, Norway, Europe - page 3

I explored more of Bergen today and this time I didn’t need an umbrella even once. The sun was shining first thing this morning, so I decided it was a good time to ride the funicular to the top of Fløyen, a hill near town with views. The sun was in my eyes as I tried to take a selfie from the summit and the view was nice, but not as nice as the viewpoint I visited later in the day, so I’ll include a picture from there at the end. Later in the morning I went to the Kings Hall for the daily tour. The guide did her best but the truth is that medieval Bergen has a pretty dull history and, while one can admire the reconstruction job on the huge 700-year old hall, ... read more

Today was a travel day and I am now in a new country, Norway. It feels good to be here, sort of like the REAL start to my trip since I’ve been to London several times before. Actually I’ve been to Norway before, but that was 42 years ago and I’m embarrassed to admit that I don’t remember much about it. I do have positive memories of Bergen, which is where I am now. It is on the west coast and is famous for its cod fisheries and as an access point for the Norwegian North Sea oil rigs. Tourism is also big here because it is located near fjord country. Surprisingly, some of the waterfront warehouses from medieval “Bryggen” still exist, although they now house tourist shops instead of salt cod and trade goods. Another ... read more

Monday was a comfortable travel day with a scenic 6.5 hr train journey linking Norway's two main cities. Starting in a cool grey Oslo morning the train steadily climbed to 1220 mtrs to a sunny alpine day before descending back down to sea level & a cool & dry Bergen. The outlook along the way was of lush valleys, idyllic villages, dramatic mountains and picturesque lakes. The scene then changed to treeless rocky hills with isolated snowy patches at the top and then dense pine forests on the decent. We arrived mid afternoon for a 2 night stop at the Hotel Zander K & headed out immediately for a brief orientation walk around the historic World Heritage listed city. Also in the likelihood of a wet next day (it rains 266 days a year) we took ... read more

This morning started off cloudy again and was sunny and cloudy all day with a high of around 24. Perfect weather for some hiking. Seems like all of Norway gets out on a Sunday for a hike, bike or to walk the dog. We were headed for Fana but stopped en route as we saw an indicator for a tourist attraction and it was called Fanafjell. So, we thought we would check it out. It ended up being a lovely hike past lots of sheep wandering around and up a small mountain (actually one which Nigel had found online but thought the heights would be too much for me.....) with one of the best lookouts we have seen so far. The way up was a rocky/mossy rough trail but beyond the lookout, it became muddier and ... read more

Castellano debajo : la traduccion se hace mejor hoy... Un petit retour en arrière pour ce réveil matinal, bercés par la chute d'eau toute la nuit... le réveil des vaches... dont on en aurait bien pris un bébé dans son lit tellement ils me paraissaient doux !!! et cette toute belle région qu'on ne se lasse pas de visiter... Avant d'y arriver également cette neige qui nous surprend à chaque tournant... une fois elle se montre, une fois elle disparait ! Quand à mes vaches : c'est dans le nord de l'Europe, que l'on trouve cette vache à poils longs pourvue de grandes cornes. Très appréciée pour sa viande au goût persillé, cet animal rustique est capable de supporter un climat très rude... Voilà pourquoi on la retrouve à cette latitude. Elle est originaire de Highland ... read more