Bergen

February 22, 2016

📷

Glad to have a legitimate reason to wake up at 4:30 AM, we ate the rest of the leftover pasta, walked to the metro station, and were at the Copenhagen airport by 5:40 AM. While packed with business travelers, security was very efficient and we managed to get to our gate before 6 AM.📷Metro Station We were seated on the plane by 6:30 AM and enjoyed an uneventful flight to Bergen. While the plane was circling to land, we were treated with a spectacular view of the dramatic topography of Bergen. Getting out of the airport was a breeze and soon we were on the express bus to downtown Bergen.📷Removing a bit of frost Oddly enough, we hit some pretty severe traffic as we wound our way through the mountain tunnels. Instead of taking 20 minutes to get to our destination, it took us nearly an hour and a half. At one point, in the middle of the street in gridlocked traffic, the bus driver just opened the doors and encouraged everyone to get off since it would be much faster to walk. Our host, Jessica, was flabbergasted by the severity of traffic and had never seen anything like this during her year-long stay in Bergen.📷Traffic in Bergen Taking an intentionally circuitous route on foot, we explored the cobblestone streets along the waterfront. Looking up towards the mountains surrounding Bergen, we could see dozens of rows of houses stacked on top of each other lining the steep slopes. Bergen itself seemed a lot like a miniature Seattle – the tall buildings in the downtown center, the dotted islands and protected harbor, the constant overcast sky. Funnily enough, we later found out that Bergen’s sister city is indeed Seattle. There’s a even a totem pole on one of the peninsulas that celebrates this partnership.📷Festplassen 📷Sjomannsmonumentet (Sailor’s Monument) 📷Bryggen Around 10:30 AM we reached our stay, but due the aforementioned traffic, our host was also delayed and showed up about half an hour later. During this rainy time, Heather was getting pretty hangry, but none of the nearby restaurants and cafes were open yet. It turns out most folks in Bergen don’t eat out until at least noon. Grateful to be inside, we almost didn’t notice how many inconsistently spaced stairs we had climbed to get to the top of the apartment building. At the top, we entered a spacious living room with expansive views of the rest of Bergen. Not bad!Once we got settled and had a chance to chat with our host, we headed out in search of food. Only a couple blocks from the flat, we encountered, Bryggeloftet & Stuene, a charming restaurant on the waterfront known for its traditional Bergen fare. Since there were both novelty dishes as well as vegetarian options available, we popped on inside.📷Bryggeloft & Stuene Besides one other person enjoying their coffee, we were the only people inside the restaurant. The wooden walls were covered with traditional paintings and there were intricately detailed model ships enclosed in the glass scattered throughout. In addition to the candles on the table, we were seated next to a fireplace which was lit soon after we sat down. Heather ordered the cheesy lasagna, and I ordered the reindeer potato salad with blackberries appetizer and the smoked salmon smorgasbord. Both of us enjoyed our food, but I thought the smoked salmon was by far the best I’ve ever had (the raw reindeer was also very good). For dessert, we had vanilla ice cream with blackberries and egg liquor. Needless to say, it was amazing.📷Reindeer 📷Smoked salmon 📷Dairy in Scandinavia is berry good Although full and a little sleepy, we walked another couple blocks to the Funicular, a tram that climbs up a steep grade to the Fløyfjellet, the top of Fløyen (a nearby mountain). On our way up, the Funicular stopped at various neighborhoods high above the rest of Bergen. At the top, we walked out into a large viewing area complete with a panoramic view of all of Bergen. After taking an embarrassing number of pictures in the falling snow, we took the Funicular back down to the bottom.📷Fløyen funicular 📷Looking down at the center of Bergen from Fløyfjellet mountain 📷Panoramic view 📷At the top Cold from the snow and wind on the Fløyfjellet, we walked the couple of blocks back to the flat and recouped our lost heat. Soon after arriving at the flat, the rain began to come down in buckets. A good time to be inside.When the rain let up a couple of hours later, we went back outside and began exploring the nearby neighborhoods. Our first stop was Sverresborg, an old fortress built on the tip of a peninsula overlooking downtown Bergen. Once we finished taking pictures (including an obligatory selfie), we walked through a few quaint neighborhoods and found our way back to the waterfront.📷Bryggen 📷Silhouette on Sverresborg 📷Heather overlooking Bergen 📷Bergen’s harbor 📷View of the Fløyen funicular  (top left) 📷Obligatory selfie Walking along the waterfront, we decided to check out Håkonshallen (Hakon’s hall) inside Bergenhus Festning (Bergen Fortress). The medieval stone hall was impressively well-intact and funnily enough, Bergenhus Festning was only 250m from Sverresborg. Apparently this area must have been a good place to build fortresses back in the day.📷Northern Bergen waterfront 📷Håkonshallen (right) On our way back to the flat, we spotted a conspicuously camouflaged military boat leaving the Bergen harbor – rather strange. Two doors down from the flat,  we stopped off at a coop and picked up ingredients for dinner.📷Camo boat Back at the flat, Heather made the best grilled cheese and tomato soup combo I’ve ever had. While Heather is indeed a skilled grilled cheese maker, some of the deliciousness may be partially attributed to the liberal quantity of Norwegian Gouda cheese and quality butter. In any case, it was amazeballs.After staying up a couple of hours chatting with our host, Jessica, and meeting her toy-hurling daughter, Kelly, we turned in for the night and fell asleep just before 10 PM, and glorious sleep it was.Our route in Bergen:📷