We crossed the arctic circle on our way, and we stayed above the arctic circle for some time. Outdoor temperatures weren't bad, usually in the 50's, and there was always the chance of rain. In Stavanger, we were parked right in the middle of town:
Bergen seemed very livable if you don't mind nine months of winter and three months of lousy skiing. We rode the funicular up to Mount Floyen for a view over the city:
The town was having a celebration of steamboats and that added even more character to the waterfront.
Did we mention that trolls are a big thing in Norway?
We also visited the home of the famous composer Edvard Grieg. You have heard his music in every Disney feature depicting characters awakening in the morning. He and his wife are buried near the house, in a mountainside.
Alesund. Rain. It's pronounced "olesund". We took a guided walk around town in the rain to see the Art Nouveau style buildings. This is a result of the fire on January 23, 1904. Practically the entire town was destroyed during the night with a gale force wind aiding the flames. The inhabitants had to evacuate the town in the middle of the night with only a few minutes notice. More than 10,000 people were without shelter. Kaiser Wilhelm of Germany sent four warships with materials for temporary shelters, then the town was rebuilt with stone, brick, and mortar in the Art Nouveau style.
Trondheim is a place where one could live, if it wasn't for the drawbacks of Norway, specifically, rain. And I'll bet it snows like hell in the winter. It's a college town with lots of shops and services. Some very nice looking new apartment blocks and a really huge indoor swim complex was right next to our pier. In Trondheim we visited an open air folk museum...a stave church and a number of really old original buildings moved there piece by piece. Included was a dentist's office, an apothecary, and several homes.
One of the homes belonged to the Night Man. Has anyone heard about the Night Man? The Night Man lived outside the city walls because his job was considered to be, well, a bit dirty. This was the guy who came into town at night to empty the toilets and pick up the trash, which sometimes included cadavers. From there, we drove to the Kristiansten Fortress, which had good views and some interesting art.
Then on to the Nidaros Cathedral to marvel at its facade. Wow.
In Hammerfest, we climbed up the hill to a Sami camp. The Sami are the native people of the area, and everyone has probably heard of Laplanders. These people are related. Our host, Mikkel, is a Reindeer Sami, not to be confused with Ocean Sami (fishermen), or River Sami (fishermen). So, he makes his living from his large heard of reindeer and entertaining tourists in his authentic Sami buildings.
We were treated to Sami culinary delights: smoked reindeer, cooked reindeer, and reindeer jerky. Mikkel must have a friend who's a River Sami because we also had smoked salmon.
More on Norway on the way back south, but for now, onward to Arctic Russia!
