So despite bankrupting ourselves in Oslo earlier this year, we decided we hadn’t quite has enough of Norway, which is why we found ourselves at Gatwick airport on Friday night, jumping on board Norwegian Air Bergen bound with Jess and her sister Sarah.
Bergen is on the opposite side of Norway to Oslo and is widely regarded as the most beautiful Norwegian city. Despite being the second biggest city in Norway, there are only 240,000 inhabitants which is the perfect demonstration of Norway’s sparseness! It’s a perfect weekend getaway as it is perfect for wandering, as opposed to charging around trying to fit everything in like a maniac.
We arrived in Bergen just past 11pm, which is a similar time to what we arrived in Oslo months before, but this time with a key difference – it wasn’t still light. In summer it hardly ever gets dark and in winter its hardly ever light, so given our visit was right on the cusp of winter we spent the weekend wandering around in dusk.
Our accommodation wasn’t too flash, but we’ve stayed in plenty worse and given we weren’t keen on bankrupting ourselves to meet Norwegian prices, it was more than adequate – aside from our heater sparking and smoking when we turned it on in attempt to heat up the chilly room. Having had a bumpy landing into Bergen, we were all a little green around the gills and as soon as our head hit the pillow we were out, cold room and all.
The next morning we were out the door in record time (record given there was one shower and three girls) and soon found ourselves wrapped up to the nines and exploring the town. Bergen is just like a quaint wee fishing village, albeit slightly more populated, which was reinforced when we stumbled across a fish market right on the waterfront, selling everything from lobster to whale meat. After sampling some of the local produce which was more fresh than we could ever have imagined, we made our way to the Bryggen area which is a cuter than cute strip of Norwegian buildings housing everything from Santa memorabilia to restaurants. We then realised we couldn’t put off food any longer and decided to bite the bullet and head to a little bakery, where we indulged in a few local baked delights. Outrageously priced given what you get, but a lot better than Oslo so we couldn’t complain. Named Godt brod, which we took to mean Good Bread, we decided we would be back here as we were all thoroughly impressed with our custard bread creations.
Our next stop was Floibanen, home to the funicular, which is essentially a tram which takes you 320m above sea level to a mountainside which looks out over the whole of Bergen. The ride up was excitement in itself and we had a grand old time on top of the mountain taking photos, posing in the troll gardens etc. More dedicated followers of the blog, might remember that Norway is the home of trolls, so everywhere you looked in Bergen there was a sneaky wee troll popping its head out from behind a tree. It was my bright idea to make like a local, and walk down rather than riding the funicular. We were promised that the trip would give us an authentic taste of the Norwegian forest and nature and it definitely lived up to its hype. Sadly our choice of attire wasn’t the most appropriate given we weren’t in hiking gear, but it was beautiful all the same – waterfalls, moss, rocks, trolls and more trolls. It took us just over an hour and it was great to see the natural beauty of Norway, but that said, we were also glad to get to the bottom where we headed straight to another bakery and recouped our agency with hot chocolate and more baked goods.
The rest of the day was spent wandering through the streets, stopping for the occasional hot dog (a Scandinavian staple), taking countless photos and soaking it all in. We then headed back to our hostel, via the supermarket, where we brought some of our favourite Norwegian snacks from last time, including the best chocolate treats on the face of the earth called Daim. After stuffing ourselves sick and declaring we wouldn’t need dinner, a game of cards was started, but I opted for bed instead and had a wee cat nap, before being woken by Brad as the team had decided to head out for food after all. Sheepishly we set off in search of a cosy and affordable wee place, only to split up. While Jess and Sarah were in search of refreshments of the alcoholic kind, Brad and I had our eyes set on coffee and cake. We dropped the girls off at a bar, bidding them farewell until 1am when they would stumble in with hot dogs in hand, while we headed to a great wee find that reminded us of cafes back home. Sitting down with Caribbean crepes, wedges and apple cake (crazy, but delish combo), we were swept away in conversation about the creepy art on the walls, forcing each other to choose a favourite which was torture in itself given each painting was more unsettling than the last (I’m talking decapitated heads unsettling). After Brad was pointing to one image in particular that just screamed serial killer, a girl at the neighbouring table turned to us and started nattering away in Norwegian. Realising we didn’t understand, she soon switched to English – turns out she was the artist! Mortified, we then had to spend an inordinate time gazing at each painting, oohing and aahing over the creepiness. Thank god she just tuned into the convo at the very end! It just goes to show, you never know who is listening so shut the hell up at all times!
The next morning we all awoke at 10am, amazed that we had slept for so long – one of those glorious sleeps when you wake up 100 per cent refreshed. Despite the late start, we were up and out in nothing short of miraculous time where we headed straight back to our beloved Godt Brod. Now here’s an interesting observation that needs to be observed in NZ - it seems that Sunday morning is ‘father’s time’ in Norway, as countless dads took their young ones out for brekkie, leaving Mum at home to lie in gloriously. Everywhere you turned a single dad was in tow with beautiful Scandinavian children, each child more blonde and blue-eyed than the last – just gorgeous! We were seated next to two Dad’s who had joined forces and were treated to their gorgeously charming, well-behaved little faces for a few hours, including one delightful wee tot who took a shining to our Jess. Jess, who isn’t clucky in the slightest, was melting at the mouth at this little bundle of perfection. I tell you, Scandinavian children could bring world peace. And what a great idea – mothers across NZ unite and declare Sunday as a day for lying in while Dad’s take the kids out for hot chocolate and custard buns. It’s no wonder Norway is constantly voted the best place in the world to live – with kids that cute and Sunday lie-ins, what’s there to moan about? The weather of course, but when these kids are all wrapped up in their furs they look even more cute. I know I sound border line child-snatcher here but god-give-me-strength I was this close to tucking this little one under my arm and hooning out the door. The only reason I managed to control myself was the thought of the constant fighting in the flat over who was going to hold the baby.
After scaring these poor fathers, we decided to leave before we had a criminal conviction (of all the places, we really couldn’t afford bail in Norway) and trotted off alongside the ocean coming to another pretty park right on the water’s edge.
The remainder of the day was spent exploring, drinking tea and eating more hot dogs, before we reluctantly caught the bus back to the airport. Even the bus ride didn’t disappoint and was like a tourist attraction in itself, winding us through beautiful valleys and landscape.
Bergen gets two beautiful thumbs up – low key and lovely.
x
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