Norway Fjords/Sweden - Day 7 - Bergen 2

Today was a great day! No need to get up early as everything opens at 10 am and its going to be cloudy. Looking outside to the Bergen city view is fantastic, although the top part is covered in clouds, it still looks good. I decided to go to the Ulriken later this afternoon as the clouds might clear up in the afternoon. Today I am going to do the museum and fort.

Breakfast was good. They had a good variety: fried eggs, boiled eggs, croissants, bread, fruits, waffles etc etc etc. I took my time with it as I wanted to try out the waffles - they were so so...they are not the crispy kind made in US, more like pancakes in shape of waffles. Coffee was good. 

Left before 10 am to walk around the old part of the city. Its less crowded today. I think yesterday a cruise was in the harbor so everyone from there was in Bergen. 

Went to the museum first. It is interesting that Europeans like to preserve their 600 year old history but have burned down cultural places that they have occupied and are still doing in many places by converting people to Christianity. There was not much except how the Brygge was burned and built again and again. Saw it all in about 1 hr.

The fort was an active place today as they have the Renaissance Festival there today. Again, they keep their culture alive but kill off other cultures. Anyway....fort really is nothing great, it's simple in design and small. This can be all seen in less than an hour, but it took longer for me because of the festival. It turns out that Germans were successful businessmen in Bergen.

Fort

Ulriken

From there it was time to go to my cable ride. Took 16E tram from near the fort to the hospital stop. From there it was about 1 km walk up the hill to the Ulriken cable location (Ulriken is the mountain name). I already have the ticket so went in and within minutes the cable car came and we were off on the slow ascend. It was lovely going up, but as we neared the top, the clouds came and the view was all gone. Bummer! I still walked around the top a bit. There was a restroom and water fountain (first I have seen in Norway). 

I decided to get a snack at the Ulriken bakery. Of course everything is overpriced. I tried ordering from the table through the QR code, but got stuck at the payment part as it is only via bank. So after all the work, I still had to come to the cashier to order my hot cocoa and fries (both are listed under kids menu - LOL). I had to carry them myself to the table as I did not have a table number. No problem. There were a LOT of fries. I took my time eating and drinking as I was waiting for the clouds to clear up. They never did. Well...at 3 pm I had had enough. I walked around, took some more photos and then decided to leave.

I took the number 5 bus to the big park (Festplassen) near the central station that I had seen yesterday on my way. There were fewer people there today - maybe because it is not sunny. The garden near the lake (Lille Lungegardsvannet) is really beautiful, so many flowers are planted there. There are also rose gardens around there. There are two art museums and and theater around this location. It is really nice to see people around all the time. I walked around from the backways to get back to my hotel. Came across some nice houses and paths and statues. Found the oldest building that did business in Bergen. No one is visiting it...so sad. I did though :-)

I am back on the Bergen harbor. There is not much else to do today, so made my way back to the hotel. Its about 5 pm. I enjoyed tea and the view from my hotel. Made my plan for tomorrow. There was a fire alarm in the hotel, went downstairs, but I don't think it was anything serious. 

Anyway...I am done for the day. Time to turn in and enjoy the evening from my room. Tomorrow will be another great day.

TIP: Better to get the Bergen card and take public transport to go to Ulriken. One gets to see the city also and bus pass is included in the card.