Norway Fjords/Sweden - Day 8 - Bergen 3

It was a nice day today also. Little extra I think. I would advise anyone short on time to do three days in Bergen, mine turned out to be 4 with the half day during my arrival day and full day on the departure day.

Breakfast was fine. Yesterday I ate this horrible cracker with pesto on it, which gave me gas and acidity. It took a while before I was feeling fine. So today for breakfast I was not that hungry. The breakfast room was quite empty today, its like all the guests disappeared. Maybe they were here for the weekend.

I am ready to go to see the Fantof Stave Church. I have take two buses and then a take a 5 min walk to see it. I was there about 10:30 which is time it opens. It was in the middle of the forest, I guess for preservation sake. Apparently the original had burned down so this was a replica and also it was not in its original location. The design of this church is unique - it looks quite Viking. There are dragons on the top design. The interior is quite simple. It took all of 10 mins to see the church. Now I have to get back - another 30 mins. But first tummy is making strange noises. I need to go. Google told me to take 20 and then 6 from the next stop. Luckily, at the next stop is a KIWI (grocery store). I thought I would see if they have a restroom. They do, but not public, but the manager unlocks it for me. So nice. God bless her. 

I took the tram #6 back to the hotel. It is only 12 pm. I had some tea. 

It is time to go up the Floibanen funicular. It was a nice ride up. It is not so cloudy today, although colder than yesterday (I am wearing my warm jacket today). It is not that high but the view is amazing. I can see my hotel! And of course the whole city that I have been walking for the past 2 days. Lovely! Lots of photos later, I walked around, there were goats (monitored by the staff, of course). There was a huge play area for children, lots of things to climb and swing on. 

It was time to eat something. Got a pizza bun from the cafe. Enjoyed the view while eating. 

Time to walk some more. There was a huge troll, of course I have to take a photo! Walked towards the troll forest. The forest is quite interesting, lots of moss and roots exposed. It is kind of the forest I would imagine in the fairy tales I used to read in my childhood. The troll area was fun too. They had made models of many trolls, with names. Fun! After that it was the gift shop. Nope, nothing to buy.

That's it. Its only 4 pm and I am done. Walking back to the harbor I got some Greek salad to eat. I just need some vegetables. What I really wanted was some hot soup, but there is no guarantee that it will be vegetarian, so I am opting for salad. Came to my room and ate. It was good but only tomatoes and cucumbers as veggies. Barely had any green peppers and onions and no lettuce. Lots of feta cheese. It was ok. I finished it all. 

I have to figure out what to take on the cruise as they don't have any food. I will be on board for two days. They do have eating places on board though. I will get some bread tomorrow. Hopefully all will work out. 

Went out to do some gift shopping. Don't need to buy anything but wanted to get something for a couple of friends. Things are quite expensive. That's it, shopping done. I am finished with the day at 5:30 pm. No need to roam around the streets, they are all the same now. 

I guess 4 days are okay if you want to do all the things I did. Everything kind of closes at 6 pm, so there is not much one can do in the evening except walk around. 

PS: Time in Norway is written as military time everywhere.

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.

Norway Fjords/Sweden - Day 6 - Bergen 1

Not much to do in the morning as I have done all I could do in Flam. Got up around 8 am, looked outside and it was all cloudy, more than yesterday. Breakfast was the same, boring, bread and eggs. The pancake was not worth trying and the hash browns had a strange smell and were dry and hard. For such a big hotel their breakfast sure sucks, especially for vegetarians. Nothing much to do until 11 am when I have to check out. Outside is gloomy.

Went to the bus stand at 11am. The bus came at 11:35 am but was indicating the wrong destination. Had to ask the driver and she finally corrected it and made it to Voss. I had seen the bus yesterday so I knew it was the same number. Anyway, the bus ride was nice. There were so many tunnels but when we were out, it was really pretty. Huge mountains, mountain rivers and so many waterfalls. The scenery changed slowly to less mountains and and more farm area. Now there were lakes also. Its sunny but the clouds were still low and look really cool.

As we reached Voss around 1 pm, the driver said that the train to Bergen was cancelled and that we would have to take the bus standing next to ours to Bergen and it would leave in 10 mins. Well...no time to use the restroom then. Bus left on time at 2 pm and reached the bus station in Bergen around 4 pm. The ride was nice but a little repetitive. I was listening to my podcasts all the way and kind of got a bit sleepy also. I was expecting the bus to drop us off at the train station but we went to the bus station which is a litter farther from my hotel. So now I have to walk even more. I was prepared for the 12 min walk and now it is about 17. Well, that's okay. I managed the one mile walk. Thank God for the phone maps! It was a nice walk, it was sunny and so many people were out.

My room in Scandic Torget hotel is excellent. I am on the 6th floor and facing the historical UNESCO site. It is just awesome. I am feeling really good. 

First thing to do is to walk out to the visitor's center. It is cool outside, just perfect temperature and sunny! I bought the 48 hr Bergen card and tickets to the cable car and funicular and one fjord tour for Tuesday morning.  I am now set to enjoy my time. 

There are many tourists around. The Brygge area is very cool looking and I enjoyed my walk. Went through some tourists shops, all things are expensive. I don't need anything but I want to take some small thing...a magnet? hehe.

Bergen Brygge

Came back to the hotel at 6 pm, had a nice cup of tea. Left at 7 pm to enjoy the sunset and another round of walk. Went behind some buildings this time. Its all nice. Picked up some snacks at Rema1000 (grocery store) next door. I love these stores, they are small and with fewer choices. I should be set for the next 2-3 days. 

I will have to get some food for the cruise time as they don't have food included in the trip. Weird!! 

All in all good day!