It’s a rainy day here in Trondheim NO, so it seems like a perfect time to update the blog and add some of the random photos I’ve taken, which I’ve added to a new page on the left. I’ve been in Norway for about 10 days now and I think I’m starting to get pretty comfortable here, at least in the urban areas. I’ve spent a couple of days in each of the three largest cities (Oslo, Bergen, and Trondheim) and so far, Trondheim is my favorite by a pretty wide margin. All three are very walkable, very clean (although with a lot of graffiti), and I’ve only run into two people who didn’t fluently switch to English when talking to me, usually with a British accent. All the locals seem polite and a little reserved, and nice in a Midwestern US nice kind of way, which makes sense when you think where a lot of the Midwesterners came from. I did see a cartoon that seems to confirm or explain my earlier post’s point that the Norwegians (“Nordmenn” being the proper label in Norwegian, “weegies” being the fun term) seem too nice to be the descendants of Vikings, saying that they are so nice now because “they used up all their naughtiness” pillaging the rest of Europe for 400 years.
Oslo is a pretty typical capital city, lots of museums, overpriced restaurants, more homeless (although nothing to compare with the US), and tourists. There’s also a lot of green space, good food, some cool neighborhoods outside downtown, and an amazing transportation system (why, oh why, can’t we get that right in DC?). All of which is great, and maybe I just didn’t spend enough time there, but it just seems to lack that certain something that makes for a great, interesting city. I’ll have to think about that as I travel; what makes a great city great? What gives a city “character”? But whatever it is, I didn’t feel it in Oslo.
Bergen was slightly more interesting, but a very touristy town as “the gateway to the fjords”, so it had that slightly artificial feel that the San Francisco waterfront has; it’s it beautiful historic city, stuffed with ads for tours, big red buses, and TGI Fridays. I will say that the Bergen waterfront is a UNESCO world heritage site for it’s historical importance as a trading hub for the Hanseatic League, and the history nerd in me was quite happy going through the waterfront museums, reading boring facts on how Bergen was the European hub for dried cod commodities. I know, unbelievable? But some of you may remember me raving about the great book I read a couple of years ago, “Cod” by Mark Kurlansky, right? You should definitely read it, you’ll gain a whole new appreciation for the value and historical importance of dried fish.
But I digress... Bergen was nice enough, and my hostel was a good one, but the best part of that city was the hike I took outside it. Most of the urban areas are surrounded by a mix of farmland and forests that quickly transitions into heavy forest. And since, again, they have such a great public transportation system (again, figure it out DC!), there is a light rail or bus in every city that will drop you practically at the trail heads, where you can get lost in wilderness, even though you’re 20 minutes from downtown. It’s fantastic because it combines my love of hiking, and also sleeping in a beds! In fact, it’s even lazier than “car camping”, it’s “light rail camping” - you can carry even less stuff! So, I went out on sunny day and walked around in the forest, seeing surprisingly few people and some very beautiful scenery, which ended up at the top of a mountain looking down at the city.
After that, I got on the overnight train back to Oslo, spent a day doing the same kind of hike as in Bergen, then got on another overnight train to Trondheim. In case you can’t tell, I’m loving the train system, especially the overnight trains; I don’t get much sleep, but it’s cheap, it has free wifi, and I start the day in a new city, where I spend the first hour or so drinking a lot of coffee, put my backpack in storage, and go exploring. Trondheim is the home of the Norwegian University of Science and Technology, and it definitely has the feel of a university town (again, I’m not sure exactly what goes into that, but I know it when I feel it), and it’s a lot smaller than Bergen or Oslo. It’s also an older city, with some great architecture and history still intact, and it just seems to have a more laid-back vibe that I enjoy. Finding good restaurants has not been a problem anywhere, but I’ve been particularly happy with the options here in Trondheim, like reindeer stew and potatoes for dinner last night, with an aquavit after-dinner drink... tasty.
It’s funny, but Norway seems to be one of those countries that didn’t have restaurants that served “local cuisine” for the longest time, and only in the last few years has it taken off. So in all three cities, most of the places serving Norwegian food, were super trendy and/or expensive, while the tapas and Thai restaurants were the cheaper options. However, in Trondheim there are a couple of nice hole-in-the-wall places that serve more traditional food options at more reasonable prices. Of course, “reasonable” in Norway means around $40 for a pretty basic dinner. I’ve already gotten comfortable paying $7 for coffee in the morning, I’m going to need to leave before I stop calculating exchange rates when choosing a dinner spot.
I’ve probably got time to hit one or two more cities before I leave for Sweden, so I’m heading off the train station next to make a reservation to go to Alesund, south down the coast from Trondheim, where I’m hoping to do some bird-watching and/or kayaking, and maybe take one of the dozens of fjord tours. After that, I may head inland to do some hiking in the mountains, depending on the weather. Buying the rail pass before leaving was a great idea. Since I’ve already paid for it months ago, it feel likes free travel!
Oslo is a pretty typical capital city, lots of museums, overpriced restaurants, more homeless (although nothing to compare with the US), and tourists. There’s also a lot of green space, good food, some cool neighborhoods outside downtown, and an amazing transportation system (why, oh why, can’t we get that right in DC?). All of which is great, and maybe I just didn’t spend enough time there, but it just seems to lack that certain something that makes for a great, interesting city. I’ll have to think about that as I travel; what makes a great city great? What gives a city “character”? But whatever it is, I didn’t feel it in Oslo.
Bergen was slightly more interesting, but a very touristy town as “the gateway to the fjords”, so it had that slightly artificial feel that the San Francisco waterfront has; it’s it beautiful historic city, stuffed with ads for tours, big red buses, and TGI Fridays. I will say that the Bergen waterfront is a UNESCO world heritage site for it’s historical importance as a trading hub for the Hanseatic League, and the history nerd in me was quite happy going through the waterfront museums, reading boring facts on how Bergen was the European hub for dried cod commodities. I know, unbelievable? But some of you may remember me raving about the great book I read a couple of years ago, “Cod” by Mark Kurlansky, right? You should definitely read it, you’ll gain a whole new appreciation for the value and historical importance of dried fish.
But I digress... Bergen was nice enough, and my hostel was a good one, but the best part of that city was the hike I took outside it. Most of the urban areas are surrounded by a mix of farmland and forests that quickly transitions into heavy forest. And since, again, they have such a great public transportation system (again, figure it out DC!), there is a light rail or bus in every city that will drop you practically at the trail heads, where you can get lost in wilderness, even though you’re 20 minutes from downtown. It’s fantastic because it combines my love of hiking, and also sleeping in a beds! In fact, it’s even lazier than “car camping”, it’s “light rail camping” - you can carry even less stuff! So, I went out on sunny day and walked around in the forest, seeing surprisingly few people and some very beautiful scenery, which ended up at the top of a mountain looking down at the city.
After that, I got on the overnight train back to Oslo, spent a day doing the same kind of hike as in Bergen, then got on another overnight train to Trondheim. In case you can’t tell, I’m loving the train system, especially the overnight trains; I don’t get much sleep, but it’s cheap, it has free wifi, and I start the day in a new city, where I spend the first hour or so drinking a lot of coffee, put my backpack in storage, and go exploring. Trondheim is the home of the Norwegian University of Science and Technology, and it definitely has the feel of a university town (again, I’m not sure exactly what goes into that, but I know it when I feel it), and it’s a lot smaller than Bergen or Oslo. It’s also an older city, with some great architecture and history still intact, and it just seems to have a more laid-back vibe that I enjoy. Finding good restaurants has not been a problem anywhere, but I’ve been particularly happy with the options here in Trondheim, like reindeer stew and potatoes for dinner last night, with an aquavit after-dinner drink... tasty.
It’s funny, but Norway seems to be one of those countries that didn’t have restaurants that served “local cuisine” for the longest time, and only in the last few years has it taken off. So in all three cities, most of the places serving Norwegian food, were super trendy and/or expensive, while the tapas and Thai restaurants were the cheaper options. However, in Trondheim there are a couple of nice hole-in-the-wall places that serve more traditional food options at more reasonable prices. Of course, “reasonable” in Norway means around $40 for a pretty basic dinner. I’ve already gotten comfortable paying $7 for coffee in the morning, I’m going to need to leave before I stop calculating exchange rates when choosing a dinner spot.
I’ve probably got time to hit one or two more cities before I leave for Sweden, so I’m heading off the train station next to make a reservation to go to Alesund, south down the coast from Trondheim, where I’m hoping to do some bird-watching and/or kayaking, and maybe take one of the dozens of fjord tours. After that, I may head inland to do some hiking in the mountains, depending on the weather. Buying the rail pass before leaving was a great idea. Since I’ve already paid for it months ago, it feel likes free travel!
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