I’ll Definitely Come Back to Norway

• Day 16, Voyage of the Vikings 2019
• Wednesday, Aug. 14, Bergen, Norway

At noon in Bergen the fiskedisken, or open-air fish market, is packed with tourists sampling the fresh fare and escaping a rain shower under the awnings.

The displays are filled with salmon, crab and some unfamiliar-to-me fish local fish, along with smoked and canned delicacies. Other booths have a colorful selection of berries. It was a feast for my eyes today at noon, although I wasn’t hungry enough to stop to eat.

Among the tourists were some who travel a little more lightly than I do – although my days of carrying everything on my back have passed, I think!

We berthed next to the Viking Sun and just a short walk (perhaps half a mile?) from the main harbor and the Bryggen neighborhood. Its distinctive and historic building fronts face the harbor and stretch warren-like back a block or so, ending in small gardens. Now the narrow walkways are full of shops selling woolen goods, souvenirs and homemade crafts.

By late morning the first of the forecast rain arrived, and the day continued with showers and occasional downpours interspersed by the sun’s attempts to break through. My all-weather coat and hood were sufficient, but by the time I returned to the ship in mid afternoon even it was fairly soaked. It would have been a good day for an umbrella as there wasn’t much wind, but I had left it in the cabin.

On a side note, I might add that you can tell the Asian tour groups by their colorful umbrellas. Faithful readers will remember that on my last two trips to Japan I stocked up on them.

As I worked my way back to the ship, I’m almost ashamed to say I stopped into Starbucks. I much prefer local coffee shops to something I can get on virtually every corner at home. But I was looking for (and found) an over-sized Norway mug to match the Tokyo and Hong Kong mugs from previous cruises. While there I took advantage of the lightning-fast WiFi to upload photographs. I particularly liked finding the little things particular to Norway – the trolls, drawings and t-shirt sayings.

And doesn’t it make more sense to call it a “minibank” than an ATM?

I figured this touristy area was a good place to do my souvenir shopping. One nephew requested a t-shirt in a foreign language, but I struck out despite asking in various shops. I did find a wool cap and some nice small prints of local scenes for me. They meet my souvenir criteria of being flat and light for easy packing. When the proprietor at the small gallery asked me if I would like the prints signed, I said sure – if she is the artist. And she was!

Our journey out of Bergen followed the relatively flat fjord for more than an hour. We passed dozens of islands, and a beautiful rainbow stayed with us for quite a while. We enjoyed the journey from Canaletto, the Italian restaurant in the Lido. The main dining room has great food and we seldom splurge on meals at the specialty restaurants. So this was a treat.

I’ll close by saying today’s port call sent me to the Holland America website to research cruises that focus on Norway. One port is not enough. I want to see and experience more of this beautiful country. And of course I found one that is tempting – but I’ll save it for another time.