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Bergen Norway

Charm and Personality

streetview from area Bryggen in Bergen, Norway

For almost a thousand years, Bergen has been an important harbour for travellers from all around the world.

The old, wooden houses down by the dock's, the Bryggen (see photo over),are in many ways a symbol of coastal, cultural heritage.

The Bryggen is placed the on UNESCO's World Heritage List, and visited by thousands of tourists every year.

Bergen is the second largest city in Norway, with more than 225 000 inhabitants.It is situated on the western coast of Norway.

The foundation of Bergen is estimated to be about year 1070.

The importance of the town came from the trade of dry cod. From about year 1100 the fishermen in Northern Norway brought their fish to Bergen, to be traded in for equipment, clothing, food and other. The importance of the town wasincreasing, and the growth brought more money and more trade year by year.

One day in 1349 an English ship arrived Bergen, bringing with them the Plague, The Black Death, to Norway, which became one of the deadliest pandemics in human history.

Through the 15th and 16th centuries Bergen was one of the largest cities in Scandinavia, and until the 1830's this was the biggest city in Norway.

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The City Seal

This is the Coat of Arms for Bergen, or actually it is an old, City Seal from 1833.

The seal is showing a silver castle standing on golden hills, probably an image of the Seven Hills that surround the city. The background color is red.

The golden frame around the seal, has the inscription "SIGILLVM COMMVNITATIS DE CIVITATE BERGENSI", which means "The seal of the town community of Bergen"

Unlike almost all other Norwegian municipalities, Bergen never got one of those modern and officially approved coat of arms.

The City Seal is based on an old, city seal from late 1200's.

At that time the city seal had two sides.One side showing a viking ship inside a framed text: "SIGILLVM COMMVNITATIS DE CIVITATE BERGENSI" (same inscription as the one of today).

On the other side there was a castle standing on seven mountains, with the inscription:"DANT BERGIS DIGNUM MONS VRBS NAVIS MARE SIGNUM", which means "The Mountain, The Castle, The Ship and The Sea is giving Bergen a worthy seal.

The present Seal is a combination of the two sides of the old seal.

Transportation

Bergen has one of the main international airport in Norway, Bergen Lufthavn Flesland.

From Flesland you can fly to 19 domestic and 38 international destinations.

Bergen Airport Flesland is situated about 20 kilometres south-west of the city centre, and is served by airport buses, sceduled buses, boat and taxi.

You can also to and from Bergen by railway, the Bergensbanen, connecting to Oslo and from there to the rest of continental Europe.

Norway Busssexpress can take you by bus to Ålesund and Trondheim, or to Kristiansand and Oslo.

And of course: This is the ending port of the south for the Coastal Express, the Hurtigruten.

Hurtigruten takes you to many harbours, towns and places along the coastline between Bergen and Kirkenes.

Bryggen and the Fishmarket

Bergen is really a beautiful town, with several historical buildings, not to mention the famous Fish Market.

It is nice to walk around in the city centre, to watch the beauty of the houses and the harbour, and to find a charming, harbour restaurant, to enjoy a beer or a cup of coffee, and just watch the people passing by.

We recommend to take your time to see the old Bryggen (Norwegian expression for The Wharf).

These are the remains of a lot of commercial buildings from the Hanseatic periode, and are, as mentioned before, on the UNESCO list for World Cultural Heritage.

Throughout history, the Bryggen buildings has experienced a lot of fires, causing huge damages, as most houses were made of wood.

Bryggen today houses mostly souvenir- and gift shops, as well as some restaurants, pubs and a museum.

For a good choice of hotels with discount prices, visit Hotel in Bergen for more information.

Another MUST when visiting Bergen is the famous Fish Market which is a part of «Torget i Bergen». Torget means "the market", and here you will also find fruit, vegetables, flowers, handicrafts, and souvenirs.

The Fish Market in Bergen is one of the most visited tourist attractions in Bergen.

In Norway, we know Bergen most of all for the rain! It's always raining in Bergen.The dialect is very special, and the people of Bergen claimes to be a bit different from the rest of Norwegians.

A slogan in Bergen says: " I'm not from Norway, I'm from Bergen".

The Bergen International Festival

The Bergen International Festival was established in 1953, and is also a member of the European Festivals Association.

The Festival is one of the largest in Scandinavia, presenting more than 150 events in 15 days,within music, dance, theatre, opera and visual art.

Within walking distance from the city centre you will find the Bergen Akvarium (the photo is from the fishmarket!)

In addition to the marine life, you can also meet animals from all over the world, like monkeys and reptiles, and even pinguins from the South Pole islands.

You will be informed about feeding times, also in English language, and the people feeding are wearing microphones to inform you about what is happening.

Bergen University College

Bergen University College is a state institution of higher education, which was established in 1994.

The University College offers several high quality, study programmes, directed towards specific professions in society, and there has always been great demand for graduates from this study programmes.

If you ever visit Bergen, we also recommend you to visit the Troldhaugen, which was the home of Edvard Grieg and his wife Nina for 22 years.

The house was build in 1885, and became a museum in 1928. The museum exhibition offers an overview of the life of Edvard Grieg.

Edvard Hagerup Grieg was born in Bergen in June 1843, by parents Alexander Grieg (merchant and Vice Consul in Bergen) and music teacher Gesine Judithe Hagerup.The Grieg name was originally spelled Greig after Scottish origins.

Some of Edvard Grieg's most know works are from his music to Henrik Ibsen's play "Peer Gynt", and includes "Morning mood" and "In the Hall of Mountain King".

In the museum you will learn more about his childhood in Bergen, his stydy in Leipzig (Germany), the years in Copenhagen (Denmark), and of course about his life as a famous composer.Edvard Grieg was also a famous internationally performing pianist, as well as a director.

Edvard Grieg died in 1907 at the age of 64.

Even in the early spring, with temperature close to freezing point, you find the flower sellers at the market place.

The beautiful Bergen Domkirke (Bergen Cathedral), in the City Centre, is a majestic building and an important part of the Bergen history.

Sister Cities

Bergen has many sister cities. These are:

* Asmara, Eritrea

* Gothenburg, Sweden

* Newcastle, United Kingdom.

* Seattle, United States

* Turku, Finland

* Aarhus, Denmark

* Quebec City, Canada

IF you ever go to Norway, and you can make this a possible stop on your trip:

Take your time to visit. Take the Fløibanen, see the Tyskebryggen and the Fish Market.

Walk around in the city, to see and feel the atmosphere of a typical Norwegian coastal town.