Bergen, Norway

The morning started with a quick breakfast, and a serenade by the coffee and pastry crew.

Frode and Joanna - guide and bus driver. Frode (not Frodo) was a really good guide. He pointed out that we were very fortunate to have a nice day- and it WAS lovely. Bergen is the Rainiest city in Europe. 277 days of rain- 100"/year.

Our first stop was the funicular to the top of Fløien Mountain. The funicular was amazing - one large car, with sections, on a track that took about 8 minutes to get to the top. Views were spectacular, and there are lots of hiking paths, playgrounds and park areas at the top of the mountain. There's also a cafe, so guess what? Coffee and a cinnamon roll to share! Glad we went early, because the lines for the funicular we saw later in the day were pretty long.

After a drive-around, we visited the old Hansiatic area, which contains many shops and restaurants. A lot were closed, it being Sunday, but many open- probably because the ship was in- and we returned to the area after the tour. Frode showed us a house in the complex (Red house with balcony) that had been used by the Resistance in WWII.

We were able to get some good pics of the houses from across the harbor, where we also saw a fleet of eider ducks in formation. Frode told us about a lot of incidents in Bergen that affected construction during different times, reflected by different architectures.

We were let off at the fish market downtown after the tour and walked around some more. We got a taxi back, after being unceremoniously blown off by an Uber driver who accepted the ride. When I contacted him after a bit of a wait, he replied: "I 'm busy. Book another ride."

Back at the ship, we had some chicken broth, then headed in. We headed up to the Garden Cafe to see the sights as we departed.Read more