What a city! Bergen, Norway had not been on my list of places to visit. I had heard Norway was extremely expensive, but the opportunity came and I couldn’t say no. We stayed at the Clarion Hotel 13 right in the center of Bergen, close to the fish market. Getting there from the airport was also a piece of cake, there’s a bus that leaves from the airport and it only takes about 20 minutes. You can pay inside the bus, with a credit card. The Clarion was amazing! It has very high ratings on TripAdvisor and I have to agree. We were surprised to find out they had a wonderful, Norwegian, free breakfast with all sorts of delicious items such as homemade bread and butter, fruits, different types of cheeses, yogourt, the usual scrambled eggs and bacon, hard and soft boiled eggs, even salmon! It was delicious! The hotel staff also told us when we checked in they had waffles every day from 3-6pm, and a light dinner at their sister hotel, Oleana, from 6-9pm. Being we could easily spend over $150 for a meal we took advantage of those. You can find things like hotdogs and pastries for a reasonable price, but a sit-down meal can get very expensive. A beer, for example, will run for about $15 dollars.

Exploring Bergen was very fun! The hotel location was perfect as we were within walking distance to the fish market, restaurants and bars, shopping, etc. We decided to take the funicular to Mount Floyen, and I would highly recommend this to anyone visiting the area. You will get an amazing view of the city. After taking in the view, we explored the woods around it, then hiked back to the city by foot. It’s a very easy hike so don’t worry. Another must see in Bergen is the Fjords. We did a boat tour and the views were breathtaking. Probably one of my favorite parts of the trip. We were also lucky enough to catch the Bondens Market, a street market similar to our farmer’s markets in Minnesota. I tried an elk burger, which was very delicious, and a lovely pancake. They actually put sour cream on top of the pancake, then jelly, but once I realized it was sour cream I did just the jelly. Now, if it had been whipped cream…

Bergen was lovely. Walking around the chilly weather and seeing blankets and fur on top of chairs (seriously, look at the photos below and see the blankets on the chairs!) so people could still sit outside was pretty awesome. The flowers everywhere made me feel like it was a chilly Spring time and the fresh air the cherry on top.

Oh, and I’ve noticed I’m starting an obsession for dogs… It’s still a secret, as my cats would surely hate me for that, but I keep finding myself asking to take picture of (and with) stranger’s dogs. The GIGANTIC ones I found in Bergen made me think how fun it would be to have a big dog around…

Bergen, we will see you again!