Bergen and the train ride there

Trip Start Jan 25, 2007
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Trip End Feb 18, 2007


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Friday, February 2, 2007

Well, the trip starts off a bit uncomfortably - imagine yourself catching a train at 5AM in a town a half hour away by car; then after a 2 hour train ride, you have 2 hours to kill in another train station and the sun is just barely up.  However, it begins to become very nice later on and the scenery outside does not disappoint - especially after we pass the ski town of Geilo.  You are surrounded by the dramatic mountain and glacier views. I really only have 2 regrets on this train ride: 1-the snowstorm outside took away from some of the dramatic scenery with its clouds and mist and 2-why couldnt we spend a day boarding in Geilo with all of the fresh snow falling?  Oh well.


When we arrive in Bergen, I am attracted to the city immediately.  It rains 275 days out of the year, and the rain has mercifully ceased for us today 01 - Train stop on the way to Bergen
01 - Train stop on the way to Bergen
 .  You can see the colorful houses lining the surrounding hills and walk to the charming wooden buildings of Byrggen lining the inner harbor. Instead of cashing in on our fortunes weather wise and taking the funicular up the hill...we head to a bar.  Hey, we were playing cards and drinking beer and whiskey shots on the train, and its a shame to waste a good buzz in Norway - with drinks being so expensive and all.  Meriam joins the 3 of us guys later on and we get a sushi dinner that Thomas' company thankfully pays for - some sort of gift.  Good thing too, cause the bill was 400 bucks for the 4 of us - ouch! 


I wish I could say I spent the remaining days in Bergen soaking up the culture and museums, but that would be giving to much credit to my sleeping habits.  Every night seems to get later and later and so it goes for the mornings.  It doesn't help that the museums all close around 2-3 pm either.  I did manage to walk around the city a bit, and I did a lot of walking back and forth from where we were staying outside the city.  Other than that, we hit the pool halls, a few bars and even a couple of danceclubs.  Hey, its winter here...I can do the tourist stuff some other time.
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