R is for RED as in a fire station - in ABC Wednesday

What could be more RED than a fire station? In this case it is the old fire station in Bergen. This beautiful old building was built in 1888, and it was built as a fire station. It may look like a cross between a railway station and a church, but the dominating tower was used for drying the hoses after use and wash.

This beautiful façade was clearly meant to impress. However, first there was a hotel that hid it. After a fire(!) in 1916 that destroyed a large part of central Bergen, the façade was again hidden by an add-on for garages, stores and what-not (see below).

The picture is from 1963 and is courtesy of Bergen University Library.

Bergen has recently got a new and more modern fire station, so the add-on has been torn down and the façade can again be seen in full splendour. However, it will only be for a short while. A new building that is going to house the Courts of Appeals will come here, although there has been a bit of grumbling about that just lately. Maybe we will still get to see this magnificent building?


Today's post is an entry in the fourth round of ABC Wednesday, the meme initiated by Denise Nesbitt.

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P is for PhotoWalk in Bergen in ABC Wednesday

What is a PhotoWalk you may ask? Is is just what it says - a walk where you take pictures. In this case, a camera dealer in Bergen arranged such a walk a Saturday at the end of April. They even included a small competition (theme: "Fragments of Bergen"), so Saturday afternoon about 100 enthusiast and I enjoyed the weather and snapped away as if we had never seen our home town before. And that is of course the way to do it.

Some hours and a few hundred pictures later, I found that in addition to having played tourist at home ,I had also found myself a perfect P for this week's ABC Wednesday-entry: PhotoWalk. Below are some samples

All of us started of course to look for "THE UNUSUAL OBJECT". Here is mine: Balloons with Gaelic inscriptions are not everyday objects in Bergen.

The next task was of course to try out unusual angles - the usual way of doing it wouldn't do among so many exalted enthusiasts. So corners and walls became very popular subjects among the photographers.

OK - let us get a bit more serious: Many of the houses in the central part of Bergen are made of wood. In addition the streets are narrow. This has lead to many large fires in the past.

A typical narrow street, called a "smug" or "smau".

If you visit Bergen on a week-end in spring there is one phenomenon that will not escape your notice: "Buekorpsene". These are traditional brigades of children and youngsters, loosely based on citizen brigades from the 19th century. This particular one is called "Skansen Bataljon"

The white building in the background was once a fire station.

One reason why you will notice them is that they use drums...

The photographers of course fell for the small boys in uniform.

One cannot have a PhotoWalk in Bergen withot at least one glimpse of our old harbour, "Vågen". It used to be filled by all kinds of ship, but nowadays the pleasure crafts dominate the inner part - in the week-ends at least. In the background is of course "Statsraad Lehmkuhl", Norway's largest sailing vessel and the pride of the city.

The central part of the city of Bergen is not large and the effects of the heavy traffic has been huge. Therefore, restrictions are being placed on traffic in general and many streets and squares have been closed to traffic and upgraded and redecorated.

And what of the contest? After much deliberation I selected the one below...

And did I win? I haven't heard anything, so I suppose not. But I got a lot of pictures for my hard drives and I hope that you have enjoyed seeing this small selection.


Today's post is an entry in the fourth round of ABC Wednesday, the meme initiated by Denise Nesbitt.

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N is for Newgrange in ABC Wednesday

In September 2006 I found myself in Dublin; Ireland. I had two things on the agenda: Attend a conference and visit Newgrange. And if you don't know what Newgrange is; here is Wikipedia for you:

Newgrange (Irish: Dún Fhearghusa) is one of the passage tombs of the Brú na Bóinne complex in County Meath, one of the most famous prehistoric sites in the world and the most famous of all Irish prehistoric sites. Newgrange was built in such a way that at dawn on the shortest day of the year, the winter solstice, a narrow beam of sunlight for a very short time illuminates the floor of the chamber at the end of the long passageway.

And if you want more, this is from Newgrange.com:

Newgrange was constructed over 5,000 years ago (about 3,200 B.C.), making it older than Stonehenge in England and the Great Pyramid of Giza in Egypt. Newgrange was built during the Neolithic or New Stone Age by a farming community that prospered on the rich lands of the Boyne Valley.

You cannot visit this landmark on your own, you'll have to attend small guided tours which starts at the visitor centre Brú na Bóinne .

After a short tour in a mini-bus, you'll see this dazzling, white, grey and green structure on top of a small hill as you enter by a side road - Newgrange.

Here it is seen from the front with the main entrance to the passage that leads to the centre of the mound, the roof box and the entrance stone.

A bit closer up and you'll see the special tri-spiral design on the entrance stone. This is also found inside the passage and may be the most famous Irish symbol of all. In addition you can better see the upper opening, the so-called roof-box where:

The passage and chamber of Newgrange are illuminated by the winter solstice sunrise. A shaft of sunlight shines through the roof box over the entrance and penetrates the passage to light up the chamber. The dramatic event lasts for 17 minutes at dawn on the Winter Solstice and for a few mornings either side of the Winter Solstice (from http://www.knowth.com/newgrange.htm).

We were allowed to enter the chamber, but not to take photographs. Since it was not December we could not experience "the real thing", but we were treated to an electronic re-re-enactment. For the real thing, look here.

Another thing you'll notice is a number of large standing stones - 12 of them. They are the last of probably 35.

If I have ever felt the centuries looking down on me, I did so when I stood at the centre of that mound.

Go!


Today's post is an entry in the fourth round of ABC Wednesday, the meme initiated by Denise Nesbitt.

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L is for Lazy in ABC Wednesday

"You lazy Duck...!"

Today's post is an entry in the fourth round of ABC Wednesday, the meme initiated by Denise Nesbitt.

For more, you can log on via a Mr Linky enabled site

K is for Kristiansand in ABC Wednesday

Why should I make a post about Kristiansand in this series when I am born and bred in Bergen? There are very good reasons for this:

• It is Norway's filth largest city with about 80.000 inhabitants.
• It was founded by the Danish-Norwegian King Christian IV. ("Kristian Kvart") in 1641
  
• It is beautifully situated in the best part of Summer Norway.
• I once lived and worked there.
• I now have a daughter living and working there.

The panorama picture above shows only part of the city. The picture is dominated by a hill on a peninsula called Odderøya. It was once a Naval Fort and served as a training camp for coastal defence artillery until 1997. After that it has been most famous as the site for the Quart Musical Festival ("Quarten").

The map shows more or less the same, but now with the sea at the bottom. To the right in the map is the Eastern harbour and mainly residential areas, while to the left is the Western harbour with the older part of the city - Kvadraturen. This part of the city was more or less laid down by the king himself with all the streets in in a square pattern.

The main shopping street in Kvadraturen in Kristiansand is called "Markens gate", or locally "Markens". This is just a small part of it. The picture was taken in the beginning of May 2008.

There are also quiet residential areas in Kvadraturen. This is from one of the streets leading up to Kristiansand Domkirke (The Cathedral in Kristiansand).

The church dates from 1884 (the one before was destroyed by fire) and is one of the largest in Norway as it has a capacity of 1500 seated - initially 2000 seated and 1000 standing.

Kristiansand has also its own ship, the full-rigged ship "Sørlandet", one of the three large sailing ships left in Norway. She dates from 1927 - and beautiful she is (for a picture of her at sea, look here).

It you enter Kristiansand in your own vessel, chances are that you will moor in this area, beside Christiansholm Festning (The Fortress of Christiansholm) which dates back to 1672

But Kristiansand has more: It has Norway's largest and best known zoological and amusement park, Dyreparken i Kristiansand ( Kristiansand Zoo and Amusement Park). There you might meet someone like this. The picture is courtesy my youngest daughter.

Kristiansand is also a communication centre with airport and ferries to Denmark (formerly also to England). The main route is European Route E18, which according to Wikipedia:

European route E18 runs from Craigavon in the United Kingdom to Saint Petersburg in Russia, passing through Norway, Sweden, and Finland. It is about 1,890 km (1,174 mi) in length.

Such mighty bridges can of course be seen from the sea level - we are in a boat-concious area after all.

And where there is a sea there is a bird...


Today's post is an entry in the fourth round of ABC Wednesday, the meme initiated by Denise Nesbitt.

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J is for Joy in Photography AND in Blogging

I usually have decided on what letter to use for ABC Wednesday several days in advance. However, J proved to be an unexpectedly difficult letter to work with. Nothing seemed to fit. So I did what I usually do in such circumstances - I grabbed the camera bag and went for a walk. At first I was not in the mood for photography at all (photography is a "mood" thing for me). That is, until I found the subject above. Something was sticking its tongue out at me! Joyfully I crept close and snapped it with my 17-70mm lens. Perfect. No cropping needed.

But what it is, you may well ask? Look at the picture beneath and guess again. Still no cropping.

Here I had taken a step or two backwards to include a bit more of this wooden monster. A sort of angled eye had appeared.

Still no clue? Look beneath again.


A quite ordinary cable drum, but of fairly large dimension. And a picture I have obviously cropped for effect.

That is the Joy of Photography and Blogging: There is always something to be found that can be used for both if only you keep the mind open and the finger on the button. And of course, carry a camera.


Today's post is an entry in the fourth round of ABC Wednesday, the meme initiated by Denise Nesbitt.

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C is for Cuauhtémoc

Today's "C" is the barque ARM Cuauhtémoc from Mexico. However, it is here seen leaving Bergen, Norway, during the Tall Ships' Races in August 2008. A very beautiful ship she is and a favourite among the inhabitants of Bergen, at least. She has visited us several times. She is famous for entering the visiting harbour with the crew standing on the yards, singing. I did not catch that this time, but here is link to one who caught her entering Rostock in 2006.

Here she is moored at a quay in Bergen harbour, Vågen.

Wikipedia has this to say:

The ARM Cuauhtémoc BE-01 is a Sail Training vessel of the Mexican Navy, named for the last Aztec Emperor Cuauhtémoc who was captured and executed in 1525.

She is the last of four sisterships built by the Naval Shipyards of Bilbao, Spain, in 1982, similar to the 1930 German designs of Blohm & Voss, like the Gorch Fock and the USCGC Eagle.

Like her sisterships, the Colombian Gloria, the Ecuadorian Guayas and the Simón Bolívar of Venezuela, the Cuauhtémoc is a sailing ambassador for her home country and a frequent visitor to world ports, having sailed over 400,000 nautical miles (700,000 km) in her 23 years of service with appearances at the Cutty Sark Tall Ships' Races, ASTA Tall Ships Challenges, Sail Osaka, and others.

The public was allowed to enter and we were received with the utmost courtesy and elegance. However, for security reasons we could not enter the rigging. Just as well, I think.

Wikipedia has more to say about the technical specifications:

Class and type:	Barque
Displacement:	1,800 tons
Length:	220 ft 4 in (67.2 m) waterline
Beam:	39 ft 4 in (12 m)
Draft:	17.7 ft (5.4 m)
Propulsion:	Sparred Length: 296.9 ft (90.5 m) Sail Area: 25,489 sq ft (2,368 m²) Auxiliary Propulsion: one 1,125 hp engine
Capacity:	Fuel Capacity: 220 tons Water Capacity: 110 tons
Crew:	Officer and Crew Accommodations: 186 Trainee Accommodations: 90
Notes:	Steel hulled vessel

As you can see, the brass was polished and the ropes in order.

So, everything was ship-shape. WELCOME BACK!




Today's post is an entry in the fourth round of ABC Wednesday, the meme initiated by Denise Nesbitt.

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O is for Olsvold in ABC Wednesday

I suspect everyone who reads this will ask: Were or what is Olsvold? Olsvold is a small hamlet on the island of Radøy north of Bergen, Norway. It also happens to be my mothers maiden name - and thus also the surname of my grandmother.

Everyone has four grand parents. In my case, only one was alive: the mother of my mother, or "Bestemor" (grandmother) as we used to call her. She was a grandmother of the kind fairytales are made of. Living as a widow on a small farm with all the chores that goes with it, she had non the less always time for a small boy when he came to visit. when the 8-year old boy wanted to try out his new camera - she was there. When later on the terribly out-of-focus picture was presented by the proud little boy - the grandmother was even more proud. I don't think they make grandmothers like that any more.

She had only one son who ran the farm with her, but it was too small to feed them both, so he had to have outside work. He never married and passed away before her, and the farm passed over to a cousin of mine who has kept up the agricultural tradition as best as possible given the current
political and economical climate in Norway. But he also had to have outside work - as a teacher.

I took the pictures below two years ago. The main building is the white house in the lower left corner.




Here is the farm from another angle.


One result of all this - the name Olsvold is no longer in my family. A pity, really.

Today's post is part of the the third round of ABC Wednesday. The founder, Denise Nesbitt, has changed the rules to make the system more practical. There is now a no-comment blog where you can post a copy or short version of your post with a link-back to your original post for the full version and comments. Scanning through this no-comment blog will give you lots of Ohhhs (I hope)! She has also set up a site where you can log on via Mr. Linky if you want to do that.

N is for Night in ABC Wednesday

My view at NIGHT.

Today's post is part of the the third round of ABC Wednesday. The founder, Denise Nesbitt, has changed the rules to make the system more practical. There is now a no-comment blog where you can post a copy or short version of your post with a link-back to your original post for the full version and comments. Scanning through this no-comment blog will give you No Nonsense (I hope)! She has also set up a site where you can log on via Mr. Linky if you want to do that.