Det finnes ikke dårlig vær, bare dårlig klær

Weather forecast in May

Bergen has more rainy than sunny days in a year. I've enjoyed my share of the rain and I have to say when it rains in Bergen, it really rains. In 2015 there were 280 rainy days but 2016 has been less rainy and the temperatures have stayed higher than before.

Kelgris likes to stay indoors when it rains

I think I've been lucky with the weather this semester. Since January the weather was quite rainy but sometimes it was cold enough for it to become snow. The funny thing is that where my accommodation is it's a bit colder than in the city centre because of the altitude and distance to the sea.

Løvstakken with a sunset

But nevertheless, Norwegians trust their wool sweaters to stay warm even if they get wet.

Genser on and you're good to go!

In April the weather started to be warm and there was quite a lot of sun. The usually quiet Norwegians came out of their hiding places indoors and started invading all the parks in the city. Where ever you go in the city, there are people sunbathing as soon as there is the first sunny day of the spring. Norwegians even have a word for the beer they drink outside, utepils. Many were outside drinking their first utepils of the year and filling everyone else's snapchat with pictures to prove it. In May there was only a few days of rain and the parks were filled with people grilling.

Festplassen

Ulriken

Stoltzen

17. mai

The 17th of May is the Norwegian national day. After having been part of Denmark for hundreds of years, Norway finally broke free (only to be part of Sweden for some time but this is usually not mentioned because it ruins the story).

On 17th of May 1814 Norway got their own constitution, on top of getting rid of Denmark telling what to do. Instead, Norway entered in a not always so peaceful union with Sweden that lasted until 1905.

Nowadays the celebrations include more drinking and eating than politics.

The day begins with a very early breakfast (8am)

People wake up early to prepare a breakfast with family or friends. The schedule is tight because at 11 there is a parade to be seen in the main plaza of the city.

Congratulations for the day!

The breakfast typically includes champagne to begin the day's celebratory drinking.

The main parade

After breakfast people hurry to the main plaza to get a good view for the main parade. The parade goes around the city and most of the city's institutions and organizations are present.

People dress in their bunad

Norwegians love to dress for the occasion and most girls wear their traditional dress called bunad. All regions have their own bunad. Most men prefer the modern suit over the traditional clothes, maybe because the male version seems a bit peculiar. The traditional clothes also cost a lot and most of my friends told me they got theirs as a gift when they graduated or so.

Fireworks to end the day

The city is filled with performances, concerts and lots of stands where people sell food and small celebratory items. Most sell pølser, cotton candy and beverages or squeaky toys for children.

If you got interested in the different bunad, NRK has a gallery of them here.

På tur i natur

Norwegians love the nature and have something called søndagstur. Every Sunday they pack their first aid kits, water bottles and Kvikk lunsj (the Norwegian KitKat) and head to the mountains. And no wonder since there are amazing mountains in Norway. There are seven mountains around Bergen, something for everyone.

Ulriken

The highest mountain Ulriken is 643m high above the sea level. For the highest peak you need to climb a bit but if you aren't quite in shape for some serious hiking there is Ulriksbanen, a cable car that will take you almost all the way up. There is a restaurant at the top station which is open in summer time.

Ulriken is majestic even without sun

The view from Ulriken

The closest mountain to the city centre, Fløyen, is the easiest to hike. There are many roads leading up to a platform where you can gaze over the city centre. There is also Fløibanen, a funicular that has a couple of stops on the way to the platform. The hike up isn't too long nor difficult though, so I suggest to walk all the way up.

Sometimes the view is blocked with a snowstorm in Fløyen

Fløyen in sunny weather

About 30 minutes away from the city centre with Bybanen (and a bit of walking from the station) there is the Edvard Grieg Museum Troldhaugen. Bergen is pretty warm but the bay in front of the museum had frozen and could be walked on in January.

Nordåsvannet, Fjøsangerfjorden

Hei, hei! Eg e i Bergen.

After a week of being here, Bergen is still as magical as can be.

Fløyen at night.

 Life here is nice.
The Norwegian culture is almost the same as the Finnish culture.
Norwegians are almost as strict with personal space as Finns are.
Norwegians don't talk much unless drunk.
Norwegians don't dance unless drunk.
Norwegians seem to like getting drunk.

From what I've experienced so far, Norwegians are much more similar to Finns compared to the Swedes. What's very surprising is that Finnish pronounciation is close to Norwegian. When I walk in the city and overhear some conversations, it sounds like Finnish to me until I try to understand and it's Norwegian after all. And people tell me I sound Norwegian when I talk Finnish or Swedish. My moomin Swedish sounds Norwegian. Huh.

One of the great things I wish we had in Finland is brunost. It translates to brown cheese. It tastes creamy, melts on your tongue and, well, looks like clay. But it's good with jam!

Waffles are a thing here apparently.

The second thing is mountains. Finns are missing so much having no mountains to hike. We had a good hiking weekend with some of my new friends here. On Saturday we went to Ulriken, the mountain closest to our accommodation. It was lots of fun but we had to turn back eventually because we didn't want to try our luck on the frozen river that was blocking our way further up. Maybe later in spring we can reach the top of the mountain!

Frozen waterfall, how cool is that!

A pretty nice view halfway up the mountain.

Careful now.

On Sunday we headed to an easier mountain to hike, Fløyen. There is a road all the way up to a viewing platform, from which you can see the whole city of Bergen with it's harbour.

Bergen. The weather could've been better but at least it wasn't raining.

Never too windy to eat some bolle.

What made the windy journey so nice was that a local friend brought her dogs with her. They enjoyed it a lot too!

Pepsi and Fanta. Your guess which one's which.

According to locals, this is quite a lot of snow.

 The weather's been nice so far. Though Bergen is the most rainy city in all Norway, probably in all Europe with a rate of 280/365 days of rain a year, it has been cold enough for it to come down as snow this week. Which I think the locals appreciate as much as I do. I'll get to use my rain coat and wellies at some point for sure.

Really looking forward to the Norwegian classes starting next week. I already agreed with some local acquaintances that I'll switch to Norwegian within a week of having had classes. I'll try.

Ha det!