Exploring Bergen

The next day was a bit more laid back. We had a long breakfast together and then drove into Bergen. We drove around down town and old Bergen together so that I would have some idea of the city when I came back by myself later. We drove up to the mental hospital where Kristin works, which is in such a beautiful location, since when they built it they thought it would be a good idea to have people in a beautiful location in the mountains as they recovered. We also saw Gamle Bergen (Old Bergen) with its narrow streets and small houses, and the harbor where the big cruise ships dock.
Then we drove out to Øygarden, which is a chain of Islands connected by bridges. It was rainy, but still so beautiful. The islands were rocky

and covered in heather, The colors were so stunning and it was lovely to get out of the car and walk around a bit picking flowers. We stopped at a gas station for coffee and a snack and got vafler med brunost (waffles with brown cheese)...seriously, that is what gas station food is like in Norway, incredible.
We had goals of making it to a concert at Greig's home at 6:00, so we all worked together to get dinner together. Kristin had been cooking a roast of meat all day, and when we were sitting down to eat, they asked me what I thought it was. I didn't know, but guessed beef...it turned out to be reindeer! It was so delicious and flavorful and the gravy that was made from it was incredible with norwegian cranberries over mashed sweet potatoes.
After dinner, we went to the concert. There was a very talented pianist and cellist playing works by Grieg, Schönberg, Ratkje, Sæverud and Rachmaninov. The music was so beautiful as was the view behind the

stage. There was a big glass window overlooking Grieg's composer's cottage and the lake beyond it. It was easy to understand why Grieg was so insistent on being buried on the property.
The next day, despite the rain, I did a bit of wandering around downtown Bergen by myself since Brigt and Kristin were working. Though I was cold and damp by the end, it was nice to see Bergen by foot. That night, Brigt's brother Egil and his wife had come home from a vacation in Crete, so they came over for dinner, which was monkfish with creamed cauliflower, tomatoes and spinach, followed by a dessert of red currants they picked last summer with bananas, raspberries and vanilla cream. Delicious once again.
The final parts of my stay in Bergen included a trip into the Bergen Harbor with Egil and Rannveig in their boat, which they like to live and travel in. It was truly incredible to see Bergen from the water and when we got into Bergen, Rannveig and I walked up the hill to look at the city from above and then got fiskekaker (fish cakes) from a place

that has been making fish cakes in Bergen for over 200 years. They were so delicious and warm and fresh... Egil and Rannveig also had us over to their house for dinner one night, which included a reindeer stew with juniper and mushrooms that Egil had learned how to make in Northern Norway, and a lovely greek salad to commemorate the time they just had in Crete. Also present was their son Olav Emil, who was leaving the next day to drive a truck to Ukraine and who has dreams of driving trucks in Alaska.
(I unfortunately totally missed taking pictures on the boat trip...but it was beautiful.)