NORWAY
August 14 -27, 2004
Elliot has arrived in the village of Klębu, Norway. A small village just outside of the city of Trondheim. Each Kommune (community or village) in Norway has their own Coat of Arms to Welcome you into the village. Here is a picture of the Klębu Coat of Arms and the entrance to our Village. It is made entirely of flowers in the Klębu colors purple and silver.
Besides the beautiful nature, Klębu has one main landmark, its beautiful church (or Kirke). As you can see, it dates back to 1790. The shape of this chuch is really its best feature and most unusual. It is an octagon and stunningly beautiful inside.
And so begins the adventure of Elliot in Trondheim, Norway via the beautiful village of Klębu. Here you see the beautiful nature as we take the 40 minute drive into the city.
Here Elliot has arrived in the heart of the city of Trondheim...the Torg (or city center/market), and where stands the beloved statue of King Olav Trygvason, the founder of Trondheim over one thousand years ago. Trondheim was the "first" capital of Norway, before it moved to Oslo. You can also see pictured here the Trondheim city flag which boasts the city symbol the Trondheim Rose
The other side of the torg and view of King Olav Trygvason. In this picture you can see the base of the torg is an enourmous sun dial.
Another area of the torg...where all of the "open markets" stand. Farmers from all around Trondheim come to sell there produce, berries and homemade Norwegian breads here.
Here is a close up of the market booths...and the wonderful bounty of the Norwegian summer...along with some imports, of course.
Here at the market, stands the famous "market lady" statue. She is a symbol for all of the Norwegian ladies of old, who came to the torg to do their shopping at the market.
Now we have walked up the street and can look back down at King Olav Trygvason's statue in the distance and we have arrived at the Nidros Cathedral gates...
Here is the Trondheim Cathedral..."Nidaosdomen"
Walk around the side and you arrive at the entrance to the cathedral and you see the "Rose" window...where we take the city symbol...the Trondheim Rose.
Elliot had a nice visit with the Cathedral Bishop.
Here is the courtyard of the Cathedral...where ArchBishop had his residence. This area is amazing and has all of the old windows and doors and rockwork, still in place.
Here is the entrance to government building...just a short distance from the Cathedral and a main part of the city center. Beautiful murals decorate this building where all of the city laws and government business happens. It is very common to see Wedding parties on these steps.
On another side to the city center is the Trondheim Rose made entirely out of flowers and the city's colors...this welcomes you into the center of the city...just as in Klębu.
Very close to the city center you come to the river "Nidelven" that flows right through Trondheim...here you see the river and all of the famous wooden houses, which were important during the time Trondheim did a lot of river shipment of goods up and down Norway.
Just at the wooden houses, you come to a famous little bridge "Bybroen"...it is built in a very Norwegian "viking" sort of style and is famous because it is "the" spot for marriage proposals. Here are pictures of the front and back of the bridge. The bridge leads to a famous "coffee" and posh area of Trondheim called "Bakklandet". The bridge is known as the "gate of happyness"...Lykkens Portal.
Now for a few special features of the city of Trondheim...outside of the city center...
Here is the tower of Trondheim...on a clear day, you have a spectacular view of the whole city and the Trondheim Fjord. It is a lookout point, but also a revolving restaurant at the top and it is the local and regional TV antenna transmission for Norway.
One of the highest points of the city is the Military fort. You see it here in the background...the white building at the top. This fort was especially used during the World Wars, when Norway was occupied by Germany. It is now a lovely park area, overlooking the city and river.
Having a look now out into the Trondheim Fjord you see a very famous landmark..."Munkholmen"...which used to be a monestary many years ago. This is a beautiful little island out in the Trondheim fjord and has all of the monestary buildings in tact. During the World War it was used as a prison.
A closer view of Munkholmen
Just passing Monkholmen is the Norwegian Cruise ship "Hurtigruta" that takes you from the top of Norway to the bottom of Norway. The name of this ship is King Harold...in honor of the current King of Norway.
Here is a look back at the city of Trondheim from Monkholmen...if you look closely...you can see the Trondheim tower!