A First Taste of Norway
17.09.2018
20 °C
It's raining in Stavanger today but we're not surprised. Although we usually try to follow the sun there is never a guarantee of good weather in these Nordic climes. We are hoping for better weather tomorrow but the old city of Stavanger is a maze of narrow cobblestoned lanes full of quaint wooden houses and warehouses that have been converted into shops, cafes and restaurants. We can therefore find plenty of places in the dry and masses of food to keep us going...
The dreary weather has given us an excellent reason to sample the Norwegian cuisine. First stop – a bakery offering all manner of delicious breads and pastries...
You may have heard that Scandinavia is expensive so, for starters: 3 teas and three sweet buns, (because our friend Christine is travelling with us throughout the North European part of our trip), cost us $37 Cdn. While this delicious, though fairly basic, plate of farmed salmon and boiled potatoes...
...set us back $40.00 each.
Hotels, taxis and excursions are equally expensive but one good thing about the prices is that almost no one uses cash in Norway. Everything is paid for on credit card – even for the smallest bar of chocolate - so you simply don't notice how much you are spending.
While Stavanger is the capital of the Norwegian's North Sea oil enterprise it still retains some charming old buildings along its waterfront. The ancient beams of the Skagen restaurant are a reminder of the skills of the shipwrights of olden days... 
The remnants of Hurricane Helene seem to be headed our way in the coming days so it looks like we will be sending more time checking out the interior of the many quayside restaurants...
It's a hard life on the docks in Stavanger!
Hard to feel sorry for you with the rain. Such a beautiful looking town. You know how to make the most of your time. Hopefully lots of walking ahead. Today is a sunny day in Vancouver. More rain to follow.
by Sue Fitzwilson