Sunny Fjords...... do you want to go?

The summer European sailings are now well underway and having written about a few Caribbean ports of call earlier this year I thought I'd write about a few closer to home.

So for part 1, Bergen, Norway's second city.

Bergen is the second largest city in Norway and the most popular gateway to the fjords of West Norway. The city is renowned for its beautiful nature and offers excellent hiking opportunities in its immediate surroundings.

Founded around 1070 AD, Bergen quickly evolved into one of the most important cities in Norway. It was the country's administrative capital from the early 1200s until 1299, and the largest city in Scandinavia. Bergen was one of the most important bureau cities of the Hanseatic League, interconnecting continental Europe with the northern and coastal parts of Norway, thus becoming a central spot for the vending of fish and the commercial hot spot in Norway. It was the largest city in Norway until the 1830's and has a long maritime history in shipping and finance.

The city still has relics of its Hanseatic heyday, most notably the old harbor of Bryggen, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Bergen has been ravaged by several fires; the most recent major fire took place in 1917, a fire which destroyed most of the buildings in what is today the central parts of the city center, centered around the large square Torgallmenningen.

So after the history bit, what do you do.  Well for me its up the Floibanen funicular railway to get some awesome scenic views of Bergen, and the day that we did it it was a shorts and tee shirts day.....beautiful.

But how goes there? Well, cruises from Southampton you can find various P&O ships, Princess or Cunard ships which visit the Fjords.

Watch out for more snippets of European ports.