A taste of Norway: weekend at Erik's brother in Trondheim

The weekend of the 9th of November we decided to finally go to Norway to visit his brother Jon and his little family. Click HERE to see the photos..

Here is a little map to help you situate where Erik's brother lives in Norway.

Trondheim in few lines, enjoy this unusual cultural part of my blog...

"The Sagas tell us how King Olav Tryggvason of Viking fame founded the city by the mouth of the River Nidelva in 997. Trondheim holds a special place in Norwegian history and culture. It was the first capital of Norway, and is still the city where new kings receive their ceremonial blessing. Situated by the Trondheim fjord, it is surrounded by lovely forested hills, with the Nidelva river winding through the town. It has been and still is a popular pilgrimage site, an ecclesiastical centre, a regional capital and a centre for commerce and administration.

Today Trondheim is a modern city, a centre of knowledge with a highly respected university, many popular colleges and a research community ranking among the best in Europe. You will find a wide variety of cultural and recreational activities in Trondheim, while work and education options abound. Here you can experience both the charm and intimacy of the small town and the plethora of choices of big-city life. In 2006 Trondheim is home to around 165 000 inhabitants. But if we count the large number of students (every sixth inhabitant is a student) the population swells to 180 000. The students adds a youthful exuberance to this thousan-year old city. While it is not a large metropolis, Trondheim's location and opportunities put it on an equal footing with the major cities of Europe."

Trondheim is a really nice town and we had a really nice time with Jon, Hanne (his wife) and the little Anna. We walked through the Old Town Bridge which crosses the Nidelva river and we went for a coffee in a really nice coffee place situated in old Trondheim.

We then visited the beautiful Nidaros Cathedral before to go to a panoramic restaurant where we enjoyed a 360° degrees view over Trondheim while eating.

"Norway's national sanctuary, Nidaros Cathedral was built over the grave of St. Olav, Norway's patron saint whose reputation shone far beyond the borders of his country. Construction started in 1070, but the oldest parts still in existence are from the middle of the 12th century. Ravaged by fire on several occasions, the church was rebuilt each time - mainly in the Gothic style, but the oldest parts around the transept reflect the Roman style. "

We also enjoyed the winter landscape in train on the way back, especially when approaching the swedish border and passing the ski resort area of Are.