Bergen

So I met Michel yesterday in Bergen. And serendipitously also came across Bob, Miriam and Fredrik, all of whom I met first at Haugesund. Everyone is going their own way, except Michel, who will not only go to Nordkapp, but then ride back to Belgium through Sweden; He started from Brussels, and since I met him in the ferry in Kristiansand he already did two zigzags of half the country sideways, while I was mostly just traversing.

I love that Michel refers to the trip as a project. Makes me feel that the trip has a purpose. Despite all the romanticisation of aimlessness, specially in the cultural pocket I grew up in, aimlessness sits very heavy on me. Part of me has been getting a little tired of moving; without the framework of purpose, moving or not moving makes zero difference. Meeting & talking to the folks rejuvenated that tired part a little.

I was in Bergen in 2019, and it was instantly clear that the city has changed and morphed so much since then. The city feels more vibrant, populated, touristy and politically active. My Airbnb host and I had a very interesting conversation about Norway, economics and undersea Salmon farming’s engineering and maintenance. But before I met Michel at a bar, I just didn’t feel well in the city, the same way I didn’t feel very well in Stavanger. And I have been trying to articulate the reason throughout the day. It’s not only the intellectual exercise around a city or lack thereof, as I wrote before. It’s not that I don’t like travelling to places where there is infrastructure & businesses built for the purpose of tourism. I suppose the difference is in the modality of being; Am I home, am I on a tour or am I travelling? If I have to describe the discomfort of cities on this trip, I have to learn the language of describing traversing open land on foot (or bike). Maybe it warrants the designation of travel and not a tour; as does long winded backpacking across continents for example. The distinction is in how the places are reached and the velocity of change. Maybe I will try to elaborate one day when I don’t have to get up early the next morning.

On other news, I seem to share similar opinion with the other bike tourers I met about the lack of bike tourers on this part of Norway. Everyone seems to have expected meeting many more people on bikes, including me. And I think the reason is that this part is way too hilly and jagged to bike comfortably. Also that’s probably the reason why Eurovelo 1 route starts from Bergen in Norway. But it’s just a theory; because the Rosyth (Scotland) to Bergen ferry line doesn’t exist anymore, so maybe the Eurovelo route just needs to be updated.

In Bergen this time I hung around in museums, they seem to be the most comfortable place for me among stories of the place it used to me.

And I did see a helicopter landing on top of the local hospital. I heard they fly mostly sea rescue missions. I hope whoever was involved is doing fine.

Bergen, Norway