Day 60 Kristiansand, Norway

We are now back in Norway and we docked at Kristiansand this morning around 7am.  It is another bleak showery day but not that cold…. around 17 degrees.  Our tour today is "Hollen and the Vest Agder Open Air Museum".  We didn't really know what was in store for us today and I rarely google a place before we arrive.  I prefer to be surprised. 

We were picked up by our bus around 9am and we are blessed to have a tour guide that makes us laugh with all his funny antidotes all the way to the Vest Agder Museum.  One of his tales was that back in the day, the people of Norway had developed a drinking problem when they found that they could make vodka from potatoes!

It is only a 15 minute drive that takes us through the centre of Kristiansand.  Kristiansand is the fifth largest city in Norway and was founded in 1641 by King Christian IV of Denmark and Norway.  He loved founding towns and almost always named them after himself.  He was a bit of a rogue though who fathered 11 children from his many mistresses. (Another of our guides stories)

Vest Agder Museum or Kristiansand Museum as the sign said, is a village that contains around 40 houses from different eras, some dating as far back as 1580.  All the houses, some with grass roofs, have been restored so that you may enter and get a feel for what it was like to live in that era.  Our museum guide is very informative and enthralls us with many tales.  She holds up a pair of ladies socks that have an exaggerated calf.  The women had to walk up and down steep slopes to collect water and that gave them huge calf muscles. This was seen as attractive by a potential suitor.  Some women even stuffed grass in the socks to exaggerate the calf muscle.

The Miniby (miniature houses) is also fascinating and gave us a good overview of how the villages would have looked.

After the outdoor museum we head to the little fishing village of Høllen.  We have left behind all the yellow houses of Denmark and now we have, in Norway, timber houses painted white with brown roofs.  The guide tells us that historically painting your house white was a status symbol in the early 1900's.  We walk down a very pretty street with every house beautifully maintained with gardens abundant with flowers.

Our walk continues down to the harbour where our bus is waiting.  This is also a very attractive area that would look even better on a day filled with sunshine.

It is now time to return to our ship via a road that follows the coastline.  It is very picturesque as we pass by lakes and small rocky fjords.  Our tour guide points out the smallest house in Norway….

We arrive back in the town centre and we pass the relatively new Kristiansand Opera House that has timber cladding in the shape of waves and the very modern art Museum.  We see the buildings quite clearly from our ship balcony and I thought the Art Museum were grain silos. Are they attractive buildings?  I guess it is a matter of opinion.

I will leave you with a photo of my lunch entreé.  It is tuna tartaré and I will go as far as saying it is the best entreé I've eaten so far on this cruise, and that's a big call.  The carrot and ginger sauce complemented the tuna so well and the dish was to die for…..