Wednesday 13th July 2011
Bergen beckoned outside my hotel window so, after breakfast in one of the ubiquitous Egon Restaurants, I checked out, left my case in a locked luggage room, and walked to meet one of my friends at the funicular station. We were going to ride up to Mount Floyen, to get superb views of the mountains and harbour, but first had to queue to get tickets.
map of Bergen
Funicular station
There are two carriages, with a passing place in the middle of the route.
Mount Floyen cable car
Going up
The view down
A carriage passing us
A padded tunnel
We finally arrived at the viewing platform and it was as wonderful as I had hoped.
What a view
Wonderful sight
COSTA LUMINOSA and COSTA PACIFICA
BOURBON MONSOON
We could see the fjords through which we had sailed yesterday on NORDSTJERNEN to arrive here in Bergen Harbour; we could see the mountains, the sunlight glistening on the water down below and a coffee shop in front of us. Outside this was an elevated rail, and two little miniature funicular carriages, one going up and one going down, exactly like the real ones!
Red cable car going up
Blue cable car coming down
Passing point
Just like the real thing
That was fun, as we could see when a carriage was due to arrive up on the viewing platform station just by looking at the toy carriages. I know, little things please little minds, but the proprietor of the sell-everything coffee shop obviously loved life and his customers, and this overhead rail was part of the fun.
Looking down at the harbour we could see today’s cruise ships in port,
MSC POESIA, AMADEA and ALBATROS
Far horizons
View of the view
plus other working ships, and then in the far distance was a sight to gladden the heart – it was the ship we are to sail on this afternoon: the VISTAMAR. Hooray, how reassuring.
Here she comes...
Coffee break finished and photos taken, we took the funicular down. In the ticket office hall were photos of the building of the funicular in 1918 and then the funicular carriages replaced in 1954, and then the new ones in 2002.
New in 2002
New in 1974
Built in 1918
I was so thrilled to see them because here I am following in Father’s Footsteps again, and I have his little photos of the funicular carriage he went in when he was here on ARANDORA STAR in 1931.
Bergen Funicular and ship in 1931
ARANDORA STAR at Bergen 1931
Bergen 1931
One of the ships that my Father saw and photographed near Bergen in 1931 or 1932 was the 1904-built METEOR, of Hamburg American Line.
Ship METEOR near Bergen
Back down in the city we each collected our luggage
SHOWTIME
Cross-harbour ferry
and met to go and board the 1989-built VISTAMAR for our two night trip south from Bergen to Cuxhaven.
Ships seen: Costa Luminosa, Costa Pacifica, MSC Poesia, Amadea, Vistamar, Albatros, Showtime, Bergen cross-harbour ferry, Bourbon Monsoon (Rescue Boat PX105)
To be continued...
