Laundry, Mass and Museums in Tromsø

We met new friends today - well I think they were friendly!

More about the Troll Museum and much more on this Sunday in Tromsø, but first an update on the early part of the day. 

Getting-up

I wake at 3.30am and edit the photos from the 24 hours on the boat and our first evening in Tromsø. Once complete I load all 359 of the photos from this period up to Flickr.

Next I start on the next blog post, last Tuesday in Trondheim.

I then download yesterday's photos from the camara, ready to sort them out later! Holidays are full of such fun, when you want to share the experience as much as I do.

Breakfast

We go down to breakfast for 7.30, the weekend opening time, which seems rather late to us. The French contingent have left and a mix of Spanish and Japanese seem to have replaced them.  

Drew began with two slices of toast and two pats of butter that melt into it.

I begin with yogurt, seeds and nuts, but the photo seems to have gone missing. My second course was oatmeal with cinnamon, a surprisingly good combination.

Drew decided to vary his next course adding cooked rice and vegatables to his bacon. This is the first hotel where we have seen rice on the breakfast menu, put perhaps the number of Japense/Chinese guests makes a difference. 

He also enjoys a selection of cakes and cookies, especially the gluten free chocolate brownie and a raspberry cake.

Again I seem to have been to focussed on getting my pickled everythings to remember to photo them - shame on me!

We come back upstairs at 8.10am and sort the washing out ready to leave at 8.30pm. 

Laundry

So, for the second Sunday on the row we begin by doing our laundry. We walked the 700 meters to Clean Kokos, worrying when we first arrived that we weren't going to be washing for the second Sunday in a row as the building that Goole Maps pointed us too was empty! 

This was concerning would we have to find a dry cleaners/laundry or equivalent again, and we had less time this time.

However, Drew, with the computer scientists distrust in all things technology, suggested we just use our eyes and legs to check around the building and test the accuracy of Google Maps. To our great relief we find that Clean Kokos does exist, and almost where Google Maps said, but in the inner courtyard of the building not on its outside. i.e. poor Google was pointing us to the right place if we had x-ray vision.

As part of the entertainment last week in Bergen's Clean Kokos, when a bank of dryers failed, and needed to be rebooted, I downloaded the Clean Kokos app and tried to pay via that. But as the problem was the machines not the payment terminal. When it returned to proper function we simply used the terminal to pay. Meaning we had loaded 150NKr on the app.  I'd read all the stuff about the reclaim process, but it involved removing the app and emailing an address, so did nothing until we could check where else we might use it. 

When I originally planned the trip I couldn't find a single launderette in Tromsø, so I had concerns anyway. What a surprise to find that since I hunted for them in January, one had opened up in Tromsø, belong to this same company we had already used. So, I was able to use my credit on the app, not go through the reclaim process. 

This launderette was a much quieter place than the one in Bergen. With one German lady with three dryers on when we arrived. So, Drew put our clothes into the machine and I went into the app to start it off. 

All worked smoothly for both washer and dryer and I left Drew with the drying still turning at 9.50am after paying with the app and getting the account to 0. 

At the appropriate time we get an app message

and an email, letting us know the process was complete.

Time for Drew to lift the clothes out of the washer and put them in the dryer above.

The same process occured when the drying was over - though the message came to me in church. Drew had to see it with his own eyes in the store.

[Co-pilot's note: You will all know, dear readers, that I am well known for being a sociable type, very well known for it. And on today's trip to the launderette I got chatting to some Americans (Florida) who were going up to Svalbard on a cruise. I also spoke to an Australian who was going to Svalbard by plane. We were all getting along really well, I did think things were going to take a turn for the worse when the Australian said she wouldn't be going back to the USA "Until the basket case has gone." Rather than being concerned about this the Americans simply nodded.

But who knew that Svalbard was such a popular summer holiday destination. Don't they know that Polar Bears are the one creature that actively hunts humans!! They are not cuddly; they are not friendly; they see, what Haydn does when he gets to breakfast in the morning - FOOD!]

Large Dogs

During our meal last night, Drew who had the best view of the park in front of the Cathedral, had noted that the dogs in these parts are very large. We are used to seeing dogs in Nerja, where apartment living means that the vast majority are no longer than my shoes. Here many that we see would be taller than me if they stood up. This scene was repeated today, so here are some photos of the large dogs.

Going to Mass

Having left Drew with the drying clothes I pop up to the hotel room on my way, having forgotten to take my post-breakfast tablets, [Co-pilot's note: Shake him and he rattles, dear reader, rattles!!] then at 10.30am I walk up to 11am Mass in Our Lady's Cathedral. I now know a quicker route than Google, along the dock. 

I arrive at 10.35am to say my prayers and prepare for Mass. With a Norwegian order of Mass and a modern Norweigan hymn book, along with the Universalis app so that I can follow the readings in English.

The church had this reassuring message on the pillars beside the altar. It says: "The Lord has blessed you forever."

We sing four hymns, one of them in English and two of the others Norwegian versions of hymns we sing at home to the same tune.

The priest gave an enthusiastic homily of which I managed to understand - Gud (God), Maria (Mary), Mor (Mother) and his occasional pointing to the statue of Our Lady, confirming, as I'd guessed from the readings, that today is being celebrated as the transferred feast of the Assumption in Norway, so I remembered some homilies on the theme from the past, to reflect which he continued his enthusiastic proclamation for 20 minutes or so. 

Mass ends at 12.10pm and I get back to the hotel at 12.14pm. Have a quick catch-up with Drew and hang up the, now, washed and dried clothes 

Troll Museum

We are back out by 12.27pm on what I expect to call Museum day. We start with the Troll Museum!! Now to be clear I recognise that Trolls are myths developed by people in the dark nights, just as Oliver Postgate used to suggest when telling the sagas on Noggin the Nog. But there is something about this 'museum' which invites you to put aside your disbelief and let you inner child have reign. As you can see from the first two photos above, we certainly did this. That spirit continued as the photos captured in this video shows.

Did you spot the ones with Drew as a Troll, sticking his tongue out in at least one!

In addition to the amusing, the museum took a look at the culture and heritage from which trolls emerged and their impact on things like Ibsen's Peer Gynt and its musical adaptation by Edvard Grieg and other famous artists of a wide variety of disciplines.

Coffee Break

We decide to return to Kaffebønna, which we enjoyed yesterday. Not only did we enjoy it but it was on our route between the two museums. 

Drew opted for something called Skolebolle, which translates as 'School Bun' but in fact are a Norwegian style custard bun, though somewhat larger.

I went for a Raisonbolle, as the name implies a raisin bun. It was perfect for me, having the texture of a bread with a few raisens, rather than the sweet bun we might have served in the UK.

 

We had Caffe Latte and Americano to drink. I won't mention the variation in size this time, you've heard it enough from me!

Polar Museum

From the coffee shop we walked the 150 metres to the Polar Museum.

If the Troll Museum was tongue in cheek that the Polar Museum was very different. This is a much more developed location, with lots of artifacts as well as history provided by a hand out in English which they provide on entrance. This museum is managed by the local University which has a large polar research institute  staff of which curate and manage the museum. (Incidentally the research published on their site informed the document we were reading from and has a lot of useful insight, if you wish to know more about Svalbard and the journey to the poles). This makes a visit here a fascinating insight into the push for the Poles in that era of history, which was as impactful as Space Flight in my own lifetime. 

The story of the pioneers living year round on the ice is fascinating and the importance of Roald Amundsen to Norway's national identity is strongly represented.

The video above is a selection of images from the Museum, but there is much more interesting detail on Flickr, starting here. (Those who are offended by animal pelts, should avoid those pictures).

When we started the day we had planned to go to the Full Steam museum too - but seeing a brief outline of it in the Full Steam restaurant on Friday evening (it is the top few stories of the same building) we decided to give it a miss and go back to the hotel at 3pm, a pattern of busy mornings and more gentle afternoons, which seems to have evolved for us on this holiday - except on travel days.

Dinner

It is important to note that this is the last night of non-pre-planned dinner, from here on in every evening (there are only five) is accounted for. So, Drew was determined for us to both have a Pizza. We had looked at some places online and visited some in person and Drew suggested we try Størhus, which we did. It suited us both well.

While Størhus is a Pizzeria, it also offered charcuterie and cheese as a starter. 

The meats were Chorizo, salami and Prosciutto

The cheeses three tangy Italian cheeses which I didn't get the name of, one was a pecorino, but I'm less sure about the other two.

I think we should have read the menu more closely, as the charcuterie and cheese were excellent, but we didn't expect the large pizza bread with them. Still we eat all of them, leaving only the honey that was offered with the cheese.

For my pizza I opted for the Pizzanord - this had reindeer, white sauce, spinach, walnut, caramelised onion and mozzarella, it is unusual for us to have a white pizza at home, though it is quite common in the USA and here in Norway, so I was happy to try it. The slivers of reindeer and the crunch of walnut were both very pleasant indeed, the healthy green of the spinach (uncooked) was also refreshing, balancing with the other flavours. 

Drew choose the Pizza Carne with Tomato sauce, salami, bacon, N’duja and mozzarella, not quite his Domino's favourite - American Hot - but full of spice form the N’duja and a fennel tang from the warmed salami. He would certainly have it again if we turn up here in the future.

Back to the Hotel

We return to the hotel at 9pm, I edit more photos ready for loading in the morning and we go to bed at 11pm, after an interesting, fun and informative day.

Saturday in the Gateway to the Arctic

Gateway to the Arctic is another of Tromsø’s names – it related initially to the whalers, sealers and polar bear hunters who left this port to travel (or over winter as they often called it) to their hunting grounds in Svalbard, Greenland and (sometimes), Newfoundland and Labrador. Building on this title the Tourist Industry here promotes itself using this mosaic - Photo from the Tromsø Tourism Association, we only saw it from high up on the bridge

The name remains true today as, now, the ships are still gathering here for the journey north – now for tourism visits to North Cape and to Svalbard for the Northern Lights and for Polar Bear watching.

 

Indeed, sitting in our room in the Radisson Blu we see all kinds of vessels preparing for that journey, including another Hurtigruten ship, called the Trollfjord which is leaving later today for Svalbard.

More of that later, but now, back to the beginning of the day.

Early Morning

I wake this beautiful Saturday morning at 3.15am, of course this close to the poles it is already light and has been for an hour. Indeed it doesn’t really go dark at all, just has a period of twilight which makes it a bit darker than full light.

Parish Newsletter

I forgot to mention last night, that when I arrived at Tromsø I had to do a review of this week’s Parish newsletter, which I drafted on Monday, but got back from my friend Madeleine after her proofreading while we were on the ferry, so hadn’t been able to download it and complete it until arriving here. Thanks to a reminder from another friend Dave, I managed to do this yesterday evening and sent it off to the person who adds it to the website (Erica), the person who prints it (Tom) and this morning back to Dave who is printing the bidding prayers and notice sheets, it being so late when I started to do it I had made a few errors, which I was able to correct in time (where had Friday's morning prayer gone!!). So, I spend some time this morning checking that everything I had done last night was right.

 

All seems well. So, I move on to uploading photos to Flickr.

Breakfast

 

We go down to breakfast at 7.30am and enjoy the wide range of items on offer. A large number of French people are staying at the hotel, so almost every conversation we overheard at breakfast is in French.

 

I had my lovely yogurt, nuts and seeds with the wide selection I mentioned in yesterday's post. 

Drew adopted his new pattern of warm toast with a pat of cold butter allowing the butter to melt into the toast - one picture, two visits to the toaster.

He then followed that up by sausage, bacon, scrambled egg and roasted potatoes. 

I also took a photo of my breads selection, that often miss the camara. It is starting at the top and moving right - Rugbrød (rye bread), Knekkebrød (Rye Crispbread) and rugbrødkjeks (ryebread cracker) all, though rye based have a very different texture - the Knekkebrød is impossible to chew quietly and the Rugbrød is great for mopping up the pickle juice after eating the vegetables and fish.

With the breads I had a Norwegian Brie, tomato herring, sour cream herring, pickled herring, smoked salmon, peppered mackerel, pickled beetroot and picked gherkins - delicious, the delights of breakfast have been one of the features of this holiday. 

Drew decided to explore the sweet side of the menu

and enjoyed the first three so much he had alternative ones second. 

At 8.15am we go back up to the room and watch the ships some more.

Around Tromsø 

 

We left the hotel at 9am for our walk. Tromsø is essentially only three streets wide and three streets long at the centre. So walking it doesn’t take us long.

 

We first went to the Lutheran Cathedral, which isn’t open on a Saturday, so we took some external pictures and others of the statues which decorate the Cathedral Park.

From the Cathedral we went to one of the souvenir shops in Tromsø, there are many, many of these and most seem to stock the same stuff. This one attracted our attention because it had a Polar Bear and a brown bear (both stuffed) in them.

 

Leaving the store we walked up to Kongeparken on Skolegata where there is a statue of King Olav V and a young girl bringing him a flower. In the same area is an outreach centre for the church which looks after refugees and is decorated with murals of all sorts. Walking down the hill a little we come to the Tromsø Bibliotecka, a modern building with fascinating architecture. 

As we walked around the libarary we spotted a whole set of murals leading to an underground car park – you can see these in the video.

 

From the library we walked to the Catholic Cathedral – Drew went in to take photos I couldn’t really take when I was in Mass to pray.

Across the road from the Cathedral is the Modern Rådhus - Tromsø Town Hall, this glass and metal building is striking compared to the great age of most of Tromsø. Above this square, the Stortorget, with its statue of King Haakon VII is the historic Rådhus.

We stop for a coffee at a place called KaffeBønna at 11.15am. I must admit the name knowing that the Norwegian ø makes a 'er' sound, does put me in mind of some of the Polari, Kenneth Williams would have used in his day! Oh dear, I am so old many people reading this won't know what I am talking about - here is an example.

Drew has been tempted by one of the summaries of 'things to do in Tromsø to try a Cardamom Stour here, whereas I opt for a wholemeal scone

which we washed down with an Americano and a Caffe Latte, he is still getting double the liquid each time!! [Co-pilot's note: You will note, dear readers, that he is still whinging about this. EACH AND EVERY TIME!!!]

We next visit SkansenFestningsverk, the ancient centre of habitation on the island. 

Across to Tomasjorda 

Being just under the city bridge we decide to fit in the two sights across the Fjord in Tomasjorda. We walk over the bridge, with some amazing sights, including one Hurtigurten ship coming in behind another  and head for the Fjellheisen Cable Car with its excellent views over the city and beyond. We have more photos than would fit in a video, but they are accessible on Flickr - Starting here

We go up at 12.40pm and come down at 1.30pm down. Well worth the price of the cable car. 

 

From here we go to the Arctic Cathedral, which isn't a cathedral but the parish church of Tomasjorda. This was more of a rip off. We have to pay to enter and it only has one significant stained glass window, though that is pretty amazing. So, we didn't complain!

 

The church's external aspect is also very significant, it can be seen from everywhere in the city, still you can see that from outside with no need to enter.

Bus back to Tromsø

 

On leaving the Cathedral we decided to take a bus back to Tromsø: 

(a) because the bridge brought out the worst of Drew’s vertigo and 

(b) because I wanted to try the Svipper app in readiness for our journey on Monday which involves a three hour long local bus journey on a Svipper bus.

 

We caught the bus at the Arctic Church and the bus sped across to the City Centre dropping us three blocks from our hotel. Where we arrived back at 2.30pm.

For an afternoon of blogging and Flickr uploading.

We leave the hotel at 6.50pm for the short walk to our meal at Emma’s Dream Kitchen, but that is a topic for another post.