The final leg of the trip- Bergen and Oslo

Bergen, the erstwhile capital of the Norwegian kingdom, is the prettiest city yet. We did a bit of sightseeing enroute to Alesund so we knew what to expect. We switched gears a little bit at this stage in the trip and did more touristy stuff. We spent the first day tasting the fish market, gawking at the yachts in the harbour and mindless walking through the tourist-trap laden streets of Bergen. Built a little bit of an appetite and settled on an indian place recommend by LP. Not your typical desi joint, it was run by Ethiopians and the cook looked like he was from the middle east though the food did not disappoint (or were we really hungry?). Could not resist anymore inspite ridiculous prices, so by this time in our trip I had braved my wallet and whet my tongue a few times with local brew, Hansa, very refreshing!! We went to a few musuems in Bergen, the Hanseatic and the Art Musuem were nice. I am always a big fan of guided tours and we took one at the Hanseatic Museum. We had an interesting looking guide dressed in cape and he effortlessly explained to us in great detail how 900 years of history built this beautiful city of Bergen. Suprisingly a major part of this city is about how the German traders that took over this port town for 400 years. I had whale(picture shown) steak for dinner while Priya munched on Monk fish. Whale tastes like red meat but as you finish the meat it leaves a very fishy aftertaste in your mouth. We had some interesting discussion about whaling and its being banned. Apart from the usual conservation story, I heard it a few times from the Norwegians that its their tradition to hunt whale and they beleive that it should continue. We took a night train back to Oslo, the ride was as comfortable as staying in a hotel and the actual 'rooms' were well designed. The beds had starched sheets and soft comforters and the room even had a small washbasin, the space was designed for only two. We had plans to start early in Oslo since the train got in around 6:30 am, but we had to catch a few winks as the wife needed her beaty sleep. We able to get to Nobel Peace center, Edvard Munch Gallery and the Kontiki museum before the end of last day in Munich. The Peace center had a very well done photo expo on life in strife-torn muslim areas around the world. The permanent exhibitions are technologically advanced and very interactive. I learnt a little more about art from the guided tour at the Munch museum and reaffirmed my earlier conclusion that only deranged minds can create serious art, I built that hypothesis earlier this year at the Van Gogh museum in Amsterdam. I did not know of Thor Heyerdahls exploits till we visited the Kontiki museum so I was quite impressed by the spirit the idea behind his travels, perhaps a modern day Columbus. Though what I found intriguing was the fact that even though he did not have a scientific background he was very keen on pursuing academic subjects which seemingly did not bring any immediate financial benefits but satified his curiousity. We had dinner with Are and Toubjorn, from the INSEAD days, and reminisced about life at school. It was great to catchup and both promised to visit us in Munich. Had to wake up early to make the trudge to the train station. With our minds rejuvenated, bodies tired and our heart lost to the fjord lanscape we bid our adieu to a country we hope to come back to someday.