Trondheim, Norway... Part 1 of 2

Like every port I was up early for sail in, this time sailing to the city of Trondheim. The air was a bit crisp and there were some low hanging clouds and mist in the air but things improved as we sailed along...  It was a beautiful sail in up the Trondheim Fjord and past Munk Island before we docked. We got off the ship and headed on our mapped out walking tour of Trondheim. This was our first time to visit the city and we did not know what to expect. Trondheim is a compact city that you can easily explore by foot. We walked to the city center, crossing over the train station. We decided to walk along the river before heading to the town square…the reflections were excellent today. First, we came to the Royal Residence, the largest wooden mansion in Scandinavia with 140 rooms and 43,000 square feet, originally built in 1778 as a private residence. Torvet, Trondheim’s market square, has been a focal point of city life since the reconstruction that followed the great fire of 1681. A statue of Olav I overlooks the square on top of a very high column... Our next stop was Our Lady’s Church. It was constructed in the late 1100s. In 1651 the church and most buildings in Trondheim were destroyed by fire. It was rebuilt and redecorated only to be burned again in 1681 and again in 1708... Sounds like God wasn’t too happy! Not far away, we spotted the Old Town Hall of Trondheim. It is a two-story building with a Hanseatic facade, featuring an eight-pointed star-shaped window and the seal of the city. We walked towards the river to see the historic wharfs of Trondheim. The houses here are known as some of the most distinctive buildings in the city. The pier buildings stand along both sides of the Nidelva River's channel where they were originally used as storage for such goods as grain, sugar, salt and fish. Today, most of these colorful buildings are residential houses, art galleries, coffee shops, restaurants and unique boutiques. The area is known as Bakklandet with cobbled walking paths make exploring the historic wharfs an easy and beautiful stroll. The Old Town Bridge over the Nidelven River was a great spot to get a picturesque view of the historic wharfs from a distance. I did the steep and I mean steep climb up to the Kristiansten Fortress. The Kristiansten Fortress was built after the great city fire of 1681 and used during WWII as a place of execution for members of the Norwegian resistance by the Nazi forces. Crossing back over the Old Town Bridge we headed towards the New Town Hall. The New Town Hall represents a contemporary, fashionable, fortress-like establishment. On our way to St. Olav's Cathedral, we passed by both the the Archbishops Palace and the Nidaros Cathedral and decided to backtrack and go to St. Olaf’s first. St. Olaf’s is a modern church as it was rebuilt and was finished in November 2016. Returning to the Archbishops Palace located beside the Nidaros Cathedral we did not enter the museum but did visit the grounds…the structure is huge. The Archbishop's Palace is a castle and palace within the city located just south of the Nidaros Cathedral. For hundreds of years, the castle was the seat, residence and administrative center of the Archbishop of Nidaros. The castle is one of the largest medieval stone structures in Scandinavia and the oldest walls are likely from the 13th century. Our next stop was a visit to the Nidaros Cathedral. The cathedral was named Nidaros, after the original name for Trondheim. The church was built from 1070 onwards over the tomb of St. Olav, the Viking King who brought Christianity to Norway. It was Catholic until 1537, when it was swept up in the Protestant Reformation and taken over by the New Church of Norway. It is the world's northernmost medieval cathedral. The inside of this church has impressive stonemasonry work and beautiful stained-glass windows. Leaving the church we wandered through the Cathedral Graveyards; the cemetery has many beautifully sculptured gravestones and monuments. Also, at the back of the graveyard you can get a different angle of the grandeur of this building. After four hours of touring, we headed back to the ship with the memory of this lovely city…we had a great day and again stellar weather was with us.