What does Bergen look like at Christmas?
Bergen is a city in western Norway, set between mountains and sea. On the old wharf, called Bryggen, a row of wooden houses painted red, yellow and white lines the harbor, and in December their lights shine on the water. On the mountains around, the snow sparkles like a white crown.
The Festplassen market
The Bergen Christmas market is usually held in Festplassen, a large square in the city center, close to the harbor. During Advent, the square fills with wooden huts, fir branches, ribbons and warm lights, with a huge tree in the middle.
What do you find at the market?
- Pepperkaker, thin Norwegian gingerbread biscuits with cinnamon and cardamom.
- Nordic ornaments: woven hearts, red and white baubles and wool decorations.
- Roasted almonds and Christmas cookies, warm, in paper bags.
- Alcohol-free gløgg, a warm drink of apple juice with cinnamon and ginger.
What can kids do in Bergen?
- Visit Pepperkakebyen, the gingerbread town, with houses, bridges and little trains made of biscuits.
- Walk along Bryggen and count the colorful wooden houses on the wharf.
- Ride up Mount Fløyen on the funicular and see the whole city lit up from above.
- Watch the boats in the harbor, decorated with fairy lights.
Two Norwegian Christmas customs
The gingerbread town
Every year since 1991, children from Bergen’s kindergartens and schools, families and volunteers have built Pepperkakebyen together, a little town made of hundreds of gingerbread houses. It is one of the biggest gingerbread towns in the world.
Nisse, the house elf
Nisse is a small elf in a red hat who, according to old belief, guards the house and the animals. On Christmas Eve, children leave him a bowl of rice porridge so that he stays friendly all year.
A taste of Norway: pepperkaker
Pepperkaker are thin, crisp biscuits with cinnamon, cloves and cardamom, cut into hearts, stars and little houses. Their recipe and an alcohol-free gløgg, to make together with an adult, are in the book.
How do you say “Merry Christmas!” in Norwegian?
God jul!
Try saying it at dinner on Christmas Eve.
What word did Mira discover here?
In each of the eleven cities of the journey, Mira finds a special word. The word from Bergen is written in her Christmas passport, at the end of chapter 4.
