Trondheim

We spent a couple of hours walking around the nation's first capital, Trondheim, where the River Nidelva meets the elongated Trondheimfjord.  This is Norway's longest fjord.  It is also the birthplace of modern Scandinavian democracy.  Norway is the world's oldest continuously functioning democracy whose heritage dates back more than 1000 years.

With its colourful warehouses and waterways, Trondheim is incredibly photogenic.  It is also Norway's third largest city and a pleasure to explore.

There are may interesting houses, as well as the above attractive wooden buildings along the River Nidelva.  Some of these wooden houses are clearly warehouses and others have been converted and modernised into stylish living accommodation judging by the balconies.  But they all look very pretty stretched along the banks with their reflections bouncing off the water.

Trondheim Courthouse.

Colourful plaques on either side of the entrance to the courthouse.

Nidaros Cathedral is Scandinavia's largest medieval building and the northernmost Gothic structure in Europe.

The Christian Viking king, Olav Tryggvason, founded this city in AD997.  He died in battle in 1030 fighting the Danish Vikings.  Norwegians mark this Battle of Stiklestad as the end of the Viking period and the beginning of the medieval period.  Nidaros was the former name of Trondheim and was the Norwegian capital for much of the Viking era.

Olav was canonised after his death and his shrine at Nidaros Cathedral subsequently became the most important destination for medieval Nordic pilgrims.  Nidaros Cathedral was built over St Olav's original burial site and his body was interred at the Cathedral later.

The Cathedral is a monumental building which you only appreciate as you walk completely around it.







The 12th century archbishop's residence is a large building beside the cathedral.  It is Scandinavia's oldest secular building and the best preserved medieval building of this kind in Europe.

As I noted before, Norwegians seem very fond of statues of all sorts.  Many are typical heroic statues and then there are the unusual ones.  This combination of giant conch at one end and an ear at the other is very Daliesque.