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| Celebrity Apex at its Trondheim, Norway berth Copyright Andy Richards 2025 |
IT WAS hard to believe, but after a final "at sea" day, here we were at our final port stop: Trondheim. In retrospect, Trondheim was probably the only real "city" we visited (maybe Alesund, also). From our pre-cruise research, we knew Trondheim was not only a very walkable city, but with its population of nearly 220,000 people, would have some things we could see on our own. As I have noted, these northern Norway destinations offered very little in the way of excursions. It seems like walking tours (like "tours by foot" and similar) are simply non-existent in that part of the world. Probably a function of lack of demand? Anyway, we simply planned our own "general" walking tour.
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| Trondheim's Canal - Trondheim, Norway Copyright Andy Richards 2025 - All Rights Reserved |
TRONDHEIM IS a cool city. It doesn't necessarily rank up there with places like Barcelona, Porto and London, but as smaller, lesser known cities go, it was a fun place to visit. I was surprised to learn that it is Norway's third largest city. We found a few things to do, including a visit to a spectacular cathedral, lunch in a local gastropub with local food, and a walk along some of Trondheim's quiet streets and their canal. We also thought the cruise port was pretty impressive. There is a marine research institute facility that is housed in a basin just inside the cruise pier. I believe it is associated with the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU), Norway's largest university. Formerly known as The University of Trondheim, it was changed to NTNU in 1996. There are satellite campuses in two other Norwegian cities (one of them Alesund). There are two other small universities in Trondheim and the total number of students in the city is nearly 42,000. So there is a bit of that "university town" atmosphere. There were some very interesting looking research vessels moored in the basin. But for my purposes, the basin served and even more useful function: a nice photographic reflecting surface. 😊
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| Trondheim's main canal, looking across to Bakklandet and the colorful houses on that side of the Canal - Trondheim, Norway Copyright Andy Richards 2025 - All Rights Reserved |
PROBABLY THE best route into the city from the cruise port is to the right as you walk away from the ship, and then straight up some stairs and into the city. The stairs take you up to a walking bridge that spans the multi-track railroad facility right next to the port. Of course we didn't see that at first, and following our maps, and "noses," we instead turned to the left and eventually back right and into town. It probably turns out that our path served our own touring plan better, as it took us along a quiet street that paralleled Trondheim's main waterway, The Nidelva River (apparently often mistaken as a canal), and to the Old Town Bridge, a footbridge across to an area known as Bakklandet.
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| Old Town Bridge - Honningsvag, Norway Copyright Andy Richards 2025 - All Rights Reserved |
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| Thomas Angells Hus Copyright Andy Richards 2025 - All Rights Reserved |
AS WE walked along, we came upon a monument to Thomas Angell. Other than that he was somebody important in Trondheim, I had no idea who he was. But as I turned to look across the street, I saw a building with the name Thomas Angell's Hus. It seemed to me that "Hus" was most likely Norwegian for "house." Man, these famous figures are vain. I don't think the thought has ever ocurred to me to put a sign on the front of any house I have ever owned: "Andy Richards' House." 😀 Just kidding. After I returned home, I did some post-visit research. Thomas Angell's Hus, it turns out, was never his personal residence. Angell was a wealthy Trondheim Merchant and at his death, he donated his fortune to a trust. The "hus" is actually housing for the elderly.
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| Nidaros Cathedral - Trondheim, Norway Copyright Andy Richards 2025 - All Rights Reserved |
YOU PROBABLY wouldn't fault me if you were along with us, for assuming Angell had something to do with the Nidaros Cathedral given its proximity to his statue. The church was just a few hundred feet further up the street (as far as I am aware, there is no official connection). From the side street we approached it from, it was pretty obvious that this was a major church. Its gothic lines and details made for a handsome structure, and I lingered along the side for a bit, making some photographs.
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| Nidaros Cathedral - Trondheim, Norway Copyright Andy Richards 2025 - All Rights Reserved |
AT THE front and main entrance to the church there is a large, open courtyard and from the back of the courtyard I was able to make a passable wide-angle shot of the front facade. The courtyard, by the way, was full of people, but my crop takes them out of the picture. To the left of the courtyard as you face the church, there is a concession building, where you can purchase souvenirs, limited food, and tickets for admission to the interior of the church. Perhaps most importantly, there are bathrooms in there.
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| The organ pipes in the Nidaros Cathedral - Trondheim, Norway (my friend and former law partner, David Meyer, would admire these - if he is reading this) Copyright Andy Richards 2025 - All Rights Reserved |
IF YOU get to the cathedral, I highly recommend that you do purchase tickets and see the interior. In my view, that is where it is at its most spectacular.
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| Nidaros Cathedral - Trondheim, Norway Copyright Andy Richards 2025 - All Rights Reserved |
MY RESEARCH tells me that this cathedral is the northernmost medieval cathedral in the world. Like many of these huge churches, it wasn't all built at once. Beginning around 1070, it was substantially completed in 1300. Numerous additions and rennovations have ocurred of the years with the most recent (a major reconstruction project) completed in 2001.
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| Nidaros Cathedral - Trondheim, Norway Copyright Andy Richards 2025 - All Rights Reserved |
THE CHURCH is built over the burial site of Norway's King Olaf II, the Patron Saint of Norway. In addition to its important religious history, the church is the traditional location for the consecration of new Norwegian monarchs. Originally designated as the Archdiocese of Nidaros, for the Roman Catholic Church, it was changed in 1537, to become part of the newly formed Church of Norway during the Protestant Reformation. Today it is the seat of the Bishop of the Church of Norway.
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| Nidaros Cathedral - Trondheim, Norway Copyright Andy Richards 2025 - All Rights Reserved |
I DON'T always overpopulate my posts with images of the same place, but I was so impressed with this church's interior, that I just kept making images - and feel compelled to display them.
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| Nidaros Cathedral - Trondheim, Norway Copyright Andy Richards 2025 - All Rights Reserved |
OF THE many churches and cathedrals we have seen over the past 15 or so years, I think this is the most impressive that I have visited!
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| Nidaros Cathedral - Trondheim, Norway Copyright Andy Richards 2025 - All Rights Reserved |
WE LEFT the church in an appropriately reverent frame of mind. But biology can have a way to influence the circumstances, and we walked on, into one of the city's primary squares, with food on our minds.
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| Trondheim's Courthouse - Trondheim, Norway Copyright Andy Richards 2025 - All Rights Reserved |
MARKET SQUARES or plazas are called torgs in Scandinavian languages. We were seeking Trondheim Torg, which is a large, retail/commercial plaza in the heart of the city. Using Google Maps, we took kind of a roundabout path to the Torg. Looking now on the map, if we had taken the straightest shot, we would have walked right by Trondheim City Hall. But then we would have missed the Trondheim Tinghus. And you know, you don't want to miss seeing a tinghus when you have the chance. As I walked by, the unique decorations on the entrance caught my eye, as did the unique (to and English language speaker) name on the building. I have to admit, my mind went somewhere else when trying to think what a tinghus might be. 😅 Turns out (perhaps thankfully for all involved) it is a courthouse. Once I realized that, the figures on the walls began to make some sense.
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| McDonald's in the heart of Trondheim Torg Copyright Andy Richards 2025 - All Rights Reserved |
ONE OF the things you can count on these days is finding a McDonalds (and usually Burger King, too) in almost any city in the world. I have made it a point to photograph them when I see them, and have a collection in my archives. Here it was, right in the middle of things on Trondheim Torg. Eat there? Not on your life. I do my best to avoid them even here at home. I wouldn't dream of visiting some place in a different culture and going to McDonald's. Ironically enough, literally across the street, we found something much better: Phoenix Gastropub. We learned a bit about Scandinavian cuisine that day. Other than a lot of seafood (and things like sardines and herring), their food isn't particularly "ethnic." But they way the eat it is unique. I ordered a corned beef sandwich. My wife ordered their Skagen, which was kind of like a shrimp salad. For the table, we had an order of Nordic Sardines and of Marinated Olives. for my corned beef, I was thinking sandwich. The two-fisted variety. I think she was thinking traditional salad. To our surprise, all of our entrees were sandwiches and all of them were served open-faced! That is apparently a very common Scandinavian presentation. Worked just fine for me. Used a fork. The upshot: very tasty! Todd and I also shared an "appetizer" which was sardines and crackers, served right in the tin. They were good, as was the local popular lager beer. Interestingly, the pub gets some mixed reviews on TripAdvisor (which is too bad, as it might dissuade folks from giving it a try. We think that would be a mistake. The 4 of us were unanimously in the 5-star camp! Sometimes, I think people's reactions and comments are a product of their expectations. When you are in an unfamiliar and new country, I think you need to be adventurous and put those expectations aside!
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| Thomas Angell's Gate - Trondheim, Norway Copyright Andy Richards 2025 - All Rights Reserved |
SATED, WE moved along. There was more. About 3 blocks in the general direction of the cruise ship terminal, we came upon a retail shopping street: Thomas Angell's Gate. Sound like a familiar name? That guy who was the wealthy merchant who donated his fortune to a foundation. Same guy.
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| Thomas Angell's Gate - Trondheim, Norway Copyright Andy Richards 2025 - All Rights Reserved |
WHAT WAS really cool about Thomas Angell's gate though was for me a photographic opportunity. This was one that has become a recurring motif around the world. My first exposure with The Pink Street in Lisbon, Portugal, some years back. More recently, I discovered a much smaller, but equally colorful and photogenic display near our home - in Dunedin, Florida. in just a couple weeks we will visit Puerto Plata in the Dominican Republic, where it is my understanding that there is yet another "umbrella street." The colorful, hanging umbrellas are a magnet for a color street photographer, and this was no exception. It is the largest such display I have seen yet, which gave me multiple compositional chances.
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| Thomas Angell's Gate - Trondheim, Norway Copyright Andy Richards 2025 - All Rights Reserved |
ANOTHER LONG day in the books. We could say that our self-made walking tour of Tronheim was a great success, and we had a lot of fun exploring. We were ready to head back to the ship and take a load off. It was a beautiful, sunny afternoon, and we were looking forward to sitting on the Sunset Bar deck with cigars and cocktails, and a sunset sail-away.
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| Only this canal from the Nidelva River out to the ocean, and some railroad tracks separated us from Trondheim and our Cruise Ship -Trondheim, Norway Copyright Andy Richards 2025 - All Rights Reserved |
FROM THE end of Thomas Angell's Gate it was only about 3 city blocks, in a straight line, back to the cruise port. We had only to cross the canal in front of the port, and find our way across the railroad tracks. This time, we did it by the book, and took the pedestrian walkway back to the port. It was good to see our Celebrity Apex in sight in the nearby background.
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| Footbridge from the City to the Cruise Port - Trondheim, Norway Copyright Andy Richards 2025 - All Rights Reserved |
WE WOULD have a couple more days at sea to get back to Southampton, and then a ride to LHR, where we would bid our great friends goodbye. But only for now. We already have a couple future cruises booked together. And perhaps we will do a visit somewhere before then. In the meantime, we made the best of those last two days.
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| Cigars on the Celebrity Apex Trondheim, Norway - Southampton, England |
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