Stavanger, Norway

What is the first three thing you think about associated with Norway? For me it is fjords, forest and oil. For 1,5 years I lived and worked in Norway. It was my first real job at Lufthansa and I never felt at home in Norway. Going there for vacation is a different story. I love taking long weekends in Norway and my latest one happened to be in the city of Stavanger for two major reasons. First, Stavanger marathon and then visiting a friend living there. But Stavanger is so much more than a city which is the oil capital of Norway, has an annual marathon, located close by the fjords and greens and the home of my friend. Here I have listed my best discoveries I found in Stavanger. Why I don’t write a complete city guide? The best guides covering all cities already exist so therefore I see no need to redo the work someone else has done and instead focus at my personal experiences instead. The complete Stavanger guide you find HERE.

Stavanger from above

During the approach to SVG airport my first chock was that the proximity to the mountains was further than expected. There were mountains but kilometers of greenery separated it from the coast. But the funniest thing on the journey to Norway was that the Norwegian King Harald V where on the same plane just 12 rows infront of me. Guess if I got starstruck?

The old city

I had no idea that the old city of Stavanger would be that cute. Not even cute. My research before this trip had been very limited but I love surprises (in the positive way) so when walking around the city center I was like “I could live here”. Only 130 000 people lives in Stavanger so they do have room for more.

Norwegian language

If you are not speaking any Scandinavian language you probably don’t understand how cute the Norwegian language is. I just love it. And all Norwegians sounds so happy when they talk. What I especially like with Norway is that it is almost impossible to be in a bad mode when talking to the locals.

Streetart

I am a huge lover of street art and like Hong Kong, Melbourne and many other cities Stavanger had fantastic paints all around the city. I wish Stockholm could allow that also.

Drinks with a view

Valberget located at the top of the old town is a fantastic place you should not miss out if you want a complete view of the city. We went there to celebrate our running achievements with an aperol while enjoying the view and sunshine.

Seafood

If you go to Norway you should eat fish. My friend is working at Fisketorget so of course we went there. A centrally located fish market and restaurant and the food were amazing. I had a fish soup and cava and it was one of those meals you will remember for a long time.

City center

Now it ended up to be a lot of food spots but for two hungry runners with tired legs Saturday was spent eating and slowly walking around the city after the marathon. As said, the city was above my expectations with a lot of things to do other than eating and very cozy. For a weekend trip I can definitely recommend Stavanger. But Stavanger and the area nearby has a lot of things to offer to nature and adventure lovers. How we cured our legs and spent the day after 42K of running is another story that will be presented here another day.

/ Pernilla exploring Norway