Heading south again - Stavanger, our last stop in Norway. Part 1

We docked right in the center of the town, next to the Queen
Mary II. But here you can see the M/S Rogaland, built in 1929,
and recently used as a hospital ship in the movie "Dunkirk".

This fat complacent bird make it's
home on Aliexander Kielland., the
writer and politician.

I loved Stavanger Cathedral. Contruction was started in 1100
and finished in 1150. It was damaged heavily in 1272 and
rebuilt in the Gothic style.

During a renovation in 1860 it lost much of it's medieval looks
some of which where returned during additional work from 1939
to 1964.

Andrew Lawrenceson Smith created this
magnificent pulpit in the 1650's. He was a
Scottish craftsman who moved to Norway.

Here's a detail of the stairs.

This is a stock photo of the cathedral's rear view -
unfortunately it was covered with drop cloths when
I was there - but the medieval look is more obvious
than in the fscade.

Behind the Cathedral is a lovely lake with a walking path
all around. 

From there a series of stairs and small parks
lead up to Old Sttavanger, an area of 18th
and 19th Century wooden homes

These homes are almost all wooden and painted white, most
with red slate roofs.

The steep, often cobblestone, streets climb steeply the hill
above the harbor.

I was reminded strongly of Nantucket!

Not only the house, but the roses were similar.

In all colors...

A group of bundled up toddlers caught my eye - although
the day was sunny, it was cool and breezy.

As I toured the area, more people showed up, but mostly on
the main street (which was flat).

Although the yards were tiny, they were manicured.

I was alerted to the Norwegian Canning Museum by the internet and it was just as interesting as claimed. Later I
researched the life of Angus Watson (later Sir James Watson), an English Food Manufacturer, who greatly impacted the
 sardine industry here in Stavanger. His sardine brand was Skipper and he was a wizard at advertising. 

I really enjoyed this glimpse into the life of women working
at this time. There was a documentary film from the turn of
the century showing the canning process and the people that
worked there.

These tiny fish were threaded on dowels by
the women and then smoked.

Canned sardines were a huge treat year's ago - and still
are for my husband!

The tiny house nearby was one of the worker's homes and
is now a museum (free) and cafe. I enjoyed a waffle
(served with sour cream and preserves) and coffee. 

Here's the dining room where you can sit down and have
your food - or out back on the patio.

Across from the cannery was one of the few stone buildings,
now a coffee house.

It was surreal to see the Queen Mary II rising
up beneath the small buildings of Old
Stavanger.

Here's a view looking up from the harbor edge.

And across the end of the harbor.

The small fish market now has an attached
restaurant, which was packed (like sardines)

Another view of the harbor edge. Our cruise ship was docked
just to the left here. Valburgtarnet, the old Fire Tower, looms
above.