This week-end marked  the beginning of the **real** holidays. Wednesday 5th I had my Norwegian written exam and the day after I had the oral one. I was anxious, for the written one in particular. But it went not so bad I think, and the oral one went good. Questions were asked by both my teacher and another person. My teacher (hello Dag) was cool and nice with me and asked be to talk about what I like in Norway and Bergen... from trips to Taake, and from pølser to rømmegrøt. Was fun.

Thursday evening after all the oral exams, with my class and Dag we went for a Julebord at Zupperia in Bergen, a cosy restaurant/bar under the Museum of Decorative Arts (Vestlandske Kunstindustrimuseum). Some beers and jokes, nice evening. Actually, rather nice start .  Back in Fantoft around 10PM... time to meet in a kitchen and to drink some crates of beer. Around 12:15 we left Fantoft to reach the Center with the last buses, and to go to Studenten, a nightclub with shitty music but with free entrance and "cheap" drinks, located in Vaskerelvsmuget, just behind Dickens. The ambiance and mood are always good there because we are mving there like masses. Beer is 39kr, cocktails are 59kr.  I choosed to smash myslef with  Jack & Coke this night and my wallet seemed very empty just after. We spent good moments why the German guys singing - pissed drunk - Brann and Bergenske sanger in front of the nightclub... nobody cared because everybody was drunk in this area... Back in Fantoft by maxi taxi around 4AM, meeting at the 9th floor, some beers, and schlafen. Friday morning I was fucking dead but I needed that! And after all, this is for what Erasmus exists.

The following days were nice with a lot of snow, and sunday 10th I awake early, took my coffee cup with me and went for a photo session at the snow-covered Fantoft stavchurch. Grim and frostbitten. I didn't see any people there but the tracks in the snow obviously said that locals have been walking there in the early morning before me. crazy Norwegians. The other day i saw people going out of their house for jogging at 11:30 PM.

I have not yet done an article about the place I live, simply because dozens of blogs did it before me and just repeat what the other one say and the following will tell... but let's go.
Built  in 1968 in the village of Fantoft, located in  the Bergen Valley south of the center, Fantoft Studentboliger  was the first big Student House in Bergen Kommune and was at this time surrounded by woods and meadows.
The rumour tells that these ugly post-Stalinian buildings and the oppressive promiscuity brought several people to suicide in the 1970's. Don't know and care about those rumours, but Fantoft was mourned two days ago by the suicide of a Norwegian girl. Rest in Peace.
So it seems that the architects, Jørgrn Djurhuus, Erik Dogger et Erik Fersum, have missed their destiny of Jailbuilders. In the 1980's, Joseph Luns, the NATO "Boss", came for a conference at Fantoft and left this remembered sentence; "Have I come to a prison?".

About 1300 persons live here, among themselves, 600 foreign students. The 700 other people are Norwegians Students (a minority), and Asylum seekers. Their is several types of habitation, but the two main are the following:
There is 9 Blocks from A to I. A & B and E to G are double single-rooms with tiny kitchenette and bathroom. C & D are single rooms with private bathroom and shared big kitchen for 8 rooms. H and I are administrative buildings, night club, etc. Another building is a massive and great sports hall. The best rooms are of course in C/D blocks.

The whole residence is furbished, and equipped with cale TV, ADSL, and internal free telephone. Fifteen minutes walking from the residence you can find an old stavchurch, the summerhouse of the Norwegian Royal Family, a Gas Station, various shops a,d nice places to see.

• Coordinates: 60°20'45.65"N, 5°21'18.10"E. Various photos HERE.

Well, I usually don't like football and all the white trash/beer dance/hooligan/stupidity  which often go with it. But  Brann deserve this article... this good Norwegian team  won the Norwegian cup in 1962 and 1963...  then nothing for 44 years. Yesterday they crushed  L.C Lyn Oslo thanks to the Norwegian-Cypriot Karadas. This dude put a marvellous goal in the prolongation, 10 minutes after Oslo put one (Brann first goal happened at 15'). Less than one minute later Karadas put another one by "accident" and the game stopped. I don't know the points-rules and co, but it seems that Brann is unofficially already champion of Norway for 2007, even if there are still 3 matches to play. One against Aalesund, one against Viking Stavanger and I don't remember the last one. So no need to say that it was party downtown yesterday. However the city got empty  around midnight, as Norwegians ONLY go out on week-ends. But that's another story...

Happy youth... and crowd.


NRK is here... as the cops.

Everything is good in Norway. The society is great, the landscapes are awesome. Some bad sides anyway, some hypocrisy or some hidden facts and defaults. But the perfect society doesn't exist. No, the bad  side in Norway - i mean the one you see the most - is the food. Food is shit (will be treated in another article) and beer is not very good also.
All my ratings describe the beer present on the foto and its form (can/bottle).

Some facts about beer in Norway:
26 breweries
2 "giants": Carlsberg-Ringnes and Hansa Borg : 85% of the market
First independant brewery: Mack, with 7% of the market. This is the most northern brewery in the world.
Commercial breweries are 100% bottom fermenting (low fermentation) and german type beers.
90% of the beer being sold is "Pils" .What is called  "Fatøl" is supposed to be a "draught beer" (beer on  tap). Unfortunately, Ale and original breweries are closing one by one.

First of all - we are in Bergen - let's start with Hansa Pilsner. From Bergen, it is the default beer served in more than 80% of the bars of the city. To be honest, it is a piece of crap. Watered and untasty, but one of the "cheapest" (commas because cheap doesn't exist here). Sold in bottles (33cl) or cans (33/50cl). 4,7% of alcohol.



Let's continue with Hansa Bayer: Good surprise. A dark lager with round and bitter-caramel taste. Sold in 33cl bottles, it's for the moment one the best Norwegian beers i've tested. At least it have a real taste, though a little bit too much malted. 4,5% of alcohol.


Hansa Fatøl now. Supposed to be a draught pale lager, it makes me think to a quite-good pils with taste and foam. Better than the hansa Pilsner, more expensive too. 4,7% of alcohol.


Odin Pilsner. It seems to be a Danish beer but let's go... served in cans (50cl) or bottles (33cl). Usually badly noted buy customers, i prefer this one to the Hansa Pilsner. Slight metallic taste, watered but mild fruity bottom, round and quite-strong top. 4,7% of alcohol.


Mack Arctic Beer: Pale lager... nice and fresh top, touches of citrus. But the rest was way worse than all the others ones described above. Definitevly not a beer for me. 4,7% of alcohol, 50cl cans.


Mack Pilsner: "Good" Pils in the German way ( Ludwig Mack was German...), way better than Hansa and all the crap. My favourite Pils from here, for the moment. Balanced and good to enjoy with a meal. Hop and nut notes. Bad noted buy most of the customers... 33cl bottles or 50cl cans.


Mack Sommerøl: Pale lager. Sweet malts and some hoppy hints, refreshing and a almost not bittered. I drank it fast during lunch.


Mack Summerparty: Pale lager. Supposed to be sweet and funky, probably to take over the female & posh market. Artificial taste, watered,  and the remaining bitterness is more "acid". Better to frink water...