Stavanger

This small city of about 130,000 people is the center of the petroleum industry in Norway.  Since oil was discovered under  the sea off Norway in 1969 it has become one of the world's wealthiest countries.  After breakfast we met our group in the Star Theater and joined our guide for a walk through the city to the Petroleum museum.   The old wooden city center was quite charming but it was very quiet as this was Sunday morning.  Once at the museum we decided to tour it on our own.  The history was pretty interesting and has changed the wealth of the country in a short time.  There was a film about the development of oil that the guide and guidebooks touted but it seemed to be a way for some people in Norway deal with the guilt they must feel over this wealth.

After the museum we strolled through town and headed back to the ship for lunch.  In the afternoon we walked back to the view the inside of Stavanger's Cathedral dedicated to St. Swithun.  It was begun around 1100 and suffered a fire in the 1200s so the architecture in the rebuilding was more gothic than Romanesque.  It is small compared to cathedrals we have visited such as Notre Dame and York Minister.

Across from the ship's dock is an area of old wooden houses which seem to be typical of some Norwegian cities and they have efforts to preserve those that have not burned down over the years.  In Stavanger they are painted white.  In the old harbor area of Bergen they are mostly shops and painted different colors.  We enjoyed the sunniest weather of the trip so far.  Too bad most of the shops were closed on Sunday in Stavanger as I would have liked checking some of them out. 

 Jewelry shop in one of the old houses.

Shop selling traditional Bunad dresses

 Stavanger Cathedral

Our ship in the back ground