Exchange student seeking some advice

3POSTS

13 years ago

Hi guys,

My name is Kenneth and I'll be studying at NHH for the spring semester, arriving on the 31st December. I'm really excited as I've never been to Norway before (or Scandinavia for that matter), but at the same time I have a few questions in mind. Sorry if they seem obviously or silly, any advice would be greatly appreciated

1. I'm staying at Hatleberg which is 2 minutes from the NHH campus, do you recommend buying a bike so that I can easily commute around Bergen or is public transport very convenient? If so, how much am I looking to pay for a secondhand bike?

2. I'll need to sign up for a mobile phone number when I get there, something that I can use to make local calls and have access to the Internet. Do you have any suggestions of where to go to do this and/or what mobile providers are popular?

3. I'll be arriving in the winter and I heard there will be snow and rain at that time. This might seem silly, but what do people normally wear over there? As we don't have snow here, I don't think my current wardrobe is suitable for that weather so I want to come as prepared as possible. Also how cold does the temperature actually get to?

4. Lastly, since I'll be arriving there on New Year's Eve, I was wondering where a good place to go is for the countdown/fireworks? The university coordinator suggested I could stay in my room and watch the fireworks from there, but just exploring my options!

Thanks for your help! Any other useful tips/advice for a newcomer are also welcome. Cheers

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sctld ViP

128POSTS

13 years ago

Hi, Kenneth!

1. Public transport is convenient, but expensive (should be cheaper for you being a student). Bergen is quite hilly, and so it can be quite a chore to cycle around. Also, in winter the roads can get quite icy/snow-covered, and you'd be advised to fit your bike with winter tires if you're going to use it at all over winter.

2. There's a mobile kiosk in nearly every shopping center; and there is a larger phone shop on Strandgaten. Popular companies include NetCom, NextGenTel, OneCall, and Telenor.

3. Temperatures in Bergen in winter are usually around freezing, but it can feel a lot colder due to wind, and the last two years it's been unusually snowy/cold (this may be the new normal, but I hope not!). People usually wear a winter hat, a big, warm, water-proof winter jacket, long thermal underwear, thick socks, water-proof trousers with normal trousers underneath, scarf, gloves. The important thing is to stay warm and to stay dry. Having said that, I don't wear thermal long-johns, and don't own water-proof trousers (and I regret it every year!).

4. The best place to see the fireworks is from your room, since there has been no municipal fireworks in recent years, with money going instead to charity. In addition, it is illegal to set off fireworks within the city, so you might not see any at all if your window is facing the wrong way. Unless you've been invited to a house party, you should prepare yourself for the most boring New Year's Eve ever.

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kmwlew Member

3POSTS

13 years ago

Hi sctld,

Thanks for your reply, your advice is really helpful. Yeah I'm planning on buying some thermal long johns but I'm also not sure about the waterproof pants! Do most people wear like snow boots or you think normal shoes are fine?

Oh that's useful to know about the fireworks. Is it still worthwhile going to the city centre or is there really not much going on there?

Cheers,
Kenneth

sctld ViP

128POSTS

13 years ago

Wellington boots or hill-walking shoes are fine, snow shoes might be a bit over-kill, but it all really depends on the amount of snow-fall. Normal leather shoes would probably not be the best idea, since you need something with a bit of grip (and if you do need to wear smart shoes at your destination, standard practice is to take them with you and change into them when you get there).

The town center is dead at New Year. Being from Scotland, I'm used to Pubs being open round the clock, fireworks, restaurants full of people, etc. but here everything is closed, and everyone is pretty much inside. People might come outside with sparklers at midnight, but it's pretty much dead.

Ben_C Active member

27POSTS

13 years ago

I couldn't get by without waterproof trousers, especially if you're going to be using a bike.

In winter, everybody wears a hat, get used to that. Get used to gore-tex too, you'll be needing a good gore-tex jacket and preferably gore-tex shoes or boots. You can get all kinds of footwear in gore-tex here from thick boots to trainers to smart business shoes. Day to day I wear black leather boots (Doctor Martin size, but smarter) that have gore-tex. Smart and weather proof.

I usually wear a thinner gore-tex jacket, with layers underneath. You can get good stuff over here, either wool or man-made. You probably won't need it day to day, but there will be plenty of times you're glad to have it.

Snow's unpredictable. I didn't think there was much last year, but the year before it came the week before Christmas and stayed until March. Definitely expect rain though.

I've only experienced New Year with family so I don't know what other people do. Most people have their own fireworks at home, so where we live we can see constant fireworks all along the coast and into the distance for about an hour.

kmwlew Member

3POSTS

13 years ago

Sorry for the late reply, have been busy with exams the last few weeks. Thanks for the advice guys, you have all been really helpful. I'm really looking forward to staying in Bergen

Cheers,
Kenneth

ThisFieldIsRequired Member

20POSTS

13 years ago

sctld wrote:
The town center is dead at New Year. Being from Scotland, I'm used to Pubs being open round the clock, fireworks, restaurants full of people, etc. but here everything is closed, and everyone is pretty much inside. People might come outside with sparklers at midnight, but it's pretty much dead.

Aww... makes me wanting to go to Scotland now . But really, Norwegians, otherwise nice people, are so little social. They could be more like Scots in this.

kmwlew wrote:
how much am I looking to pay for a secondhand bike?

I think you can get one for about 500 to 1500 NOK. Make yourself an idea here.

The Bergen expat guide

Comprehensive and free

Read it now

new_in_norway Serial expat

382POSTS

13 years ago

kmwlew; Norway gets very cold - but it is also the most beautiful country in Scandinavia. Temperatures in Norway in winter can easily go down to minus 22 degrees celcius, however Bergen is usually not as cold as some of the other places since Bergen , Stavanger are coastal towns, and moreover they are in the southern part of Norway even if it is called "Vestlandet". It gets colder in Oslo than Bergen, and colder in a very inland place such as Lillehammer.

Buy some good expensive warm thermal clothes or similiar and cover yourself from top to toe because you dont want to challenge Mother Nature!

If you buy a bike you can only use it in summer, and the western part of Norway where you will be staying, Bergen & surrounding area will have a rugged terrain and it's not pancake-flat like Denmark. I have not been to Bergen, but public transportation in Norway is first-class , the main problem is that unlike Switzerland where almost every village is connected to a train station, then this is not the case in Norway - so the public transportation system in Norway is better than it's infrastructure - it is expensive and difficult to build railways in Norway so it is not so extensive as you would otherwise think. However the main cities are connected with trains apart from Tromsø in the far north, and you need to be careful when hiking in the mountains or rural areas - check all bus times and so on, they might not come regularly.