Bergen
Alone

PRACTICAL SAMPLE

Eating alone

Lunch is often a solitary business here and coffee is drunk alone as a matter of course, so the Mathallen counter, a café table held for an hour, a counter seat at Colonialen Jest and a proper table at Bryggeloftet are all unremarkable for one. The Pleasures of the Table covers each, with addresses, booking and timing.

On the practical business of being by yourself all day. Solo travel has a few recurring small problems that nobody writes about, and Bergen handles most of them well. Luggage storage exists in the lockers at the train station, and most hotels will hold a bag for the day between checkout and an evening flight if you ask at the desk. Public toilets are clean, widely available in shopping centers and museums, and often free. Benches are everywhere, including sheltered ones along the harbor. Libraries are warm, free, quiet, and entirely happy to have a visitor sit for two hours, and the main one at Strømgaten is excellent.

A free excerpt from Bergen Alone.