More photos coming soon...

Sorry for the lack of photos lately. I haven't been able to take any pictures the last few days. More photos coming soon....

Bridge refurbish

I think that I mentioned that the city centre bridge was going to be refurbished this year. Well, now they have started and one side of the bridge is now under reconstruction. Here is a shot so you can compare when they are finished.

End of a series - Walking the ladder

I have told you about the different elevators that they used in the mines, and also mentioned that they had to climb ladders in the beginning. This shot shows how the ladders were placed in the mines. All ladders went down to a kind of platform where they could get to the next ladder. You can imagne that doing this for a couple of hundred meters or more is quite hard.

Working in the mine 2

This shot is taken from a part of an exhibition inside the mines that shows the visitors different work situations. It wasn't explained exactly what these to guys were doing, but they might be working with drills to get further into the mountain, or they could be repairing and fixing the tools used to drill. Sorry for the "spots" on the photography but it was taken through a plexi glass window that made some reflections.

New elevator

This is the second generation of lifts in the mine. This one at least start to look like what we think of as an elevator today. They stuffed four to five people inside this elevator, and on the way down one or two people were riding along on top of it as well. At least they could relax a bit more in this elevator compared to the one in the previous post.

The first elevator

This is the first type of motorized elevator that they had in the mines. Before this one the workers had to claim ladders up and down which caused quite a few accidents.

As you can see there are two solid beams with a platform on each. The beams are much longer than you can see on this shot, and they have platforms every ten meters or so. When one beam goes up the other one goes down. So if a worker wanted to go down in the mine he stepped on to a platform on the beam going down. Just before the beam started to go up again he switched over to the platform of the other beam that now was about to go down. Working his way from one beam to the other he could than go down into the mine.

This kind of elevator was called the "Fahrkunst". It is a german word and would translate into something like "The art of travelling", which is a good description since it's not the easiest kind of elevator to use.

Ready to explore

I just had to post this picture of my daughter (to the left) and her cousin. They were really exited to explore the inside of the mines. They even enjoyed the bright yellow helmets :o)

Where is the path...

It's obviously very dark in the mines, so you only see a few meters ahead when walking on the different paths inside. Considering that there sometimes might appear holes in the "floor" it was a risky business walking there. The tourist path is made safe by a boardwalk as you can see.

Working in the mine

This shot shows one of the tasks that had to be done in the mine. Lots of stone had to be removed from the mine to the outside. Before they had engines to pull the wagons, they had to do it manually.

No way back

The doors are securely closed, the train has started, and a few meters ahead total darkness is waiting.... (a bit scary, isn't it?).

The train ride takes about 10 minutes. Everybody is warned about the danger of putting head or arms outside the wagon. And with good reason, because at some parts of the train ride the mountain walls are just centimeters away from the wagon. The ride is very noisy and bumpy but it's exiting as well.

Start of a series - Into the mines

As I mentioned in a post the other day, I said I would try to get some photos from inside the mines. Well, my wife went in today with one of her brothers and his family, and a family from England that was visiting them. I had to work but I asked her to take som pictures.

This shot shows the train and the wagons that take you into the mines. The wagons are quite small and it's a bumpy ride. The ride is a bit over 2 kilometers and takes about 10 minutes. It's quite noisy as well so you get free ear plugs :o)

Sakkerhusene 2

This is one of the other houses that together makes what we call Sakkerhusene. You can see that it's not a modern style, but I like the way they built the houses back in those days as well.

Mining Wagon

This is the kind of wagons they used to move the remains after digging in the mines. It was not until the later years that these more modern wagons were used, but I'm not sure exactly what year they started to use them.

Sakkerhusene

This is one of three buildings called "Sakkerhusene". I don't have any translation to english. The buildings were built by the Silver Mines as a place to live during the week for the workers that had to long way home to travel back and forth each day. Today the buildings are used for arranging dinners/parties, and there is a museum there as well.

Magician

We went out with for pizza with some friends the other day, and stumbled upon a clown/magician that was having a show nearby. He was quite good so we watched his show. Here he is *cutting* a volunteers arm in two with knives.

The Mine Entrance

One of the big tourist attractions here in Kongsberg is to visit the mine called "Kongens Gruve", that translated would be something like "The Kings Mine". This shot shows the entrance where the small train takes you about 2,3 kilometers into the mountain. At arrival you can enjoy the frisky temperature of 6 degrees Celsius (which stay the same all year) and the thought of the 330 meters of mountain above your head. If I get chance I will bring you some photos from inside the mine later.

Old Kongsberg

Here is a shot from one of the older parts of Kongsberg. The house owners in this area has kept the old buildings as close to their original looks as possible, and I think they have done a good job as well. Photo courtsey of my dad.

Fisherman

This statue of a fisherman is placed along the city river a little downstream from the city centre bridge. As you can see of his fishing rod he is about to pull up a nice catch. It is possible to do some real fishing in the river, so if you ever visit, bring your fishing gear. Photo courtesy of my dad.

Bergseminaret

This building is called "Bergseminaret" and was finished in 1786. The building was originally built for the first Seminary for higher education in mining. This seminary was the first of its kind in Europe. Today the building is owned by "Bergverksmuseet" which is a museum for mining etc. here in Kongsberg.

Methodist church

This is the local Methodist Church here in Kongsberg. It's quite old, it was dedicated in 1887 and they did a refurbish of the outside of the building last year. As a personal side note I can mention that may aunt has been organist in the church for over 40 years. She is now 82 years old, but are still playing.

Fountain

Nothing better than to see some water on a hot day. Our warm summer continues so I went looking for some water to take a picture of. This fountain is placed nearby the church. Actually it is right behind where the new stage was placed during the Jazz Festival.

House

Yesterday I had to walk from work to my parents house to pick up our daughter that had been visiting them. I was going to ride my bike but had to walk because of a flat tire. On my way I passed this house where the front side is almost covered with plants. My parents told me that there had been lots of flowers there as well a few days ago. Too bad I didn't get to take a picture of it then.

Rainbow

Because of the heat lately we have had some late afternoon thunderstorms and some rain showers. Yesterday this rainbow appeared just after a short rain shower.

Library

If you ever come to Kongsberg and would like to borrow a book or just read some newspapers, this is the place to go. The library used to be in an old building on the other side of town, but it burned to the ground some years ago. After the fire they rebuild the library here.

Dry weather

We've had a really warm and dry summer so far and that really shows on the city river. This shot is taken from the bridge called Nybrua (translates to something like The New Bridge). The rocky area you see is usually filled with lots of water. We had a small thunderstorm and some rain this afternoon, but it's still really dry.

Festival opening

This picture is also from the opening of the Jazz Festival.

Youth orchestra

Since I've been away on vacation I haven't been able to take new photos, so the next couple of days will be shots from the Jazz Festival early in July.

This shot shows a youth orchestra that played during the opening ceremony. Photo courtesy of my dad.

Troll

In Norway we have many old tales about trolls. According to the tales trolls are turned into stone if they see sunlight. The remains of this tree actually looks a bit like a troll that has been surprised by the sunlight. Photo courtesy of my dad.

Old tree

This old and apparently dead tree is next to a lake not far from my dads cabin. I think it makes an interesting picture. Photo courtesy of my dad.

Big crane

Lots of construction going on around in the city these days. Here is a photo of the biggest crane used right now.

Balloons

This shot was taken by my dad. During the opening of the Jazz Festival they released a bunch of ballons.

Jazz life

The Jazz Festival brings lots of new things to town. Here is a shot from the park where lots of different stuff is for sale during the festival. You can buy clothes, candy, hand made things, rythm instruments and lots more.

Sorry about the lack of posting the last few days, but I have been away on vacation and did not have internet access.

Childrens parade

As usual they have a childrens parade the first day of the jazz festival. This photo shows the start of the parade. Thanks dad for mailing me the photo :o)

Band and stage

I thought this was an interesting view of the *hole in the back* of the new stage and a couple of the members from Buddy Guy's band.

Buddy Guy

Went to a concert with Buddy Guy yesterday. The concert was great. Even though Buddy is around 70 years old he is still going strong, and delivered 100%. I'm not to much into jazz so it's great that they have some blues artists as well. This photo shows Buddy "in action".

Preparing for the festival

Kongsberg Jazzfestival is opening today and the city surroundings has been prepared for the event. Here is one of the decorations from the old part of the city.

City sheeps

These two sheeps are located just a ten minute walk from the city centre. As you can see their wool has recently been cut, which I guess they enjoy since it's been quite hot the last week.

In memory of

This monument is in memory of Christian IV which founded Kongsberg in 1624. It is placed near Konsberg church, not far from the new stage that I have posted photos of earlier.

Bull

This is a bull calf. I'm not sure how old he is but he is very social and loves that people visit him. Right now he is kept in an enclosure just five minutes walk from our house.

Off season - 2

This picture shows a part of our local ski resort. it's quite popular so people come here from large parts of south Norway, as well as tourists from Scandinavia. The big ditch is the Super Halfpipe for snowboarders and twin tip skiers. They do some amazing stuff there in winter.

Off season - 1

Winter sports is quite big here in Kongsberg (for those of you that don't know: Our winter is from early November to late April). This is a photo from our local ski jump area. It looks a bit different now with green grass all over it than it does in winter when it's covered in snow.

City mall construction - update 1

It's about a month since I posted the first photo from the construction site of the new city mall. Here is an update. Not to many changes yet, but it has been a lot of digging and other ground works. I guess it will speed up a bit now.

Toilet transport

Well, for many of you I guess that the summer holidays are coming up soon. If you really *need to go* while travelling, this is your solution. Hook it up, drive on, and *go* anytime you like...

Nice duck

Remember the photo a few weeks back where my daughter was feeding a duck? Well this is a close up of the same duck. The interesting thing about this duck is that it was the only one up in the woods. All the others usually hangs out near the river in the city, but this one had found a new place to find some food as well.

Small building

This little *thing* is hidden away in one of the smaller streets in Kongsberg. It's quite a few years old and I'm not sure what it originally was used for. If anyone have an idea, please let me know.

Birger Ruud

This bronze statue of Birger Ruud is situated in the city centre of Kongsberg. Birger Ruud was ski jump World Champion several times in the years before World War II. Wickipedia and IOC have more information about this great athlete from Kongsberg.

Evening skies

The view from our balcony this evening.

New stage - cool view

As I mentioned the other day, I didn't get the best view of the stage because most of the area around it was closed. Well, now it's open and I think it looks even better from this angle.

Memories from a summer day

The day was hot. The children were playing in the water. After a good meal prepared on the barbeque we heated marshmellows over the coal. Warm, sweet, and perfect....

New stage - part 6

The stage is up! Today they finished the main part of the construction. From this angle you actually don't see the whole stage. There is a part in the back as well, but I couldn't get a picture from a better angle since the area on the sides were closed. More pictures will follow when the festival starts.

New stage - part 5

They have started to lift the top part of the stage off the ground today. This is how it looked around 18:30. I think they will finish the work in a day or two now.