Mount Ulriken, Bergen, Norway Photos and Poem

Hi, it’s Jack Wolfpac, legendary independent travel correspondent at the Greenygrey, and poet. Marc Latham this morning posted a blog and poem about returning to civilisation from the wilderness so it was right up my street… or mountain path.

Returning to Bergen from Mount Ulriken 

Greenygrey provides first aid kit on Mount Ulriken.

Marc posted a blog with several snowy mountains and waterfalls photos about returning from Mount Ulriken to Bergen on travel25years.wordpress.com.

Marc unexpectedly returned not to the path he’d ascended the mountain on, but to one he’d nearly visited a few days previously, when a tunnel ended his random ramble.

Poem about Returning to Humanity from Wilderness

Greenygrey for the future.

Writing up that blog reminded Marc of a poem he’d recently written about the joys of returning to human civilisation from the wilderness, so he published it on fmpoetry.wordpress.com.

The poem contrasts with the previous poem published on the website, which had a theme of the joys of isolation within wilderness. There’s lots more explanation over on fmpoetry, but here’s the poem:

Lights of Life, Homes to Humanity

waterfalls, willows, wheels
fireworks outshine city neon
enlightened valley
signs of humanity
on New Year’s Eve
through canyons weave
weary travellers emerge tunnel
poured from natural funnel

enjoyed time’s contemplation, downhill to destination

memories of my species
hive aura buzz oozes
entering concrete civilisation
time of peak imagination
dogs of wolves
wildcat shadows
skyscrapers mirror mountain memories
avenues, alleys, abodes

Mirror Poem about Civilisation and Wilderness

Marc Latham was writing up his return to civilisation from Bergen’s Mount Ulriken on the travel25years.wordpress.com blog when it reminded him of a Folding Mirror poem he’d written previously but not published. So he thought this was an ideal time to publish the poem and have a simultaneous blogcast.

The Joys of Leaving and Returning 

It is also timely as a contrasting partner to the previous poem published on this site. That poem had a being independent with nature theme, while this one has a joys of returning to humanity theme.

Neither emotion and experience is independent of each other, and Marc hasn’t decided to opt for one or the other before or since writing them, or moved in preference for one or the other. Ideally, he’d like to spend six months in the wild and six months writing it up.

What Goes Up, Must Come Down

To Marc and many humans they are two sides of the same coin; fitting in with the folding mirror theme of this site, and the greenygrey theme of Marc’s main site. Some people don’t want to live much with humanity; some can’t live without humanity; but most balance times of independence and company pretty evenly. Sometimes it’s nice to escape human civilisaton, and sometimes it’s nice to return.

As well as telling of the joys of returning to humanity the poem also mirrors the city with nature in the two halves.

Lights of Life, Homes to Humanity

waterfalls, willows, wheels
fireworks outshine city neon
enlightened valley
signs of humanity
on New Year’s Eve
through canyons weave
weary travellers emerge tunnel
poured from natural funnel

enjoyed time’s contemplation, downhill to destination

memories of my species
hive aura buzz oozes
entering concrete civilisation
time of peak imagination
dogs of wolves
wildcat shadows
skyscrapers mirror mountain memories
avenues, alleys, abodes

Blog about return from Mount Ulriken, Bergen, Norway.

Marc Latham’s central site is the Greenygrey (http://www.greenygrey.co.uk), and he has books available on Smashwords and Amazon (http://www.amazon.com/author/marclatham).

 

G8 and Mexican Gray Wolf News and Poetry

G8
think they’re great
but they ain’t as quaint
as sw-love being an
anagram for wolves
with Mexican grays
a reminder of the old ways
surviving with the help
of conservationists
raising Arizona
to wildlife nirvana

Mexican Grey Wolves Released 

English: Shot at the Minnesota Zoo. A critically endangered Mexican Gray Wolf is kept captive for breeding purposes. Less than 15 Mexican Wolves are currently estimated to survive in the wild. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Hi, it’s William Wolfsworth, poetry correspondent at the Greenygrey. Hope you don’t mind my above new poem, combining the news that the G8 are meeting today and tomorrow in Ireland with great gray wolf news from USA Today that more endangered Mexican gray wolves are being released in Arizona, south-west U.S.A. There’s only about 70 Mexican gray wolves left.

To complete my poetry and news, with a combination of the two, Marc Latham has also published another Bergen, Norway-inspired nature topic Folding Mirror poem on fmpoetry.wordpress.com. Here’s the poem; there’s more explanation and a couple of photos over on fmpoetry:

Water Landscape, Mountain Canvas

sky spoke an ancient tale
in snowflakes and raindrops
sign language
wind written
on mountain arms
warmed by trees

nature’s cold beauty, interpreting warm message

water and land
intriguing relationship bond
misty apparition
delivering reminder
while replenishing forest waterfalls
best in life is free

Bergen Inspired Mirror Poem Writes Nature’s Language

Marc Latham’s recent Essentially Water, Landing Dependent mirror poem was inspired by watching snow and rain falling at the same time, depending on the water’s altitude. His latest Folding Mirror poem was inspired by writing up that day in Bergen on his travel25years blog.

Nature’s Language Poems

So what started as a visual snow and rain idea, and then developed into a metaphor about the British class system, now has a third dimension; returning to the visual, as Folding Mirror poems have two halves either side of a folding middle.

As Marc looked at the photo of another storm over Sandviken on the same day he thought of nature writing a message with snow and rain. He thought it might be a totally original idea, although suspected not, and the latter thought was proved true, as he found a narrated Nature’s Language poem on YouTube.

But the writing with snow and rain is still original as far as Marc knows; and he thinks that little additions to existing ideas is about all writers and poets can expect in the twenty-first century. Here’s the poem, and a couple of relevant photos; the first one was where he was sitting when he had the first poem idea:

Water Landscape, Mountain Canvas

sky spoke an ancient tale
in snowflakes and raindrops
sign language
wind written
on mountain arms
warmed by trees

nature’s cold beauty, interpreting warm message

water and land
intriguing relationship bond
misty apparition
delivering reminder
while replenishing forest waterfalls
best in life is free

 Marc Latham’s central site is the Greenygrey (http://www.greenygrey.co.uk), and he has books available on Smashwords and Amazon (http://www.amazon.com/author/marclatham).

Bergen’s Bryggen Old Docks Unesco Site Photos

Hi, it’s Jack Wolfpac, back with the second part of yesterday and today’s double-day simultaneous Bergen city blogcast with the travel25years blog. Today, that blog has (link to site) colourful photos of some sparkling buildings in Bergen’s UNESCO site old docks of Bryggen, while this blog focuses on the greenygrey ones in and around Bryggen.

Bergen’s Bryggen and Neighbouring Areas Photos 

The second and third photos are from the Old Town a little behind Bryggen, and fourth and fifth towards the pedestrian area from Bryggen, but all are either in Bryggen or within easy walking distance.

After my camera ran out of batteries on Day 3 I returned on Day 4 to get the other side of the people’s monument, which is photo 4.

Greenygrey Interesting Background Features

Eagle-eyed greenygreyliens might spot a double greenygrey in this double-day blogcast in photo 5, with the statue in the foreground and roof in the background.

In photo 6 you can see the Floibanen funicular in the background. This is a popular tourist attraction providing transport up to Mount Floyen (320 metres) for a good view over Bergen.

You can see larger images by clicking on them.

travel25years Bryggen photos

Bergen is Burgundy and Greenygrey in Norway

Hi, it’s Jack Wolfpac, legendary travel correspondent at the Greenygrey. When I travelled to Bergen recently I expected it to be all burgundy coloured. So I was delighted to see there was a fine selection of greenygrey. Maybe it’s Burgundy in France that is burgundy?

Bergen Greenygrey Photos

In a double-day simultaneous blogcast with Marc Latham’s travel25years blog we’ve divided the photos into pre-Bryggen (the UNESCO site old docks) today, and Bryggen tomorrow; and greenygrey photos here and non-greenygrey ones over at the travel25years blog; although there is some greenygrey in those too!

So hopefully you’ll visit both sites on both days… there’s also a Bergen south blog preceding today’s blog over on travel25years that I haven’t had time to report here; and it includes a sunbeam through storm photo I like.

But don’t rush over yet, because here’s our pre-Bryggen greenygrey Bergen photos (you can see larger images by clicking on the photos):

Edvard Greig statue under greenygrey roof.

Ole Bull statue.

Logen theatre statue.

Totem pole in greenygrey setting in Nordnesparken, Bergen’s western promontory.

Haakon’s Hall, inside Bergenhus Fortress; greenygrey dating from the 13th century.

Link to: travel25years pre-Bryggen

Arriving in Bergen, Finding Hostel, Climbing Mount Ulriken

Hi, it’s Jack Wolfpac, legendary independent travel correspondent at the Greenygrey. Marc Latham has posted a couple of blogs about climbing Mount Ulriken over two days over on his new blog travel25years.wordpress.com

The first day he was just hiking up to his hostel; then, after a great sunset viewed from the hostel, half way up the mountain, he completed the walk to the peak the next morning.

Here’s a treble taster of the two blogs:

Travel 25 Years Starts with Haugesund, Norway Flight

Hi, it’s Jack Wolfpac, legendary travel correspondent at the Greenygrey. I’m delighted to see that my human parallel Jack Kerouac was mentioned in Marc Latham’s new WordPress blog website Travel 25 Years‘s About page.

Flying into Haugesund, Western Norway

Marc is blogging photos and some background information and description from his twenty-five years of travelling, after just completing his anniversary tour.

He is blogging it back from his most recent journey, so started with his flight into Haugesund, western Norway, homeland of the Vikings. The city is about three or four hours south of Bergen by ferry, or a bus journey that includes a ferry trip.