A short stroll through Kristiansand

1. #1
Kristiansand and Kilden
Kristiansand
• Principal city in Southern Norway
• 68,000 inhabitants
• an industrial city
• university city
• summer destination for Norwegians
• home of the Dyreparken (Zoo)
• military city until end of the Cold War
• area around Silokai is changing
Kilden
• Kilden means: “The Source”
• 100,000 oak boards used in facade
• the facade is known as the “tutu”
• oak, stone, and lobsters exported

2. #2
Fish Market and Wharf
•opened in 1997
•built in traditional styles and painted in traditional colors (red and ochre)
•popular with locals and tourists
•the daily fish catch is on sale in the market

3. #3
Fish Market
•live lobsters and fish in tanks
•brown crabs, prawns, dried fish, and salmon are very popular local seafood
•
•be sure to count your guests after they exit the Fish Market!

4. #4
Gravane
•to “grave” is to dig
•the channel was dug out by hand
•it was dug so ships could travel from one harbor to another
•the house was built in the late 1700’s
•a merchant family built the house
•expensive black glazed tiles from Holland
•one roof tile was traded for one lobster when the house was built

5. #5
The Kjell Nupen Vase
•made by local artist: Kjell Nupen
•a short mention of Nupen is made here, more is explained at the fountain

6. #6
Kjell Nupen Sculpture Park, Sjøhuset, and Strand Promenande
• made by local artist: Kjell Nupen
• created for the 350 year anniversary of Kristiansand in 1991
• Kjell Nupen studied in Germany, and has some famous works in Holland
• Nupen died in 2014
• He was known for his “Nupen Blue”
Sculpture Park
Sjøhuset
• built in 1892 to salt fish
• today it is a popular restaurant
Strand Promenade
• 1 kilometer long
• popular housing area
• corner flat sold for 6.5 million kroner

7. #7
Bellevue House Garden and Guest Harbor
• last bit of property purchased to open the new strand promenade
• the garden is presented as it appeared when it was made.
Bellevue Garden
Guest Harbor
• visitors come from all over Europe
• there are services and utilities for the guests

8. #8
A short History Lesson, Christiansholm Fortress, and the Quarantine Hospital on Odderøya
• founded in 1641 by Christian IV, King of Denmark
• founded to protect the Flekkerøy Harbor
• Christian IV needed money for his wars, so he taxed the exports
• passing ships had to pass Kristiansand
• Kristiansand is built on a sandbank, therefore: “Christian’s Sand”
• Kristiansand was easy to defend due to water on 3 sides
Kristiansand’s History
Christiansholm Fortress
• finished in 1672
• during the Napoleanic War the British attacked Kristiansand
• Christiansholm’s cannons fired on the British and chased the away
• in use until the late 1800’s
Odderøya Quarantine Hospital
• built in the early 1800’s
• built to quarantine those with highly infectious diseases
• built on the heights to avoid “germs”
• Kristiansand was influenced by ideas from mainland Europe, unlike other places in Norway (such as Oslo)
• many people were saved from disease

9. #9
Bernt Balchen Statue
• Bernt Balchen was born in 1899
• he was one of the pioneers of aviation
• served with the US Army in WWII
• an important polar aviator
• Balchen was the pilot of the second successful Atlantic crossing

10. #10
The Germania Stones, Tangen, Scandic Hotel, and Aquarama
• the granite blocks in this part of the small boat harbor were intended
for Hitler’s “Germania”
• the stones came from Fjæreheia Quarry, outside of Kristiansand
The Germania Stones
Tangen
• newest housing area in Kristiansand
• exclusive, and expensive, apartments
Scandic Hotel and Aquarama
• the Scandic is the newest, and largest, hotel in town
• Aquarama is the new water park in town, it is next to the city beach

11. #11
Østrestandgate, the Fire of 1892, and the General’s House
• Kristiansand’s streets form a 6 X 9 grid
• the pattern is from 1641
Østrestandgate
The Fire of 1892
• 1/3 of Kristiansand burned down in July, 1892
• after 1892, only brick, or concrete,buildings were allowed
• many architectural styles
• Kristiansand was quickly re-constructed after the fire
The General’s House
• this house belonged to the commander of the Kristiansand garrison
• there are cannon balls on the entrance steps

12. #12
The ugliest building in Kristiansand
• the Police Station
• the local prison
• second largest building in Kristiansand

13. #13
Kvadraturen Skolesenter
• this is a high school with 1400 students
• the largest school in the center of Kristiansand
• students can study university preparatory subjects as well as learn
practical trades

14. #14
Posebyen
• “pose” means “bag” in English
• the oldest residential part of Kristiansand
• there are 10 remaining blocks of original houses
• “pose” comes from either the French “repose”, or the tax man’s bag
• a poor, crowded area, sometimes over 20 people per house
• even in 1900, there were 400 pigs in Posebyen
• most of the houses are white because white showed that you were rich

15. #15
House #64, Gyldenløvesgate
• built around1750, this house is one of the oldest in Posebyen
• the older houses are simpler
• the siding (planking) is vertical, seen on older houses in eastern Norway
• because of the rougher weather, houses in western Norway have horizontal
siding
• the two styles of siding meet here in Kristiansand

16. #16
The Otra River and Lund
• “Otra” means “otter” (although there are no otters in the river today)
• timber was floated down the river from the forests in the hills
• salmon fishing is very popular on the river
The Otra River
Lund
• built post WWII
• very popular living area with new housing being constructed on the water

17. #17
125 Skippergate
• the windows have “gossip mirrors”
• there are typical small benches on the front entrance
• post WWII city planners decided to destroy the 18 remaining blocks of
Posebyen, however after destroying 8 they stopped and preserved the
remaining 10 blocks
• electricity was very cheap until Norway started to compete on the European
market
• many people use wood to heat their houses now

18. #18
The Corner of Gyldenløvesgate and Holbergsgate
• following the 1795 fire in Copenhagen, houses built there were designed with
cut corners to allow the fire brigade to pass by
• by 1797, the first houses in Posebyen appear with the stylish new cut corners
• many of the houses had shops on the first floor and residences on the 2nd
floor.

19. #19
Håndverkeren Restaurant
• a former “lobster” house
• built in 1917 by a factory owner from Kristiansand
• now it is a very popular restaurant and pub

20. #20
The “Heart” of Kristiansand
• the geographic center of the “kvadraturen”
• the symmetrical structure of Kristiansand was very important to it’s
Renaissance influenced designers
• this was the location of the “Kagfjellet” which was where prisoners were
punished

21. #21
Kristiansand Market Square
• most of the buildings were built in the 1800’s
• the new City Hall
• the old Fire Station and Tourist Office (where there are restrooms for your
guests)

22. #22
Kristiansand Cathedral
• Markensgate is the shopping street in the background
• have maps available
• describe how to return to the ship