Eating the Whale

Looking for what's real in Norway's second city

Bergen sits snug around its Fjord. For most of the three days I spent there, its sky was a bright blue, its air clear, its sun crystalline. The locals were disquieted and we – visitors from the rest of Europe and America – were delighted. From the large windows of artists' studios, we watched the calm sea, said “I could live here.”

On the last day – clou…