The old restored Hanseatic League waterfront warehouses situated on Bryggen street on the north side of Bergen's harbour are iconic. They are the subject of many paintings, posters and postcards. Most have now been fully restored and have been turned into shops, restaurants, cafes and bars.

Many are painted the traditional dark shades of red, orange and yellow. The paint protects the outer fabric of each wooden building from the buffeting of the rain, wind, ice and snow of North Sea winter storms. Before the discovery of modern chemical pigmentation the Scandinavians used the byproducts of the mining industry to colour their paint. The word Brygeen means 'Wharf'.

Bergen's merchants joined the Hanseatic League in 1360 and left in 1775. The league was also known as Hansa or Hanse. What was it? The best general description is that it was an organisation of trading cites on the Baltic and North Sea coast. They worked together to protect their commercial and defensive collective interests by abiding to shared trading agreements.

Members trading with other members had access to more markets, less taxes and better prices. There have been merchants trading on the Bergen Bryggen wharf for over 900 years. The warehouses have been given UNESCO Heritage listing protection. The Hanseatic League started in Lubeck on the northern coast of Germany. The Bergen harbour warehouse area used to known as Tyskebryggen which meant German Quay.

The preserved wooden warehouses stretch back for some distance from the seaward facing high gabled frontages. They have a unique architectural style that echoes the old Viking long houses. If you arrive in Bergen on a cruise boat or the Norwegian Hurtigruten postal boat and only have a few hours in port then spend your time walking around the timbered Bryggen warehouse shop fronts that have survived for centuries.

They now house restaurants, art galleries, craft and souvenir shops. This is one of the best ways to get a quick taste of old Bergen. Make sure you explore the back alleyway shops, bars and coffee houses. The best time to take a photograph is an hour before sunset on a sunny day or very early in the morning as the warehouse frontages seem to glow in a warm hue. They act as a landmark for the city of Bergen and are one of the most famous images of Norway.

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