The busy port and commercial town of Ålesund in western Norway lies on the islands of Nørvøy, Aspøy and Hessa, far out in the coastal fringe of skerries. It is Norway's principal fishing port, with fish-processing plants, as well as shipyards and clothing factories. After a great fire in 1904 which destroyed almost all the town's old timber houses it was rebuilt in stone, and has many Art Nouveau house-fronts dating from that period.
The numerous houses built in Jugendstil architectural style were completed between 1904 and 1907 by 20 master builders and 30 Norwegian architects.
The city of Alesund joined the Art nouveau network, designed to safeguard the architectural style.
To the east of Åelsund's park is Aksla, a hill 189m/620ft high with a steep path running up to the top. On the nearer summit is a fjellstue (mountain inn) from which there are fine views of the town, the sea, the islands and the hills of Sunnmøre to the southeast. The fjellstue can also be reached on a road which branches off Borgundvei.
The harbor of Ålesund lies between two islands, facing north and sheltered by the Skansen peninsula which projects from Nørvøy. On Skansenkai is the landing-stage used by vessels of the Hurtigrute (fast coastal service).
On the east side of the town of Ålesund in a beautiful park is a 7m/23ft high standing stone carved with a likeness of Kaiser Wilhelm II - commemorating the help given by Germany after the 1904 fire. Also in the park is a statue of Rollo (Rolf the Ganger), the conqueror of Normandy, who came from the Ålesund area; the statue was presented by the city of Rouen in 1911.
The two main islands on which the town of Ålesund is built, Aspøy and Nørvøy, are linked by a bridge. Features of interest on Aspøy are the church (1909; fine frescoes and stained glass) and an aquarium. On Nørvøy is the town center, with hotels, the Post Office and the Municipal Museum.
On a peninsula 4km/2.5mi east of Ålesund town center lies the village of Borgund, with an 11th century church rebuilt in its original form after its destruction in the 1904 fire. The church is a mixture of Romanesque and Gothic, with carvings in Baroque style. Also of interest is the open-air Sunnmøre Museum, with old houses and boats and a section devoted to the fishing industry.
Southwest of Ålesund, on the island of Runde, is the most southerly seabird cliff in Norway, the nesting-place of some 700,000 birds of 40 different species.
Read More
Read Less
Runde, Alesund
Alesund
