Grouchy Imp said:
Ah, heading to Tromsø, eh? Lovely! I spent a year taking a psychology course at the university there, and have pined for it ever since.
Most important thing about the city is that everything interesting takes place on the Tromsø Island, not the mainland, nor the island to the west of it (connected by bridge). The island itself is approximately 30 (max) km from the southernmost point to the northernmost point, and shorter from west to east, so it's a small place, at around 70 000 inhabitants (around 13 000 students).
It does get northern lights in the winter (in fact, I met a couple of dutch guys who took a road trip up there to see it, as well as check out the university's science faculty), and something less known, midnight sun. And polar twilight, which is constant darkness. It really messes with your internal clock, I'll tell ya that.
But yes, northern lights are very pretty and very worth it (and there's a northern lights observatory there, I believe, and a planetarium by the uni), and tromsø is a good city.
For an evening meal or other leisure activities, most of everything urban is clustered downtown, on the east end of the island, and even more so on the southern half of the island (albeit the airport is on the western side), but there are good bus connections.
There are a lot of places to eat, drink and dance - possibly all three at the same time - and my personal favorite is 'Blårock' (which means 'Blues rock'). They have orgasmic burgers, good music (rock/grunge/some metal), and beer fresh from the world's northernmost brewery, which you can see from out the window. It's a relaxing place, I'll say that. Still, very...norwegian prices. I can't think of other places I'd recommend right now, but feel free to PM me - or just quote me here - with questions and such.
