2016 May Oslo

Moving from Iceland with an entire population of 330,000 to Oslo where the city has a population of 620,000 was like moving from Iowa to Philadelphia.  Oslo is bustling and modern with much to keep the tourist occupied.  We arrived on May 14th and had 6 nights booked at the Oslo Apartments.  It was just what we needed with refrigerator, stove and washer.  I was delighted to be able to do laundry, but had some trouble finding laundry detergent.  I did my first 3 loads in fabric softener, before I translated the label and realized I had not gotten laundry detergent.

We were maybe a 10 minute walk from the waterfront in the center of Oslo.  Close to the trains, trams and buses.

Oslo waterfront

We purchased a two day Oslo pass that covered public transportation and most museums.  Off we went to experience Norway.

Our first outing was to the Bygdoy peninsula for the Norwegian Folk Museum.  In addition to the museum with artifacts representing the cultural history of Norway, there is an open-air museum with 150 buildings relocated from rural towns and districts.

Building from a farm and a Stave church from the 1200's were among the exhibits at the Folk Museum

The Kon-Tiki Museum, The Fram museum and the Norwegian Maritime Museum put us in touch with the seafaring spirit and the most famous Norwegian explorers.  Men like  Fridtjof Nansen, Otto Sverdrup, Roald Amundsen, and Thor Hyerdahl and ships like the Fram  the Kon-Tiki, and the Ra.  I had recently read "Ice Ship:  the Epic Voyages of the Polar Adventurer Fram" by Charles W. Johnson. Knowing what that ship and the men on it went through, I was honored to stand on its deck.

Thor Hyerdahl went on expeditions to show what ancient people were capable of with boats made of balsa wood (Kon-Tiki) and reeds (Ra and RaII).  He proved that travel across the ocean was possible in simple boats.

Thor Heyerdahl with reed boat, Ra II and balsa boat, Kon-Tiki

Joanne at the helm of the Fram - the actual boat that was used in the exploration of the Artic and Antarctic

Holmenkollen is the location of a large ski jumping hill a bit northwest of Oslo center.  The museum documents the evolution in ski design as well as ski clothing.  There was plenty of information on Norwegian ski champs and a crazy film on "free form" skiers.  The final thrill was to ride to the top of the jump and take in the view.  I don't know how Eddie the Eagle got up the courage to take up ski jumping. 

We were like tourists on steroids.  We would visit one site and then hop a train to the next.  We wanted to make sure we got our money's worth from our Oslo Pass.  I think ours paid for itself the first day.  Public transportation was  convenient, on time, and clean.

Frogner Park is the site of 212 sculptures distributed across 80 acres of park.  Gustav Vigeland's lifework is displayed in the park.  The nearby museum covers his life, how he made the molds, and how the sculptures were made.  He had a team of stone masons who helped with the carving using his molds as guides.

The city of Oslo made a very good deal when they offered Vigeland a studio and residence in exchange for him donating nearly all his works, previous and future, to the city.  He moved into the new studio in 1924 and continued to work there until his death in 1943.  The monolith, at ~ 51' high, is the tallest sculpture.  It was carved from a single granite block.  It is said that the column shows man's longing and yearning for the spiritual and divine. Or does it show that to get to the top you have to climb over a lot of People?   I included the runner for all my running friends.  The "circle of life" is a bronze sculpture and possibly the most technically difficult.  Wouldn't it be wonderful if we could all live our lives realizing how interdependent we are? 

That's what happens in the park, you become a philosopher.

Norwegian Independence day, the 17th of May arrived.  We had tickets to watch the Children's parade from in front of the Royal Palace.  More than 60,000 children and teachers march through the city to the Royal Palace to be reviewed by the King, Crown Prince and their family.  Norwegian flags are in abundance as are folks dressed in their finest bunads (traditional folk costumes).  We walk much of the parade route early to get to our seats in the 3rd row.  Trivia:  The crown prince was educated at Berkley.  No one knew who he was until graduation when he was called to accept his diploma with his correct title.

A little history:  Denmark controlled Norway for over 400 years.    This was due to the devastation caused by the bubonic plague in the mid 1300's.  By the 1800's Norway had grown strong again and a new nationalism was taking hold.  On May 17, 1814 The Norwegians signed their constitution.  However they were forced to unite with Sweden from 1814 until 1905.

May 18, 2016
This beautiful day made a trip through the Botanical Gardens seem like a nice interlude.  Rhododendrons were blooming and the whimsical maple seed pieces made me smile as I remembered cursing them when they filled our gutters in Pennsylvania.

With our Oslo Pass expired, it was time to do all the free (except for the Nobel Peace Center) city buildings that we could walk to.  City hall with its two towers is very recognizable down near the waterfront.  Murals on the inside walls interpret Norway's history.  The Nobel Peace Center covers the life of Alfred Nobel, a dynamite expert who willed his estate to creating the Nobel Peace Prize.  The actual prize is presented in City Hall.  The Oslo Cathedral had some pretty amazing organ pipes.  The Parliament building had no tours the day we were there, but we enjoyed the architecture from outside.

The only art museum we visited was the Munch museum.  The exhibit compared and contrasted Munch with Robert Mapplethorpe.  Munch, a Norwegian, died in 1944 .  Mapplethorpe, and American was born in 1946.  Munch's famous painting "Scream" is not at the Munch Museum but rather at the National Gallery in Oslo.

While we didn't see everything we felt we did Oslo justice.  Our last night we were running out of steam, so we opted to go to a movie at the Saga Kino.  We knew that English language films would be in English with Norwegian subtitles.  We found the movie "Mother's Day" a comedy with Jennifer Aniston, Julia Roberts and Kate Hudson along with a host of other stars.  It wasn't great, but we were comfortable and laughing.  A good way to end our Oslo visit!