Welcome to Norway
Our trip to Norway started out in an amazing and completely unexpected way - we saw the northern lights from our plane while flying over northern Canada. It was the first time either of us had ever seen them, and I wish there was a better way to take pictures. It was a very special start to the trip.
Before we went to Norway, I kept hearing that Oslo wasn’t a must-see and there wasn’t much point in spending more than a day or two there, so I was a little nervous that our two and a half days would be too long. After being there, I’m not upset about our choices. If you’re trying to do all of Norway in a week or two, sure, you can get a feel for the city in a day. But there’s also great food and parks and hiking nearby, and generally plenty to do. It’s relaxing but not boring.
Looking down a street with the palace in the background (photo/Jason Rafal)
Another lovely street (photo/Jason Rafal)
The statues outside of the Oslo city hall (photo/Jason Rafal)
A many-flagged boat in the harbor (photo/Jason Rafal)
Sunset from Aker Brygge (photo/Jason Rafal)
We spent a lot of time wandering through neighborhoods and trying coffee shops. Norway has really consistently good coffee, which was a nice surprise, and the food was great.
We never figured out why these French public toilets were there (photo/Jason Rafal)
A friend at a coffee shop.
Looking down on Mathallen Oslo (photo/Jason Rafal)
We also explored Akershus Fortress, where some of the buildings have been since the 1200s. Something that became clear about Norway when we were there was that everything was originally built in wood and burned down several times over the years, so it’s pretty rare to have a very old building. Old areas, yes, but not as many very old buildings themselves.
Walking between the fortress walls (photo/Jason Rafal)
The telefon booths were very cute. There are about 100 left in the country, and they’re all protected. They still have phones in them, but also free libraries and a plaque telling the story of the booths. They’re charming.
Trying out a telefon booth (photo/Jason Rafal)
As is becoming our habit, we spent some time at Oslo’s botanic garden, which features sprawling grounds, large trees, and beautiful greenhouses showcasing different plant biomes.
The beautiful Palmehuset (photo/Jason Rafal)
A huge drooping flower (photo/Jason Rafal)
A lovely cactus flower in the desert greenhouse (photo/Jason Rafal)
Helicopter seedpod art (photo/Jason Rafal)
A cave of greenery (photo/Jason Rafal)
Another beautiful part of the botanic garden (photo/Jason Rafal)
We also spent some time exploring the Grünerløkka neighborhood, which is a lovely mix of river walks, great food, and amazing art.
Murals and graffiti (photo/Jason Rafal)
One of my favorite murals in the city (photo/Jason Rafal)
The royal palace is a cool experience because while the palace itself is guarded, the grounds are free and open to the public, which adds another giant park to the city’s list. The informational sign even said “Please walk on the grass. Hug the trees - Enjoy!” which is the happiest message I could imagine on a park sign.
Walking through the park to the palace (photo/Jason Rafal)
The Opera House is iconic and wonderful. The sloped roof lets you walk all the way up to the top, where you get a lovely view of the city and the water.
Walking up the opera house (photo/Jason Rafal)
Some of Oslo’s floating saunas from the opera house (photo/Jason Rafal)
Sitting in front of the opera house at sunset (photo/Jason Rafal)
The central library on the left, opera house in the middle, and Munch museum on the right (photo/Jason Rafal)
We also went to see the Oslo central library on the recommendation of our Airbnb host, and it was lovely - open, airy, lots of windows, lots of art, and lots of what people actually need from modern libraries (computers, work spaces, and good areas to hang out and talk with people).
A massive art piece in the central library (photo/Jason Rafal)
On our last day we went to explore the Vigeland park, which is known for its size and its enormous number of statues of naked people. Aside from the giant pillar of bodies, there were various interactions between pairs and triads on top of bridge railings and incorporated into steps. It was fairly weird, but some of the emotional ones were pretty interesting.
Statues at the park (photo/Jason Rafal)
The last thing we did in Oslo was head out to the peninsula that has all the museums. The viking ship museum is unfortunately closed for the next several years while they rebuild it, so we went into the Fram museum, which was also very cool and featured two 19th century polar ships that we could walk through. The fact that someone went to the south pole in 1910 is both fascinating and horrifying to me, and the fact that Admundsen also reached the north pole in 1926 is even crazier. My favorite part of the museum was walking through the ships and seeing the meticulous detail that has been restored to the living quarters, including life sized, realistic mannequins.
Admundsen in his study (photo/Jason Rafal)
The ship’s chef (photo/Jason Rafal)
We were surprised to see they took a piano to the north pole…but entertainment is important on a six-year trip (photo/Jason Rafal)
Early the next morning, we left Oslo and headed very far north.
Tiny elevator self portrait (photo/Jason Rafal)