Back to Scandinavia

Not long after my trip to Finland I went all the way up to Scandinavia again. This time the destination was Oslo in Norway, another country which I had never set foot in. It was mostly a matter of opportunity and timing: a friend was travelling there in that weekend and was still looking for a travelling partner. After checking the price of the tickets, which were amazingly cheap (the train to Faro was more expensive than the flight to Oslo), I didn't need to do much more thinking before hopping on the plane.

Unfortunately that was the last I heard of cheap stuff: everything in Oslo is crazy expensive. Still, Norwegians earn more than enough to afford it so it should be a nice place to live. The city itself is full of colour, not like the usual dull streets of gray buildings you see everywhere. It also features quite its share of green and the whole city seems nature friendly somehow.

Speaking of friendly, Norwegians are quite friendly as well, and always willing to help and/or give directions. They also speak perfect English which is useful if, like myself, your Norwegian is limited to a couple of pickup lines and some other random and ackward words. Unfortunately, there's no way you'll be able to guess the pronunciation of any Norwegian name through its spelling, which hinders your chances of getting useful answers. It allows us to play a funny game though; when riding on the bus/metro try listenning to the names of the stations and match them to the corresponding spelling. I warn you: it's a losing game (until you get the first one, that is).

Having heard quite a lot about the 'Nordic functional design' I was quite curious about the hotel. I wasn't disappointed: the lobby and restaurant were cozy and inviting and it didn't look cheap at all. (Well, it was only "cheap" in Norwegian terms). The room itself was a paradigmatic case of functionality: though quite small, it somehow managed to feature 2 beds, a desk, a sofa and 2 plasma TVs. Much more "functionality" than what I am used to see in larger rooms. The staff was quite nice, and it was rather funny when they mistook us for an Italian couple since neither of us was Italian. Neither are we a couple for that matter. Breakfast at the restaurant was amazing, and so was dinner (scary prices though). City center is around 7minutes by bus. In case you ever go there I can vividly recommend the PS Hotell in Oslo.

In terms of sightseeing, Oslo is a very interesting city with lots of things to see. Way too big to see in 3 days, even for a long distance runner such as myself. With the Oslo Pass you can travel anywhere and go into (almost) all of the museums for a very good price. I'd definately recommend not missing


• Frognerparken (in the picture). Featuring hundreds of statues from one of the famous sculpture Vigeland this park is a perfect merge of natural and man-made beauty.
• Aker Brygge. The harbour area is one fo the most beautiful areas in the city. You have a nice view over to the fjords, as well as Akershus Castle. The city hall must have made its arquitect really proud, and inside you can appreciate beautiful works of art. Don't forget to look out of the windows oveer to Aker Brygge's plaza and the fjords. Close by you can find other buildings of interest, both in social and arquitectural terms: the parliament, the national theatre, the university and the royal palace. You can also see some buildings still under re-construction; a painful reminder of the events in 2011, when a lone terrorist tried to assassinate the prime minister before inflicting the massacre in Utoya.
• Akershus Castle. You can visit some of the interior rooms which are still being used in oficial meetings and important events. The castle seems to fit with its surrounding environment marvellously well for such a massive and purposeful structure. Inside the gardens and its surroundings you can find some monuments to the deceased over the two world wars.
• Bygdoy. Often referred to as Oslo's museum Peninsula due to the large number of museums you can find in there it is a must for any traveller. Even though you can get there by bus, I'd recommend taking the ferry since the trip is much more pleasant, with Aker Brygge over one side of the (small) ship and the fjords to the next. I've visited the Norwegian Folk Museum, the Polar Ship Fram Museum, the Kon Tiki Museum and the Viking Boats Museum and I really can't pick one as the best. They were also quite original: not the usual stuff you see in a place like that. There are many more probably worth a stop, but time really is precious if you're staying in Oslo for only three days.
• Opera House. The building has a very peculiar detail: the ceiling is not flat such that, from the outside, you can walk all the way to the top of the building for a nice view. On your way back, make sure to walk by the new office buildings next to the railways: they're trully impressive and a clear sign of Norway's blooming economy. I was fortunate enough to have one of my friends working at the DNB bank and so I was able to see it from the inside. Whatever you end up doing in your life, no doubt you'd love working in a place like that.
• Holmenkollen Ski Jump. Even for one who loves skiing as much as myself, the height of this jump is too scary to have any desire of ever trying it. Still, you can go all the way for an amazing view and visit the ski museum while you're at it. If you can afford it, it should be nice to use the new slide apparatus from the top to the bottom.
• Nobel Peace Center. Perhaps not one of the city's most popular attractions, the center is definately worth a visit. I spent around one hour in there and it was clearly too little. Besides historical perspectives and information on all laureates with the Nobel Peace Prize, the museum also manages to display a modern appeal by having extremely up to date exhibitions and high-tech looking human-machine interfaces. 

What more can I say... Norwegian food is great (healthy and tasty, perfect combination) as long as you can afford it. Norwegian women are stunning so keep your eyes open.

All in all it was a great trip and I still managed to visit some friends who were kind enough to host (and feed!) me for a night. Hopefully I'll come back to Oslo someday for some more in-depth sightseeing.


Filipe Baptista de Morais