We arrived in Oslo to great temperatures and sunny skies…the warmest we have been since we started this trip! It seems the whole city was out enjoying the weather as well…
We stayed in a great neighborhood just a little ways from the city centre so we bought a pass and used the trams as Oslo is a big city. The public transportation is quite good here with most all the vehicles being electric.
Oslo is the capital city of Norway with a population of around a million people. It is believed that it was first settled as a Viking village in 1000 but was officially declared a city in 1049.
There is a very popular Viking museum in the city which we hoped to visit but is closed and being rebuilt to better hold the exhibits. One of the exhibits is a Viking ship built in 820 that was discovered in a farmer’s field. As we travel through this region from Iceland to here the history of the Vikings has been everywhere…
With Oslo being the capital it has the Royal Palace where the King and Queen reside, it was opened in 1849 and occupies a large space on a hill in the centre of the city…
Norway is a constitutional monarchy with the King being head of state but only having representative and ceremonial powers. The Monarch can trace his ancestry back to the first Viking king who united Norway.
Near the Royal Palace is the Parliament building which is quite grand as well…
We were both impressed with the wide open public spaces we saw in Oslo, from neighborhood parks…
Wide boulevards…
Lots of fountains…
And large and long pedestrian only shopping streets…
Since Oslo is located at the head of a fjord it has a large waterfront which is also very well used by the residents. There were a couple of small sandy beaches filled with people on the weekend…
There were also lots of places for people to have a sauna and then a dip in the harbour…
The waterfront had amazing buildings including the Opera House where you could walk to the top for a view of the harbour…
One of the views from the top…
Nearby was the new Public Library…
And the Munsh museum if you are interested in seeing The Scream, it is the largest art museum in the world dedicated solely to one artist…
Edvard Munch was a world-famous painter and printmaker from Norway. Born in Løten in 1863, Munch was active for more than 60 years and was one of Modernism's most important artists. His best-known work is The Scream, painted in 1893, which is one of the most iconic paintings in modern art.
It is said that it symbolizes the anxiety and suffering of the human condition…
Oslo is a great walking city so we did just that…the walk around the harbour is around 9 Km so we also went to the other side…
Here you can see the cruise ship terminal, many types of boat tours and people just enjoying the day…
Also from the waterfront you can see the Akershus Fortress standing guard over the city…
The building of Akershus Castle and Fortress was commenced in 1299 under king Håkon V. The medieval castle, which was completed in the 1300s, had a strategic location at the very end of the headland, and withstood a number of sieges throughout the ages. King Christian IV (1588-1648) had the castle modernised and converted into a Renaissance castle and royal residence.
One interesting fact is that Occupying German forces seized control of the fortress during World War 11 and it was used as a prison for deserters and other criminals along with Germans opposed to the Nazi system. Some Norwegian resistance members were also imprisoned here.
Another day we took the tram to an amazing sculpture park which attracts more than a million visitors every year. It is the largest sculpture park by a single artist in the world, with more than 200 sculptures in bronze, granite and cast iron by acclaimed Norwegian sculptor Gustav Vigeland, whose realistic work represents the cycle of human life and all its emotions.
There were male, female, young and old in different groups…
Carved out of a single block of granite, the 46-feet-tall monolith was the stunning centerpiece composed of 121 human figures carved into the granite and it took the artist and 3 other masons 14 years to build. According to Vigeland Museum, the sculpture has been interpreted as “a kind of vision of resurrection, and our longing and striving for spirituality.”
The park is also huge…
I think this place is a “ must see” in Oslo.
On this trip we have walked a lot and our usual stop is for coffee and a latte and a chocolate ball. I chose this one because it reminded me of NL snowballs, doesn’t taste the same but just as delicious…
As we walked we passed through lots of lovely squares…
Many large homes, in fact we commented on how large most of the homes are here in the city…
Food trucks were everywhere…
And the warm weather brought the flowers to life…
Oslo is also home to the Nobel Peace Prize ceremony…
Even though the prize was conceived by a Swede he stipulated that it be awarded in Norway and selected by a five member Norwegian committee. The Nobel Prizes are five separate prizes that, according to Alfred Nobel's will of 1895, are awarded to "those who, during the preceding year, have conferred the greatest benefit to humankind." The only Canadian to have won the Nobel Prize for Peace was the former prime minister Lester B. Pearson in 1957.
Our final day we decided to do the 8 km Akerselva River walk that runs from the lake supplying the city’s water supply at the top down into the fjord. It is a great example of an urban park and is well used. Centuries ago it was used by industries throughout the city and many of these buildings could be seen as we walked by.
Many of these buildings have been repurposed into arts spaces and schools like the one below which is School of Theatre Arts…
Lots of places along the river to relax…
These silos have been repurposed into apartments…
It also flowed through newer neighbourhoods…
There are over 20 waterfalls on the river but also some quiet spots…
It was a wonderful day to enjoy a quiet oasis in a busy city.
This is our last stop in Norway and we have really enjoyed this country’s diverse landscape and also its’ friendly people.
We have found it to be the most expensive country so far on this trip which is saying something! The Norwegians pay 25% tax on everything except food which is taxed at 15%. Though the people we spoke to told us that most people are happy to do that because it gives them a great life style with free health care, education and very generous social benefits.
One thing we noticed here and elsewhere in Norway were the number of men pushing baby carriages so had to inquire about that. Here in Norway when a child is born the parents get three years of parental leave, one for the mother, one for the partner and one to be decided on by both, a very generous benefit for sure.
Norway is a very green country with public policy to support the move to zero emissions, one way is the move to electric vehicles. Oslo has the highest percentage of electric cars anywhere with 80% of new cars being electric. We saw lots of Teslas as when you buy an electric vehicle in Norway you don’t have to pay the 25% tax, get free parking and also get a tax deduction.
Another point to mention is that this is the first country we have ever visited that we did not use or see any cash. Norway is moving to a cashless society and in many places there is a sign saying card use only. So even to use the toilets here it costs up to 2 CAD and if you don’t have a credit card you are in trouble!
We both enjoyed this country and especially Oslo and would definitely recommend it as a tourist destination to see its’ natural beauty and to experience how citizens in such a rich country live. I think our country can learn a lot from Norway. Now on to Sweden…
