Aug 30 – Oslo Norway

---

Today we woke up in Oslo. This is our last port of call before getting off the ship, so we want to have one really good day again today. The alarm went off at 6:00 AM. We got up and dressed, and had breakfast in the Horizon Court. Each time we seem to meet new people and start comparing stories of previous excursions or our plans for the day, just like we were old friends. Frankly we don’t especially even remember most of their names, but everyone is friendly and we are all sharing the same remarkable experience.

Our tour met in the Explorer Lounge (a first for us) and we discovered it would be another nice place to just sit and rest some time when we had free minutes. We got on the bus and met our guide – again someone who spoke excellent English and no particular accent. Anyway, the bus headed off and we were on our way.

To get out of the harbor area, we went through a tunnel which actually goes under their new Opera House, beneath the harbor, under the City Hall, and out it came back up well away from the harbor. We had about a 90 minute drive north. We saw the transition from city to suburb and then to countryside. Approximately 25% of the whole population of Norway lives in the Oslo area. Outside of towns, the population is very sparse with rarely there being more than one house in sight at any time. There is lot of forest area which has been permanently set aside by the government so nothing will be built there. We also crossed some of the flat lands where there is a lot of grain farming (barley, oats, and wheat).

We drove past several marinas and our guide said that nearly 20% of Norwegians own a boat, even though on average they only use it 23 days a year. She said, “once a Viking, always a Viking” which is why they have such a close association with the water.

We drove past some fjords and trans. Both are bodies of water created by the glacial ice movements during the Ice Age. The only difference is that fjords connect to the ocean and have salt water and the trans are large lakes containing fresh water. From our viewpoint though, they were both very picturesque.

We were driven to a glass factory called “Hadeland Glassverk”, which has been in service for nearly 250 years. We had some time to use the facilities and wander around while we waited for the other 2 buses of our tour to arrive. Today is the first time we really have had cloudy weather, and it started sprinkling while we were walking around. But it was not windy and not cold, so this was just a minor annoyance. Anyway, the buses arrived and we went into the factory for a demo of glass making.

They explained a lot about the glass blowing process. This factory hand-crafts every piece they sell. They are located near forests and water because that was how they fueled their furnaces originally and they gathered their sand from the fjord. Today they have electric furnaces and the sand is imported from Belgium, but the quality has always been built in their products. Then we got to watch a Master Craftsman create a platter. Up until the last moment it looked like it might be a glass, then maybe a vase, and then even near the end it looked like it would be a bowl, but finally it became a nice large platter. We could only look at it for a couple of minutes because it had to go through a 15-hour cooling process (they said that cooling too quickly would cause it to explode).

After the demo we were given a little refreshment (tea and a Norwegian Pastry which is a good as anything David had hoped to find in Denmark). After the little snack we had free time to shop in their gift shops. There are about half a dozen different shops – more than we could get to in the time that was available. So then we boarded the bus again and drove back to Oslo.

When we got back to town, our next stop was the Viking Ship Museum. There is a small collection of actual Viking ships which have been recovered from burial sites. The Vikings believed that their exalted leaders went to Valhalla in a ship. They included all the materials (food, weapons, garments, etc) he/she would need in the next world, so it is a significant archeological treasure chest. Unfortunately very few of these “tombs” weren’t looted over the years, and in most cases the ship wood deteriorated badly soon after being exposed to fresh air. Anyway, they items they were very interesting. Janet was particularly interested in the pieces of fabrics and embroidery that were savaged from the one ship. The wool had survived but the linen had not. They have not found any sails buried with the ships so the theory is that no one believed they needed them after death or they were better used again by the living. Our guide gave us a quick tour and then we had free time before the bus again.

Our last activity was a drive-around of town, where quite a few major buildings were pointed out. It was interesting. One big item was some of the buildings associated with the Nobel Peace Prize. We also saw and heard about the new opera house (designed to resemble an iceberg) built so patrons can actually walk up ramps and onto the roof of the building.

Oslo seems to be a nice city, but everything here is pretty expensive. Not only do locals pay approximately 40% of their income in taxes/retirement/medical, but there is also a 25% Value Added Tax on practically everything that so sold. We are generally used to paying a few percent in sales tax, but this has a 25% hike built into every price that is posted – makes them seem to be very high.

We got back to the ship about 2:00 and went up to the buffet for a late lunch after dropping our stuff in the cabin. For dessert we dropped in to one of David’s favorite venues, the Ice Cream Parlor. The ship was scheduled to sail at 3:30 but they had some kind of glitch with the motor used to maneuver in ports. Finally the Captain announced over the PA that the rubber bands have been wound up tightly enough and we were able to spin the propeller once again about 5:00. In the meantime we rested in the cabin – David finished reading his book (at last) and Janet watched a movie on the TV.

Before dinner we had some wine and hors d’oeuvres in the Skywalker Lounge on deck 18 aft. It was pretty crowded there this evening so we didn’t stay but about half an hour. That made us a little early for dinner, but not by too much. Janet had the Wild Mushroom Soup and David had Caesar Salad. We both had the Strawberry Sorbet ad an intermezzo. Then for the main entrée Janet had the Sea Scallops and David had the Steak Medallions. We both had the Chocolate Lover’s Delight for dessert (dark chocolate mousse, chocolate mocha tart, and chocolate brownie).

Tomorrow we can sleep in if we want, so we went to a double feature of shows this evening. The first was supposed to be a mind reader, but it was pretty obvious how he did most of the tricks. The second show was a second performance by the Welsh comedian we had seen the other night. He was very funny the first time and just as funny this time – also still a good singer.

That’s all for today – see you tomorrow

---

Photos

ice Cream Bar
CROWN Princess

Glass blowing
Is it a vase?

Glass Blowing
Making it wider

Glass Blowing
It's a Platter

Norwegian Fyord
Norway

Viking Ship
Oslo Norway

Crafted Figures
on Viking Ship - oslo Norway