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Published: November 1st 2009
Have had two sleeps in Oslo at the Perminalen Hostel.
Liked it so much that I have booked myself in for January.
Arrived at 06:25 by train from Bergen.
Hostel open but room not accessible.
Have coffee and eat the sandwich i had made on ship ... yesterday.
Walked past fortifications to Pier 3 and paid the fare to go on a cruise around Oslo.
Big deal cruise ... sailed , by motor, saw the fortifications I had just walked around, went past huge cruise ships and stopped at the Opera House. Good views of city from water perspective.
I got off at the next stop, which came after a sail around a big island. Because this is the winter route I am asuming that the number of stops have decreased in number.
Was dropped off at Bygdoey. Here I visited the Fram Museum, the Kon-Tiki and the Viking Ship Museum ... one more fabulous than the other.
from
"The Polar Ship Fram
The entire original Arctic exploration ship Fram, built 1892, is exhibited with its original interior and inventory. Fridtjof Nansen, Otto Sverdrup and Roald Amundsen used the ship for three expeditions. A comprehensive history of arctic
exploration is presented around the ship.
from
"FRAM was the safe haven for some of the most famous polar explorers and adventurers. She is the strongest wooden ship ever built and still holds the records for sailing farthest north and farthest south. FRAM and the breathtaking stories from her expeditions continue to create excitement among audiences from all over the world almost 100 years after the ship retired from active duty.
"You are welcome to come aboard the ship and to see how the crew and their dogs lived and managed to survive in the coldest and most dangerous places on earth - the Arctic and the Antarctic. The exhibition is translated into nine languages: English, French, German, Italian, Spanish, Russian, Japanese, Chinese and Norwegian."
It is a huge ship that successfully was able to drift thru Arctic Ice for five years. Nansen became a national hero.Over ninety dogs were on board. Instruments made of brass and VERY large are on display in glass cases around the three story tiers that surround the Fram.
My quiet communication with the spirit of the ship was violently shattered when a bus load of people noisily invaded the sanctuary of the museum.
The doors to the tiny cabins have been fitted with windows so that the narrow bunks, the dentistry tools, the medicine bottles, the seal skin mukluks, jackets and pants, and tiny glimpses to the private quarters can be viewed.
Joists, diesel motor, planking, piano, gramophone galley stove and kitchen pots all stand as they had during the treacherous journeys. It was a revelation to be faced with the real ship after seeing the small model in Tromso.
In the Kon-Tiki Museum the praises of Thor Heyerdahl are sung in the form of film, life sized models of the Ra II and Kon-Tiki, a thirty foot cast of an Easter Island statue, menus of Kon-Tiki restaurants and the recipe for the MaiTai drink.
from: /gohawaii.about.com
"The original Mai Tai was created by Victor J. Bergeron in 1944 and brought to Hawaii in 1953 at the Royal Hawaiian, Moana and Surfrider Hotels.
Prep Time: 01 minute
Ingredients:
* 1 oz. Dark Rum
* 1 oz Light Rum
* 1 oz Orange Curacao
* 2 oz Orange Juice
* 1/2 oz Lime Juice
* Dash Orgeat
* Dash Simple syrup (bar syrup)
Preparation:
Combine all of the ingredients in the order listed in a Old Fashioned style glass over shaved ice. Stir with a swizzle stick. Garnish with a slice of pineapple and a cherry." Have never had this drink ... might try it the next time I am in a bar ... will bring the recipe."
Get the full story about Thor at
The most fantastic ship was at the Viking Ship Museum.
It is the absolute real thing found in a blue mud bog totally preserved in 1904. By 1926 the building that houses the ship was built. the front facade has the look of a church.
The cross shaped building houses three reclaimed viking ships. It is etheral so the shape is not misplaced ... the splendour of viking ingenuity and creativity is to be worshipped.
The walk from the Fram to The VikingShip thru autumn foliage, past richyrich houses and yacht clubs was so pleasant that the idea of returning by boat was scrapped. I took the bus back to the city.
It had been a long day. Made it back to the Hostel in time for dinner before five. Forty military personal had eaten all the lasagna. I ate my first piece of chicken in twelve days. Went to bed very early. It was a relief to shower, lie down and sleep after being up and about for over twenty four hours.
Day two in Oslo began with good coffee, a buffet breakfast and a chat with a woman who races on Tall Ships.
Walked towards the old harbour and hit the most fantastic toy shop ever. Spent quite some time in there thinking of all the things I could buy when I come back in January.
Walked past a Blackberry outlet, around City Hall towards the Nobel Prize Centre and headed down the Wharf. Many were taking advantage of the beautiful weather ... seemed a shame to go into museums. It became quite warm in the afternoon.
Wandered thru constuction sites, shopping malls, condo alleys, past sail boats and security inflatables with huge outboard motors.
In the Pampas restaurant I had fish soup and refills in coffee ... that was a first.
I finally made it to the Peace Prize Centre and walked thru the "from King to Obama" exhibit. Upstairs the story of Nobel and his inventionof dynamite is told by turning the pages of a technologically magic book ... touch the page and info pops up under a picture ... turn the page and the magic continues. All the winners of Peace Prizes are represented in a room their faces, names and reason for attaining the prize flashing in small digital frames surrounded by optic lights.
Then came the approach to the chamber that Obama will walk to receive his prize. The front door area of City Hall is being redone for December 10.
The Great Hall with frescoes on four sides is open to the public free of charge and free of any security checks. It was exciting to be in the room. More than a thousand people will be present by invitation and it seems that there are also some tickets made available to the general public. Dec. 10 I will be in St. Petersburg watching the ceremony on television.
The final destination on this second day in Oslo was the Opera House... walked all the way there to find a dramatic building that offered me no tickets now or in January that would allow me to view the performance hall. Took pictures of the foyer and climbed up the right side of the building to take more shots of the city and the Opera House. There were many slippery and icy spots. Many people climbed even higher to the roof where it was really snowy and icy.
Since this was the last evening in Norway I had to find a post box for my cards. Hiked back to the hostel before five, ate dinner, and was going out to mail my envelopes.
Met a young woman from Beijing in the foyer of the hostel. We went out together in search of a post box. Spent a couple of hours wandering around finding a demonstration for world peace, two teenagers who explained why other teenagers were selling muffins all around the city( money for charity), a flower market selling head sized pumpkins for $20, a gigantic shopping plaza with H&M the biggest store, a church that had been converted into a fancy smancy restaurant, a book store that did not have the DVD I am looking for (Flåklypa Grand Prix) but no post box.
It was again an early evening ... had to catch the 07:25 train to Stockholm. Aufwiedersehn Oslo ... till January.
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Sandra Mark
non-member comment
Mai-Tais
Am enjoying your travelogue. I have had the Mai-Tais at the Royal Hawaiian on Waikiki beach and they are the best in the world. I figure you can scatter my ashes at the bar while looking at Diamond Head in the distance.