Her name is Oslo and she dances in the rain

by Mohsin Raza

Oslo for me was like Islamabad-- love at first sight.  From the moment my plane touched down I knew this time it will be different. It's always a bit disorienting to pop up from an underground station in an unfamiliar area, but the vision-obscuring pales of water definitely added an extra challenge. My hands were too full to fish out my umbrella, much less hold it over my head; and I had to put my printed directions away as they were getting soaked.

As I walked out of Oslo Central, I was greeted not just by the rain but also some of the friendliest persons I have met. From the young fellow who guided us how to buy train tickets to the receptionist who checked me into my room at Blindern.  Then the friendliest waitress served us Sandwiches at the Café across the road. The Norwegian people are very friendly, its almost unreal.

Oslo is very beautiful, it’s squeaky clean and the design and layout seems pretty much flawless. The new and the old blend seamlessly with each other.  It’s a mix of quaint and historic. I’ve never been to this part of Europe before. There isn’t much traffic, which gives the impression of a ghost town especially in the early and later hours of the day. And cars are very respectable of pedestrians. People don’t even look before they cross the street — well, I still do, haha. But, really, they’ll just step into a pedestrian walk way even if there’s a car coming and the cars will all stop, 100%.

There is a Norwegian proverb that goes something like this: “there is no such thing as bad weather, there are only bad clothes”. This is true both in letter in spirit as a normal day in Oslo can be soaky, sunny, windy, cold and warm. But, this is compensated by the fact that the day itself is for around 19 hours.  So you can say to someone: “lets meet in the afternoon around 9pm” J.

I realize that in just a few days it will be time to say goodbye to this lovely city, which will be hard. But, Im very glad that I came to Oslo and am taking back home some of my fondest memories. I wonder how the weather changed so quickly, from a bright sunny afternoon to all of a sudden misty. But this time its not the horizon that turned misty, no actually that’s just my eyes. L

Bikes, Hipsters and Skaters in Oslo

 by Davide Dusi

After one month in Oslo I realized It's impossible walking around the city without meeting cyclists. Indeed bicycles are one of the most important means of carrying. Just see how many people are going cycling in this wonderful city. Oslo provides its own inhabitants with a lot of opportunities in order to rent a bike. It's pretty easy and quite cheap, you could either apply for a city card that allows you to borrow bikes end to end of the city or you can rent it privately.

 

Furthermore if you are interested in bikes and subcultures as well Oslo is the right place to get in touch with the hipster movement. It's not so developed in my opinion but it's getting bigger especially in certains zones of the city. Just take a look around or decide to go for a walk in Grünerløkka. It's very easy meeting representatives of this subculture as the guy in the picture below.

 

By the way "not only cyclists in Oslo". Certainly bikes dominate the underground scene but we don't have to forget the skaters. It's pretty common meeting them around the city or in specific places built up for them with a lot of ramps and sporting facilities. The municipality provides skaters with a few possibilities in order to express themselves and to practice this fascinating activity.

Hallingdal

ISS has been very keen to provide to its students a two-day trip to different parts of Norway and simultaneously it was a great opportunity to experience Norwegian culture outside Oslo. Two of us have decided to go to Hallingdal, a valley and district in Buskerud country in Norway. 

Here are some reviews of the sightseeing tour represented by Oxana Andrienko and David Dusi. 

Hallingdal, memoirs

By Oxana Andrienko

The schedule wasn’t so tough, therefore we had a chance to feel the true spirit of the country in the Hallingdal region.

The first stop let us feel a closeness to Norwegian wild life (and immerse into a mud, as well as get wet because of the heavy rain) – we visited Langedrag Wildlifepark. The mountain farm itself is located approximately 1.000 meters above sea level. The wildlifepark takes care of about 22 kinds of animals including bobcats, elks, wolves, deers, rabbits, polarfoxes etc. We could even feed some animals, however we abstained even though the desire to feed wolves and bobcats was really strong.

After a two-hour excursion hot chocolate and coffee in a typical Norwegian wooden cafeteria was a “must have” thing. Felt satisfied and warmer we went to Fagerhoy Mountain Lodge, a true Norwegian style hotel with a chimney in the lounge and a great cuisine, located in the middle of nowhere=)). As we were starving after such a difficult trip, the dinner served in the restaurant seemed to be very delicious – a salmon, lamb, potatoes in the cream sauce, covered with cheese, and five kinds of ice cream, yummy!

Once we have finished with the meal, and played pool a little bit, I have decided to go and have some rest. However I had no idea I would go canoeing in ten minutes - at half past ten! Anyway, 15 people, tired but still wishing to have more fun, had been canoeing until half past midnight – some of us still assume this experience to be the most memorable ever.

I can’t but mention that the most funny and also a little bit annoying kind of animals which was with us during both days of the trip, were sheeps – they were literarily everywhere, even in the middle of the road laying and being calm even though our huge bus was trying simultaneously to avoid sheep death because of car accident and not to fall into the abyss because the road was so narrow. But everybody survived!

The second day was warmer and full of activities – Hallingdal Museum and Villa Fridheim, also known as “Fairytale Museum.” The first one showed how Norwegian peasants had been  living during Medieval times, and the second one represented how rich Norwegian people lived in 19-th century. To clarify, the Fairytale Museum first was considered to be a summer mansion of a rich man, but after many years it was transformed into the Museum.

In conclusion I would like to point out that the trip was really interesting and exciting, a little bit thrilling, and at the same time very calm.

We keep exploring Norway!

What about wolves in Norway?

 by Davide Dusi

Wolves are very amazing animals: scary, elegant and kind at the same time. Unfortunately if you are in Norway It's very difficult to find a wolf out. The population of wolves in Norway is made up of 28 specimens.
But there is a place not far from Hallingdal in which It's possible to see 4 of the 28 wolves. This place is the Langedrad Wildlife Park in Nesbyen.
Here it's possible not only admire these magnificent creatures but also feed them.
So...if you love wolves as much as me.....Don't miss it!!!!!!!!!

The real Fairytale

by Davide Dusi

Are you interested in fairytales?....so why don't you visit Villa Fridheim?

The fairytale castle Villa Fridheim is situated on the island Bjørøya in the Krøderfjord (not so far from Oslo, maybe one hour and a half by car).

Villa Fridheim was built from 1890 to 1892 as a holiday residence for timber merchant Svend Haug and his wife Thea. After the death of Svend Haug in 1991, Thea Haug, her five children and their servants lived in the house year round.

Today Villa Fridheim houses a Museum of Fairytales with permanent exhibitions of Norwegian Fairytales. Each summer brings the Fairytale Festival and new art exhibition.

If you are fascinated by fairytales this is the right place to spend your time (Villa Fridheim is open every day from mid-May to mid-October).

A place for “children of all ages”.

Ferry-tale

 by Davide Dusi

This story is about three girls and a guy that decided to have fun taking a look around Oslo.

During a sunny day we decided to take a ferry in order to visit some Oslo's islands.

We didn't plan anything, just took the T-bane until National Theater Station and then walked towards the Nobel Peace Center.

The Ferry's starting point is beside the Nobel Peace Center (the ticket is free if you got a monthly travel card) and it takes just ten minutes to go to “the other side”. There is a ferry every 20 minutes and the trip is very comfortable.

We arrived at the Oslo's Yatch Club that is very huge, full of wonderfull boats and surrounded by beautiful mansions. The time togheter was amazing and the landscape was awesome.

Unfortunately we had to come back to the dorm in order not to miss the dinner.

This trip is reccommended for everybody who wants to have some fun, rest and explore “the sea, the green and the City in between”.

A good starting point to have a different perspective of Oslo.

About

As we are three journalists and a sociologist belonging to different countries we have decided to weave and share our experiences in Norway through this blog. This blog is written by Altynai (Kyrgyzstan), Oxana (Russia), Davide (Italy) and Mohsin (Pakistan).