Oslo

On my way to Stavanger, I stopped through Oslo briefly.  I was surprised by the diversity I saw there and the small size of the capital.  The internet tells me that Oslo has approximately 580,000 people in a country that holds 5 million people total.  (for reference, Harris County, Texas holds 4 million.) I literally walked from one side of the city to the other in a few hours, stopping to see almost all the sights there were along the way.  Unfortunately the Norwegian History museum was closed on Mondays, but I saw the Folks Museum, The Viking Ship museum, the famous Opera House, the fortress, Vigeland Park, lots of statues and even a Bohemian street fair.  

Oslo is a typical "big" city with lots of people from all over the world.  Modern, minimalist buildings sit next to traditional wooden ones.  And, unfortunately it was either raining or overcast the whole time I was here.  This is normal for Norway.  I flew from one of the poorest countries in the EU with over 200 days of sun to one of the richest with over 200 days of rain.

A view of Norway from the SBH

The wharfs outside of town hall

The Oslo opera house

Viking Ship museum

the ships were gorgeous

Map of the Vikings travels
Click to see a larger version

Vigeland Bridge Sculptures

Vigeland's main attraction

A traditional Norwegian Stave church
in the open air Folks Museum

EVERYTHING is made out of wood.
Painted wood bed from an ancient
farm village guesthouse

I say that I saw almost all the sights because the real attraction of Norway is the nature here, which I did not take the time to see around Oslo.  It's clear the outdoors are extremely important to people here.   In fact, I would have purchased a ton of outdoor gear it wasn't so crazy expensive in this country because the selection and quality of outdoor gear is incredible! 

The few folks I talked to also clearly adored their outdoor activities:  signs for 'Norway, home of skiing' were in second hand markets and everybody walks around wearing clothes that look like they could hop straight from the office to a mountain trail without batting an eye.  (Norway has a lot of mountains)  In fact, you can the metro runs all the way to a huge natural forest.

It made me wonder . . .  is everybody in Norway active?  So I entertained myself during the day on my own in Oslo by looking for an overweight Norwegian.  It's a little morbid . . . I know . . . but I couldn't find one!  Keep in mind, I was walking all around town all day so I came across A LOT of people.  It took over an hour to find somebody with a paunch, and then he turned into the same museum as me, speaking English.  Tourists don't count.  Neither do the women I saw walking around in headscarves - they are also clearly imported.  After 24 hours of casual searching, I saw a grand total of 1 man and 2 women who may have more than 20% body fat.  Way to go Oslo.  Your people look good even if your city doesn't.

Next stop: Southwest Norway - Stavanger and some beautiful hikes