Norway was never a country on my “must do” list. I grouped it (as does US geography in school) with its Scandinavian brethren, Sweden and Denmark. But, as we planned our winter break and decided to chase the northern lights, it became clear that Norway was our destination.
A country of around 5 million people, with 10% of them living in the capital city of Oslo, Norway is about as long as the west coast of the US from San Diego to Seattle. We decided to take our time getting above the Arctic Circle. We would spend two nights in Oslo, take a seven hour train ride to Trondheim, then take a working ferry boat up above the Arctic Circle to Tromsø.
Staying first in Oslo, we woke up to an amazing breakfast buffet with arguably the best hot chocolate in the world. As I have mentioned, we kind of play it by ear when we get to cities—not wanting to plan too much. We wanted to visit two places specifically, the Nobel Peace Center and the Royal Palace. The monarchy is well-liked, figure-headish and down to earth, according to our sources. The city is small, walkable and very picturesque.
We walked to the palace and found it amazing that we could actually walk right up to the guards—walk all over the grounds, and take pictures with no big fences and little security. It was refreshing to have that experience in a Europe that is now forever changed.
On our way to the Peace Center, we stumbled upon an Ibsen museum (didn’t go in), but we did read the plaques along the Ibsen trail. Oslo was his city of retirement (he grew up in a small Norwegian port city). After 27 years of self-imposed exile further south in Europe, Ibsen moved there in 1891. I didn’t know that he was from Norway, nor did I know that Roald Dahl was a native son (ok, actually he was born in Wales to Norwegian parents, but Norway takes credit for him!) Silly American, I know.
We walked past the national theater (gorgeous) and a public ice rink in the middle of a park. In the summer, it is a fountain, in the winter—BYO skates, or rent them nearby. We promised the kids we would skate later in the day. Sylvie’s eyes were wide because it was clear that the skates for rent were the beautiful white skates that are every little girl’s envy—versus the crummy plastic ones we wind up with in Santa Monica (and Torino, for that matter).
The National Peace Center was very impactful, even for the kids. We have tried to explain to them what has been happening in Syria. There was an exhibit that had photos taken by 500 children in refugee camps. They had videos of the children, asking them what they missed most from their home, what there life was like. Sylvie was clearly old enough to absorb it and personalize it. Noah was paying attention and noted how shabby the tents were. The center had an interactive kids’ guide that was engaging and very educational as well. This is a must-do in Oslo with children.
We then took the kids back to the skating rink, which was now illuminated (since the sun went down by 3pm!) Sylvie got her white skates; Noah got a pair of hockey skates. They raced around the rink–notably the first time Josh and I did not have to join them on the ice.
We have a friend from Torino, Andrea (mentioned in previous posts for her engineering skills, Nordic beauty and knitting skills), who is from Oslo. She was home for the holidays and invited us for dinner. She was a gracious host and had kept her Christmas decorations up so the kids could see them.
She had even knitted them each a pair of woolen mittens (which came in handy later in the trip for sure). A highlight was the introduction and tasting of cloudberries, which are a Norwegian delicacy. They are hard to find and Andrea shared her homemade jam made from a stash her family had picked over the summer. We were also introduced to the tradition of the “seven cakes” of Christmas, which means, of course, you have to eat seven different kinds of cakes. No problem.
The evening ended with our uber drive home, getting picked up in white Tesla. Norway was full of surprises. And we were just getting started.