Norway post #2
Some thoughts before I head out of the hotel and start the day,
Still jet lagged yesterday. Not getting enough sleep for sure. Eric and I spent a few hours in the middle of the day getting ourselves lost and un-lost a few times.
We located the place where his conference was but it was locked up tight. The event starts today. We found our way to the memorial cemetary where Ibsen is buried. Didn't acually see his toumb though. Don't remember why - probably jet lag brain. We also wandered through what looked to be an older part of the city, all steep narrow streets and cobblestones. Totally cool. Found some lunch at a little coffee shop - chicken and pesto on a tasty roll. Wandered over to the palace - when the flag is up, the king is at home. We attempted to visit the national gallery but it was closed due to a strike. Hope the strike ends in time for me to get in. Head back to the hotel for a much needed nap.
Last night we met up with a friend-of-a-friend, Alan. He's from Seattle and has been living here for about 7 years. A nice thing about hanging out with a local is you get something different than the standard tourist experience.
Near the Opera house is an underutilized harbor. Docked there is a boat that is a combination bar, theater, and bed-and-breakfast. No sign really or indication of what was inside. When we got there, we had to go a bit of a convoluted route to get up to the bar, as there was some sort of one-man show going on in the upstairs, secondary theater space. We ordered some beers but had to wait to get change, as the noise from the machine would interrupt the performance.
The decks of the boat are full of people enjoying a smoke and a beer. The view of the fjord and the opera house was fantastic. A 60ish Norwegian fellow sits down near us and proceeds to invite himself into the conversation. We hear all about the local reaction to the new opera house.
So, from what I understand, Norway has historically been a godforsaken place, mostly rural, and Oslo was a rinky dink town. Until they discovered oil. Now the city has more money than they know what to do with so is utilizing it lavishly to prove to the world it is a first-class city, full of culture, damnit!
So last year the Opera house opened. The reaction to this building is not unlike the giant glass pyramid at the entrance to the Louvre or our own EMP - folks think it is an eyesore. I think it's pretty cool, but then again, I didn't see the town without it.
Modern style architecture for sure. The idea was to make it look like an iceberg. The building is made out of a stunning amount of Italian marble and is sloped so that you can easily walk up onto the roof. In the winter, when the fjord is iced over, lights under the ice shine up and I am told it is quite a sight to see. It does look a bit out of place in the summer sunshine but I'd rather be looking at it in the summer sunshine than in the dark and ice, ya know?
This fellow sitting next to us is quite the character. Looks just like you would expect him to. I couldn't figure out if he was a bum, who had somehow managed the price of a beer or what. Turns out he is an "artist." He has quit his job for a year to see if he can't make a living as a painter. He showed Eric a few photographs of his paintings. One he claimed was quite good and the other was crap. Eric says they looked pretty much the same. The artist/bum says you can't really tell because it is a photograph. Ok...
Alan told us earlier that he had never been on the roof of the opera house so I save us all by suggesting perhaps it is time we do so. It is seriously odd to walk up a giant slope of pure Italian marble to end up on a roof overlooking Oslo and the fjord. Seriously odd and totally wonderful, as is the view up top. Something the Norwegians are beginning to discover is that this fabulous Italian marble is starting to turn yellow. Should be interesting as this cool iceberg slowly turns into yellow snow, eh?
Did you know, that folks don't really visit Norway for the local cuisine? I do like fish but don't want it for every meal. Alan suggests a middle eastern restaurant where we have a bit of everything. I don't think I would have ever found the place on my own, but am very glad we went there. We had a bit of chicken, meatballs, dolmathes, rice, beans, hummous, bread, zucchini, and some kind of delicious paste made out of chilis and tomatoes.
Walked around the city a bit more. I'm told I absolutely must go up to the roof of the Radisson Hotel and check out the views from there. Hope to do that soon.
By the time we got back to the hotel it was 11:30 PM and finally getting dark. Witnessed another midnight sunset and then off to sleep.
This morning I dreamed that I had just made it to the buffet breakfast with 5 minutes to spare and all they had was a piece of quiche left. I woke up at 15 minutes to 9, worried that my dream would come real. Was relieved to discover that breakfast actually goes till 10. For the record, there was no quiche. But there was several kinds of fish - smoked, baked, and in a tomato sauce. Also, I am grateful that, despite living in Seattle, I have not become so much of a coffee snob that I could not drink the hotel brew. Milk and sugar were a must though :)
And now I sit here typing and looking over, let's call it Christian Frederik's place. It is probably more than time for me to get out and start exploring.
Lots of love to you all!
Still jet lagged yesterday. Not getting enough sleep for sure. Eric and I spent a few hours in the middle of the day getting ourselves lost and un-lost a few times.
We located the place where his conference was but it was locked up tight. The event starts today. We found our way to the memorial cemetary where Ibsen is buried. Didn't acually see his toumb though. Don't remember why - probably jet lag brain. We also wandered through what looked to be an older part of the city, all steep narrow streets and cobblestones. Totally cool. Found some lunch at a little coffee shop - chicken and pesto on a tasty roll. Wandered over to the palace - when the flag is up, the king is at home. We attempted to visit the national gallery but it was closed due to a strike. Hope the strike ends in time for me to get in. Head back to the hotel for a much needed nap.
Last night we met up with a friend-of-a-friend, Alan. He's from Seattle and has been living here for about 7 years. A nice thing about hanging out with a local is you get something different than the standard tourist experience.
Near the Opera house is an underutilized harbor. Docked there is a boat that is a combination bar, theater, and bed-and-breakfast. No sign really or indication of what was inside. When we got there, we had to go a bit of a convoluted route to get up to the bar, as there was some sort of one-man show going on in the upstairs, secondary theater space. We ordered some beers but had to wait to get change, as the noise from the machine would interrupt the performance.
The decks of the boat are full of people enjoying a smoke and a beer. The view of the fjord and the opera house was fantastic. A 60ish Norwegian fellow sits down near us and proceeds to invite himself into the conversation. We hear all about the local reaction to the new opera house.
So, from what I understand, Norway has historically been a godforsaken place, mostly rural, and Oslo was a rinky dink town. Until they discovered oil. Now the city has more money than they know what to do with so is utilizing it lavishly to prove to the world it is a first-class city, full of culture, damnit!
So last year the Opera house opened. The reaction to this building is not unlike the giant glass pyramid at the entrance to the Louvre or our own EMP - folks think it is an eyesore. I think it's pretty cool, but then again, I didn't see the town without it.
Modern style architecture for sure. The idea was to make it look like an iceberg. The building is made out of a stunning amount of Italian marble and is sloped so that you can easily walk up onto the roof. In the winter, when the fjord is iced over, lights under the ice shine up and I am told it is quite a sight to see. It does look a bit out of place in the summer sunshine but I'd rather be looking at it in the summer sunshine than in the dark and ice, ya know?
This fellow sitting next to us is quite the character. Looks just like you would expect him to. I couldn't figure out if he was a bum, who had somehow managed the price of a beer or what. Turns out he is an "artist." He has quit his job for a year to see if he can't make a living as a painter. He showed Eric a few photographs of his paintings. One he claimed was quite good and the other was crap. Eric says they looked pretty much the same. The artist/bum says you can't really tell because it is a photograph. Ok...
Alan told us earlier that he had never been on the roof of the opera house so I save us all by suggesting perhaps it is time we do so. It is seriously odd to walk up a giant slope of pure Italian marble to end up on a roof overlooking Oslo and the fjord. Seriously odd and totally wonderful, as is the view up top. Something the Norwegians are beginning to discover is that this fabulous Italian marble is starting to turn yellow. Should be interesting as this cool iceberg slowly turns into yellow snow, eh?
Did you know, that folks don't really visit Norway for the local cuisine? I do like fish but don't want it for every meal. Alan suggests a middle eastern restaurant where we have a bit of everything. I don't think I would have ever found the place on my own, but am very glad we went there. We had a bit of chicken, meatballs, dolmathes, rice, beans, hummous, bread, zucchini, and some kind of delicious paste made out of chilis and tomatoes.
Walked around the city a bit more. I'm told I absolutely must go up to the roof of the Radisson Hotel and check out the views from there. Hope to do that soon.
By the time we got back to the hotel it was 11:30 PM and finally getting dark. Witnessed another midnight sunset and then off to sleep.
This morning I dreamed that I had just made it to the buffet breakfast with 5 minutes to spare and all they had was a piece of quiche left. I woke up at 15 minutes to 9, worried that my dream would come real. Was relieved to discover that breakfast actually goes till 10. For the record, there was no quiche. But there was several kinds of fish - smoked, baked, and in a tomato sauce. Also, I am grateful that, despite living in Seattle, I have not become so much of a coffee snob that I could not drink the hotel brew. Milk and sugar were a must though :)
And now I sit here typing and looking over, let's call it Christian Frederik's place. It is probably more than time for me to get out and start exploring.
Lots of love to you all!