Norway Day 9: Arriving in Oslo

​Today we traveled to Oslo. We arrived at our hotel around 12:30.  After a short nap and change of rooms, we headed into the city around 3:30.

Our first stop was the Posten (post office) for Ruth to mail home some of her treasures.  Then we proceeded to the Nobel Peace Museum - the home of the Nobel Peace Prize. It was interesting to be reminded about some of the details of Nobel’s life and the politics of the Peace Prize administration remaining in Norway.  It was also inspiring read about the many brave and thoughtful people who have tried to make the world a more peaceful place.

Parts of the museum were being renovated, so it was a fairly short visit, but we learned that the Norwegian word for “peace” is “Fred”, which we love.  We also liked the Nobel Peace Prize chocolate medals.

We walked around the wharf area where there were several ginormous yachts and watched ships traveling to and fro in the Oslo Fjord. 

From there it was a short walk up to the Akershus Fortress to see some of the impressive walls and buildings. It is a huge complex; the huge stone walls around the medieval castle are only a small part of it. Much of it extends into the city with very large impressive buildings that are still being used by the military. It is also the home of the Prime Minister. 

Strolling through a museum district, we saw lots of beautiful Art Nouveau buildings, and were grateful for the education we had received in Riga.  There was also a large pedestrian area with shops and designer stores on our way to our dining venue, a small Italian restaurant where we feasted on amazing mussels and very delicious pizza.  

After dinner, we walked along the parade route where the former King’s funeral will be tomorrow. The entire route, a long, wide avenue which is currently a pedestrian walkway, is lined with Norwegian flags half mast. It was an impressive sight! There were two groups of young soldiers marking out where they will stand in the morning. There were crowds gathering along the route and at the palace at the other end. The entire area around our hotel is going to be blocked off to vehicular traffic, and everyone going through will be checked by security. It is going to be a big event.