Month: February 2016

We started our day by taking the train to Holmenkollen, a 20 minute train ride from central Oslo. Many of the passengers getting on the train were wearing their cross-country gear and carrying skis. An international biathlon competition starts here just as we leave this week. Vendors are already set up and peddling their wares in outdoor markets downtown where the awards ceremonies will be held. Here the Swedish team has already arrived and begun to get organized.

One of the big attractions is a spectacular ski jump.

Here’s the bottom where the skiers end up.

And, very close to the top where they start.

It’s a popular spot to visit, even without skis.

And the view is nothing short of amazing.

The Ski Museum, inside the jump structure, exhibits everything from 1200 year old skis to displays on the Sami, the indigenous peoples of Finnmark in the far north of the country who have apparently been skiing for 4000 years.

Since the ski jump wasn’t currently open, Amanda satisfied herself with a ride in a ski jump and giant slalom simulator and then an icy zip down a convenient slide (with a rough landing).

Back in town at the Historical Museum we saw more exhibits on the Sami.

In a bit of old-fashioned recycling, a picture stone with runic inscriptions bears a dedication by Jorunn to her late husband from around 1000, but the same stone also bears an inscription from a few years later by Engle in memory of his son who had died in battle.

This stone from around 1050 at the beginning of the Christian Era honors Gunnvor for making a bridge and (we couldn’t make it out) features a Nativity Scene.

The museum also has relics from the Stave churches, including an interior.

But, the real draw is the collection of Viking artifacts, including the only intact Viking helmet ever found.

The nearby National Gallery houses Edvard Munch’s The Scream.

As well as some earlier and later work, such as Self-Portrait with the Spanish Flu from 1915 in a curiously more optimistic style than the earlier The Scream.

We rounded out the day with a symphony orchestra accompanying the BBC Film Planet Earth, with Norwegian narration. Fortunately, language wasn’t needed to enjoy the spectacular images and beautiful music.

Harald V, the reigning monarch of Norway and the country’s 64th King, traces his lineage back to 872 to the time of Harald Fairhair. His Royal Palace in the center of Oslo also has a very small sledding hill out front. On a Saturday afternoon at the end of February, the city was full of people enjoying a beautiful day.

Akershus Fortress, parts dating from about 1300, continues to guard the harbor at the end of the Oslo Fjord.

FDR is honored just outside the fortress because he provided sanctuary to the family of Haakon VII after the King fled to England as the Third Reich rolled into Norway at the outset of World War II. Haakon is widely admired for his bravery and is considered one of the greatest Norwegians of the 20th century.

Among the buildings inside, the Resistance Museum showcases the brilliant efforts and accomplishments of the Norwegian Resistance during the occupation and the government of Prime Minister Quisling. The story of Resistance hero Max Manus provides a great window into the movement and the film Max Manus is well worth renting.

Further along the edge of the modest sized inner harbor the Nobel Prize museum has innovative displays that bring to life the story of Noble himself, the prizes, and the honorees over the years.

A clunky, but beloved, City Hall anchors the center of the harbor and has been the scene of both humiliation and jubilant celebration over the years.

Even late on a chilly February afternoon, the promenade along the harbor’s edge is a very pleasant place to pass the time and watch the passersby.