Visiting Oslo: A Night Aside the Fjords

“There’s nothing quite like witching hour in a foreign land. It’s a moment bent against human diurnal tendencies, letting a person filter between thoughts and realms.” – Old Sean

Long Layover

So I have an extended 15 hour layover in Oslo, Norway, which is excellent for me.  Not due to the inconvenient arrival time or disjointed airport connection, but because I have two Scandinavian-based jokes I’ve been carrying around for years. 

Why do Norwegians have bar codes on the sides of their ships?

So when they return to port, they can Scandinavian. 

Do you know my favorite part about Mortal Combat?

It’s the music.  Apparently, the songs are based on Finnish Hymns. 

Ah… that helps the soul.

Gliding into Oslo

Flying into Norway is a treat, especially when arriving from the sea.  Gilded sunlight lanced sideways over the fjords where islands were backlit, craggy pines casting sharp-relief shadows on narrow waves. The islands below were jagged and rocky, long curves of distant frost hugging the shore.  When the plane finally tilted in, I sighed in relief, eager to stretch my legs despite the sights.

Europe remains a bit spotty in terms of flights with warnings of delays and understaffed security counters.  I flew out of Romania and into Oslo at sunset, but by the time I made it through Customs, true night had fallen.

Now, the city of Oslo has several airports attending it.  Three, in fact.  And they are not in any way close to the city.  I landed at TORP, which is far to the south.  My departure airport, which I was required to reach in fifteen hours or so, was the international Oslo Lufthaven Airport in the north. 

Self-transfers between airports are a rediculous exercise and expense.  I’m amazed airlines allow them.  But then, flying has increasingly become a hassle and chore in the past couple of decades.   Ten hour flights don’t allow for internet connections, but are happily able to charge credit cards for everything from headsets to food to cups of water.

Swapping Airports

Upon arrival, I edged my way over to the nearby train station, where I awaited an incoming, partially delayed locomotive in the cool evening.  Joining me were four very robust Slovenian travelers, ranging from 22 to 24 years old.  They gleefully told me their woes while pouring out heavy-handed shots of liquor into thin paper cups.

Apparently, the group had train tickets to the Stavanger, where they would begin a long hiking journey for their vacation.  However, they hadn’t realized that there were multiple airports around Oslo, and had flown into the wrong zone.  Stranded and running late to their train, they simply threw their hands in the air and offered me another round to drink.  And another.  And another.

Drinking with strangers on curbsides in foreign nations is never dull. 

By the time the train arrived, I was hiccupping slightly.  We piled aboard and eventually made it to Oslo.  The Slovenian group departed to go find accommodation while I began some nighttime wandering.

A Night in Oslo

Instead of heading directly to the airport, I decided I wanted to look around Oslo somewhat.  There were many interesting places scattered around the city and I figured that a fifteen hour layover was plenty of time to experience some of them.  Unfortunately, because of my arrival time, that meant that I was exploring from midnight to five AM.

Normally, I wouldn’t bother with such exercises.  But Oslo and Norway are notoriously safe at night and I haven’t been to the country before.  I marked down several map locations I was mildly interested in, and began to wander.

I started my night by getting kebabs at a late-night restaurant before turning to walk along the coast.  The strange, unlit glass sculpture She Lies sat placidly in the water, it’s surface glinting slightly against the lights of docked cruise ships.  I walked up and down the ramp structure of the Oslo Opera House, a modernist building of white walls, patterned pale lights and sharp angles.  I visited the somewhat comical small beaches of the bay, which are more like gradual stone ramps leading into water.  Above, gulls stood out stark white against a black sky.  I trailed along the Havnepromenaden hiking trail which followed walkways and boardwalks over calm waters. 

Strange Oslo Icons

The first part of my miniture hike completed, I turned and dedicated myself to crossing the rest of the city.  Oslo is startlingly large and it takes a while to get from area to area.  I managed to make it to the Oslo Cathedral before drunkenness, a heavy backpack and general 2 AM exhaustion forced me to sit a while.  Once I recovered, I wound north.

A very interesting plaza in Oslo is known as Grass Roots Square.  The square itself isn’t much to look at.  It’s small and concrete with few other features. But if one looks at the tiles, they’ll see an army of copper-green metal figurines densely packed throughout the park.  Though it’s somewhat out of the way, it’s very interesting to hunt down.  The 50,000 tiny sculptures are a small, profound monument regarding the Norway attacks in 2011.

I continued wandering through other portions of the city as the night grew longer.  Oslo never quite shut down.  There were always a few groups of young men and women wandering around, enjoying themselves thoughouly.  They spoke loudly, their jarring language echoing off buildings, but overall boisterous and good-natured.  No matter where I went in Oslo, there were always a few jolly people around, but never in any sort of dense party or thronging crowd. 

A Ghost in a Backpack

I walked past the strange tunnel structure of the Spikersuppa Ice Skating Rink (currently closed), noted the numerous rainbow-colored benches throughout the park area and wandered through the Nationaltheatret area for a few minutes.  Afterwards, I wandered onward between dark trees to visit the Royal Palace.  The Palace was surprisingly active, with guards in full blue-and-white regalia marching in lockstep around the perimeter.  These weren’t stoic British redcoats, however.  A couple of the guards wished me a pleasant evening and provided some late-night recommendations of things to see in the area.

My overall desire was to hike out to Frogner and Vigelandsparken Park to see the various sculptures, but Oslo proved a lot larger and more uphill-oriented than I expected.  Already feeling worn from my tiny lap around the city, I veered south back to the waterfront.

Sculptures in the Dark

I did get to visit Tjuvholmen, which was an architectural treat.  Hyper-modern buildings remained lit up between canals with bobbing boats.  The entire scene was laden with carefully tended potted flowers and a fair number of statues that loomed in the darkness.  I made certain to swing through Tjuvholmen Sculpture Park for a moment to see some minimalist sculptures in the dark. 

I should mention here that Oslo is one of the greatest cities in the world to window-shop.  Their storefronts are large, glassed and classy with elegant designs for the interior.  As I walked through Aker Brygge,  I stopped frequently to peer at decorated cafes and chic Nordic shops.  There were cozy tea shops, large bookstores, robust eateries and vine-decorated apparel locations.  Along the shore, large, lopsided boats of white paint had been converted into impressive floating restaurants. 

Continuing on, I passed by the Nobel Peace Center (which was naturally closed at this ungodly hour) and eventually looped around to see the front of Akershus Fortress.  I also managed to do a bit more window shopping at The Mini Bottle Gallery AS Museum, which is a humorous bar area decorated with thousands of miniture bottles of spirits, beers and sodas. 

Angling for Airports

I still had about an hour to kill before heading to the airport, but my energy was thoughouly tapped out, and there was nothing else open in walking distance for me to view.  Calling it a night, I returned to the central station, got my train ticket and made it to the Oslo Airport, where I found a secluded place to snooze for the next two hours. 

There are times where I’ll visit a place for such a short period, I don’t really consider it as a location traveled-to.  For example, I’ve wandered through sections of Panama City, Manila in the Philippines and a large number of random Chinese cities.  But it would be more accurate to say I’ve been through these places, rather than to them.

So it is for Oslo.  My four or five hours of witching-hour wandering wasn’t a realistic experience of the city, though it was enjoyable.  Someday I’ll likely return in the hopes of exploring Norway properly.

Until then,

Best regards and excellent trails,

Old Sean

Written August 18th 2021

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