Many people enjoy cruises for their simplicity. They board the ship, sign up for all
the shore excursions and their work is done; all they have to do is show
up. We, on the other hand, like
the DIY aspect of travel and set out to see Oslo while the excursions were
still getting organized.
Anyone who doubts the fortitude of the Vikings needs only to
take a short ferry ride from the harbor to look at their ships at the Viking
Museum in Oslo. How they managed
to cross stormy seas in such small, fragile boats isn’t as amazing as the fact
they even thought they could! The
rest is history. And when a ship
was no longer useful, the frugal Vikes used it for burials of highly regarded
people.
Viking ship, Viking Museum
Once you figure out the tram system, getting around Oslo is a
snap. The Frogner Gardens are just
a few stops from City Hall, a perfect venue on a sunny day. Frogner is the most visited site in
Oslo, partially because of the sensual, whimsical and dynamic sculptures of
Gustav Vigeland. The best of the
212 pieces are the “Cycle of Life” series surrounding the “Monolith” in the
center of the park.
Cycle of Life and Monotlith
Vigeland isn’t Norway’s only artist. Or the most famous.
Edvard Munch is best known for his painting “The Scream,” one that I
personally find annoyinng. So I
wasn’t really keen on visiting the Munch Museet. But, like Salvador Dali, Munch’s art isn’t as bad as it
looks and I found that I actually enjoyed some of his paintings. And, after all, isn’t that why we
travel?
Munch, not too bad
