The trip to Oslo meant we traveled from Sweden to Norway. Not a big deal until the train got halfway to Norway and we were transferred to busses for the last four hours of the trip. We can unequivocally state that trains are more comfortable than busses.

Our Airbnb is on the sixth floor of an apartment building not to far from the Royal Palace. Fortunately, it has an elevator. Unfortunately, the elevator only goes to the fifth floor and we have to walk up the last flight of stairs — actually, worth the price for the views.

The Royal Palace sits in the middle of a beautiful park with water features, lots of walking paths, more plants than you can count, and an area for children’s art sponsored by the queen. Interestingly enough, the only security at the palace seemed to be a single sentry. He went through order arms with his weapon and marched up and down a short distance. The US is not like the rest of the world — unfortunately.

We visited the Vigeland Sculpture Installation in Frogner Park on another bright sunny day. Marilyn has managed good weather for almost every day of this trip. The only time it seems to rain is when we want a day to rest and recuperate. Gustav Vigeland made a deal with the city of Oslo for a place to live and a studio to work in exchange for all of his works. Details here. An amazing place, full of tourists and locals. We even saw a kindergarten/preschool group come to use one of the playgrounds..

Buildings in Oslo are similar to those elsewhere in Scandinavia with one exception: much more brick. While in most of Norway, the buildings are wooden (forests everywhere!), in Oslo they were mostly built of brick after a fire in 1858 destroyed almost 1000 homes.

The Opera House is one of the most striking buildings on the Oslofjor. It rivals Sydney’s in the opinion of many architects. On sunny days, the locals come out on the quay to bask in the sunshine — even though there appears to be an iceberg in the water (it’s a sculpture).