EUROPE BLOG May 13th, 2023 - OSLO

5/13/23- Last day in Oslo before we fly out. Kelvin finds an interesting Norwegian Armed Forces Museum that we set out to see around noon. It’s located within a military area, so a bit weird walking through a gate of guards wondering if this is actually the right way, but they pay us no mind.

The museum costs 100 NOK (almost $10 US) and is larger than we thought. It starts out with more of a modern military feel, but once we go up a floor we begin to see artifacts from the Viking era, which intrigues us a good deal.

Each section goes over a specific point in time, whether from the war of 1812 and Napoleon through the World Wars. It’s an interesting take on history from a mostly neutral country during those times, although several parts are not in English.

We spend perhaps around 2 hours diving into history before contemplating what to do next. I noticed in the museum the fortress we went to on our first day and realize we never actually went up into the fortress, only around it. Thankfully it’s only a 5 minute walk for us to do so.

The steep incline has my legs reeling, but the views at the top make it worth the while. I ask about tickets to the tower and am told that the $10 US entry fee is only for inside the fortress. With Kelvin not feeling it we decide to move on.

At this point my stomach is rumbling for food. I search along the 21 minute route to our next destination of Damstredet, but nothing is appealing for just a quick bite. Damstredet is a small area of town that has old time Norwegian houses still in use. It’s a cute area to explore but doesn’t take long to go through it. 

On the other side is Mathallen Oslo, which is a food hall of some 30 or so restaurants inside a building that resembles a warehouse. We search through the menus looking for something interesting when we find one that fits our appetite. We both order burgers (Moose and Boar for $20 US each) and they’re filling and good at first but the taste wears me down after a bit. The Moose has lingonberry sauce which makes it sweet but I don’t know, I guess when I crave a burger I want that cow meat taste. It is cool to say we did it though.

As the day winds down, we’re ready to call it for Oslo. It’s been an interesting few days, and somewhat relaxing as well. The prices are way too high, unfortunately, but overall I’m happy with the results. Tomorrow we have a very early morning flight to catch so don’t plan to stay up too late.

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