Norway Day 2 - Oslo

Considering how tired we felt at 11pm, it was amazing how remote sleep seemed at 3am! However, a late start to the day and a ton of coffee with a sumptuous breakfast and off we went with Cai and Gunnhilde to see the sights.

First on the list, Holmenkollen and the new ski jump. Architecturally prominent and visible from all over the city, it truly shows the emphasis Norwegians place on winter sports. The old hill was demolished in 2008, itself a graceful structure, and this one replaced it at a cost of NOK 715 million, say $150M. The ski jump is part of a Nordic complex around the mountain.

Next stop was Vigeland Sculpture Park, with 200 granite and bronze sculptures of human forms in different combinations, poses, groupings and activities. The theme is the human condition and the variety is immense. The sculptures and park took from 1906 to 1947 to create.

[caption id="attachment_51" align="alignleft" width="640" caption="Sculptures at Vigeland Park"][/caption]

From Vigeland to some more human achievment oriented landmarks, the Kon-Tiki and Ra museum and the Fram. It was getting late in the day so they let us into the Fram at the childrens rate as we only had 30 minutes to closing! Fram was designed by Colin Archer for Fridtjof Nansen, and used by Nansen, Amundsen and Sverdrup for explorations in both the Arctic and Antartic.

[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="640" caption="Kon-Tiki, Thor Heyerdahl and his companions home for 101 days."][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_65" align="alignleft" width="640" caption="Sean and Randi on deck on the Fram"][/caption]

And then it was off for some culture...The Lileaker Music Event, an annual musical evening organised by Harald and featuring bands and talent local to Lileaker. Harald and Solveig both performed!

[caption id="attachment_66" align="alignleft" width="640" caption="Harald on drums and vocals at the Lileaker Music Event"][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_67" align="alignleft" width="640" caption="And Solveig fronting for the band too!"][/caption]