i Norge - 2. dag

Løpering i Olso Kommunes Skoger

So I woke up this morning at 3:30 AM which was not exactly according to plan. When it started to get light around 5 I shoed up and headed out for a run. Kanutte said there was a park behind the neighborhood on the other side of the highway, although Tor-Helge disputed that it was a park. I did a lot of running around the neighborhood trying to find a path into the park before I realized that "privat vei" means "no cars" rather than "private driveway". Once I was into the park it was a glorious run through the trees of the skoger (Norwegian for woods). Then it was back to the Huse's to have breakfast and subject the children to more of my attempts at Norwegian. Magnus, who used to babble Norwegian back at me all the time, has gotten a bit shy and didn't really want to talk though. I'm hoping he'll warm up again though. Anniken was deep into Harry Potter. They were both prodded along by their mother's repeating spis nå.

T-Banen med Cara og Kanutte

So after getting ready for the day Cara, Kanutte & I followed the trail through the woods to the T-Banen station. Cara hadn't fully recovered yet, but she was ready to go in to work anyway. They were headed to Radium Hospital for the day while I had plans to see the islands in the harbor.

Slott

I got off the train with some time to kill, so I decided to walk around the ground of the royal palace (Slott) which is right next to the Nationalteatret stasjon where I got off. The palace and grounds appear to be aping the French, but there is still a king living there which is a little weird. Next to the palace there was a tall conifer with laminated messages tied throughout the lower boughs, which I guess is some form of petitions to the king. It all seemed very staged and calculated to maintain a cult of personality.

On a more positive note there were kids I guess having PE around the back of the slott because they were running laps. It seems like almost everyone in this country is obsessed with fitness and I guess they learn it at an early age.

Espresso House (ordering in Norwegian - almost)

I haven't seen a Starbucks here, but I have seen about half a dozen Espresso Houses. So my goal was to get through ordering entirely in Norwegian. Everyone speaks English here, so you have to deliver it very convincingly or they'll immediately switch. I got most of the way through to the end...

Sit du har?
Nei.
Vil du takeaway?
Hmm?
Vil du takeaway?

The English loan word she was using totally threw me, because it is an odd thing to use instead of "to go". Maybe that's what they say in the UK? Anyway, my cover was blown. And so she switched to English and I paid for my order. Then she asked "Are you pretending to be Norwegian?", which is an odd way to ask if someone is trying to learn a language. Then we talked a good bit about more about my trip, plans for the day, etc. before I left with my espresso to walk back through the palace gardens to the piers.

Ferge

Pier number 4 is where the ferry to the islands leaves from, despite what Google Maps says. Fortunately I'd scouted this out the day before so I was there in plenty of time to join a daycare group (a dozen little nuggets in life preservers) and like six high school classes on the 10 o'clock båt. There were several lines and I wasn't sure I was in the right one, but when the ferge arrived everyone got on so I just followed suit (but more on that later). Pulling out of the harbor I tried to tweet a picture of myself, but my data went out (little did I know then that it would be gone for the rest of the day). The first stop was unexpectedly Hovedøya, so I went ahead and got off with all the high school kids.

Hovedøya

Øyene

So if you ride the ferge this time of year there are two that run: B1 - Øyene, and B4 - Hovedøya. And B4 only runds on the weekends! There are a number of islands that the ferge is listed as stopping at: Bliekøya, Gressholmen, Lindøya (øst & vest), and Nakholmen. No where on the map, however, could I find Øyene. After a couple hours on Hovedøya I went back to the dock and discover that the ferge stopped there once on the way oout and once on the way back. So there was really just one ferge route! Then I felt really silly as I realized that øya meant island and øyene was in fact the plural form of that noun.

Naturhistorisk Museum

The Natural History Museum mostly contained stuffed animals, that is, it was primarily zoological and current more than history. There were some interesting local fossils in the main room though, so not a total bust. And the gift shop had the book on Norwegian geology, so I was able to confirm most of my field notes (with the exception of my Hovedøya stromolites actually being carbonate deposits). I also took some time to look at a book of edible Norwegian plants to make my berry picking a little more informed.

Botanisk Hage

Surrounding the museum is the botanical garden. Both are affiliated with UiO. Some parts are more well cared for than others. There interesting wicker scultures thoughout the garden and some really interesting live bamboo topiaries, even a tunnel like they used to do at the zoo in Lincoln.

Google Fi Fail

For some reason my data turned itself off on the ferry. Had to wait until I'd gotten to the wifi at Kanutte's lab to figure it out. But now I know how to fix it for next time. Something about their algorithm to minimize cost & maximize battery life went a little haywire. Extremely helpful customer service though.

Amundsen Bryggeri & Spiseri

Cara & went back downtown for a fancy dinner. I wanted to get some fish because Norway and Cara was excited but still tired and feeling sick. We got off the train at Stortinget, their parlaiment building situated at the opposite end of a long park from the palace. When we got off the train I discovered there was a Zara store, so of course we had to go in. Sadly there was no clothing displaying their brand. Other people have found things for Zara there, but we always seem to strike out.

Dinner was great. I had Brosme. Cara had a cheeseburger that she wolfed down, so she was definitely feeling better. I didn't bother "pretending to be Norwegian" either. Then it was a little junk shopping on our way to sunset at...

Akershus Festning med Cara

T-Banen Hjem & Kanuttes Mor

Then we headed back to the Huse's on the train. Kanutte's mom was there watching the kids, so we hung out with her for a little while (more Norwegian practice!) until she had to go. Then Tor-Helge and Kanutte got home in succession and we hung out with them a bit before heading to bed.