The Hofreiters

View Original

Oslo, Norway

Natalie Hofreiter

To celebrate Christopher turning 40 this year, we went on a big adventure to Sweden and Norway!

Stop two: Oslo, Norway

The Basics

I should have read more about the Citybox Hotel, where we stayed in Oslo. I knew it was a budget option, but it was like hostel+. I knew it didn’t have a lot of amenities. I didn’t realize it would have plastic “carpet,” no TV, no mini fridge, and check-in and check-out would be done via kiosk. There was nothing wrong with the hotel, it just wasn’t very comfortable. We were supposed to stay here twice, first for our main visit and then a second time at the end of the trip on our way back to Stockholm, but after the first stay, I canceled the second one and booked a room at Scandic Oslo City. Thankfully, the coffee shop on the block, Stockfleths, was good and made mornings a little easier.

The Oslofjord Cruise by Silent Electric Boat was our favorite boat tour of our trip. Seeing the little houses and old buildings along the fjord was a really nice introduction to Oslo.

After the fjord cruise, we walked around town and stopped for a coffee and treat at Espresso House. This is a chain, and it’s fine, but nothing to go out of your way for.

There is so much art in Norway, this was one of my favorite installations.

We went to the Oslo Library and holy shit. This is one of the most amazing modern libraries I have ever visited.

The Oslo library has five floors plus mezzanines, and it was packed. There were so many cozy spots to sit and read, desks and tables to work at, plus recording studios, classrooms, and performance spaces. It was a magical place.

The library was also filled with cool art around every damn corner. I wanted to move in.

Look how cute this random snail sculpture is!

One last stop at the coffee shop near our hotel for breakfast sandos and lattes before catching the train to Bergen.

From Oslo, we took the train to Bergen, Norway. I love train travel!

The final night we spent in Oslo was on our way back to Stockholm at the end of our trip. I am so glad that I changed our hotel for that night because we were so tired. All we did was shower, repack our bags, and order pizza delivery. We even got an upgraded room!

Oslo is a cute little town. We ended up being there on Sunday and Monday, both times we were in town, so some of the museums we wanted to visit were closed. Sad day. Oslo was nice, but it’s not at the top of my list of places to revisit.