The excursions.
#1: Tuesday 20 June
So there I was, 6am yesterday morning and me having already done everything I could actually do in this small room in the proceeding 6 hours. So I up and left. My first actual exploration of the city began at 6am June 20th. I had no real plan, I figured I’d walk into town, get the lay of the land, and assess my proximity to all things Oslo. The walk was pleasant. I wondered in the general direction of the Rådhus, or City Hall as we say back home. Even at that early hour Oslo is a pretty dirty town. Last time I was in this part of the world with a bunch of people everyone was really down on Oslo. It rained the whole time we were here, true. But Oslo is not like the other Scandinavian capitals. There is an edge, a grit that defines it as a true city. Stockholm was all façade, prettied up and freshly painted but substanceless, like royalty n name only. Copenhagen was like an aging hippy who came into money. Helsinki was like business executive on vacation. But Oslo, Oslo was blue collar. It was tough. Things might happen here and there is no telling what the outcome would be. And now here I am again. And Oslo is still tough. Even at 6am.
The walk was pleasant enough. I’m just shy of 2 miles out from city center. [I just figured that out with a map, an engineers scale and math. It’s an approximation.] I walked aimlessly, plotting my course by memory and a general sense of direction. I noticed two things besides the grit, One, graffiti and sticker culture in Oslo is sophomoric and disappointing so far. [Stockholm had great stickers, as did Copenhagen. Here, not so much.] And two, as I got into the city proper there were people everywhere and a lot of them were incredibly beautiful Norwegian women. The gene pool here is fantastic that way. But also the people on the street, people walking, markets being set up, conversation and it lasted all day. Crowds of people occupying the city in a different way from how they do in Seattle.
After getting lost for a little while I found the Rådhus and sat by the water for a while. It was 8:30. I took a picture of Oslo Fjord and that’s when the first setback occurred. Memory Card Error. Damn it. The card just broke. It just up and broke. No explanation. No goodbye. Just nose thumb and an AMFYOYO and then it was gone. So no pictures. Not of the Fjord, not of the Rådhus, not of the trippy ufo play toy thing I found all graffiti’d out. Nothing. To bad for you.
Putting that aside I decided I should go to Ikea, because Ikea is where you go if you want the good things that make life worth living. And although I am traveling, I am also sad just now and I could use some good things that make life worth living. Like a plate and fork. A pillow. And a pan for cooking. Not so much in the states, but here in this part of the world, Ikea runs a bus service from the city, in this case Oslo, to it’s far removed front door (two towns over, a suburb really called Slependen). I had a recollection of this bus pulling up while we were standing somewhere 2 years ago and someone (Laura Lenss?) exclaiming “Ikea has a bus!” Well I knew I could ride that bus for free if I could just find it. And so I stood around where I thought we were when that was said. But no big blue Ikea bus. I waited. Nothing. I sat and watched people at a bus station, but no Ikea. After awhile I gave up and went to a book store to get envelope. While there I paid $13 for a paperback book. Yeah for weak dollars!
I then went to find the police station and that took a while because it’s on a road that’s underground. So I walked passed it several times. I have to go there to have my passport checked and stamped with a visa. When I finally found the place the line was too much. It was eleven by this time, and I’d been up for a long time and I was tired and didn’t feel like waiting, so I marked the fact that the station was on another road that is actually above ground and made my way home.
#2 Wednesday 21 June
Today’s adventure started out with a trip to the Police station. Again for the passport thing. I left about 10am. Took a different route into the city. Found a nice park with ducks and seagulls and big fields. Walked along a river. It was nice. I was glad to be out. I almost didn’t leave the room. When I woke up it was raining, hard. Now I love the rain. I love it when it’s raining. I love being in the rain, watching the rain, waiting for it rain. I like also staying inside when it’s raining with the window open and reading a book. It’s peaceful for me. At 9:30 I crawled back into bed and intended to sleep a little more, read some, and basically kill a day. But then I started thinking about all the stuff that needed to get done. And the rain had stopped. And so I got up and left. [Yes, I dressed first, which would implied I spent the morning in my underwear. Fair enough.] When I got to the Police station I was told I needed to go to a different police station around the corner, but they were closed at 11:30. All right, something to do tomorrow. I left and decided to find that Ikea bus come hell or high water, as I really needed that fork and plate.
Circling I eventually found it and road the half hour to Ikea. This in itself was pretty uneventful. It’s the same set up as any other Ikea. You walk around and find everything in a sleek modern Scandinavian fashion. I got two bags worth of good stuff to make life worth living, like a wok and cups and all the other stuff and a reading lamp. On the bus ride back it started raining and when we got off the bus it was coming down like the business end of a giant water hose or something. But I walk in the rain all the time. so whatever. I went five blocks and the rain was so heavy that I had to actually stop and wait it out. I don’t usually do that kind of thing. I mean I was already wet, why not keep going, but seriously, I couldn’t. And as I was standing under the canopy, I contemplated hailing a cab. Hailing a cab? I even counted up my money to make sure I’d have enough for the trip. Then I remembered I’m not a crybaby and sucked it up. When I finally started walking the rain let up. And then it was gone. So there I was, carrying sixty pounds of goods things to make life worth living, drenched, walking home, and still no picture. But the river was swollen from the rain and the waterfall was mighty and strong. And when I got home I cooked some stuff with pans and ate them with my fork and plate.
So far that’s it. Two excursions, no pictures and a bunch of good things to make life worth living.
So there I was, 6am yesterday morning and me having already done everything I could actually do in this small room in the proceeding 6 hours. So I up and left. My first actual exploration of the city began at 6am June 20th. I had no real plan, I figured I’d walk into town, get the lay of the land, and assess my proximity to all things Oslo. The walk was pleasant. I wondered in the general direction of the Rådhus, or City Hall as we say back home. Even at that early hour Oslo is a pretty dirty town. Last time I was in this part of the world with a bunch of people everyone was really down on Oslo. It rained the whole time we were here, true. But Oslo is not like the other Scandinavian capitals. There is an edge, a grit that defines it as a true city. Stockholm was all façade, prettied up and freshly painted but substanceless, like royalty n name only. Copenhagen was like an aging hippy who came into money. Helsinki was like business executive on vacation. But Oslo, Oslo was blue collar. It was tough. Things might happen here and there is no telling what the outcome would be. And now here I am again. And Oslo is still tough. Even at 6am.
The walk was pleasant enough. I’m just shy of 2 miles out from city center. [I just figured that out with a map, an engineers scale and math. It’s an approximation.] I walked aimlessly, plotting my course by memory and a general sense of direction. I noticed two things besides the grit, One, graffiti and sticker culture in Oslo is sophomoric and disappointing so far. [Stockholm had great stickers, as did Copenhagen. Here, not so much.] And two, as I got into the city proper there were people everywhere and a lot of them were incredibly beautiful Norwegian women. The gene pool here is fantastic that way. But also the people on the street, people walking, markets being set up, conversation and it lasted all day. Crowds of people occupying the city in a different way from how they do in Seattle.
After getting lost for a little while I found the Rådhus and sat by the water for a while. It was 8:30. I took a picture of Oslo Fjord and that’s when the first setback occurred. Memory Card Error. Damn it. The card just broke. It just up and broke. No explanation. No goodbye. Just nose thumb and an AMFYOYO and then it was gone. So no pictures. Not of the Fjord, not of the Rådhus, not of the trippy ufo play toy thing I found all graffiti’d out. Nothing. To bad for you.
Putting that aside I decided I should go to Ikea, because Ikea is where you go if you want the good things that make life worth living. And although I am traveling, I am also sad just now and I could use some good things that make life worth living. Like a plate and fork. A pillow. And a pan for cooking. Not so much in the states, but here in this part of the world, Ikea runs a bus service from the city, in this case Oslo, to it’s far removed front door (two towns over, a suburb really called Slependen). I had a recollection of this bus pulling up while we were standing somewhere 2 years ago and someone (Laura Lenss?) exclaiming “Ikea has a bus!” Well I knew I could ride that bus for free if I could just find it. And so I stood around where I thought we were when that was said. But no big blue Ikea bus. I waited. Nothing. I sat and watched people at a bus station, but no Ikea. After awhile I gave up and went to a book store to get envelope. While there I paid $13 for a paperback book. Yeah for weak dollars!
I then went to find the police station and that took a while because it’s on a road that’s underground. So I walked passed it several times. I have to go there to have my passport checked and stamped with a visa. When I finally found the place the line was too much. It was eleven by this time, and I’d been up for a long time and I was tired and didn’t feel like waiting, so I marked the fact that the station was on another road that is actually above ground and made my way home.
#2 Wednesday 21 June
Today’s adventure started out with a trip to the Police station. Again for the passport thing. I left about 10am. Took a different route into the city. Found a nice park with ducks and seagulls and big fields. Walked along a river. It was nice. I was glad to be out. I almost didn’t leave the room. When I woke up it was raining, hard. Now I love the rain. I love it when it’s raining. I love being in the rain, watching the rain, waiting for it rain. I like also staying inside when it’s raining with the window open and reading a book. It’s peaceful for me. At 9:30 I crawled back into bed and intended to sleep a little more, read some, and basically kill a day. But then I started thinking about all the stuff that needed to get done. And the rain had stopped. And so I got up and left. [Yes, I dressed first, which would implied I spent the morning in my underwear. Fair enough.] When I got to the Police station I was told I needed to go to a different police station around the corner, but they were closed at 11:30. All right, something to do tomorrow. I left and decided to find that Ikea bus come hell or high water, as I really needed that fork and plate.
Circling I eventually found it and road the half hour to Ikea. This in itself was pretty uneventful. It’s the same set up as any other Ikea. You walk around and find everything in a sleek modern Scandinavian fashion. I got two bags worth of good stuff to make life worth living, like a wok and cups and all the other stuff and a reading lamp. On the bus ride back it started raining and when we got off the bus it was coming down like the business end of a giant water hose or something. But I walk in the rain all the time. so whatever. I went five blocks and the rain was so heavy that I had to actually stop and wait it out. I don’t usually do that kind of thing. I mean I was already wet, why not keep going, but seriously, I couldn’t. And as I was standing under the canopy, I contemplated hailing a cab. Hailing a cab? I even counted up my money to make sure I’d have enough for the trip. Then I remembered I’m not a crybaby and sucked it up. When I finally started walking the rain let up. And then it was gone. So there I was, carrying sixty pounds of goods things to make life worth living, drenched, walking home, and still no picture. But the river was swollen from the rain and the waterfall was mighty and strong. And when I got home I cooked some stuff with pans and ate them with my fork and plate.
So far that’s it. Two excursions, no pictures and a bunch of good things to make life worth living.
posted by jeffrey ottem at 11:49 PM
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