Oslo in a nutshell
9/16/2009 09:15:00 PM
By: Muaz Nabil
9/10. Ryanair passengers landing at Torp Airport may use buses at a cost of 260Nkr (about 30 euro+/ for student only) for return ticket. You should not miss the return bus because it will cost u your flight. Bus from Oslo to Torp is only available for specific flight for each day. so if u miss the bus, u miss your flight.
At the city center, u can easily buy a daily ticket at a cost of 65Nkr (8 euro+) and u can use them for T-bane (metro) Tram, and some boat to Bygdoy and some small island nearby. Punch the daily ticket once only and u can use them for 24 hours. If you are not a truthful and reliable species, ride all the transport for free. no one cares.
Most of the attraction in the city are easily accessible by all these means of transport.
Oslo from the sky
Cleanliness:
About the same as Paris but dirtier than Dublin i think. 8/10. The city council was on election when i arrived there, so maybe the cleaner were somehow on holiday. :)
Where to stay:
I suggest you stay at Heraldsheimvein Youth Hostel (Hostelling International) which is literally 10 minutes from the city by tram 17. The hostel is up the small hill next to a football pitch and can be seen as you set off the tram. if u take the metro, stop at Sinsen Station but you may need to ask people for a direction from there coz it can be a bit tricky with the arrangement of the motorway there. This hostel is the cheapest i can find. it cost about 30 euro per night. Free from hustle and bustle of the city plus you can cook on your own if u want to for the meal. If you go there during winter, you may got a chance to try ice sledge off the small hill free of charge as long as you wish.
What to do:
-Museums and museums and museums (summer and winter alike)
-Winter activity mostly started on December and one should expect to spend a bit more for the sports.
-Summer activity mostly ended at 31 August including most of the waterparks and the TusenFryd Amusement Park (only open during weekend after this date)
-For a better experience of a lifetime in Norway, you should spend more and buy the ticket for FJORD TOURS that brings u to the west side of Norway where you can experience the breathtaking view of the Fjord. It is a 24 hour trip and cost you about 250 euro.
-Go outside the city for a better experience of the country. You may want to visit Gamlebyen, an old fortress town south of the Oslo. It took 1 hour and 7 minutes of high speed train to get there (Fredrikstad station) and believe me it is worth a visit. The city itself dated back to 1567 and among the oldest city in Europe that still maintain as it were before.
-Bergen and the Flam railway is a must visit. Maybe i'll go there again sometimes.
My travel mate at Gamlebyen
How many days do i need to spend in Oslo itself?
2 days is enough for you to stroll inside the city and pass thru every small and popular streets there. Everything is within the walking distance from the metro, bus and tram station. If u want to spend more time in the museums (more than 20 of them) around oslo, u may need an extra day for that. Some of the museums is worth visiting and some are fairly okay. Museum worth a visit: Nobel Peace Center/ Historical Museum/Munch Museum and the National Gallery.
Muslim visitors:
no need to worry about halal food and places to pray because at the Gronland area, there are about 7 mosques and some of them even has the minaret. 2 of the most famous mosque are World Islamic Mission which is a bit far from the Grondland t-bane station and the other one, Islamic cultural center of Norway is only 3 minutes from the Grondland t-bane. The former provided good food for iftar and the one after the maghrib prayer. Halal shops available at almost every corner of the Grondland.
World Islamic Mission Norway
Friendliness:
9/10. The youngsters are more open to visitors but for some reason, the elderly doesn't look like so. Let alone they move away once they heard you say "Excuse me". The hostel receptionist has very good English and also most of the visitor centers. However, none of them would really open their mouth and offer you a hand for a picture like most of the Irish i guess. The train station personal will try their best to keep you away from the ticketing counter. They will however assist you at the automatic ticketing machine. The gate keeper of the castle, guards in museum and the tour guide personnel are very friendly however.
important things to remember:
- Everything is Oslo is VERY VERY expensive. Shish kebab meal normally cost you 75Nkr (almost 10 euro). Its better to buy some pizza and share it with a few friends. Don't bother going to 7 eleven to buy milk! 500 ml milk cost u 59Nkr!! Buy chocolate milk from a shop with a green signboard (i forgot the name) thats available almost everywhere in Oslo. i think the shop is either RIMI or RIMA. Eat breakfast as full as you can before you start your day at the hostel.
- Pay a visit during winter if u want to feel the true coldness of the Arctic and don't afraid to invest a bit for the beautiful Fjord in the west. Summer visit is best in July. Lots of activities available in July.
- Almost every Norwegian women is beautiful! Treat them kindly. Especially the guards in the museums. :D
Quick fact about Norway
- There are too many lakes over there
- Tunnels are almost everywhere too. From Torp to Oslo, u'll go through almost 10 tunnels. Some are short and some are long enough to make u think when will this darkness ends.
- Pakistani and Somalian make the two largest immigrant community in the country.
- Norwegian government policy about the asylum seeker is among the best in the world and most likely the best in europe. They at least provide the best "waiting area" for the asylum seeker thou it may take as long as 10 years before one application shall be accepted.
- if u travel far enough to the north, u'll likely end up in the Arctic Circle area. you can actually study in the town of Tromso which literally is in the arctic area. How cool is that?!
- Nudity is common in Vigelandparken. if u know what i mean. :D
i'll be back with more stories and opinion. Can't wait to tell what i found about Malaysia in the Noble Peace Center, a women behind a great man's success and also the story of Linda Bournane.
Oslo in a nutshell
This entry was posted under
Holiday,
Opinion,
Perjalanan Jauh,
Place of Interest,
trip
. Follow any responses to this post through RSS. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Sep 18, 2009, 3:52:00 PM
t'ingt Pnhantom of the Opera::::
ada x jmpa Christin daae kt c2?
hahhaha...:P
Sep 22, 2009, 5:36:00 AM
wei muaz sapa kah wanita tersebut?
bekas MP tue ke?
btw selamat hari raya bro!
Oct 4, 2009, 10:56:00 PM
high proper towers?
haha..minaret maybe?
too many lakes?
too many?? :D
Oct 5, 2009, 7:04:00 PM
hehe, change it on the spot. wording problem again, as usual. :P
too many lakes. yes. too much. or..tah, word apa lg weh? haha