Sunday in Oslo

Trip Start Nov 05, 2006

Trip End Ongoing

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Flag of Norway Oslo, Norway
Sunday, August 24, 2008

Despite a good night's sleep (my roommates aren't noisy but the traffic is), I have lost the will to visit all of the museums I've planned to today. Even though they're free, I'm not interested enough to visit. These include the Forsvarsmuseet (Armed Forces Museum) and the Doga (Norwegian Centre for Architecture & Design). Instead I went to see Oslo's newest landmark, just opened, the Opera House. From there I walked along the seafront via the fortress, and up to my first port of call, the National Gallery. I chose the National Gallery over the Munch Museum as apart from being FREE, it also has the famous 'Scream' and 'Madonna'. The Munch Museum has versions of the same paintings, and also an exhibition on the restoration of these paintings, but is 95NOK to get in. As Oslo is so expensive I don't know if I can spare this.
The gallery is well worth a visit. As well as an entire room full of Munch works, there are paintings by Picasso, Matisse, Degas, Manet, Cezanne, Monet, Renoir, even a self portrait of Van Gogh. It features sculptures, notably by Rodin, including 'The Thinker' and 'Danaide'. The gallery is most noted for it's Norwegian art, featuring paintings by artists Harriet Backer, Johann Christian Dahl, Christian Kroeg. I also found my new favourite painting 'Bridal Voyage on the Hardangerfjord' by Adolph Tidemand and Hans Fredrik Gude. I also liked 'Winter Night in the Mountains' by Harald Sohlberg. I noted that many of these artists painted portraits of each other.

The Munch room was of course the most populated by people desperate to see 'Svrik' (Scream) and 'Madonna' which were stolen from this very room in August 2004, and recovered 2 years later. They were found quite badly damaged and have been restored. You can see especially on Scream, the damage in the bottom right hand corner, which was irrepairable. These two paintings were behind glass and alarmed, understandably so as they were not in 2004. (see link below for story)
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/3588282.stm
I actually preferred his two portraits of his sister Inger, but it was very interesting to see the two more famous paintings. Isn't it weird how things are more interesting when you have to find the story behind them out yourself?

A brief walk later, I was in the Royal Gardens, with lush greenery all around, watching the Changing of the Guard, outside the Royal Palace. This daily ritual seems to involve around 40 guards and a lot of waiting.
The Royal Palace lies at the top of Karl Johan's Gate (the main street) which is much like Las Ramblas in Barcelona, with TGI Friday, Hard Rock Cafe, and 7Eleven. Most shops & services are closed on Sundays in Oslo, as I found out when trying to find a supermarket. Rimi, the one I had visited yesterday, was closed, as was Remi 1000 on Torggata. I eventually settled on Bunnpris in the train station, which was cramped and expensive, spending 80NOK on various bits that I could have got in London for maybe �3. YIKES. I had to buy for today and tomorrow, as I don't know if the trip allows for stops...and we leave at 6.30am!

Back at the hostel, things have perked up in the form of two Italians from Rome, Francesco and Stefan!

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