Land of Vikings Offers Pastoral Retreat

To date, Norway's most famous, colorful citizens have been the vikings. One thousand years ago, these fierce seamen regularly set forth from the country's fjord-riddled coastline, often stopping to pillage peaceful monasteries and villages on their way to explore the seven seas. They worshipped hammer-swinging, six-legged, horse-riding warrior gods whose destiny was to fight frost giants, monstrous serpents and wolves to the death in one final, apocalyptic battle called Ragnarok.


But today you'll be hard pressed to find much evidence of the fiery violence of Norway's viking past in Oslo, the capital. A small, quiet city of 480,000, Oslo offers a pleasant change for those who have gorged themselves on the grandeur and extravagance of Europe's imperial capitals. For those living and working in Moscow, Oslo's tidy, narrow streets, forested hills and the pure waters of the Oslo Fjord offer one of the world's cleanest urban retreats.


Expatriates will find that getting a new visa through Oslo's Russian Consulate is relatively easy: There are no lines, and the Russian staff seem to have adopted the calm, friendly demeanor of their host country. In summer, perhaps the only drawback of a trip to Oslo is this city's relatively high cost of living.


Modern Oslo is first and foremost a port city. Protected by a handful of islands at the head of the 100-kilometer Oslo Fjord, this city was built facing the finger-like inlets and open bay around which it has grown. During the day, the fjord bustles with boat traffic. Ferries are the fastest way to get to suburbs and island communities across the water. Huge ocean liners dock just below the medieval clifftop Akershus Fortress, only several hundred meters from City Hall, an unattractive but fascinating modern building that overlooks the length of the fjord.


Aker Brygge, a recently renovated waterfront district, is jammed with pedestrians who fill its outdoor cafes even on summer weekdays. From Aker Brygge, you can hop a ferry for a short ride to the peninsula of Bygd...y, home to some of Oslo's most interesting museums. Among museums representing Norway's maritime, viking and folk history, the Kon-Tiki Museum stands out with its remarkable exhibit devoted to the adventures and archaeological breakthroughs of Thor Heyerdahl, Norway's seafaring Indiana Jones.


The rest of Bygd...y is somewhat rural in character, worth a half-day bike tour to glance at the King's Farm, the ambassadors' mansions or the tiny castle of Oscarhall. Locals also strongly recommend a boat tour of the Oslo Fjord.


If your curiosity isn't piqued by large bodies of water, not to worry: Downtown Oslo offers enough interesting sights and a pleasant summer lifestyle to keep visitors happy for several days.


But don't expect the awe-inspiring. If anything, Oslo can be summed up as understated and modest, a bit like its people.


Norwegians are proud of their country and its achievements, but they seem to have an aversion to drawing attention to themselves. Thus, even the king's Royal Palace, which looks down Karl Johans Gate -- Oslo's main street -- is a study in subtlety. Compared to Versailles, Buckingham Palace or St. Petersburg's Winter Palace, this yellow, three-story building looks more like the servants' quarters. Yet while Russia's and France's extravagant monarchs were swept from power long ago, Norway remains a monarchy, with King Harald currently fulfilling the day-to-day role of Norway's symbolic head of state.


A walk down the tree-lined Karl Johans Gate, starting at the overlooking Royal Palace and Slottsparken, takes you past Oslo University, the National Gallery and the National Theater, past ritzy stores, fountains, gardens and cafes, up to the benches and Living Sculpture performing for spare change before Stortinget, seat of Norway's parliament.


Even near the nucleus of Norway's government, quiet reigns. As Richard Threlkeld, an American journalist of Norwegian descent, described it, "It's the only city in the world where at 10 a.m. on a weekday, you won't hear a sound." There are no horns, no loud conversations, just quiet Norwegians going about their business. But by afternoon on a pleasant day, the street is filled with locals and tourists, all out to enjoy this northern city's brief months in the sun.


Past parliament, Karl Johans Gate is closed to vehicular traffic. From here down to the medieval church of Domkirke, Oslo becomes its most touristy, with outdoor cafes, Andean Indian music groups and Americans strolling about in plastic viking helmets. Nonetheless, this strip is home to some chic cafes that offer a glimpse of Oslo's trend-setters: the gothic music bar So What? or the yuppy CoCo Chalet coffee and cake house. In the morning, the cloister behind Domkirke houses arts and crafts stalls, as well as an expensive-looking outdoor caf?.


Several blocks from parliament, the buildings take on a medieval aspect as the Akershus Fortress rises up on a bluff overlooking the fjord. The fortress offers an impressive walk along the battlements and an introduction to the King's Guards. These young men march around in simple, dark uniforms, braided epaulets and what look like shallow bowler hats, all fulfilling their year's obligatory military service.


Once you've explored Oslo's streets, you might want to duck into two of Oslo's better museums. Both the National Gallery and the Edvard Munch Museum can be explored in a matter of hours. The gallery boasts a collection of romantic landscape paintings by German painter J.C. Dahl, as well as some pieces by Renoir, Monet, Cezanne and Matisse. The Gallery's Norwegian works are the most interesting, illustrating what was, until recently, a country of quiet sailors and farmers living in the shadow of its neighbors. (Norway only won independence from the Danes and the Swedes in 1905, but since discovering North Sea oil resources, the country has became the economic envy of its Scandinavian cousins.)


Of the Norwegian artists presented -- including Erik Werenskiold, Harriet Backer and Harald Sohlberg -- Edvard Munch is undoubtedly best known internationally, particularly for his famous The Scream, exhibited here. The National Gallery also houses the most representative collection of Munch's moody, turn-of-the-century works, including Madonna, The Dance of Life and The Sick Child. Munch fans can then travel several subway stops to the Munch Museum, a modern building that sheds light on Munch's turbulent trajectory, his many styles of painting, and his jealous, artistic rivalry with fellow artist Gustav Vigeland.


No visitor can afford to pass up a visit to Vigeland's Sculpture Park, a collection of 200 statues called "monuments to the cycle of life, to human existence through good and evil." The sculptures line the central axis of the park and represent Vigeland's crowning achievement. At the park's main entrance, huge stone statues encircle a stone column six meters high made of writhing human bodies. The starkly minimalist statues show enormous human figures caught in fantastic, sensual poses that capture humanity's emotions and social relationships: a grandfather holds three wriggling children in his enormous arms; two men grapple violently, their veins bulging from the exertion. On the sculpture bridge in the park's center, an infant throws a tantrum, rage contorting his face as he clenches his fists and stamps his foot.


Vigeland also designed the park's paths and fields, which are now a beloved meeting place for Oslo's residents during the warm months. Here humanity is engaged in more prosaic endeavors: Joggers tramp along the park's gravel paths, and other sports fans use the surrounding lawns for pick-up soccer games or free outdoor aerobics classes.


Norwegians collectively take pride in their environment, and a 25-minute ride to the end of the tram line shows visitors the fruits of this ecological awareness. Steep green hills ring the city, offering sweeping views of Oslo and the fjord as well as fantastic hiking and mountain-biking trails. Line 1 of the Oslo subway takes you to the Holmenkollbakken Ski-Jump Tower and hilltop tavern at Frognersetern. At this edge of town, you can find charming houses and cabins roofed with turf and wildflowers, a traditional practice that has become increasingly popular in Norway.


Take a step over the summit of the hills around Oslo, and you suddenly find yourself within the Nordmarka -- kilometer after kilometer of pristine northern pine forests. An entrance to the Nordmarka lies 400 meters from Frognerstern, leading to hundreds of kilometers of hiking trails through the forests. At strategically located intervals (the first being less than a quarter mile from the entrance), quaint, family-run trailside lodges offer tasty cakes and pastries. These establishments are busier in the winter, when Norwegians zoom around the countryside on cross-country skis. The lodges close on summer weekdays, so to catch one of these on a hike in August, plan to hit the forests on a weekend.


Oslo's drawbacks are few, but chief among them is the cost of living. Norway has a huge middle class with a social security system that covers the costs of education, medical care, welfare (recipients are referred to as "social clients") and maintaining the elderly population. As a result, the tax burden is enormous. Ordinary goods carry a 23% sales tax, while the liquor tax sends Norwegians to Sweden and Denmark to buy alcohol.


For tourists, this can mean an expensive stay in Oslo. A beer in an ordinary cafe or bar can start at $5.50. A late-afternoon hot lunch with alcoholic beverage at an informal waterfront restaurant at Aker Brygge will easily start at $30. Bike rentals go for $25 and more per day; subway and tram fares cost $2 for an hour's pass. To compensate, the city offers an "Oslo Package": for nearly $50 per person per day you can get double-occupancy bed and breakfast accommodations, plus an "Oslo Card" offering free public transportation and museum admission.


Getting There


Aeroflot flies directly to Oslo from Sheremetyevo 2 on Thursday, Friday and Sunday; tickets cost around $550 round trip. Return flights stop briefly in St. Petersburg. SAS flies through Copenhagen; Finnair, through Helsinki.


Things to Do


If calling Oslo from outside Norway, precede all phone numbers with the country code for Norway, 47.


National Gallery, Universitetsgaten 13 (town center), tel. (22) 20-04-04. Open Monday, Wednesday, Friday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.; Thursday, 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.; Saturday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.; Sunday, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.; closed Tuesday. Free admission.


Akershus Fortress, Medieval Castle and Royal Residence, town center, tel. (22) 09-39-17. Open Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.; Saturday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.; Sunday, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tours begin at 12, 2 and 4 p.m. Admission is free.


Domkirke: Oslo Cathedral, Stortorget 1, tel. (22) 41-27-93. Open daily from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Call for schedule of Masses and weekly organ recitals. No admission fee.


Holmenkollbakken, Ski-Jump and Hill-top View of Oslo, Kongeveien 5, tel. (22) 92-32-00. Ski Jump open year round. Free admission. Call for hours and ticket prices at neighboring Ski Museum.


Kon-Tiki Museum: On Bygd...y peninsula., tel. (22) 43-80-50. Take bus 30 to Bygd...ynes or ferry 91 from R?dhus pier. Summer hours: open daily from 9:30 a.m. to 5:45 p.m. Admission: adults, $4; children, $1.30.


Edvard Munch Museum: T...yengata 53, tel. (22) 67-37-74. Take bus 20 to Munch-museet or ride subway lines 1, 2, 3, 4 or 5 to T...yen. The museum is open daily from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Admission: adults, $6.50; children, students and Seniors, $2.60.


Norwegian Folk Museum: On Bygd...y peninsula, Museumsveien 10, tel. (22)12-37-00. Take bus 30 to Folkemuseet or ferry boat 91 from R?dhusbryggen pier 3. Summer hours are daily from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Admission: Adults, $6.60; children, $1.30; children under 7, free.


Oscarhall: Waterfront country palace on Bygd...y peninsula, tel. (22) 56-15-39. Take bus 30 to Folkemuseet. Summer hours: Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday, 12 p.m. to 4 p.m.; guided tours. Adults, $2.60; children, $1.30.


Oslo City Hall: Curious modern government building, decorated by mural artists, town center, tel. (22) 86-16-00. Hours: Monday through Saturday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Sunday, 12 to 5 p.m. Adults, $2.60; children, $1.30.


Maritime Museum: On Bygd...y peninsula, tel. (22) 43-82-40. Take bus 30 to Bygd...ynes or boat 91 from R?dhus pier No 3. Hours: daily from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Admission: adults, $4; families, $8.


Royal Palace Park, in town center: Palace closed; park open. Changing of the guard happens at 1:30 p.m. daily.


Vigeland's Statue Park, tel. (22) 44-11.36. Take bus 20 or trams 12 or 15 to Vigelandsparken. Open 24 hours a day, year-round. Free admission.


Viking Ships Museum: On Bygd...y peninsula, tel. (22)43-83-79. Take bus 30 to Vikinskipsmuseet or boat 91 from Radhus pier 3. Hours: daily from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Adults pay $4; children, $1.30.


Egil Ask's Antique Book Store, on the corner of Wilhelms Gate and Thereses Gate. The small English collection includes books such as the 1870 edition of "Rambles & Brambles in Norway." Next door is a pleasant, corner cafe and a hilltop church and park


Fjord Cruise: Various cruises available, from the 50-minute mini-cruise ($9) to the dinner and evening fjord cruise ($43). Tel. (22) 22-07-15, or contact Baitservice Sightseeing AS, City Hall Square, Pier 3.


Where to Stay


Oslo Package recommended, which includes hotel, breakfast and the Oslo card from $48.


Children under 16 share a room with parents free of charge. Valid all summer, weekends all year round. For purchase and information, book through your tourist agency or at the following Oslo tourist information center: Vestbaneplassen 1, tel. (22) 83-00-50.


For more luxurious accommodations, try the Grand Hotel, at Karl Johans Gate 31, tel. (22)42-93-90, or the Radisson SAS Plaza Hotel Oslo, at Sonja Henies Plass 3, tel. (22)17-10-00.


Or try a youth hostel, Oslo Vandrerhjem Haraldsheim, at Haraldscheimvn 4, tel. (22)22-10-25, or Oslo Vandrerhjem LBM Ekeberg, Kongsvn 82 tel. (22)74-18-90.


Where to Eat and Drink


CoCo Chalet, an indoor coffehouse, is popular with locals. Located beside the corner of Prinsens Gate and ...rre, a block from Karl Johans Gate, CoCo Chalet serves large open sandwiches that start at $8, beer for between $3 and $5.50, large pieces of excellent cake from $4 and coffee from $2.


The Justisen Bar, billed as "David Bowie's favorite," has a rustic interior, "taste of old Norway"; located in M...llergata.


Lorry, a popular local bar, with numbers printed above booths belonging to regulars, offers a vast assortment of 152 beers; it's located at Hegdehaugsveien, just a block from the Royal Park.


Restaurant and Bar Louise, a mid-range restaurant with waterfront seating located in Aker Brygge. Offers an excellent view, pleasant on a sunny day, good salmon. An entree and drink run from $30.


Theatre Cafe, a pricey, after-performance hangout for Oslo's artists, has a turn-of-the-century atmosphere. It's located across the street from the National Theatre. For the price, the food is under par, but the coffee and dessert are definitely worth it. A chamber ensemble plays tangos and waltzes on a balcony overlooking the dining room.


Kaf? Tamara, a trendy bar in a trendy part of town, can be found a block from Gr?nerl...kka, Oslo's "Greenwich Village" strip. Visit Gr?nerl...kka on a weekend when students and trendsetters are out. There are cheaper drinks in this part of town and few foreign tourists.