We woke up Monday to blue skies and lovely fresh air after an evening of rain. While I was eager to explore, we also needed to deal with some logistics. Such is the reality of traveling long-term with a big family. We spent a good part of the day “working”; well, Steffen was actually working, the girls did some reading and writing, and I did some cleaning, laundry, dishes, grocery shopping, cooking, etc. It ended up taking longer than I wanted, but was necessary. We finally were ready to go into Oslo proper around 5pm.

We parked downtown and walked toward The Royal Palace, past the University of Oslo where the Nobel Peace Prize was awarded annually from 1947–1989.

We continued along Karl Johans gate (a quaint, flower lined boulevard teaming with outdoor cafes), stopping in a bookstore to pick up a few postcards and some stamps. We were quite shocked to pay 50 euros!! People weren’t kidding when they said Norway is expensive….

We kept walking, this time heading back down the main street, past the National Theater, Parliament and other beautiful old buildings. 🙂 Seriously though, the architecture is a cool mix of old and new. I didn’t necessarily fall in love with Oslo, but it has some impressive buildings and with a bit more time to explore, it could be a slow burn.

Then we made it to the pièce de résistance: Operahuset Oslo (the Oslo Opera House). It was stunning! We got really lucky with the weather, and enjoyed gorgeous views from the rooftop.

And on a final note, it cost us 20 euros to park the car for 2 1/2 hours! So it was a 70 euro visit to Oslo for some postcards and a walk around. That would be the down. But the ups outweighed it, for sure!