Good Morning!
It's 7:27am, freezing cold, I'm lay in my sleeping bag in a log cabin listening to 2 Aussie guys snoring their heads off, bliss!
My flight arrived in Rygge an hour later than planned but fortunately the bus service to Oslo is linked to all Ryanair flights. After an hour long bus ride I got to Oslo around midnight and then walked across the city to my hostel. I checked in and was looking forward to a good nights sleep, however, the couple on the bunk next to me had other ideas! Fantastic!
Yesterday I woke up shattered after a rubbish night but enjoyed the breakfast included in my stay. At breakfast I made careful judgement of who to sit next to and said hello. Luckily I got chatting to a few other single travellers from Germany, Switzerland and France. After breakfast I packed up my stuff and went off to explore Oslo with the two German girls, Saskia and Louisa. We had a good day and I enjoyed getting to know two complete strangers for the day, that's what I love about traveling!
First we went to the National Gallery, not my personal choice but I went with it. I was however quite impressed by the 'Scream' painting, that famous I can't remember who it was painted by!
Then we walked up via the Palace and down to the sea. The 'New Oslo' or 'Modern Oslo' is very cool and has some amazing buildings! We then came across a tall stand alone lift that took you up above the buildings, it was very exiting with a German who is scared of heights. It was a good view anyway from the top :)
After that we walked around the water front and then over to the City Hall and back the hostel. I spoke to Mum and Dad on FaceTime and looked up the next bus to meet the tour. I packed up, got my rucksack and was off.
I got the number 32 bus for around 30 mins through residential Oslo up into the hills. The bus stopped at this monstrosity of a camp site! Absolutely huge!! I went to check in and they hadn't a clue who I was or who Top Deck were... I decided to go for a walk as I was pretty early and just as I left the campsite the coach arrived.
The group is massive, around 40 people. The majority are Australian with a few extras from around the world; New Zealand, Saudi Arabia, Brazil, America, Canada, Scotland, Wales and now Bolton!
Last night it was Punch Night because of us newbies arriving and some of the group are finishing tomorrow. We had a great meal and then hit the punch down by a beautiful lake. I spent the night chatting to everyone and mingling with people from all over the world. I got on well my fellow newbies; Caitlin, Kat and Kate! Yes, for some reason the only people I seem to make friends with are called Kate or Kat!
The night ended rather abruptly as the punch seemed to hit a number of people hard and consequently they ended up on the floor in a heap! Once we got back to our cabins the site security didn't take to kindly to the noise levels of the drunk ones so it was all a bit tricky! Eventually I got to sleep ready to explore some more the day after :)
Update - I am now chilling on my bed after my second day in Oslo. It's 9:50pm and I keep getting Facebook notifications on a picture of Chezza jumping!!
Today I woke up and started to write this blog before getting up and enjoying a good breakfast. Basically Top Deck has their own chef, Chad, who cooks for the whole group. On arrival in a camp everyone helps to set up the cook tent with everything from fridges to cookers and then Chad gets to work on the meals.
This morning we went straight to Vigeland Park, a beautiful sculpture park in Oslo. The sun was shining, it was pretty hot and the sky was clear blue! The sculptures were slightly strange as a lot of them involved humans doing a number of strange things. The group enjoyed mimicking the statues and for some they were able to recover from the night before, Aussie lightweights!
We then went on to a Viking Boat Museum. There were a number of boats on show all with their own stories to tell. To me they were old bits of wood but I suppose their age was impressive!
The next museum, The Fram, was a brilliant trip! The Fram is the name of the boat used on North/South Polar Expeditions by Amundsen. The boat was huge and there were lots of great information boards and stories of Scot vs Amundsen and their missions to the poles. I even went inside the boat which was pretty cool!
After The Fram we were dropped off in the city centre by the bus. Caitlin, Kat, Kate and myself went off to explore after eating our packed lunch in the sun by the sea. We walked up to the Palace as I did yesterday to watch the changing of the guard before doing some shopping to get some much needed warm clothes! On the way down from the Palace we walked down a great tree lined avenue with what I call 'Grandad Trees' touching in the middle. My grandad always liked these trees and it was special to see such a long avenue of them. I hope he's looking down on my travels and enjoying seeing what I'm up to. It's still ridiculous to think he's not here anymore but I've enjoyed Chocolate Eclairs throughout the day today thinking of him :)
On the way through the city I bought a great white bobble hat with a bright blue bobble! I'm actually wearing it now in bed as its that cold!! I'm gutted I have a rucksack full of shorts and t-shirts as its freezing at night!
Anyway, to end the day Caitlin and I went on a Fiord Cruise around the Oslo Bay. This 2 hour cruise took us past the National Opera House before heading out to sea and amongst the islands. Basically there are lots of little islands which have houses on and are only accessible by boat. This doesn't seem to put people off though as lots were occupied and looked amazing!
I had a great time chatting to Caitlin and we shared stories about our previous travels. It just so happens she's a primary school teacher in Melbourne. When we arrived back in Oslo Kat and Kate were waiting for us and the 4 of us went for a pizza. We then went back to the modern area of Oslo which was really cool and buzzing!
Tonight we have chilled back at the campsite and packed our stuff up ready to leave early in the morning. I've just got back from a stroll down to the lake to see the sun set and I'm back in bed to see if I can get some sleep. I am now armed with ear plugs!! :) Mrs B has just sent me a message so I'm off to have a catch up.
We set off at 8am tomorrow and head to Lillehammer to do a Bob Sled! Oslo has been great, a nice city with lots of cool architecture and things to do.
Goodnight from me,
x