Top famous and most visited attractions Oslo, Norway

Oslo Rádhus

Welcome to Oslo, Norway!

I am glad that I had opportunity to stayed in this beautiful country and embraced their culture and foods. Norway is one of the richest country in the world,considered as a global city and ranked Beta in the world city center, also ranked as number one in terms of quality of life among European large cities and one of the most expensive city in the world. 

Oslo is the Capital, a modern and diverse city. One of the largest capital in terms of area but only  small percent of the land has been developed, the rest are protected forest, hills and lakes.

Oslo has lot to offer, get acquinted in city sightseeing, like bus sightseeing, boat sightseeing and walk guided tours,with OSLO PASS you can get free entry for more than 30 museums and attractions, free parking in municipal car parks. Right down below are the famous and most visited tourists attractions in Oslo,Norway.

1.  FROGNER PARK

Frogner Park known as The Vigeland Park is the world's largest sculpture park, about 200 sculptures made in bronze,granite and wrought iron by single artist Gustav Vigeland.
The area covers approximately 45 hectares, consists of manor house, frogner pond, frogner baths, frogner stadium,fountains and different flowers and plants. The park is perfect for summer picnic.

Entrance - free, Open 24hr

Address & Direction - Kirkeveien 0268 Oslo, Norway (Main entrance from Kirkeveien)
Bus 20 or tram12 to Vigeland Park. All westbound lines (T-bane) to Majorstuen station.
By car , follow the ring 2 to Majorstuen, Kirkeveien.

2. OSLO OPERA HOUSE

The Norwegian National Opera and Ballet is the Famous landmark in central of Oslo, with this modern architectural form. Located in the harbour with the angled exterior surfaces of the building are covered with marble and white granite that looks like the building a rise from the water. The roof is angled to ground level, creating a large plaza that you can see a panoramic view of Oslo and inside of the building has a huge space of  a spectacular modern designs.

The Opera house has 1,100 rooms, main auditorium seats 1,364 and two other performances spaces can seat 200 and 400. The main stage is about  52 ft. wide and 130 ft. deep


Address & Direction - Kirsten Flagstads Plass 1,0150 Oslo, Norway
7mins. Walk from Oslo central station (Jerbanetorget) via Prinsens gate and Operagata
For more info. Visit official website - www.operaen.no

3. AKER BRYGGE

Aker Brygge is lovely boardwalk with a great views, popular area for shopping and dining, a wide selection of different shops,al fresco wining and dining. Aslo popular for entertainment and high end residential and office space. The area was a former shipyard and engineering industry was demolished and rebuilt.

Address & Direction - Aker Brygge, 0250 Oslo, Norway
22mins walk from Oslo central station, via Karl Johans gate
For more info. Visit offical website - www.akerbrygge.no

4. OSLO RÅDHUS

Oslo city hall is the city's administrative body and city council. Designed in native romanticism, functionalism and classicism architectural style. The building stands out from the rest, with its solid brown bricks construction, heavy tiles and blunt corners as a modern scandinavian architecture. Inside has a numerous art galleries and studios and its open for public.

Address & Direction - Rådhusplassen 1,0037 Oslo, Norway
13mins. Walk from Oslo central station, via karl johans gate
For more info. Visit official website - www.oslo.kommune.no

5. KARL JOHANS GATE

Karl Johans Gate is Oslo main street, a pedestrian shopping street from oslo central station stretching to Royal Palace. Where you can see a various local and international brands, cafe's, restaurants and bars. The best place to stroll to look for shopping, eating and drinking.

Address & Direction - Karl Johans Gate, Oslo, Norway
5mins from Oslo central station, just across the street.

6. HOLMENKOLLEN NATIONAL SKI ARENA

Holmenkollen national ski arena is one of Norway's most visted tourist attractions, includes the ski museum and jump tower. The jump tower was made of 1000 tones of steel and stretches about 60 meters in the air, and the top is cut horizontally to accomodate a viewing platform with breathtaking and panoramic view of Oslo surrounding areas and see professional ski jumpers they're about to jump. There's also a Ski simulator, if you want to experience a sky jump, get into the ski jump simulator for a 5 minutes ride.

Inside the ski jump tower is the holmenkollen ski museum. The museum represents over 4,000 years of skiing history and holds the title of the world oldest ski museum in the world, and it also has an exhibition of snowboarding and modern skiing.

Address & Direction - Kongeveien 5, 0787 Oslo, Norway
Take subway, metro 1 going to Frognerseteren and stop to Holmenkollen station (travel time approx 30 minutes) from metro stop 10 minutes walk to Ski arena, you can see a signage of Holmenkollen ski arena.
For tickets ans more info. Visit official website - www.skiforeningen.no

7. THE NORWEGIAN PARLIAMENT

Impressive building right in the middle of Oslo city, is the Norwegian Parliamemt or the  Supreme Arena, where people who govern the country making political debate or decision and introduce legislation, impose, and control the work of the government. Its open for public, take a chance for free guided tour.

Address & Direction - Karl johans gate 22, 0026 Oslo, Norway
8mins. Walk via karl johans gate (main pedestrian shopping street) half way from central station to castle. The building is at the right side with a small park infront.
For more info. Visit official website - www.stortinget.no

8. THE ROYAL PALACE

The Royal Palace is the main residence of norwegian royalty located at the end of Oslo's main street, karl johans gate. Built in neo-classical style designed with facade of stuccoed bricks. The building has two wings and three storeys high with 173 rooms and the Palace is open for public during summer.

Address & Direction -Slottsplassen 1,0010 Oslo, Norway
located at the end of the main street, karl johans gate.
For more info. Visit official website - www.kongehuset.no

9. VIKING SHIP MUSEUM

Viking ship museum is the world's best preserved viking ships and part of cultural history of Norway.  The museum displays OSEBERG SHIP which known as a large burial ship in the world and was built around 800AD. GOKSTAD SHIP is a  9th century ship clinker-built, use for trade, warfare and transportation. TUNE SHIP built around 900AD made of clinkered oak planks, a rugged construction with natural grown ribs, thick crossbeams and solid gunwale. VIKING AGE is the period of 8-11century in Scandinavian history, where Scandinavian norsemen explored europe by seas and rivers to trade, raids, conquest and invade. The museum also displays ancient small boats, sledges, carts, tools, textiles and household utensils.

Address & Direction - Huk Aveny 35, 0287 Oslo, Norway
Take a bus #30 going to Bygdøy from Rådhuset (city hall) and stop to vikingskiphuset station.
For more info. Visit official website - www.khm.uio.no

10. TIGER STATUE

 The first thing you will see when you arrive in the city, is the Tiger Statue right infront in the Oslo central station. The statue stands 4.5 meter bronze made by Elena Engelsen. The tiger is describing the city, since Oslo known as the tiger city.

CULTURE

Norwegian Culture & Society

There's a lot to mentions about their culture, These are only the basics.

• Most of Norwegians  didn't practice any religion, most of them are atheist or deist.
• Norwegian view themselves as Egalitarian.
• They like people for themselves and not for their professional or status of living
• They are simple and not to prone to ostentation or excessive of showiness.
• They pride themselves on being honest and sincere.
• Many families consist mainly of nuclear family.
• Marriage is not prerequisite to start a family.
• Many couples live together without legal arrangement of marriage. 
• Women may take up to one year of maternity leave and recieved 80% pay or 10 months at 100% pay from government. 
• Woman decided to stay home for pre school children recieved a monthly stipend from government. 
• Greetings are casual, with a firm handshake, direct eye contact and smile.
• Norwegians are egalitarian and casual,  they introduce themselves with their first name only.
• Shake hands and say goodbye individually when arriving or departing.
• Gifts opens directly when you received.
• Invitation are generally given verbal.
• Norwegians both punctual in both business and socially meetings.
• when you finished eating, place your knife and pork across your plate, handles must facing to the right side. 
• When someone ask for a toast, raise your glass, look at to the person and take a sip.
• Norwegians are direct communicators, straight forward and relies on the facts.
• They are conservative and deliberate speakers, who do not appreciate being rushed.
• Invitation and appointments are necessary and should be made as far in advance. 

They have also a law called as a Jante law, to teaches people to be modest and not to think big, and not to criticize others. Norwegians try to see all people are equal, they do not flaunt their wealth or financial achievements.

LIFESTYLE

Norwegians like to have a big space of privacy for themselves, they are reserved, they like quite, peaceful and uncrowded. That's why they often judge as a cold people.

Norwegians are easy going and they like very relaxed most specially it comes to work they don't like stress and rush.

Norwegians love outdoor activities such as hiking, cross -country/downhill skiing, dog sledging, water rafting etc. and they also love calm leisure activities, like reading a book in front of the fireplace or having a good quality time for family.

Norwegians live also a healthy living, like other European countries.

CUISINE

PINNEKJØTT

                                            
Pinnekjøtt is a traditional Christmas dish, made of lamb ribs thats has been salted and dried. It has a very strong flavour. Serve on warm plates with mashed swede, boiled potatoes and mustard.


SMOKED SALMON/RØKT LAKS

Smoked Salmon or Røkt laks is a salmon fish preserved by cold or hot smoking.

TØRRFISK

Tørrfisk is a dry fish norwegian style. It is unsalted and cold air dried fish, also known as stockfish typically made of cod.


KJØTTBOLLER

Kjøttboller is a beef meatballs served with mashed or boiled potatoes, with cream sauce or gravy.


FÅRIKÅL

Fårikål is a lamb stew, consisting of mutton with bones, cabbage, whole black pepper and little wheat flour. Cooked for several hours in casserole and serve with boiled potatoes.


PØLSE MED LOMPE

Pølse med lompe is a sausage with ketchup sauce wrapped by tortilla wrap.


SMALAHOVE

Smalahove is a sheep's head, salted, smoked or dried and boiled or steamed for three hours served with mashed rutabaga and potatoes. Usually eaten before Christmas.

FINNBIFF

Finnbiff is a sauteed reindeer, reindeer meat slice in a thin and fried in reindeer fats, spiced with black pepper, salt, some water, cream or beer cooked until tender. Served with mashed potatoes and lingonberry.


Discover the top famous and most visited attractions in Oslo, Norway and learn their culture, lifestyle and cuisine. Plan your travel now! =)

Top best things to do in Helsingborg, Sweden

Top best things to do in Helsingborg, Sweden|includes culture, lifestyle & cuisine. To help you understand swedish people better.

Helsingborg, Sweden

My 2nd trip in Europe is roaming around Helsingborg, Sweden. Since this city is closest to Denmark where i temporarily resided. It takes only to 20-30 minutes travelled by ferry to Helsingborg, Sweden From Helsingør Denmark.

Helsingborg is such a quite, clean and scenic coastal city, where you can see many historic old buildings, blend of old style stone built churches and medieval fortress in the center of the city, and a long, wide pedestrian shopping street with various international and local brands.

Helsingborg has a lot to offer you, from public baths, public free wifi, public playground and etc. right down below are the top best things to do in Helsingborg, Sweden.

1. KÄRNAN

Kårnan is a medieval tower stands in the heart of the city, built in 14th century, known as famous landmark in Helsingborg, Sweden.

Kårnan tower is the only part of remaining of a large fortress of Helsingborg, after the ordered to demolished by Charles XI of Sweden fearing that it was too exposed to sneak attack from  Denmark during Scanian war.

The castle was restored and constructed in 1893 by a swedish businessman and engineer Oscar Ferdinand Trapp, together with Josef Alfred,Helsingborg city architect. The objective of restoration was to restore, to extent possible the appearance and structure based upon the oldest known medieval illustration. 

Address & Direction - Slottshagsgatan, 250 07 Helsingborg, Sweden (Tower is located  in the center of the city)
For entrance fee and more information visit official website - www.helsingborg.se


2. STADSHUSET/TOWN HALL

Stadshuset is a historical town hall and one of the landmarks in Helsingborg. Built in 19th century in a gothic style. You can heard bell tower melodies at 9am, 12pm, 3pm, 6pm and 9pm everyday.

Address & Direction - Drottninggatan 2, 252 21 Helsingborg, Sweden (Townhall is located in the city center)
For town hall tour and more information visit official website - www.helsingborg.se

3. KULLAGATAN/SHOPPING STREET

Kullagatan is a pedestrian shopping street, known as the oldest shopping street in Sweden with a lot of shops from international and local brands, cafe's and restaurants. Kullagatan was the first pedestrian shopping street in Sweden.

Address & Direction - Kullagatan 252 21, Helsingborg,Sweden
(Kullagatan located in the city center)


4. DUNKERS KULTURHUS/DUNKERS CULTURE HOUSE

Dunkers kulturhus is modern waterfront cultural house. Dunkers culture house is a concert hall,museum and art center.Where you can see international performers,cultural and educational activities,art gallery and exhibitions. The museum was themed from the ice age to modern day.

Address & Direction - Kungsgatan 11,252 21, Helsingborg, Sweden, (15mins. Walk from helsingborg central station)
for bookings and more information visit official webiste - www.dunkerskulturhus.se

5. FREDRIKSDAL MUSEUM AND GARDENS

Fredriksdal museum is one of the largest open air museum in Sweden. Where you can see 18th century mansion, historical buildings, farm in a unique landscape with animals and botanical gardens.

Address & Direction - Gisela Trapps Väg 1,254 37 Helsingborg, Sweden (27mins walk from helsingborg central station via rektorsgatan)
For Entrance fee and more information visit official website - www.fredriksdal.se

6. JACOB HANSEN'S HUS/JACOB HANSEN'S HOUSE

Jacob hansen's hus is the oldest house in Helsingborg and one of the few houses remained after scanian wars. It caters for weddings and all sorts of celebrations.

Address & Direction - Norra Storgatan 21,25220 Helsingborg, Sweden.(located in the city center upper end of stortorget) For more information visit official website - www.jacobhansenshus.se

7. SLOTTSHAGSPARKEN

Slottshagsparken is a park located above from the city center, a large park full of green spaces, gardens, garden waterfalls, sculptures and Kärnan fortress.

8. TROPICAL BEACH

Tropical beach is a popular public beach, approximately 200 meters long, close to city center,right next to the entrance of the ferry port.

Tropical beach has a restaurant, ice cream kiosk, WC as well as showers, and small childeren playground. every summer the beach decorated with palm trees that's why its called Tropical beach.

9. TROPIKARIET

Tropikariet is an indoor zoo. The animals are mostly exotic ones, from all around the world. All of its inhabitants are created designed with natural environments to provide interactive experience. 

Address  - Hävertgatan 21,254 42 Helsingborg, Sweden

10. BEER TASTING & TOUR

Beer tasting & tour, take a guided tour at helsingborg brewery. Learn about brewing process, from the crushing malt to final bottle and taste a range sample beers in the beer attic.

Address - Bredgatan 25,252 25 Helsingborg, Sweden.


ACCOMODATION

Helsingborg has a numbers of hotels and hostel. You can choose between in the city or outside city. There are also camping sites, where you can stay in a caravan, tent or cottage.

RESTAURANTS

Helsingborg city offers you a numbers of restaurants with different cuisines. You can choose between exotic foods or try typical swedish food with their local products.

ENTERTAINMENT

If you love to dance in a disco house and have a glass of wine or a beer in a cozy bar or clubs, watch concert or watch stand up comedy, then Helsingborg city is for you.

SHOPPING

If your addictive in shopping, Helsingborg city offers you a hundrends of shops from Kullagatan pedestrian zone streches to Gustav adolf torv And there is also a modern shopping mall with a large numbers of shops outside the city called Väla.

CYCLING

If you love cycling, Helsingborg is for you, where they have bike trials. Grab a bike for rent in a several bike shop in the city and take a excursion around helsingborg.

PUBLIC FREE WIFI

Helsingborg offers free public wifi in several places in the city center.

CULTURE

Swedish culture and society.

There's a lot to mention about swedish culture and their society, These are only the basics.

• Most of Swedes didn't  practice any religions, most of them are atheist or deist.
• Swedes are egalitarian and tolerant in nature.
• Swedes embraced the stances of views of anti racist, feminist, anti-fascist and progressive.
• Sweden is a child centered country.
• Swedes speak softly and calmly. Its rare you can see a swedes show a strong emotions in public.
• Swedes are hospitable and kind, failing to say thank you is impolite and negative in Sweden.
• Swedes behaviour are strongly balanced, everything is moderate.
• Due of egalitarianism, children are not raised to believe that they are special than any other child. Competition is not encourage in their country.
• Swedes family is extremenly important, the rights of the children are well protected. where they have the laws they benefit,either mother or father can take an off from their job until their child reaches 18 months old and they can reduce their workload about 25% until their child reaches 8 years old. and a parental allowance both parents and they can take an off up to 60 days per year to take care of sick child.
• Swedish society and its culture is concerned with the welfare and well being of others, both within and outside Sweden.
• Swedes are punctual, arrive late is impolite.
• If your invited to swedes house for what kind of occasions, don't ask to see the rest of the house, swedes are very private.
• when you eat, finish everything in your plate, its impolite to leave any food uneaten.
• when you finished eating,place your knife and pork across your plate, handles must facing to the right side.
• Greetings is casual, with a firm handshake, direct eye contact and smile.
• Shake hands and say goodbye individually when departing or arriving.
• Its important of Swedes their personal space, that you do not invade it. Avoid any unnecessary touching.
• when someone give you a gift open upon you recieve.
• Swedes are direct communicators.

LIFESTYLE

Swedish lifestyle, we all know that scandinavian countries lives in healthy lifestyle, except about that have you Heard LAGOM? 
Denmark has a HYGGE concept lifestyle as a coziness, while in Sweden they have LAGOM concept lifestyle means just right, not too much and not too little, just moderate.

How does LAGOM applies to their life as contentment?
LAGOM applies absolutely everything from food, clothing, shelter, weather etc. Are just right, not too much not too little, as for their contentment that makes Swedish happier than other countries.

I really love this concept anyway. You can have a lagom amount of food, live in a lagom apartment or house and have your heating or airconditioning set in a lagom temparature, I love this concept! This single word refers the entire swedish philosophy of life, that you can have enough but not too much and its connected and relates to their egalitarian views.

CUISINE

Some provinces or each provinces have their own traditional foods, as Helsingborg is a part of Scånia province have their own traditional foods.

Skåne traditional food

• GOOSE DINNER - Goose dinner usually eat during festive occasion like St. Martin's day.  All parts of the goose are used. The dinner begins with a soup. Enjoy the bowl of sweet and sour soup made from goose blood and goose broth and seasoned with spirits, cloves, ginger and fruit pureés and giblets. The roasted goose served with boiled apple slices, potatoes, brussels sprouts, red cabbage and prunes with a sauce.

• EEL PARTIES  or EEL FEAST - Eel  parties or Eel feast eating different kind of eel and eel dishes, such as salted eel, smoked eel, grill eel, fried eel, straw-smoked eel, eel soup etc. The parties begin in autumn, which is the perfect good catch of the fishermans,when the the lights get shorter that these creatures are unable to see the fisherman's nets, when they migrate to other place.

• SPETTEKAGA - Spettekaga is a Skåne party cake, eaten in a special occasions. It is made of potato flour, sugar and egg. slowly curled in a rotating wooden spit while baking. The cake dries and becomes crisp with the distinctive taste of spun sugar.

• EGG CAKE - egg cake is looks like tortilla or pancake. It is made of eggs and flour with salt and pepper. Served with bacon or fried pork, white cabbage and lingonberry jam.

Top best things to do in Helsingborg, Sweden learn their culture, lifestyle and cuisine!