Love from the land of ice, fjords and northern lights

Greetings from the capital of democracy, where the world is the coldest but hearts are the warmest...

It was already past midnight when I landed in Oslo, the capital of Norway, a city so different from us in everything. I didn't realize it because I took a taxi to the hotel, but when I left the hotel the next morning, I saw something I had never seen in my life.

Yes, everywhere was white in Scandinavia this time of year, it was very cold, but what surprised me was the centimeters thick layer of ice on the ground. Almost most of the city was covered with this thick layer of ice where the traffic was not so heavy...

In Norway, too, in winter, it gets light at 09.00 and dark at 14.00 noon, and at 16.00 the government offices and most of the shops close, as well as the museums and all the places of interest to tourists, so we have to move fast to see everything...

When talking about Oslo's history, it is impossible not to mention the Vikings. The years 800 - 1100 AD were called the Viking Age and the group of Swedes, Danes and Norwegians of today were called Vikings. The king of the Viking Era would have been the king of Norway. Norway, which has a very complicated history, when it finally became free from the Swedish kingdom, it didn't want to be without a king, even though it had its own parliament, so it set out to find its own king, and strangely enough, people have always preferred being dependent and ruled to being free, in every part of the world and in every history.

So a contest is organized and kings, princes and dynasties from all over the world, from the Far East, Arabia, Great Britain and Europe apply to become the king of Norway. The people and the parliament evaluate the applications and choose a prince close to them, a Viking prince, as their new king. Prince Carl of Denmark chose Haakon, the name of the Norwegian kings, as his new name, as a gesture to the Norwegians who had elected and honored him. King Haakon VII ruled Norway from 1905 until his death in 1957. Until his death, he walked the streets alone, shopped everywhere, lived among the people and was much loved. They built him the royal palace, which is now the face of Oslo, and his grandson, the current king, still lives there. Again, you can go to the door of the palace, there are no guards, no walls.

Again, Norway is the place where the struggle for women's rights and labor rights first started in the 1600s. In the 1800s, with the electricity industry and the increasing number of private companies, when it became difficult for the local people who could not make a living from fishing and migrated to the city to live in the city, they started to work as children and children and caused social sensitivity. This led to rights such as shorter working hours, safer conditions in workplaces, sickness insurance and economic support in case of unemployment. The women's movement fought for women's rights in society, for the equality of the sexes and for equal opportunities for men and women. The right to divorce, the right to protection, free abortion and the right of women to decide for themselves about their own bodies were among the main causes of the women's movement.

With the discovery of oil in the North Sea in 1969, Norway became an oil country. The biggest reason why it is so economically strong is that it is one of the countries exporting oil to the whole world.

The capital Oslo is a very calm and serene port city. In fact, with its harbor and medieval castle, it reminded us of Bodrum the first time we saw it. Although it is not as small as Bodrum, it is a very small city and you can visit everywhere in 2 days. Of course, if you come outside the three-month summer period, if you can stand the cold. Neither wool gloves nor wool scarves or beanies can protect you. Except for the big streets in winter, the parks and alleys are covered with 2-3 centimeters thick ice. For our 15-day Scandinavian trip, even though we unloaded everything we brought and didn't use anywhere else and wore it on top of each other here and walked around as if it was on a hanger, neither our butt, toes nor ears got warm. In other words, Oslo is not a place where you can just put your backpack on and go, just like all the other Nordic countries. I'm not even looking at the daytime nights at the bottom of the minus.

In 2015, Oslo was chosen as the most expensive city in the world, and if you ask whether the cold is harsher or the cost, for me it is the world's number 1 in both. If you think that a hamburger costs 180 nok (Norwegian kroner), that is 90 liras, you can understand that a pizza or pasta costs 400 nok, that is 200 liras, and a can of coke costs 20 liras. It is really a joke of a city.

Karl Johans Gate Street, which is located in the middle of Slottsparken Park and has 173 rooms and extends to the royal palace, is home to the National Theater, the National Gallery and the Parliament building, as well as big brands and shops on the left and right, famous restaurants, and is the most popular place for both locals and tourists. You have to go to the National Gallery, even if only for "The Scream", which includes the great works of Cezanne and Manet. The architecture of the Modern Opera and Ballet House seems to finish the reputation of Sydney's famous opera house. With its mermaid-like appearance reaching out to the sea, its modern and incredibly aesthetic stance, and its interior design in wood-metal texture that is not inferior to its exterior appearance, it is a great place to see.

Let's end Oslo with one of Oslo's must-see, must-see places...

Vigeland Sculpture Park is a park where the beautiful sculptures of the famous Norwegian sculptor Gustav Vigeland, created between 1920 and 1943, are exhibited. Humorous and meaningful, walking among the minimalist sculptures and sharing the same images with them offers pleasant snapshots that make you forget all the cold...

Mukaddes Pekin Başdil

Researcher-Author

Source: Denizli Haber