Happy Wanderers: August 6, 2023

August 6, 2023 - Sunday - Oslo, Norway

This is the end of the line for this cruise. Alice and I stay on for the next cruise, Iceland Intensive. Sean and Shelly will have today to explore the city as will we. Tomorrow they disembark to spend another day here. We will stay on board if the promised rain arrives.

We all left the ship together this morning. Sean and Shelly will find the HoHo stop and go on from there. We will work our way toward city hall. soon we went our separate ways and would reunite for a farewell dinner in Aqualina. Before we separated we walked past a building with interesting paintings on the walls. There was also what looked like a workout area alongside it. No one was there. It was early Sunday.

Shelly and Sean followed the main road to the HoHo. We turned down a side road that led to the harbor. Where we intersected there were museums and statues. we moved along and spent a good deal of time at the park with steps leading down to the water. This was a famous landing point for disembarking dignitaries. The side away from the water was open to city hall We had great views. As we approached this area I had been looking for what I remembered as twin towers on city hall I could not see it. Now I realized why. The second tower is indeed there. It is shrouded in screening and scaffolding for renovation. So, from the water, we could see that it is as it had been. It was just marred by progress.

This part of the mission accomplished, we took a side street to the downtown park. This beautiful green with pools and fountains and statues holds one’s interest for a long time. Here, despite it being Sunday, there were many people. We took our time to enjoy the activity and appreciate the monuments. The flowers were not bad either.

At the end of the park stood the opera house. We walked all around it. We passed the HoHo stop number one. Now we headed back toward the water. We went a couple of blocks away to avoid the crowded main drag. Our quiet street took us straight to the front of the city hall. This main entrance is still glorious even though one tower is masked. The grounds are splendid. It seems that Europeans have a much greater appreciation for their parks and flowers.

Beyond city hall, we returned to the walk along the harbor. Once we passed our earlier entry point we were overwhelmed by the number of restaurants and shops. The number of residential high-rises is also astounding. This area has been beautifully developed with art and water attractions. There are bridges over the small inlets that allow access for boats to dock in front of the buildings. This must be high-income property.

We made our way along a canal and through the courtyard of some buildings before crossing one last bridge with Pursuit clearly in sight.