Trains, Rain & Other Excellent Decisions
We made a quiet and stealthy departure from Pia's beautiful apartment and left Helsingør a little earlier than expected. Our good luck continued when we drove straight onto an earlier ferry to Helsingborg than the one we had actually booked, with no issues whatsoever.
From there, we settled in for a fairly long driving day toward Oslo.
Fortunately, it was broken up by a stop in Smögen, where we felt oddly transported back to Newfoundland. As you'll see from the photos, the geography has a surprisingly similar feel, and the colourful boathouses lining the waterfront certainly didn't help. If someone had told us we were somewhere on the Newfoundland coast, we might have believed them.
That evening we found a quiet neighbourhood to park in and enjoyed an uneventful night's sleep, which is always something to celebrate when you're living out of a car.
The next morning, we made a short drive to a gas station so Cotty could acquire coffee and we could enjoy breakfast. We were pleased to discover that Norwegian gas stations are much more like Canadian ones than Swedish ones, offering actual food and facilities rather than simply fuel.
From there, we parked near a train station and managed to purchase two 24-hour transit passes, which turned out to be one of the best investments of the day. Armed with unlimited transportation options, we headed into Oslo.
Our first stop happened entirely by accident: a music shop with an impressive ukulele display, including a gorgeous bass ukulele and an intriguing six-string version. The store manager was so friendly that we ended up becoming Instagram friends. I also spent a concerning amount of time convincing myself that I did not, in fact, need a guitalele, despite evidence to the contrary.
Next up was the sculpture park that had been recommended independently by two different friends. They were absolutely right. The park was fascinating, and we even enjoyed a chat with a lovely woman visiting from Minnesota.
After accidentally sharing part of our lunch with some very persistent birds including a cool looking hooded crow, we set off on another mission: finding a post office so we could mail a gift that we had originally hoped to hand-deliver. We hope the recipient enjoys it just as much arriving by post. Fingers crossed.
At this point, we're beginning to suspect that Norway may require a return visit. There are still more of Cotty's distant relatives to meet, and based on our experiences so far, they seem to be universally delightful. Hopefully that's not too much foreshadowing.
Having completed our various missions, we were promptly caught in a truly impressive rainstorm. Retreating to a coffee shop seemed like the wisest course of action, so we spent some time drying out and plotting the remainder of the day.
When the weather finally seemed to improve, we ventured out again, only to discover that Oslo's rain had not quite finished with us yet.
Eventually, we admitted temporary defeat and returned to the Blue Gnu, where we cooked what turned out to be a surprisingly delicious dinner entirely inside the car. We've recently improved our cooking setup, and the new arrangement involves significantly less palaver than before, which feels like a major breakthrough.
Restored by food and a bit of shelter, we headed back into the city once the rain finally eased.
Our transit passes earned their keep once again as we visited the Opera House and then finished the evening with a wonderfully relaxing sauna experience at SALT.
By the time we returned to the Blue Gnu, we were thoroughly relaxed, pleasantly tired, and ready for bed. Conveniently, we'd been parked in the same spot all day, so our commute home was approximately zero seconds.
Not a bad way to end a very Norwegian day.
