OSLO, NORWAY AND NORWEGIAN EXPLORERS!

Monday, August 17, 2026
Oslo, Norway
63F and sunny

Sunset sailing out of Oslo

Sunrise today from our balcony

Sailing into Oslo

Approaching Oslo on the Oslofjord

Delightful!

Oslo, the capital city of Norway and another cosmopolitan city! Our cruise ship docked near the center city, so we had an easy “on our own” walk into the hub. Of course, we stopped for coffee and shared a delicious cinnamon bun first.  Oslo has a population of about 700,000—and Norway—5.5 million.

Oslo Opera House

The Munch Museum (The Scream)

We couldn't do everything, but next time!

She Lies

The She Lies sculpture in the harbor is a floating glass and stainless steel structure that resembles an iceberg—created by artist Monica Bonvicini to evoke the power of ice and water in the high north. It rotates due to the influence of winds and tides. This sculpture is astounding!

Our first stop was a sleek train station, the largest one I have ever seen, that incorporates a huge mall with another huge mall right across the street. We were looking for Starbucks!  We could not resist walking through the mall, clothing stores, cosmetics shops, at least 5 grocery stores—3 small ones and 2 large ones), florists, furniture, vitamin shops. It was just like any mall but multiply Erie’s mall by at least 5. It actually seemed like the train station morphed into a mall—I didn’t get a photo!

[Aside to Ann and Jim—this is a train station to love!]

Traveling Man statue

outside the train station

Entrance to the train station

One of the smaller grocery stores

Three level mall

Men's fashion!

Outside-I do like public art!

We found Starbucks in the huge mall across the street, purchased our Oslo mug--

Why not Troll Coffee to fill the

Oslo Starbucks cup!

TK is always thinking

We decided to Uber to the Kon Tiki museum, 3 miles away. We were not going to walk that far.  When Janie was in her early teens, she read two books by Thor Heyerdahl—one was Kon Tiki. Briefly, the Norwegian Thor Heyerdahl theorized that early people could have sailed on a balsam log raft to the Polynesian Islands and he set out to prove it in 1947.  Heyerdahl and five other men constructed the boat and sailed for 101 days before smashing into a reef at Raroia, an atoll in French Polynesia in the Tuamotus.  All survived and returned safely.  This book must have piqued my sense of adventure as a 13 year old!  As it turned out, DNA has proven a link between Peruvian natives and those of French Polynesia.

Aku-Aku: The Secret of Easter Island  was written in 1957 by Thor Heyerdahl—and describes his investigation into Polynesdian history and culture on Easter Island and other areas. He studied the "moai," thousands of stone statues on one of the most isolated islands in the world.  Obviously there is more to both books, but that is enough to possibly pique your interest. I am definitely going to reread those books. I surely never dreamed I would see a reconstruction of the Kon Tiki!

I am sure this is not a real 

"Easter Island maoi"

A replica of the Kon Tiki

I can picture 8 days on the 

Atlantic Ocean on the U.S. Brig Niagara

I cannot picture 101 days on the 

Kon Tiki on the Pacific Ocean

(closeup)

Kon Tiki--aft

There is actual footage of

the voyage---

On the high seas-count me in...

Another maoi

Heyerdahl built the Ra (made of reeds) 

for a voyage across the Atlantic, 

but it was not successful

Across the street from the Kon Tiki museum was the Fram Museum.  Why not learn about Norwegian exploration into the Arctic and Antarctic? This museum honors the polar exploration of the three great Norwegian explorers, Fridtjof Nansen, Otto Sverdrup, and Roald Amundsen.

The Fram—“forward” in Norwegian—is a ship that was used in expeditions of the Arctic and Antarctic regions between 1893 and 1912.

The Fram

The Fram, a 3 masted schooner

Janie on the 3 masted Fram

We toured the original Fram inside the museum, 70 ft. length and 20 ft beam. Its sides 4 ft.  thick made of oak.  There was lots of information about the journeys, the preparation, the sled dogs, the crew, the cold. We walked through an area that was like a freezer to experience the chill of an Arctic trip—although I am sure it wasn’t as cold and certainly not the length of time these men endured.  Roald Amundsen is also known for the three year journey he made with a crew of six on the Gjøa, the first vessel to transit the Northwest Passage.

We salute Norwegian explorers and their passion!

On the Uber ride back to the center city, we saw cows in a meadow, rolling hills, trees, and suburbs with apartments and single family homes.

Karl Johans Gate (street) 

We walked one more street near the train station and found Vaffelvogna! We enjoyed a folded soft waffle stuffed with strawberries, ice cream, and whipped cream (not from aerosol can).  I hope we find such a treat in Skagen, Denmark tomorrow!

Vaffelvogna

TK captured this amazing image

as we were sailing on the Oslo Fjord

10 p.m. Central European Summer Time

or 4 p.m. Eastern Daylight Savings Time

TK’s Takes: He wished he had tried the brown cheese at the Vaffelvogna (like caramel).  He saw a large firehouse near the ship.  He bought a troll on Karl Johans Gate (street).  He said he really liked the Scandinavian countries, too bad there is a lot of winter.

STOCKHOLM, SWEDEN MEETS BALTIC BREEZES, BOATS, AND BRIDGES!

Friday, August 14, 2026
Nynashamm, Sweden for Stockholm
83F and sunny!

Stockholm

Our port today is Nynäshamn, a coastal town located about 37 miles south of Stockholm. Cruise ships and ferries often dock here instead of central Stockholm to avoid a time-consuming detour through the archipelago. It took about one hour to travel from Nynäshamn to Stockholm on our Princess bus today.  We opted for Stockholm on our own, which was a good choice... over 15,000 steps later, she says.

Stockholm is the capital and most populous city of Sweden, built across 14 distinct islands connected by 57 bridges. It has been dubbed the "Venice of the North.”  As of 2026, Stockholm’s population is approximately 1 million people.  I looked and looked for the Skarsgaard brothers (True Blood, The Vikings), to no avail. We did encounter lots of tall people though.

After an hour of rolling hills and lots of interesting bedrock, the bus dropped us off near the National Museum at 11 a.m. and we had 5 hours to explore the city.  We knew that the Abba Museum was very crowded, so we headed to the Viking Museum. We discovered that there were no ships in this museum

Area of the museums 
we did not see

Since I already crossed the barrier

of taking photos in restrooms

in Pompeii in 2024, I thought

I would include this one

Janie with the Vasa Museum 

New category: photos of

museums we did  not visit

We were told at an information booth that the better option was Vasa Museum. In 1628, the Swedish Royal Navy debuted Vasa, an impressive 226-foot-long war vessel, built to display Sweden’s vast naval power. The ship had the astounding capacity to carry 64 heavy gun cannons, which was an unprecedented armament aboard any battleship at the time. It was supposed to be a feat of engineering. But then, it buckled under its own weight and sank to the bottom of Stockholm Harbor on August 10, 1628, just 1400 yards from shore.  Rediscovered in nearly pristine shape 300 years later, it is a very popular sight to behold. Guess what. There were at least 200 people in line to see it.  Note to self: Buy tickets online before you leave home!

One goal: find a Swedish 

cinnamon bun!

Nordic Museum-another 
one we did not visit

Since that trek to the area of the museums was about 1.5 miles, we opted for an Uber back to center city. A sleek Tesla picked us up and what a screen it had. We were dropped off at a posh Starbucks for a Stockholm mug.

Map of city/Tesla

plus 3-D view of cars and pedestrians

Starbucks

We strolled through a Cultural Festival, much like We Love Erie Days, only much larger.

This was probably a backdrop for

children's photos, but 

no one was around!

A girls' choir with orchestra/

beautiful!

TK took this picture of sportfish-

top fish is a brown trout

bottom: Atlantic salmon

Food trucks-Greek, Brazilian, 

Mexican, Swedish, etc.

Finally, we found the “old town,” a delightful area with many small shops with all things Swedish, as well as restaurants with outdoor seating.  Next time we will start there!

Women's clothing

Children's clothing

A Dala horse is a traditional carved, 

painted wooden statuette of a horse 

originating in the Swedish province 

of Dalarana. The Dala horse has been

 widely used as a toy for children.

A symbol of Dalarna, 

as well as of Sweden in general.

Toys

Sweden is known for its salt licorice

No Swedish fish in sight 

Firetruck!

Boats and bridges!

Before boarding the bus

we opted for strawberries and cream!

In no time at all it was time to meet the bus to return to the ship—just in time for dinner.

I see three bridges

We are on one of them

Interesting facts:

• Midnight sun: Stockholm is too far south for the sun to remain above the horizon all night, which is required for a true midnight sun. Around the summer solstice in late June, the city experiences persistent twilight, where the sun sets around 10:00 PM and rises again around 3:30 AM, but the sky never turns completely dark. This period is called white nights, lasting roughly from mid-May to early August.
• Sweden is the largest Scandinavian country.
• Sweden is a Parliamentary Republic and Monarchy (dating back 1000 years)
• It has 26,700 islands
• Two thirds of Sweden/covered by forests
• December 13 is the darkest period of winter.
• Fika—I liked this new word-- fika means a deliberate coffee‑and‑pastry break taken to pause, connect, and socialize—usually with others, often twice a day.
• Smultronställe—I liked this phrase too—a Swedish phrase for a personal place of joy, kept partly secret 

TK’s Takes: He saw jelly fish in the water near the Princess pier—pink!  Stockholm was very clean.  As we rode out of the city he remarked that the suburbs had mostly nice looking apartment buildings, not many single family homes.