Oslo, Norway

The first stop was Oslo, a familiar city because we have previously visited our Norwegian friends Hilde and Are Borgir; see the World Tour. Oslo is a pretty city, with a lot of cool cats. x The tiger is the famous sculpture at the Oslo Main Train Station. The lion guards the entrance to the Parliament Building. The term "cool" also applies to the Borgirs, of course. They honored us with a celebratory "60th Parallel" dinner overlooking the harbor. Notice the cruise ship and the Oslo Fortress in the background. Do not notice all of the wine glasses. In Oslo sculpture is a big deal. Norway's greatest sculptor was Gustav Vigeland, and there is a great page for him from the World Tour. Sculpture is not just in the parks. It's in front of the public buildings and it's on the street corners. These two diners at a waterfront restaurant, have probably looked at one sculpture too many. Sculpture even taught us something fundamental about human nature. x We spent some time enjoying these beautiful sculptures by the fountain -- two boys on the left and two girls on the right. After considerable observation we realized that little girls only play on the little girls sculpture, and little boys only play on the little boys sculpture. Oslo is the city where the Nobel Peace Prize is awarded. The museum dedicated to that award is a "must see". In one room LCD displays describe every recipient's achievements and philosophy. The small LEDs represent "blades of grass" in this electronic field. One sobering statistic from the Peace Museum: There have been 150 wars since the end of World War II ... maybe something should be done. Down at the harbor we found young Norweigians in "Viking Training". This is a "ride" in which children don life jackets and get into one of these boats. Like all kids enjoying such rides, they turn the steering wheel furiously while an adult drives the boat around in a small circle in the harbor.