OSLO

Last October I spent three nights in Oslo. I had never been to Oslo before so I was really looking forward to it. I travelled with Ryanair, although I prefer travelling with Star Alliance companies. The flight to Rygge took only 1hr 40mins and I had to take train to get to the Oslo centre. I stayed at Smart Hotel Oslo and was not disappointed as the hotel is new, tidy, and has a retro sense to it. The room was compact, but I did not have anything to complain about. Besides, I did not go there to spend my holidays in hotel room. 

Speaking about my impressions, I loved everything there, even if the weather was not very warm (I even had a chance to see the snow on my very last day!). On my first day I went to Norwegian Folk Museum, The Viking Ship Museum and Kon-Tiki Museum. They all are located on Bygdoy peninsula and you can get there by public transport. I liked Norwegian Folk Museum the best because they had the most amazing carvings exhibition. And I will not lie if I say that I could not stop smiling for some time after I left it. October is not a holiday season and all attractions are open really short hours, therefore, I had not done or seen anything else that day. Oh, I actually managed to find a local cuisine restaurant and had reindeer cakes. Yummy :) I strongly recommend going to Restaurant Schroder and trying them, together with a pint of Norwegian beer.   

The second day happened to be a little bit rainy, but I had devoted it for shopping, so straight away I went to Markveien street. There are some really cool vintage clothes and accessories shops that I wanted to go to and the first I visited was Robot. I managed to get there a Viking ship necklace and a woolen sweater I fell in love with. I also grabbed a black wallet, but I still have not decided what I am going to do with it. Whoops... :D So I visited quite a few similar shops, but my next score was at Fretex. If you have similar interests to mine, definitely check it out, as they have good stuff and low prices. I also could not pass UFF store which is a huge second-hand shop. You have no idea how big it is and how much stuff it has. And all the stuff is vintage! Prices are a bit on a dear side though, but I still managed to find a coat for myself. Despite souvenirs I bought, these are pretty much all my purchases. By the way, coffee in Oslo is gorgeous. This might be due to fantastic water quality - it is so good that people are encouraged to drink it right from taps! Those who are going to pay for their purchases with their debit cards should consider the fact that every debit card transaction is charged extra, approximately £1. 

FIGURES:

• 10 NOK = £1.
• Postcards cost from 7 Kr (the cheapest are at TIC).
• A stamp to Europe cost 13 Kr and 16 Kr Worldwide.
• One-way train ticket from Rygge Airport to Oslo Central Station cost 156 Kr.
• City Bus ticket cost 30 Kr.
• Medium Latte price starts from 26 Kr (Deli de Luca, not that it's impressive).
• Admission to museums cost from 50 Kr, but there are also free of charge museums.
• If you are wondering how much I paid for reindeer cakes, let me tell you that it cost me 129 Kr.
• And last but not least, do not forget that debit card transactions are charged extra £.