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5 Museums at one place, Norwegian glories at Bygdøy Peninsula

Norway offers one of the finest networks of museums anywhere

There is something about Europe that fascinates us all but this stunning city is closest to my heart. I wouldn’t be exaggerating if I said I had one of the best time of my life in Oslo, Norway.  If I could have my way, I wouldn’t have wanted to come back from there. During the five days of the week, hubby would attend his job and I would enjoy the gorgeous neighborhood views, read books, write blogs, enjoy the snow fall and cook small bites. I loved my every day routine there and every time I stepped out of the house,  the beautiful landscape of the capital city took my heart away.

 

 

My travel stories…

Mention of Norway immediately transports one to fjords, vikings, mountains, museums, northern lights and midnight sun. The capital city-Oslo is a gorgeous piece of land and in winters, some of its landscape would look like an art. We lived in the downtown and our favorite hangout places used to be Oslo city center and Karl Johans gate (the most popular street). The weekends promised far away places. On one of the Saturdays we visited the famous Bygdøy Peninsula to acquaint ourselves with the maritime past of Oslo.

 

 

 

 

Bygdoy-A collection of 5 museums salute the spirit of Norway’s love for expeditions and adventures. 

I am a fan of old stories and I love visiting museums.  History never bores me. Bygdoy looked very exciting to me. With a set of five museums located around a serene waterfront, I was very keen to pick stories related to viking ships, explorers, maritime, traditional life at Vikingskip Museum, Norsk Folkemuseum, Kontiki Museum, Frammuseet and The Maritime Museum.

 

 

Bygdoy Bus Number 30

 

 

How to be there?

 

 

Bygdoy can be reached by a bus or a ferry. The ferry runs from March to October only. Since it was November time, we had to board bus number 30 from the National Theatre to reach Bygdoy. The bus runs all round the year. The twenty minutes ride was fun-filled and I enjoyed treating my eyes to the quaint landscapes and pine trees. In November, the cottony layer of snow had begin to take over the city and every sight of it  added to my joy.

 

 

When we got down at the Bygdoy station, there was only one word which came in my mind and that was picturesque. I thought we were visiting a secluded sightseeing area but to my surprise this place had enough residential around. Later, we also learnt that the Norwegian royal family has a summer house at Bygdoy. Along with the museums, this was another reason why it made one of the top attractions of Oslo. Visitors and locals in walking trails and cycling troupes could be seen seen enjoying the afternoon. Hubby and I made a great company and we continued to stroll around hand in hand.

 

 

It was winter and the daylight lasted only till 4 in the afternoon. We knew we had time constraint and five museums meant lots of history and walking around. What I had read about them was that none was grand and each had a relevance to its name.  The map helped us to plan and it was easily comprehensible that The Kon-Tiki, Fram, and Maritime museums were almost next to each other while the Viking Ship and Norsk Folk museums required a 20 minute walk.

 

 

 

 

                                                                                                                           Norwegian Maritime Musuem

Norwegian Maritime- This one had much to tell about ships, boats , vessels and ship designers. The boats collection boasted of sail-powered rescue boat, dugout canoes, polar exploration ships, modern racing sloops. The library filled us on historical facts as well as related stories of vessels that took emigrants to North America.

Fridtjof Nansen designed a ship called FRAM and went on to become famous. It was built to survive and sail through ice-choked waters. It is known as the polar exploration ship. It sailed to extreme north and later it boasts to have sailed to both Arctic and Antarctica. It speaks of inspiring and passionate stories of Norwegian explorers and their expeditions.

 

 

 

 

 

Next we moved on to Kon Tiki.  This one is about two special boats and has a library of 8000 books. Thor Heyerdahl was the famous scientist, explorer and communicator who crossed the Pacific Ocean on Kon-Tiki. Here we got to know about the reed boats Ra and Tigris too.

 

 

 

 

Bygdoy has beautiful streets and walking around the Island to visit one museum after another is a fulfilled experience. For those who aren’t very keen on walking,  a day pass or travel card helps to use the Bus to travel  between the museums.  From Bygdoy peninsula, people go around the Huk beach and love picnicking.  Also a few close-by islands can be hopped on and off from here.

Vikings Museum

 

 

3 best-preserved Viking ships dating up to 1200 years are in to be found in this museum. The Viking longboats make interesting history. This one museum along with Kon Tiki is very famous. To learn about the ship construction details, there is Tune ship inside. Along with it, two other ships that have a very prominent place in Norwegian history are Oseberg ship and Gokstad ship.

 

 

Is there an entrance fee?

Remember, each museum has a separate entrance fees. None of the museums deserve to be missed. Even if you are not interested in the history and past, Bygdoy definitely makes for a visit. It is a very peaceful and relaxing place.  The peninsula has lots to do if you are a nature lover. It absolutely makes one pretty place just a few kilometers away from the city.

 

 

MuseumsKiosk

 

 

The museums were well maintained.  If you enjoy history, these five museums have much to entertain you.


Norsk Museum– Here you can meet guides in folk dresses.  It introduced us to the Sami culture. The indigenous people of Norway named after the Arctic area of Sápmi are known as Sami. The 800-year-old, Gol Stave church is not to be missed when you are here.

 

 

Colorful boat and colorful me made a great photograph!

This peninsula area made for a great walking promenade along the seaside. There were lots of boats to look around and more islands could be spotted from here.
 

 


 

 

Here I was so excited to see and click this anchor. We were doing the ships and maritime past and I was all in the shipping and expedition mood.
 

 

One of the iconic statues at Bygdoy!

These were some modern sculptures at the end of the peninsula.


 

 

I sat on one of the benches and enjoyed the scenic beauty of Bygdoy. I had stopped to soak in the picturesque moments and to fondly look at this  color line cruise.  I sat there for nearly thirty minutes to enjoy my tranquil moments and the gorgeous views. The ship looked like an absolute beauty standing tall over the still waters. We could make out that it was all set to start its journey. While hubby was catching up with more information around the area, I played with the camera zoom to see some merry-making people on the roof-top of this huge ship.

 

 

 

When it turned and faced me, it looked amazing and gigantic.  Aah, I was absolutely dreamy to be there right on the top because I had never done a cruise yet. At that time hubby and I did plan a sea trip to Copenhagen via a cruise liner but due to my hubby’s official engagements in the coming weeks, we did not see it materialize.


 

 

 

One could see the Oslo city (downtown) at the other side of the waters.

Oslo city paints a beautiful landscape behind

It was all so beautiful around that no less it made for a great romantic place.  Amidst the upscale neighborhood, Bygdoy makes for a small and beautiful paradise in Oslo, Norway!

 

 

It makes a great photogenic place-Bygdoy

I had returned so happy and fresh. This post was meant to remember a beautiful tale of travel and a memorable day of my life.

Happy Traveling!!!

3 thoughts on “5 Museums at one place, Norwegian glories at Bygdøy Peninsula

  1. Pingback: Writings From Norway: Amazing Weekend in the city of Oslo – Manjulika Pramod

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