Tallinn and beyond

Spent last weekend in Tallinn with Airi. I'm going to say that she is an environmental lawyer who speaks several languages including English, Russian and Estonian. I think there is a few more...She had just moved into a new flat and was nice enough to arrange to borrow a fold away bed from her friend. The medieval city is amazing inclosed by ancient masonry walls. They then decided to run large roads and tram lines around it so that it feels very much like a sort of island. New parts of the city are popping up everywhere. It was also light on my wallet which was a nice change. I managed to pick up some lovely souvenirs from an independent design shop. They catered for the tourists but it was quite tucked away and stocked young designers who had designed cool-er t-shirts than the run of the mill ones found in the other tacky souvenir shops.

The Rotterman Quarter is worth a swatch if you find yourself in Tallinn. Apparently it is "owned" by a developer who started his career as a security guard. At the heart of the development are old industrial buildings which they have started to refurbish. There are some interesting contemporary buildings some of which I remember seeing in the A10 architecture magazine recently. I'll need to look up the architects later.

I left Airi on Monday morning and took a ferry back to Helsinki then hot footed it to Turku. Stayed at the Omena hotel again which just happened to be a refurbished Aalto building. The sun was already setting when I arrived in Turku and there was one Aalto building I wanted to see which was the Turun Sanomat Building 1927-29 for the Turku Newspaper. The structural frame made out of reinforced concrete, outer external walls with lightweight concrete. Apparently it was one of the first Aalto buildings that attracted international attention. It was closed when I got there, but the security guard was nice enough to let me have a walk around the car park courtyard.

Woke up early to catch the 8.15am ferry to Stockholm. I promised Fred, an old university professor that I would take the day ferry from Turku to Stockholm to see the Archipelago. It only cost 11 euros. The night ferry has a reputation for being a party boat for the 20 somethings who take advantage of the cheap alcoholic beverages. I was able to avoid it by taking the day ferry on a weekday. I'm glad that I did the very long journey. The weather was beautiful and the scenery was even better.

Got into Stockholm on Tuesday evening and went to the hotel. My friend Amy who I have known since highschool was coming to meet me in Stockholm. She had booked the hotel and managed to find a great deal on the accommodation.

Aalto in Helsinki

I'm starting to feel like I am overdosing on Aalto. He seems to be every where. This is my last night in Helsinki. Tomorrow I take a fast ferry in the morning to Tallinn for the weekend. Staying with Airi, another couchsurfer host who works as an environmental consultant and is keen to experience a "Design Weekend" in Tallinn exposing all that is good in Estonian design.

http://www.edl.ee/en/news?news_id=75

Skype seems to be an invention owned by the Estonian's. People I've spoken to say that Estonia is a hot bed of creative activity now, I wonder if it has anything to do with years of Russian oppression.

In the last few days I've visited:

Finlandia Hall - Aalto, 1967-75

Kiasma Museum - Stephen Holl, 2003

Aalto Studio - Aalto, 1955

Aalto House - Aalto, 1936

Academic Bookstore - Aalto

House of Culture - Aalto, 1952-58

Finnish Museum of Architecture - Special exhibition showing Sverre Fehn's Venice Biennale exhibition in the Nordic Pavillion from last year.

Espoo, Helsinki University of Technology - Aalto, 1949-66

Design Museum

Architecture Museum

Lots of looking in design and furniture shops. Was introduced to Tove Jansson, Finnish writer who wrote the Muumi children stories. Very popular doesn't describe their status amongst popular culture in Finland. The Muumi's is an industry here. I managed to buy an english translation in paperback at a second hand bookstore today to familiarize myself with this phenomenon. You can buy dvd cartoons, mugs, stuffed toys, comics, books, clothes, bed linen with your favourite Muumi characters. According to my hosts, they are bigger than Harry Potter here.

Aalto Villa Mairea, Noormarkku

Ended up meeting the swiss architect couple again the next day at Villa Mairea. Not the easiest place to get to.  I stayed overnight at a strange hostel in Pori where the owners were only available on demand. I had to call and let them know I had arrived.

The next morning I left the key in the room and took my luggage to the train station where I stored it in a storage locker.  Then went to the bus station to catch the bus to Villa Mairea.  It cost about €4 each way and the bus driver didn't speak english, but quickly understood once I had shown him the Villa Mairea directions I was given by the Aalto Foundation. He let me off at a bus stop on Highway 23 and motioned to 

me to walk that way, which was up a gravel dirt path.  I followed it for about 5-10min. passing a children's nursery and then veered left up a sloped path. After passing a traditional country house that was originally the family home of Maire Gullichsen, the villa slowly reveals itself. Maintenance contractors were on site the day of my visit.  They were re-varnishing the timber window frames with a sky lift machine.

Seven people showed up for the tour.   Two swiss architects and 4 Japanese students and tourists. I met one Japanese visitor who wasn't an architect, designer nor had a profession closely related to architecture.  She just admired Aalto's work and was on a 10 day holiday, making Aalto pilgrimages.  She told me she went to see Aalto's Tuberculosis Sanitorium in Paimio the day before and got lost.  Was dropped off in the middle of nowhere and ended up finding a bowling alley where she was able to call a taxi who took her to the Sanitorium. Someday I would like to understand the unique relationship between the Japanese and the Finns.  There seems to be a mutual respect that exists for both countries design sensibilities.

This house is owned by the Gullichsen family foundation as opposed to the Aalto foundation. For this reason it is one of the most well maintained of Aalto's houses.  The Aalto Studio and House are owned by the Aalto Foundation and are less well maintained.  The family still gather here during the summer months we were told.  I think I would feel strange knowing that my house was being trampled on by thousands of tourists each year, although I suppose the tourists probably pay for the maintenance costs.

We were only allowed access to the ground floor of the house.  First floor was off limits as was the sauna. We were also not allowed to take photographs inside and had to take off our shoes and wear slippers before entering the main interior spaces.  Apparently Aalto was heavily influenced by Fallingwater when he began designing this house for his close friends Harry and Maire Gullichsen who made their wealth from the Finnish forestry industry.

It is a lovely house.  I realized that you can't understand Aalto's buildings until you've had a chance to visit them and experience a little of what it must have been like to live or work in them.  Photographs in books and written text just doesn't give them justice.  The proportions of the house and the size of the semi enclosed courtyard with pool feels perfect. It's not too big and not too small.  Aalto designed the courtyard as another room of the house, he made the main glazed wall movable so that the wall to the living space was actually the external wall of the adjacent sauna building. The tour guide noted that this glazed wall has probably been fully opened maybe twice in the whole lifetime of the house.  The glazed panels were designed to slide across and concealed behind the fireplace.

Aalto Experimental House, Muuratsalo

Through my student days and the many books and photographs I've seen, I though I knew this project pretty well. It turned out I didn't.

I was told to show up at 10am at the entrance into the site from the main road. The number 16 bus which originates in Jyvaskyla and stops in Säynätsalo took me to the last stop in Muuratsalo before turning around. I got off at the little grocery/post office /pub in Muuratsalo. From there it is a short walk, maybe 5-10 min. to the main timber gates leading into the forest to the Experimental House. When I arrived the tour guide and a swiss architect couple were waiting for me.

Mirkka, the tour guide told me that they had about 3000 visitors last year. Due to the number of visitors they've had to clearly mark a path to the house through the forest to minimize the impact on the landscape. We were first shown the larch clad enclosure that houses the boat Aalto designed for getting to and from the island.

When it was built in 1952-54, roads to the site did not exist. The original intended way of arriving to the house was by boat. We were then shown the sauna. It was noted that Aalto was not a big fan of the sauna. The sauna has a green roof which helps to keep moisture and prevent the sauna from catching fire. It takes 4 hours to heat the sauna, during which time the internal space is filled with smoke. When it is hot enough a small hatch is opened to allow the smoke to escape, the sauna is ready to use once smoke is emptied. Must be quite an experience.

The house itself is a lot smaller than I had imagined. Proportions are nearly perfect, except the bedrooms seemed really cramped for their guests and the family. I was told that Elissa, Aalto's 2nd wife was a few years younger than Aalto. There is a small half door leading from their bedroom into the courtyard. My tour guide noted that when Aalto was asked what he was thinking when he designed the door he said, "it's for Elissa's lovers to be able to make a quick escape when I arrive unexpectedly to the house". Not sure that's true.

I saw this feature again in the Aalto House/Studio in Helsinki.

There is a small ladder up to a small door into a storage room which leads out into the first floor balcony space and bedrooms. I was told again by the tour guide at the house that Aalto liked to escape from his employees without being noticed.

The brick work on the main entrance facade reads more like a wall of brick control samples...I like it. It's a very busy facade and yet I think it still works compositionally. It's interesting to see some of the brick patterns that were used here showing up on later buildings such as the House of Culture and his own studio/house in Helsinki.

Aalto Town Hall Säynätsalo

Okay, I know I've been light on the photos so far, but I'm hoping to make up for it now.  I've been staying with Tero and Emmi in Helsinki. Both graphic designers and they have been nice enough to lend me an old macbook to use for e-mail and blogging.

Säynätsalo Town Hall - main assembly rooms.  It was early morning on an overcast day but I would imagine that the lightplay on a sunny afternoon in this space would have been very dramatic.

Main public entrance into the Town Hall. Inside the foyer there was a guest book.  I noticed Richard Rogers was there in '08. Mari, the administration woman who takes care of visitors says they get quite a lot of architects and architecture students.  Local people who live on the island can't understand why people come from all over to see their town hall, she says. People are proud but they don't exactly know why.  I never really appreciated pergola's until this moment. I love the way he plays with light and shadow.

Arriving at the town hall from the bus stop. It's partially obscured from the main road until you walk on the path into the clearing.  There was a children's nursery to the left of the photo. The ground floor of the library was originally designed to be commercial/retail units, now it has been taken over by the library which now occupies both the ground and first floors.

Climbed up Aalto's sculpted turfed stairs into the courtyard. Probably the most photographed view. You can see the main assembly hall.  Below, you can see stairs and corridor leading up to the main assembly hall.  I was impressed with the amount of natural light penetrating into the building and done so dramatically.

Finland Finally

Arrived in Vaasa on Wednesday and lost an hour. Had to settle for the Best Western which was overpriced. It some how felt unfair that I would only be able to stay here for only 8 hours as I had checked into the hotel at around 1:30am.

I promised an old professor from University that I would visit Vaasa university to see the library by http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Simo_Paavilainen

A lovely building with terraced floor plates with views towards a lake. Had a cup of coffee in the student cafe and read a copy of the Sunday Times. Kinda' missing the Guardian. I think what I loved about the building was the way in which every seat/desk had a view of the lake and landscape beyond. The natural light penetrating into the building was also a nice change to the artificial flourescents I am used to in libraries at home. Left Vaasa early afternoon to catch a train to Jyvaskyla, Alvar Aalto's home town. I was excited.

I arrived and checked into a self service hotel. There is zero contact with hotel staff. The room was booked over the internet and a text message was sent to me which included room number and door code. I arrived and followed the instructions which included swiping my credit card to open the outside security gate and door. I took the elevator up to my room and typed in the door code on a keypad outside my door. I walked into a room with a flat screen tv on the wall with a personalized welcome message. The flat screen tv was controlled with a sort of wireless computer keyboard that had tv, internet, film, weather, and FAQ info access. I was sort of amazed and skeptical at the experience. It was about 11pm when I had arranged to meet my couchsurfer host for a drink. We met at the Old Bricks Inn, a popular bar in the city centre. Kevin is a mathematician and an american so we had no problems finding interesting conversation. I treated him to a glass of single malt whisky. Paid 19 euros for two Highland Parks...ouch!

The next day was Aalto day. I went to Kevin's in the morning to drop off my luggage and have a cup of coffee before walking Kevin to his office at the university - otherwise known as Aalto Land. It was interesting to talk to Kevin about his experience of the university buildings. I think he definitely had a beef with the men's toilets in the main building. Not being able to close the door to a cubicle once inside was very annoying. Aalto's campus buildings feel very much at ease with its surroundings. The Lozzi building houses the student cafeteria. It was a lovely surprise to walk into the building on the ground floor, up the stairs into a large bright cafeteria hall with timber framed trusses then out onto an external brick paved patio with tables and chairs leading seamlessly into the forested campus again. Note, if you come for a visit try to get there for lunch as the student meals are amazing value for 5-6 euros.

Wandered down to the Alvar Aalto Museum which is located very close to the university campus. A small museum but with very well thought out exhibitions with a good collection of models and his furniture. The gift shop had many Aalto books I had never seen before. I wanted to buy them all, but didn't think I would be able to carry them in my luggage so decided to save it for Amazon when I got home. I spent the better part of an afternoon there then meandered back into the city centre to find some more Aalto. The Worker's Club 1924-1925 was one of Aalto's earlier buildings and quite different to his later work at the University 1951-71. It feels like a before and after snap shot. He died in 1976, the year I was born.

Met up with Kevin later in the evening and did some food shopping at a few of the supermarkets in the city centre. I have never seen so many malls in such a small city. The city centre is made up of a series of soul-less mini malls. Kevin was of the opinion that this was in keeping with the Finnish attitude to a closed society and culture. A little bit anti-social and very protective of privacy and personal space. I was reminded of all the stares I received walking around the city and was stopped on a few occasions by people who tried to practice their Japanese and/or wanted something translated from Chinese.

I made my signature ratatouille for Kevin and his friend Susanne. It was a group effort and we did quite well. The evening seemed to pass by quickly in Kevin's one room flat, (23 sq.m) Luckily Kevin had ear plugs for my inevitable snoring that night. Decided to go to the "Vihrea Haltijatar" which translates to english as the Green Fairy pub.

Today, went back to the Alvar Aalto Museum with cash to pay for my 1 night accommodation at the Saynatsalo Town Hall. A woman overheard my discussion with the staff member and was amazed to find out that you could actually rent out a room there. For 50 euros a night you can stay at the Town Hall. There are two rooms named after Aalto and his wife Elissa. I'm staying in the Alvari Room. I was given a brown envelope with instructions, directions to the town hall and keys to the room. I couldn't believe how trusting they were to allow me to pick up a key on Saturday for a Sunday night stay.

Stopped by the Farmer's Market, an annual weekend event to celebrate the harvest and signal the end of the summer. Lots of food stalls and hand made goods, everything from bread to knitted wool socks. Tried a sort of fried salmon dumpling, apples that were similar to Macintosh , several different types of jams from berries native to Finland and little fried fishes that were extremely tasty. Bought loads of chanterelle mushrooms and another type of mushroom for 5 euros. Decided they would be good for a mushroom risotto for dinner that evening.

Went for a lovely walk in the woods to build up an appetite for dinner. Hikes and access to nature walks are very close by.

Tomorrow Kevin and I will part ways, he heads to Prague. I will be taking a bus to Saynatsalo island where I'll be staying at the town hall. I'll be meeting Anne there in the morning, another couchsurfer who was very kind to have invited me for dinner at her place. Monday I will get in to see the Experimental House in Muuratsalo, then I head to Pori where I will be spending the night before getting a bus the next morning to see Villa Mairea...can't wait!

(I managed to upload some photos to accompany my previous blogs. Will try to upload more when I get a chance)

Hello Sweden

Took the train from Trondheim to Sundsvall in Sweden, switching trains in Ostersund. A fairly long journey which started at 8.20am and finished in Sundsvall around 4pm. I was surprised that I wasn't asked for my passport when I crossed the border.

I had a half hour to kill before meeting up with my next couchsurfer host. Lena and her husband Larsh was nice enough to host me for one night. They live in an old farm house just outside of the city. I was fortunate to have met some of their friends who were on their way north of Sundsvall to begin a puppet theatre show tour for kids. We made dinner together. It's incredible how quickly you can whip up a feast with 6 people, a dog and a cat in the kitchen! Larsh is a blacksmith and he showed me his forge behind the house. He also has a workshop which he uses to make beautiful kayaks using traditional construction methods from Greenland. The kayaks are clad using the same material ship sails are made from. Traditionally seal skins were used, but Larsh is not allowed to use seal skins now for obvious reasons. I was also shown wooden paddles which were light as a feather. He is a very talented man, but is only able to make a living working as a welder in a nearby factory. The blacksmithing and kayak making have been reduced to hobbies.

I didn't stay long in Sundsvall. I was up the next morning at about 7am to take the bus back into the city centre. Had a very quick walk around the city centre and took the 10am bus north to Umea. A university town - my Lonely Planet guide notes that the average age here is 36 years old. The bus journey felt longer than it was, about 4 hours and managed to get into Umea around 2pm. The sun was shining, 17 degrees. I headed for the tourist information centre to find accommodation for the night. Almost all hotels and hostels were booked - there was some sort of convention in town so I had to settle for Hotel Wasa for 80 euros, breakfast included. I decided to take advantage of the opportunity to do some handwashing of some underwear and socks in the ensuite washroom.

Afterwards I headed down to the river for a walk in the sun. Past a student demonstration in the street. It looked like it had something to do with Swedish socialist politics. The town is kitted out with cafes, bars, kebab, pizza and burger joints. Tried some liquorice ice cream - surprisingly good. Decided to visit a pub called 'The Pipes of Scotland' It's noted in my Lonely Planet guide as a popular place to meet students. It was around 8pm when I walked into the pub. There was probably about 8 people there. I had a pint and watched a bit of Manchester United playing a team I didn't recognize - the tv was too far away for me to see and I couldn't be bothered to check. The student behind the bar was wearing a t-shirt with the St.Andrew's cross on it. He spoke with a very strong accent. I didn't want to ask if he'd ever been to Scotland. He was grumpy enough when I asked if he had any local beers on draft, which he didn't.

Got up this morning and went to the tourist information centre to find out the bus schedule for the ferry terminal in Umea. Turns out you cannot get a bus directly to the ferry terminal, it stops at the nearest town which is 2km from the terminal and you have to walk. Went back to my hotel who were nice enough to arrange a taxi to get me there - 35 euros. I am taking a 4hr ferry journey from Umea to Vaasa at 8pm. 60 euros for 1 adult, walk on passenger, one way. It would have been cheaper to fly. What a faff, I can't wait to get to Finland.

Good Bye Norway

It feels like ages since I last posted, so much has happened.

The Glacier Museum did not disappoint. It's the second Sverre Fehn building I've visited, the first one being the Nordic Pavilion in the Giardini in Venice. The building feels so isolated, surrounded on all sides by imposing fjords. It's easy to understand where Fehn's inspiration came from. The exhibits were surprisingly engaging - there was one about climate change with the voice over by David Attenborough. I went to the museum as part of an excursion tour from Balestrand. Most people returned to Balestrand after seeing the museum and glacier but my ticket was one way which meant I stayed behind and waited for a bus at 4.50pm, except the museum closed at 4pm. There was nothing else around and it was raining cats and dogs. Fortunately for me I had a very nice German geography student who allowed me to sit in the cafe as he closed the museum for the day. Angled floor to ceiling glazing enclosed the cafe with views towards the mountains. Absolutely stunning.

After a scenic bus journey north through the fjords I made it to Alesund at around 10.30pm. Managed to get to the HI hostel just to collapse. I woke up to rain the next day and only had a morning and afternoon to see Alesund before heading for the 6.45 ferry to Trondheim.

Alesund is very pretty. A fire burnt down the city in 1904 and was rebuilt in just 3 years. The style of art nouveau. It's a little bit surreal but fascinating. Managed to dodge the rain every now and again. As it was the end of the tourist high season and a Saturday many shops and cafes highlighted in my lonely planet were closed which was a bit annoying as it would have come in handy on a day of rain and cold wind.

Oh, gear check. I'm happy to report that I've used almost everything that I packed. So far my travel bag has worked brilliantly, although the wheels do not like small pebbles and have been dragged on a few occasions because small stones keep getting caught in the wheels. This has created flat spots on the wheel bearings so I have started to wear it as a backpack which is suprisingly comfortable. Also, the spork has been a life saver on a few occasions and I couldn't be more happier with the digital camera. The rain jacket doubled as a blanket on my overnight ferry journey to Trondheim from Alesund.

Oh yes, the ferry journey. I thought I was on an episode of the love boat. I opted not to get a cabin for an extra 700NOK and decided to survive in a comfy chair on a quiet deck. I managed to find a cozy corner with a sort of couch which was my camp for the night. The clientele on the boat consisted mostly of retirees from Germany, US and Norway mostly. I was probably one of the few people below the age of 40 on this Hurtigruten cruise ship. The ship had 8 decks. I was chatted up by a middle aged Norwegian man on his way north for business. He was a rainwear salesman and was making one of his annual trips to connect with his customers. He was keen to practice his english so I indulged him and in return he offered to allow me to sleep in his cabin in the 'extra' bed. I said thank you and declined. We sat and had a conversation about everything from Norwegian politics to the prefabricated house he ordered from a catalogue. He drank 5 pints of beer while I stuck to my coffee. He departed around midnight and left me to get some sleep in the Knut Hamson room.

Today I woke up in Trondheim. I was fortunate enough to have couchsurfing hosts. Jasper was nice enough to pick me up at the ferry docking point and we drove back to his place where I met his partner Stefan. We had a chat over a cup of tea and then we headed out for a sunday walk. Finding good coffee is a challenge in Norway, finding it on a Sunday is even more challenging. I was able to buy the blokes coffee and svele, a sort of fluffy pancake with sugar and butter. The highlights of Trondheim were covered in a few hours, photos taken and then the fun began. Cathedral in Trondheim is covered in lifesize statues of historical Norwegian figures. People were sitting at the outdoor cafe belonging to the modern visitors centre to the left of the photo. I was invited along to Frank's place for a traditional Norwegian sunday lunch - stewed lamb and cabbage with boiled potatoes followed by Queen Maud, a desert made from cream, sugar, eggs, gelatin and shaved chocolate. Company was lovely - Sverre a GP, Jeremy a piano teacher, Frank doctoral researcher, Andre a student studying to be an accountant and last but not least Stefan and Jasper. A lovely group of gays, although I did feel like I was intruding in the boys club. They were very nice, and made me feel very much at home.

Tomorrow I leave Norway for a brief stint in Sweden before heading to Finland.

Bergen to Balestrand

Definitely feels like the second leg of my journey now. The west coast of Norway is absolutely stunning so far. It was an 8am train, but was delayed about 40min. as I stood in the middle of the platform amongst a sea of Japanese tourists. The train journey was stunning during the last 2-3 hours before arriving in Bergen early afternoon. Sun came out, very unusual. Booked into the YMCA which is conveniently located around the corner from the tourist information centre.
Asked a 30-something man behind the desk where he goes to eat. Pointed me in the direction of the student area, a place called Cafe Opera. Nice and comfy place to get familiar with the pace of life in Bergen. Food was pretty good and not too expensive. Ended up sitting alone at a small table reading my rough guide and was joined by an American woman and another woman from New Zealand. It was nice to have their company and share travel stories.

I met Solveg on my second day in Bergen to pass a bag of long green beans from Linda's vegetable garden in Oslo. We ended up having a lovely lunch at a local organic cafe which was perfect as it started to rain quite heavily and didn't stop until the next morning. Solveg insisted on taking me on a car sightseeing journey to see a Stave church that they recently built just outside of the city centre. An arsenist had burned down the building a few years ago and the authorities decided to rebuild it from scratch using old survey drawings. The construction and details are true to the original design but they have added a new feature - a sprinkler system, cleverly hidden so as not to compromise the interior aesthetics.

For the size of Bergen. 250,000 population, there are an abundance of museums. The contemporary art scene is quite vibrant. I met a couchsurfer contact at the cafe of a gallery/arts venue called Landmark near the small "lake" with park that situated in the middle of the city. Annette brought her friend Camilla and they were a wealth of information. They walked up to the top of Mount Fløyen, a great vantage point with views across Bergen and it's surroundings. I was exhausted after a day of walking the city, so took the funicular railway and waited for them at the top while I took in the views and had an ice cream! When we met on the plateau-summit they give me the whistle stop tour of Bergen by pointing out different landmarks - very clever, less time and less walking! We ended up walking back down the hill to Annette's place where she made dinner for Camilla and I. Lovely conversation and we listened to some of their favourite Norwegian rock bands. Note to self, check out bands called Data Rock, Kings of Convenience, Casio Kids and Jon Olav Nilsen & Gjengen.

Got up early this morning and took an 8am, very scenic ferry journey to Balestrand in the middle of the Sognefjord. The sun was out and managed to take some amazing shots of the fjords. I was picked up at the ferry dock by the hotel manager of the Balestrand Hotel in her green Volvo station wagon and driven to the hotel. My room has a small balcony and the photo shows the view I had. The high season just ended here in Balestrand which means there are two grocery stores, a gift shop and a tourist information centre open today in the "town". I've been advised to dine at the posh hotel restaurant this evening and the buffet has been highly recommended.

Tomorrow I will do an excursion to see the Glacier Museum designed by Sverre Fehn, then on to Alesund by bus.

Weekend in Oslo

Coming to the end of my last day in Oslo. I've been staying with Linda who lives in the middle of a large beautiful park west of the city centre. It is absolutely picturesque and peaceful. I woke up this morning to a bright sunny day and had plums from the tree in Linda's garden with my muesli.

I bought a 24hr Oslo pass that gets you into all museums and all transport for 220NOK. A pretty good deal. Visited Vigelands Park - an amazing sculpture park. I will post my photos later. Also, managed to fit in the Munch Museum to see his famous painting The Scream. Wasn't very familiar with his earlier work so I was quite surprised as he was a very prolific artist.

The definite highlight was probably Snøhetta's Opera House. Absolutely amazing. There was quite a lot of controversy over this building but since it has been finished it is becoming a much loved addition to the city of Oslo. If only the new Scottish Parliament building had as much luck...I was constantly tripping over the several different level changes on the external stone landscaping which eventually becomes the roof. It's actually quite dangerous as the white paving slabs looks seamless and still immaculate. Again, I will post photos when I get a chance.

Managed to arrange to meet with a couchsurfer host in Oslo lastnight. We met at the large bronze statue of a tiger outside Oslo's central train station. Apparently Oslo is known as the "Tiger City" but I still haven't figured out why yet. My CS contact had invited another CSer from Turkey, so all of a sudden we were a group of 3 and then the Turkish guy had invited a friend of a friend to join us, so now we were a group of 4 strangers who were going out for dinner. We had a lovely evening dining on smoked salmon, whale, aquavit and beer. Bjorn, the 50 something software developer from Oslo was the oldest of the group and with no children of his own felt that perhaps he needed to buy us dinner - after a lot of bickering we finally gave up and let Bjorn pay - it was very generous of him.

Tonight I will cook dinner for Linda with vegetables from her garden. She is an amazing gardener and an inspiring person that I was fortunate enough to meet.

Tomorrow I catch an early train to Bergen on the west coast. Can't wait to see the western fjords.

Last day WWOOFing

My hands have thankfully returned back to their normal size after being attacked by Norwegian midges! Yesterday I was luckily enough to have been invited for walk to pick slopes - no idea what the english name is for these blueberry looking fruit that can be picked in the surrounding forests here. I was helping Kristina pick slopes which become sweet when they are put in the freezer, she then uses them to make a kind of liqueur to give to friends for Christmas.

I am on a island, apparently this area swells in population during the summer months when wealthier Norwegians come to enjoy the warm and sunny weather. I suppose it's like Bournemouth? I was told that cabins here go for about 200 000 000 NOK to buy.

The nearest town consists of a SPAR supermarket, post office, cafe/bakery, library/local government, police station, internet cafe and liquor store. All alcohol can only be bought at government controlled shops. Funnily you can by beer in the supermarkets but not spirits or liqueurs. Taxes on alcohol are high. I bought six bottles of beer the other day for almost 12 pounds.

I was invited to watch a film lastnight as part of this 3 day workshop on how to start a sustainable garden. My host has allowed me access to her library and have managed to get half way through a very good book called The Permaculture Garden by Graham Bell. A book my host has used to based her lessons on. It's a very good book and one that I will definitely pick up when I get back to Canada. The workshop is also being run by an american/norwegian, a woman who came to Norway in her early twenties and is now a Norwegian citizen after almost 30 years. She has been nice enough to invite me to stay at her place for the weekend in Oslo. I'm very glad to have met her as I would never have seen a film she was nice enough to let me see lastnight. The film was called "The Real Dirt on Farmer John" a documentary on a farmer in the United States who inherited a family run farm in his 20's, lost the farm and was able to start again from scratch with the help of a community of people living in the city who wanted to source locally grown produce. It's a very interesting film that proposes how farmers can re-establish a one to one relationship with the people that they provide food for. I'd highly recommend it.

My host makes tea in the mornings from the Bjork (Birch) trees that are located around the property. I've started to fall in love with it. It's like Norway in a cup.

The host has a family cat. Her name is Palimoore (sp?) She is 19 years old and looks like a kitten. She makes me miss my own cat Ruby Tuesday, who hasn't been doing very well with my friends in Edinburgh. After a few days at the vet she is now back home with them and doing well again. I feel relieved.

Tonight I will make quiches made with leeks/onions/broccoli from the garden supplemented by bacon, cheese, milk and eggs from the shop followed by baked apples (apples I picked yesterday from the apple trees in the garden) stuffed with raisins in a sugar and cinnamon butter. Can't wait!!!

Tomorrow I leave my host and will travel to Oslo with Linda who has been generous enough to invite me to stay with her for the weekend.

First Days of WWOOFing

Arrived at the farm, but only just. I had asked the bus driver to let me off at the stop my host had given me, only to be helped by a young man on the bus who noticed that I was obviously not a local and unsure where I was going. He managed to look up my bus stop for the the bus driver who was about to let me off at an earlier stop because he assumed that I was on my way to see a tourist attraction near by. It turns out that the young man's family was a good friend of my host family and helped me find my bus stop - he even got off the bus with me to make sure I found my way okay. People here have been fantastic.

My first day on the farm was spent weeding and shopping for ingredients for the meals that the host will be offering her clients during the 3 day workshop on sustainable gardening. I also helped my host plan the menu and made 3 large pans of lasagnes to feed 18 people for the first night.

The farm is lovely. At the centre of it is a large farmhouse surrounded by smaller buildings which include a flat that they rent out, a workshop/garage/office, a greenhouse attached to a large multi-purpose gathering space and a large garden complete with herbs/flowers/vegetables with a good sprinkling of apple/pear and plum trees. Most of the buildings have been built by my hosts and they have managed quite successfully in using alternative methods of construction which utilize strawbale, bricks made out of recycled glass, and insulation made from recycled clothes. The farmhouse itself has some interesting features which include a central fireplace for a two storey house (the only source of heating) and a compost toilet.

It is now my second day here and after a day of weeding, picking

apples, harvesting potatoes, more supermarket shopping, and soup making I am completely exhausted and swollen from all the insect bites I received whilst in the garden today.

Tomorrow the guests will arrive, all 18 of them to try the lasagne I made.