A stroll through the streets of Oslo

I’ve just returned from a layover to the beautiful city of Oslo, Norway. It wasn’t my first time to the country, as we have family friends who live in the north of Norway who we have visited a few times, however it was to be my first time in Oslo, so I was very much looking forward to it!

The day started off with an absolutely stunning sunrise whilst on our way to the aircraft. I was hoping it was a sign of good weather to come in Norway!

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The flight left on time and just under 7 hours later we landed into Oslo airport. We were whisked off to our hotel in the centre of town and arranged to meet shortly in the lobby. Soon the five of us were ready to go, and armed with maps and directions from the concierge, off we went!

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As we strolled past the beautiful cathedral, our first stop was to grab a coffee and delicious brioche bun to keep us going (after all, we had been awake since 3:30am Dubai time!).

We made our way along Karl Johans Gate, the main street in Oslo. Here you can find all of the major shops, as well as cafes and plenty of trees. Not to mention quite a few of the cities major attractions are around here, such as the National Theatre, the old university buildings, the central station, and at the end the beautiful Royal Palace.

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A trip to Norway wouldn’t be complete without seeing an adorable troll!

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We made our way up to the Royal Palace, where we got stopped by a camera crew and interviewed for TV! They basically asked us to make up some stories about how much we love this little town (which I can’t remember the name of) and that we would be coming back to visit every summer! I just hope we’re not on Norwegian TV!

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There was still a huge pile of snow out the front, although luckily the weather was warm enough not to need a winter coat. I’m sure it’s absolutely beautiful in winter after a fresh load of snow!

We walked up the steps to the front of the palace, and had to stop for a picture with the guards.

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A group of guards came out and walked right past us with their guns held high, which was quite nice to see. I’m not sure how it compares to the changing of the guards at Buckingham Palace, but nevertheless it was nice to witness!

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Our next port of call was the harbour, which was located a short walk away, through some pretty side streets.

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The harbour area seems lovely, with looks of relatively new-looking flats and plenty of restaurants along the waterfront.

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I can imagine how gorgeous it would be when the sun is out!

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We stopped for a while to sit on some wooden kind of sun-loungers, which I’m sure are always full when it’s a sunny summers day.

Our walk took us along the waterfront, towards the old fortress. We decided to walk up it and have a look inside, although you can only go inside one of the buildings at the weekend.

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It started to drizzle a little bit as we were walking through the fortress grounds, so we decided to make our way to the Opera House.

It wasn’t too far, but it started raining a little bit heavier, so I was very glad I’d packed my umbrella just in case!

We spotted the Opera House from afar, and could already see people walking up on the roof! The concierge had told us that you can walk on the roof, so we were looking forward to trying that out.

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These huge pipes actually have microphones inside, so if you put your head into the top bit you can hear stories being told! Unfortunately they seemed to be only in Norwegian, so we didn’t stop for long to listen.

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We made our way round to the beginning of the roof area, which had some steps to go up, or you could just walk up the slope. It was a little bit slippery due to the rain, so I’d definitely advise being careful if you go there when it’s wet.

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You can see the “She Lies” sculpture, which is made of stainless steel and glass panels, and floats on the water in the fjord.

If I get another flight to Oslo I would love to take a boat trip through the fjord, however this time we didn’t quite have enough time since none of us had been here before and wanted to see the city.

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We walked up to the highest point that you can get to, whilst admiring the view out across the water.

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All this walking had made me work up quite an appetite, so we followed recommendations from the concierge and headed back through town towards the cathedral, to a restaurant called Bacchus.

The interior was lovely, with steep winding staircases leading to an upper level (although we couldn’t quite tell if there were actually tables up there or not!) as well as down into the basement.

Although we arrived at a busy time and it is not a huge restaurant, they found space for our group of five and we were promptly brought water and menus. The menu was relatively small, with just one page for starters and main courses, and another for desserts. They also had a nice wine selection including a delicious Riesling which I had a glass of.

I had a delicious piece of steak, which came with a creamy hollandaise sauce and a fresh radish, spinach and purple carrot salad. It was a little bit different but absolutely delicious!

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(Sorry about the picture quality – I definitely am no food blogger and feel very awkward taking my “big camera” out inside restaurants!)

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Three of the girls decided to head back to the hotel as they didn’t really like the sound of anything on the menu (they were self-proclaimed fussy eaters, I’m not sure how they’ll manage in this job!) so myself and Agnes, the other business class crew, stayed on to chat for a while.

We’d had an absolutely lovely day exploring a new city, seeing some gorgeous old buildings and the pretty harbour. I’ve put in a bid request for another trip to Oslo next month, so when my May roster gets published I’ll find out if I will be lucky enough to go back and explore some more!

P.s. Follow me on Instagram & Twitter for more day-to-day updates of where I am in the world! 🙂

 

 

 

 

14 Comments

  1. Anna
    May 22, 2016 / 2:26 am

    Hey, I just found your blog and I just arrived in the U.S from Oslo, like literally 3 hours ago. What a cool city, huh? I’m Flight Attendant in the States, and recently started doing international trips. But, I was always obsessed about Emirates, and applied 4 times already. Thinking about giving it another try, that’s how I found your blog. Anyway, nice job writing, and keep us posted!

    Anna

    • thedubaidiaries
      Author
      May 22, 2016 / 10:39 am

      Hi Anna! Oslo was so awesome, I bid for it this month as well bit didn’t get it unfortunately. Hope you enjoy it and my blog helped you out a little with some ideas of what to see! You should definitely give Emirates another try, it’s such an amazing airline to work for! Rachel xx

  2. lisa
    April 13, 2016 / 7:17 am

    hello i love your blog! i have 2 questions!
    1. do you guys get to eat the leftover food in business class or first class? haha or are you just allowed to eat the economy meals provided for you?
    2. i work for an airline too as a flight attendant and I’m going from auckland-london in june. i want to fly emirates just for something different but just wondering what the loads are like for these flights? is there any way of me checking?
    thanks 🙂

    • thedubaidiaries
      Author
      April 16, 2016 / 1:41 pm

      Hi Lisa! Glad you enjoy my blog 🙂 Yep we get to eat the leftover business class food, haha! We also get crew meals in case there’s nothing left. You should definitely try flying with us! You can ask me 3 days before the flights and I can tell you the loads. 🙂

      • lisa
        April 17, 2016 / 8:03 pm

        thank you so much rachel! can i ask you on here is that best?

        • thedubaidiaries
          Author
          April 24, 2016 / 12:46 pm

          Yeah absolutely! Otherwise you can direct message me on Instagram (@rachelwwilson) or even send me an email at racheldubaidiaries@gmail.com if you prefer!

  3. caleb1
    April 9, 2016 / 10:37 pm

    Hello Rachel,
    I am really enjoying your blog. I am very glad that you are able to take advantage of the opportunity to travel the world and experience many different cultures and customs. Your blog is also a positive reflection of Emirates. They seem like a great airline to fly for. I can tell that you are an excellent flight attendant and perhaps one day, I will have the chance to be a passenger on the world famous Emirates Airlines. I wish you continued success. Happy and safe travels to you.

    • thedubaidiaries
      Author
      April 16, 2016 / 1:40 pm

      Hi Caleb! Glad you’re enjoying reading my blog. I do love my job and am very grateful for all of the travelling I get to do. All the best!

  4. Carmen
    April 7, 2016 / 4:17 pm

    Hello Rachel,
    I love your photos and the fact that you always share your rosters and trips with us.
    Oslo seems very beautiful!

    What is the difference between a bid request and a swap?

    Have safe flights 🙂

    • thedubaidiaries
      Author
      April 16, 2016 / 1:39 pm

      Hi Carmen, thanks so much! Oslo was indeed a lovely city. A bid request you put in the month before the roster is published, it’s like “asking” for a specific flight (with no guarantee you will get it) and a swap is when you already have your roster, and your change your flight with someone else! Hope that explains it 🙂

  5. celma
    April 6, 2016 / 4:12 pm

    Oslo seem very beautiful city and don’t worry the picture of food was vert nice 😉

    • thedubaidiaries
      Author
      April 16, 2016 / 1:38 pm

      Haha thank you Celma! 🙂

  6. Alexander
    April 6, 2016 / 3:28 pm

    Looks like you had a fun day in Oslo! Too bad it wasn’t sunny, but at least it wasn’t too cold!

    You got to see a lot of things in a day, I hope you enjoyed it! Hopefully the next time you fly here it’ll be a sunny day, that’s when Oslo is at it’s best!

    • thedubaidiaries
      Author
      April 16, 2016 / 1:38 pm

      I did have a lovely day! Fingers crossed I’ll get another flight there and the weather will be better, I’d love to visit the sculpture park 🙂

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