The alarm woke us at 6.30, and we packed up swiftly. Christian went to get the car while I finished up, and we drove through the dark, deserted streets to the port.
The gates opened just as we arrived, and we were directed to the front of a queue to wait for the ferry. We amused ourselves watching Netflix as we waited for the ferry to arrive, and then when it did, to disgorge so many trucks from multiple levels that it didn't seem possible they'd fit (though the ferry was huge).
When it was time to load, all the trucks behind us went on first, driving in on the right side, and then round the back to face outwards on the left side. It was our turn before long, and we did the same big sweep around the bow end of the ferry, and parked up facing outwards.
We joined the long procession of people trooping up the stairs, and emerged onto a deck of shops, restaurants and cafes. We headed to the bow end and found a nice bar, but we'd booked breakfast, so we went looking for that, which was in the stern. We were shown to a table out on the deck, but which was enclosed and cosy.
Being in the stern meant that we could watch all the other vehicles coming onto the ferry, and they just kept coming, for probably another half hour. By now, the sunrise was pretty spectacular, and we ate our rather nice breakfast as the ferry left Denmark, for Norway. The only disappointment was the tea, but this wasn't a surprise.
Having eaten all the breakfast we could, and properly woken up, we went to explore the ferry. The shops were not terribly inspiring, and most of the restaurants were not open. The deck was spacious, but cold and breezy. We found ourselves back in the bar we'd visited in the bow, and found stools near the bar, looking out the windows towards our destination.
It was full of families and children, and we only realised why when the bingo was announced, and the prizes were brought out to a large table. Apparently bingo is a family thing in this part of the world - a lot of people enthusiastically took part, and the presenter was good-natured and fun. We tired of the bingo after a while, and went back to the stern, which was much quieter. We stayed there until the ferry approached its dock, and we took our places in a queue to go below decks.
Once moving, we got into the car quickly, and the process of unloaded was quick too. The first thing that we noticed was that it was snowing gently. This is what we came for! We followed a large truck up the snowy exit towards the road, giving it plenty of space, and were soon going past picturesque houses, and then over a number of bridges onto a major road, with a lot of tunnels through mountains.
From there, it was a short and unmemorable drive into Oslo - we arrived around 5pm, after it was dark. We pulled up in the turning circle in front of the Radisson, and Christian went in to check in and sort out the valet parking. While he was gone, I learnt not to put my Tesla key next to my phone. I was reaching for the overhead light, after the console had gone black, when a strange pulsing pink light appeared, and suddenly I was deafened by the loudest music inside a car I'd ever heard.
My first thought was that it was some jokey feature, but try as I might, I couldn't make it stop, and I was worried about what people would think. Christian came back to unlock the car, found me shaken, and told me that it had just been the alarm. Really? The alarm was loud music? Anyway, I now know how to turn it off, and definitely won't make that mistake again.
We took our luggage in to the rather grand foyer/reception area, and got the key to our room. The woman we spoke to was very friendly, and spoke excellent English. We took the lift up, and settled in to our large, upgraded room, and I sat for a bit trying to calm down.
We got dressed for the cold, and set off for a wander around the city. I had the idea of going up onto the roof of the opera house, and it wasn't far from the hotel, though we weren't sure what to do for dinner. The streets were snowy, but there was nothing coming from the sky, so it was a bit slippery underfoot in places.
We went through the station/shopping centre complex, and came out near the harbour. A short walk to the road nearest revealed the opera house very close by. To get onto the roof, we needed to negotiate a slippery slope, but it wasn't too bad, and the view across the city was worth it. The water of the harbour was frozen close to the shore, and the sky felt very dark and close.
Coming back down some icy steps was harder, but at least there was a handrail here. We briefly went inside the building, and it was modern and interesting. It looked like there was a show on that evening, so we didn't stay.
We wandered in the direction of the exciting looking lights, and found ourselves on a long avenue with a palace at the end of it. There were shiny lights to the left of it, and we followed them to a Christmas market. It was very nice, and we had a short wander past the stalls and skating rink to a fun avenue of lights, but we were hungry, and decided to head back to the hotel for a meal there.
After seeing a few sights on the way back, and Christian getting us slightly lost, we got changed again at the hotel and went up to the 33rd floor to the restaurant. It was super posh, and we were very lucky to get a table without a reservation. Our table was not beside the window, but that didn't matter, because the view was still amazing, and the decor very pleasing. Our server was also lovely, and fun, and Swedish. We chatted to her quite a bit.
We had a three course meanu for 645 NOK each, and ordered a bottle of chablis. They gave us an amazing foamy appetizer, and I think I had scallops as a starter (accompanied by three types of celery, which I ate and mostly enjoyed) and cod loin as a main. I think Christian had trout as his main, and an exciting cheese platter of Danish, Norwegian and Swedish cheeses for dessert. I had chocolate sorbet (I think), which I couldn't finish.
We admired the view one more time, and went back to our room. Bed shortly after.
When it was time to load, all the trucks behind us went on first, driving in on the right side, and then round the back to face outwards on the left side. It was our turn before long, and we did the same big sweep around the bow end of the ferry, and parked up facing outwards.
We joined the long procession of people trooping up the stairs, and emerged onto a deck of shops, restaurants and cafes. We headed to the bow end and found a nice bar, but we'd booked breakfast, so we went looking for that, which was in the stern. We were shown to a table out on the deck, but which was enclosed and cosy.Being in the stern meant that we could watch all the other vehicles coming onto the ferry, and they just kept coming, for probably another half hour. By now, the sunrise was pretty spectacular, and we ate our rather nice breakfast as the ferry left Denmark, for Norway. The only disappointment was the tea, but this wasn't a surprise.
It was full of families and children, and we only realised why when the bingo was announced, and the prizes were brought out to a large table. Apparently bingo is a family thing in this part of the world - a lot of people enthusiastically took part, and the presenter was good-natured and fun. We tired of the bingo after a while, and went back to the stern, which was much quieter. We stayed there until the ferry approached its dock, and we took our places in a queue to go below decks.
From there, it was a short and unmemorable drive into Oslo - we arrived around 5pm, after it was dark. We pulled up in the turning circle in front of the Radisson, and Christian went in to check in and sort out the valet parking. While he was gone, I learnt not to put my Tesla key next to my phone. I was reaching for the overhead light, after the console had gone black, when a strange pulsing pink light appeared, and suddenly I was deafened by the loudest music inside a car I'd ever heard.
My first thought was that it was some jokey feature, but try as I might, I couldn't make it stop, and I was worried about what people would think. Christian came back to unlock the car, found me shaken, and told me that it had just been the alarm. Really? The alarm was loud music? Anyway, I now know how to turn it off, and definitely won't make that mistake again.
We got dressed for the cold, and set off for a wander around the city. I had the idea of going up onto the roof of the opera house, and it wasn't far from the hotel, though we weren't sure what to do for dinner. The streets were snowy, but there was nothing coming from the sky, so it was a bit slippery underfoot in places.
We went through the station/shopping centre complex, and came out near the harbour. A short walk to the road nearest revealed the opera house very close by. To get onto the roof, we needed to negotiate a slippery slope, but it wasn't too bad, and the view across the city was worth it. The water of the harbour was frozen close to the shore, and the sky felt very dark and close.
Coming back down some icy steps was harder, but at least there was a handrail here. We briefly went inside the building, and it was modern and interesting. It looked like there was a show on that evening, so we didn't stay.
After seeing a few sights on the way back, and Christian getting us slightly lost, we got changed again at the hotel and went up to the 33rd floor to the restaurant. It was super posh, and we were very lucky to get a table without a reservation. Our table was not beside the window, but that didn't matter, because the view was still amazing, and the decor very pleasing. Our server was also lovely, and fun, and Swedish. We chatted to her quite a bit.
We admired the view one more time, and went back to our room. Bed shortly after.
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