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| Sister self-pic from the Oslo Opera House |
My sister left Oslo on Tuesday morning after a whirlwind 6 days in Norway and Sweden. We had a such an amazing time just reconnecting and enjoying life, neither of us could remember when we had hung out just the two of us, let along travel together. I didn't plan any tourist adventures, so for better or worse she didn't see the Holmenkollen ski jump, visit the Scream at the Munch Museum, or peruse the Viking Ship Museum. Instead we just chilled with friends, enjoyed the fantastic weather, and tried to stay out of trouble ;-).
Out first few days were in Oslo which happened to span the actual 4th of July. I had a few friends over for some old fashioned grilling and a very American game of cards. Friday we did some exploring of Oslo, including a trip up to the top of the Opera House and a stop for coffee at the Mathallen (food hall).
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| Coffee and Macaroons |
For the weekend we did a quick trip to Stockholm, the bigger slightly fancier sister to the humble low-key Oslo. We lucked out with amazing summer weather for exploring the city and were able to kick-back and enjoy ourselves under the bright nearly-midnight sun. While everything was about seeing something new and experiencing Europe for my sister, I had a singular goal of enjoying authentic Mexico cuisine and drinking good beer (the former entirely absent in Oslo and the latter present but spendy). So I pursued those two things while sis enjoyed the scenery. As an aside,
La Neta Tacos hit the nail on the head for yumminess and authenticity. Once tacos were out of the way, we enjoyed the nightlife, did some shopping, saw street performers, and took a cruise around the islands before heading reluctantly back to Oslo.
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| Stockholm Skyline |
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| Amazing Tacos in Stockholm |
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| Cruise in Stockholm |
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| Swedish Summer Life |
With one day left in Oslo before sis had to go back home, I decided to skip all the touristy things and instead take a short ferry ride out to Hovedøya for some beach time. It's only a couple minutes from downtown, but laying on a rock overlooking the Oslo fjord, you feel hours away from any city. On every perch and beach there were bikini clad Norwegians truly worshipping the sun, which after months of darkness must feel absolutely god-given. With some Vitamin D absorbed, we returned to the mainland for a last evening of fun and cards with friends.
An early morning trip to the airport and sis was gone and I was sad. A week of sister time in Scandinavia just wasn't enough, but here's hoping that there will be more international sister weeks to come!
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| Sunning on Hovedøya |
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