Rafting trip to Sjoa River, complete with pendel-jumping

During the weekend of 19-21 September I took a trip with about 13 other international students to a rafting center near the town of Otta, located north and a bit west of Oslo.  The bus ride was approximately 6 hours long, but free coffee and tea made the time fly.  We spent two nights in little wooden cabins, with 4 to a room in bunk beds.  Saturday was the day filled with activity...rafting in the morning, pendel-jumping in the afternoon, and a steam in the sauna in the evening.  Most of Friday and Sunday was spent traveling by bus.  Pendel-jumping was a fun experience.  It consisted of getting strapped in with safety cables and jumping off a bridge, then swinging like a pendulum above the river.  Again, all safety measures were taken with these activities, and trained guides were present.

Beautiful view from the bus along the way

The rafting was organized by the Sjoa Raftingsenter NWR.  This is the main lodge with the reception, kitchen and dining area, but we stayed in little cabins sprinkled around the area.

A traditional sauna, heated with a real fire within a cast iron stove.  Great smell of birch.

Cheesy smile, but a nice backdrop

The beautiful tropical Norwegian climate...

The Sjoa River

Group shot right before we hopped into the rafts

That's my boat!

Going through a little canyon

The jumping bridge

Panoramic shot from atop the bridge

Our guide explaining the instructions for the pendel-jumping

Pulling someone up

Ready to jump...

In mid-swing

Getting pulled up

Climbing and Rappelling at Kolsåstoppen

On 16 September I took a trip organized by the University of Oslo Student Life to the mount seen below for climbing and rappelling.  If you look at a previous post you'll also see that I had been at the same location a while back for a hiking trip with friends.  I was with a group of about 8 other international students and 2 trained guides.  We first hiked to the top, then took turns rappelling down, ate some pølser (hot dogs), and finally each climbed up and belayed down.  All the proper safety equipment was used of course. 

A view of the Kolsåstoppen hill.  We were climbing and rappelling at the top where you can see the exposed rock.

Looking up the cliff

Rappelling down

Right before the climb up

Climbing

Belaying down after the climb

View from atop Kolsåstoppen

Islands in the Oslo Fjord, plus other pics

The first 10 photos here are from a little journey to the islands in the Oslo Fjord on 13 September.  I went with a German friend, Christoph, who lives in my student village, Sogn Studentby.  We stopped at two islands, Hovedøya (~120 acres) and Nakkholmen (~50 acres), and just hiked around.  The ferry we took is part of the public transportation system in Oslo.

The boat, Oslo XII

The island of Hovedøya is a more popular tourist destination; here are some ruins of a Cistercian monastery called Hovedøya Abbey.

On the island of Hovedøya

Shroom on Hovedøya.  This one is known as the fly agaric and has hallucinogenic properties.

Hovedøya sheep

This shot was taken on Nakkholmen, the smaller of the two islands we visited.  Nakkholmen is sprinkled with little cottages all over the island like the ones seen in this photo.

Shot from the boat

City of Oslo in the background

Panoramic shot from the boat

City of Oslo, the prominent brick building with the two towers is the city hall

Fresh seafood for sale at the port

Frederik Holsts Hus, this is where I have all my International Community Health classes

Our master's program group

Munch Museum

I visited the Munch Museum in Oslo on 7 September with a guided tour of the facility.  The museum is filled with Munch's art, primarily oil paintings.  I've included photos of some of the pieces I found particularly interesting (and/or humorous) and the two most famous Munch paintings, Madonna and The Scream.  Edvard Munch was a Norwegian painter and a pioneer of the Expressionism movement, creating most of his artwork in the late 19th century.

"Metabolism"

"Red Virginia Creeper"

One of my personal favorites.

"Self Portrait with Wine Bottle"

Munch had problems with alcoholism.  Ironically, he created his most famous pieces during the time he was drinking the heaviest.

"The Hands"

"The Day After"

"In the Man's Brain"

"Jealousy"

"Madonna"

"The Scream"

These two most famous pieces, Madonna and The Scream, were stolen from the Munch Museum in 2004 by armed robbers.  The paintings were recovered by Oslo police two years later with only mild damage.  Not surprisingly, security was tight in the museum when I visited.

Oslo Opera House

Here are some photos of the Oslo Opera House.  The architecture is fascinating, and the construction was completed in 2007, with the opening event hosted just a few months back in April 2008.

Hiking trip to Kolsåstoppen

These photos are from a hiking trip to Kolsåstoppen, a hill (450 meters above sea level) located in the neighboring municipality west of Oslo.  This trip was on 6 September.

With two German acquaintances, Jan and Simon

View from atop

Forest filled with moss, ferns and shrooms

Nice trickling stream