Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Tue-Sun 11:00-16:00, closed Mon year-round; Frederiks Gate 2, tel. 22 85 99
12,
www.khm.uio.no
.
Visiting the Museum:
The ground floor offers a walk through the local
history from prehistoric times. It includes the country's top collection of Vik-
ing artifacts, displayed in low-tech, old-school exhibits with barely a word
of English to give it meaning. There's also some medieval church art. The
museum's highlight is upstairs: an exhibit (well-described in English) about
life in the Arctic for the Sami people (previously known to outsiders as La-
planders). In this overview of the past, a few Egyptian mummies and Norwe-
gian coins through the ages are tossed in for good measure.
This 75-acre park contains a lifetime of work by Norway's greatest sculptor,
Gustav Vigeland (see sidebar). In 1921, he made a deal with the city. In return
for a great studio and state support, he'd spend his creative life beautify-
ing Oslo with this sculpture garden. From 1924 to 1943 he worked on-site,
designing 192 bronze and granite statue groupings—600 figures in all, each
nude and unique. Vigeland even planned the landscaping. Today the park is
loved andrespected bythe people ofOslo(nopolice, nofences—and nograf-
fiti). The Frognerbadet swimming pool is also at Frogner Park.
Cost and Hours:
The garden is always open and free. The park is safe
(cameras monitor for safety) and lit in the evening.
Getting There:
Tram #12—which leaves from the central train station,
Rådhusplassen in front of City Hall, Aker Brygge, and other points in
town—drops you off right at the park gate (Vigelandsparken stop). Tram #19
(with stops along Karl Johans Gate) takes you to Majorstuen, a 10-minute
walk to the gate (or you can change at Majorstuen to tram #12 and ride it one
stop to Vigelandsparken).
VisitingthePark:
Vigeland'sparkismorethangreatart:It'sacityatplay.
Appreciate its urban Norwegian ambience. The park is huge, but this visit is a
snap. Here's a quick, four-stop, straight-line, gate-to-monolith tour:
