• home
  • about me
  • contact
  • Instagram

the reformed flake

eclectic and electric

  • model
  • photographer
  • poet
  • traveller
    • asia
      • hong kong
      • south korea
        • busan
        • jeju-do
        • seoul
    • europe
      • belgium
      • france
        • albi
        • antibes
        • bordeaux
        • carcassonne
        • cordes-sur-ciel
        • montauban
        • montpellier
        • nantes
        • nice
      • germany
        • berlin
        • mainz
      • hungary
      • ireland
      • monaco
      • netherlands
      • norway
      • poland
        • krakow
        • warsaw
      • romania
        • baia mare
        • brasov
        • bucharest
        • cluj
        • sighisoara
      • uk
        • bath
        • cornwall
        • liverpool
    • south america
      • peru
  • writer
    • journalist
      • brand features
      • fashion capital
        • lfw ss19
        • LFWM SS19
        • LFW AW18
        • LFWM AW18
        • LFWM SS18
        • LFW AW17
        • LFWM aw17
        • LCM SS17
        • lfw aw16
        • LCM AW16
      • gal-dem
      • independent
      • xtra things
    • vituperator
travel

os-lo and behold!

February 25, 2020

norway truly is the country of peace. i can’t even begin to tell you how calming and healing this holiday really was for me. my soul felt so refreshed.

day 1

we started at the oslo opera house, using the last remaining moments of sunlight to see some beautiful views of the city. the building is reminiscent of a glacier in the fjords and has a sloping marble roof which tourists can walk on! 

we then went to the nobel peace center, an absolute must when in oslo. their permanent exhibition “the nobel field” is a display of all the previous peace prize laureates – everyone is allocated their own screen and the space is surrounded by thousands of twinkling lights. the 2018 peace prize laureates were denis mukwege and nadia murad, so the display “the body as a battlefield” explored their work (which focussed on the way sexual violence is perpetrated in areas of armed conflicts as a weapon of war).

in the evening, we stopped by the oslo city hall and the royal palace before starting our quest of gorging ourselves on traditional norwegian cuisine. 

we ended up in kaffistova where mumma lau had steamed salmon with sandefjord butter sauce and i had reindeer patties! what could be more norwegian?

day 1 film photos

day 2

i’d initially only planned on visiting the kon-tiki museum, the viking ship museum, and the norsk folkemuseum in the morning, however seeing as the norwegian maritime museum and the fram museum were also in the bygdøy region, we decided to hit up all five! 

the fram museum is dedicated to norwegian polar exploration and the main draw is that the original interior of Fram (a vessel used in arctic and antarctic expeditions) is on display. visitors can actually go inside the ship! 

the norwegian maritime museum is admittedly a little drier but if you’re into your naval/maritime histories, it’s definitely worth a visit. there’s also a wonderful view behind the museum!

the viking ship museum contains three burial ships as well as a range of artefacts taken from the burial sites. one of the ships (the oseberg) is completely intact and was taken from the largest known ship burial in the world! 

(the ticket also includes entrance to the historical museum, which we visited on the following day. there, you can see the only complete viking helmet ever found!)

the kon-tiki museum was perhaps my favourite of the indoor museums. it houses the kon-tiki, a raft of balsa wood that thor heyerdahl used to sail from peru to polynesia, as well as the ra ii, a reed boat he used to sail from north africa to the caribbean.

thor actually seemed like such an inspiring (and eccentric) dude – he was terrified of water; had almost drowned twice as a child; and could neither swim nor sail yet he was determined to navigate the oceans to prove his theories. he wanted to show that ancient peoples could have made long sea voyages and had cross-cultural contact using only rafts made of primitive materials. after 101 days on the high seas (and multiple brushes with death), he and his team successfully arrived in polynesia!

we then headed to the norsk folkemuseum, an open-air museum with more than 150 buildings(!) relocated from various towns and districts in norway. buildings of note include the 13th century gol stave church, wooden lofts from the telemark region, a 1920s standard oil gas station, and a tenement building from the 19th century! unfortunately, we didn’t have time to visit the exhibition space which houses various ethnographic artefacts including folk art, folk costumes, toys, and various household items – be sure to check it out if you have time!

we ended our day’s activities at the astrup fearnley museum, where notable pieces by koons and hirst reside in its permanent collection. gilbert and george’s rather provocative artwork was also temporarily on display in “the great exhibition”. 

for dinner, we went to mathallen oslo, a bustling foodcourt jam-packed with enticing stalls. we opted to dine at vulkanfisk to indulge on more fresh norwegian seafood. we ordered the waiter’s recommendations of fish soup and seasoned crab and ended our evening with some gorgeous dark chocolate gelato from paradis gelateria. 

day 2 film photos

day 3

we started at the munch museum which was in the midst of its final ever exhibition before it moved location. the exhibition entitled “everything we own” presented (for the first time ever!) pieces from all four of its collections, showcasing works donated by munch himself, the collector rolf e. stenersen, the family of amaldus nielsen, and the widow of ludvig o. ravensberg. altogether, these works give an insight into over a century of norwegian art history!

we then visited the vigeland museum which contains many of the sculptor’s early works as well as models for his installations in vigeland park.

of course, we then went to the park itself which contains over 200 of his sculptures! despite the drizzle, seeing the scale of his pieces in open air was truly remarkable. 

the oslo city museum is located on the edge of vigeland park and is home to an exhibition showcasing highlights from the history of oslo, as well as a display dedicated to the seventies and the radical political movements that shaped the decade.

we then passed by the storting building on our way to kaffebrenneriet. rather cutely, this particular coffee shop had a little population of birds flitting around, making me feel like i was living inside a disney film. 

around sunset, we found ourselves at akershus fortress. the castle itself was closed for renovations but the grounds were a lovely place for a relaxing evening stroll. 

dinner was spent inhaling yet more glorious norwegian seafood – this time at fiskeriet youngstorget! mumma lau actually wanted to have their prawns but they’d already sold out so she instead opted for mussels. i chose their fishcake. it was a really interesting texture and more akin to chinese fish balls than the starchy uk chip shop fishcakes – they were actually so good i ordered a second portion!

day 3 film photos

day 4

we started off our final day taking photos on damstredet, an adorable little cobbled street with houses from the 1800s. 

we then took a short ferry cruise to admire the inner oslofjord.

the views were truly spectacular and somewhat made up for the baltic weather. i had a lot of regrets about not packing any winter clothing…

we decided to spend a couple of hours in drøbak afterwards upon recommendation from our airbnb host. it’s a cute little town with lovely views of the fjord but it’s most famous for the tregaardens juleshus, norway’s only year-long christmas house with its own official post office! how adorable! 

(this is the exact location which inspired the scream!)

after making our way back to oslo, we realised we still had a couple of hours of daylight left and decided to visit ekebergparken sculpture park, otherwise known as the site that inspired munch’s the scream!

for dinner, we ended up at olympen, one of the oldest establishments in oslo which dates back to the end of the 19th century. it’s been through many incarnations from theatre to cafe to beer hall but now it’s a gorgeous restaurant serving traditional norwegian dishes with a modern twist. i ordered the three-course meal, sharing my starter of fenalår (cured lamb) and my dessert of crème brûlée with mumma, and we had venison and halibut for our respective mains. i honestly could not rate this restaurant more highly!

day 4 film photos

anyways, that’s it for another trip!

all in all, i had an amazing time in oslo and i can’t wait til i get to revisit norway – i’m hoping i’ll be able to do a trip in summer after grad and see the western fjords and bergen! 

although norway is admittedly pricier than most other european destinations, don’t let that dissuade you from going! mumma and i only really ate out once a day and the rest of the time we bought baked goods from the supermarket to sustain ourselves. we also limited our souvenir shopping and cut back on transport fees and museum entries by investing in the oslo pass. even if you have to work to a tighter budget, it’s definitely still possible to enjoy yourself! 

anyways, i went off to poland this winter break so i’ll catch up with you all (hopefully) very soon with another post!

soph x

p.s. click on the pic above for some outtakes!

0

SHARE:

YOU MIGHT ALSO LIKE

  • cracking kraków
  • what we (war)saw
  • journey to the (north) west
  • commencing in cluj
Coronavirus-related xenophobia is spreading – and I’m feeling the effects in the UK »
« osl-oh dear

say how u feel lmao Cancel reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

lenaanus

lenaanus
appreciation post for @alinarburwitz bc i rly fcki appreciation post for @alinarburwitz bc i rly fckin appreciate her !!! 

alina sometimes i think about how serendipitous it was we even met in the first place and i honestly feel so so lucky to have someone that i’ve never rly spent all that much physical time with but that i know is just gonna be on this rollercoaster with me forever (like okay we spend concentrated bouts of time together sometimes but in the grand scheme of things considering we didn’t/don’t do high school, uni or work together and we don’t live in the same city, it’s probs not that much time at all?)

i’m so so grateful to u for snapping me out of my funk yesterday and also just for so many other moments in the past decade. a highlight rly has to be u bringing me forbidden pizza when i was locked up at home in an eczema outbreak 💀

idk like i’ll probably tell u all this when we speak tonight bc i’m a soft soft gal at heart but bro rly, thank u for always being there at my worst and also for having good enough boundaries to not be there when u rly can’t/don’t need to? does that make sense? 

hope u know i’m always here for u too 

love u so so SO much
was in a poetry workshop/masterclass/q&a with @ant was in a poetry workshop/masterclass/q&a with @anthony_anaxagorou yesterday - fun fact - heterogeneous was the first english-language poetry book i bought unrelated to high school or uni studies and ’twas a genuinely monumental moment for me i think. i also bought it when volunteering for stanza which was what led me to join the scottish bpoc writers network and kickstarted a lot of things but NEWAYS am getting off track. he was talking about things like complicated poems having more longevity, ur readership being more intelligent than u, having porousness in poems for reader agency, staying away from aphorisms, the importance of reading EXCESSIVELY and a lot of other things (i think i took like 5 pages of notes lmao more than any uni lecture ever 💀)

SO i picked up this book again - time winds by alfred kisubi (which i bought in york and started but struggled with) bc it’s time to read excessively again and delve into complicated poetry!! in the intro it says his poems are difficult but this was the first time i think i’ve ever read a poetry book where the bulk was poems that i just found impenetrable. not even rly bc of the language itself but bc of my ignorance regarding ugandan history & culture like i was anchored to the glossary but still had to do so much googling 😭😭 BUT decided to give it another go and in amongst the brain juice depletion i found some poems that rly stuck with me

lil carousel for u guys make of it what u will i have a headache now partially bc of too much thinking but also bc i’ve been looking at screens too much and not sleeping well bc of twin flame spiritual nonsense so yh 

love u guys byebye
and u thought the york photo dump was over 💀 and u thought the york photo dump was over 💀
🤍 🤍
me looking cute & also wholesome family moments wh me looking cute & also wholesome family moments when my parents aren’t driving me absolutely bonkers // shirt from @koukoukreations 🤍
work was ridiculously busy this weekend but had so work was ridiculously busy this weekend but had so much fun!! 

had a rly cute sunday lunch & ensuing stroll with the head of department (who i was staying with 🤠) and even tho had to do assembly, 4 hours of workshops, a careers talk and a teacher showcase (and ofc the mountains of paperwork afterwards) on my day off, still had such a good time 🥺🥺 the students were all super super sweet and here are some highlights from the feedback: 

i was surprised by… “there is mcdonald’s in france”

a session like this could be better if… “it can’t be better” 

the best bit was… “how nice the teacher was and [how] encouraging she was” 

rly do feel like i’m smashing my career these days 🥰🥰🥰 

also side note if you’re ever in marlow, go to @thecedarmarlow - the owner & staff are all so lovely and we had such interesting chats about life! also their food recs (and food ofc) are perfect - genuinely one of the best sandwiches i’ve ever had 🤍
day out in sheff!! ur fave touch-me-not hardy chin day out in sheff!! ur fave touch-me-not hardy chinese special (i will be responding only to this name in the future) had brunch then chilled in the botanical gardens - the latter is vv cute in the sun highly recommended 🥺🥺 // also i always overestimate the amount of biscoff i can eat in one go - was delicious but boy oh boy was stuffed 😭😭 // pls ignore the state of my fringe in pic 4// ALSO katara hair loopies are finally achievable !!! 

dress from @allsaints 🤍 #gifted
always feel v connected to myself & the universe w always feel v connected to myself & the universe whenever i look at the moon
prefer up & down with exid but i guess elvis will prefer up & down with exid but i guess elvis will do
Follow on Instagram
This error message is only visible to WordPress admins
There has been a problem with your Instagram Feed.

creative pursuits

  • modelling
  • photography
  • poetry
  • travels
  • writing
  • xtra features

connect

  • about me
  • Contact

© 2021 THE REFORMED FLAKE

THEME BY ECLAIR DESIGNS
We use cookies on our website to give you the best possible experience. By clicking “Accept”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies. To see which cookies we are using or to switch them off, please visit settings
Cookie settingsACCEPT
Manage consent

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously.
CookieDurationDescription
cookielawinfo-checbox-analytics11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics".
cookielawinfo-checbox-functional11 monthsThe cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional".
cookielawinfo-checbox-others11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other.
cookielawinfo-checkbox-necessary11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-performance11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance".
viewed_cookie_policy11 monthsThe cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. It does not store any personal data.
Functional
Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features.
Performance
Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors.
Analytics
Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.
Advertisement
Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads.
Others
Other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet.
SAVE & ACCEPT