Posts filed under 'Oslo'
The city of Oslo cleans its streets every spring. I’ve never seen this in any other city I’ve lived in–it’s quite amazing. And most likely friggin’ expensive.
This is how it works: The Road Services put up temporary “parking forbidden between timeX and timeY” signs. If your car is not removed at the designated time, they will kindly do it for you. (Not really, it is towed and you have to pay something like 2000NOK to get it back). Then, one street at the time, cleaning machines remove every trace of dirt, sand and gravel.
This phenomenon took me by surprise last year. I hit the street one morning, not quite awake. But that quickly changed when I saw that the street I lived on was completely empty! It’s kind of hard to explain if you can’t see it, so this year I took som pictures. This is what the street normally looks like and this is what it looked like during the cleaning.
I’m quite happy about the spring cleaning. Especially because one of my neglegted hobbies is in-line skating (skating on a dirty street is no fun). The ‘blades have been waiting in my closet after being brought to Norway (too) late last summer. This year, I’m not wasting my chance.
April 24th, 2006
I guess I was wrong:
Back to beautiful snow and people bitching about traffic!
February 28th, 2006
This article in Reuters is not too surprising to me and my colleagues:
After 14 years ranked as the most expensive city in the world for expatriates, Tokyo has been knocked off the top spot by Norway’s capital Oslo, a survey showed on Tuesday.
Just for the fun of it, I’ll list some random items and their price tags as experienced by yours truly.
All prices in local currency (Norwegian Krone).
Hot dogs (10): 40-50NOK
Beer (0,33 liter): 10-15NOK
Cigarettes: 61-75NOK
Coke (0.5 liter): 11,50NOK
Grandiosa (frozen pizza for 1): 25NOK
Chicken filet (0.4 kilos): 40-50NOK
Smirnoff Red (0.7 liter): 254NOK
Anything fresh, meat or containing alcohol: Expensivo
If you don’t use Mac OS X Tiger and thus may not have a brilliant currency converter at your fingertips, here’s what Google offered at #1.
February 1st, 2006
<rant>
The other day I came home to find that this years phone books have arrived.
A lovely gesture, and I must say, exactly what I need: A big chunk of a dead tree filled with static information that I don’t need plastered with ads. And because I have a back door, I got two copies. Talk about a waste of paper and production resources.
Last time I used a phone book was in January 2005. I remember because we had just moved offices and I put under my screen to achieve better viewing altitude. Its companion was “The Internet Yellow Pages”. Even thicker, equally ugly, but extinct. Just like Lil’ Phone Book will be one day.
Now it’s not that I don’t like paper. I just try to avoid its use whenever I can. Bills, bank statements, airline tickets et al should all come to me in digital form, but some unfortunately don’t (yet).
I try to protest against the waste of paper and money by declining to receive junk snail mail. If I really want to check out this week’s specials, I’ll download the PDF.
I wish I could opt not to receive phone books in the same way. Perhaps I should create a sticker to put on my door saying “I use the in-ter-net. It’s this newfangled thing that let’s you do all sorts of stuff, including looking up phone numbers!”
Mr. Man With Hat of Paper, I’m looking in your direction. Here’s a lollypop, now stop the press already.
</rant>
January 30th, 2006
This summer, Oslo Road Services had do to some digging in the middle of a crossing which I walk through on my way to work. The work was done without blocking traffic by setting up concrete blocks in a circle around the work area, effectively creating a roundabout.
The work lasted for several weeks, and in this time I actually got to work a bit faster because I didn’t have to wait for the light to turn green. And in stead of hundred meter long queues during rush hour, the traffic simply flowed in all four directions.
To my surprise, the roundabout was made back into a crossing once the work was done. Now, I’m back to waiting for the green light, and watching out for cars racing across to make it before the red light (which they don’t always do).
I realize that this project must have been planned and paid for before the roundabout showed its benefits. But it’s sad to see this backwards step from a faster, more secure and more convenient solution.
January 29th, 2006
Today it is exactly one year ago that I started working for Opera Software. This also means that I’ve been living in Oslo, Norway for a year now. Wow. Time really does fly by when you’re having fun!
The last year has given me so much. A new job, new challenges, new colleagues and new friends; a new perspective of life. I truly hope that the people of Opera understand how much I appreciate them, and how grateful I am for this oppurtunity.
September 13th, 2005
The Oslo night is decorated with stars. Traffic is its soundtrack and the urban illumination is the light show of the troposhere. Both stand in contrast to the dark, silent sky.
Living in the “big” city, I’m perpetually forgetting how it is to enjoy the star mantle with a rural backdrop. It is a severely underestimated pleasure.
September 10th, 2005
While writing this–the very first entry of my new blog–I’m sitting in the backyard of my apartment building in uptown Oslo. The sky is blue, with translucent clouds scattered like gentle white brush strokes on a beautiful blue canvas. Enjoying the music flowing from the speakers of my recently purchased Apple iBook, I am relaxed. I couldn’t find a better spot for beginning my blog.
What I have to say will be entirely left to my own discretion. Thoughts, ideas, feelings, rants. You, my dear reader, are bound to see all of them and more, as I finally let the writer come up in me.
Expressing oneself is important, even if it is one-way communication. Doing so for a worldwide audience is an urge which I have been holding back on for too long.
I’ll see you around.
August 14th, 2005
