Saturday Evening in Bjørvika

Posted on November 30, 2013 by Atypical Neurotic

Atypical Neurotic writes:

20131130-211520.jpg

Taken from the pontoon bridge linking the Opera House with the Sørenga development. As I walked back toward the Opera House, I was struck by how quiet it is without the roar of traffic.

Unknown's avatar

About Atypical Neurotic

An Illinois-born refugee from academia who in late middle-age finds himself a civil servant in Norway. An unashamed city-dweller, he walks 30 minutes every day to a job where he is not paid to be an economist (lawyer or accountant), only to sound like one.
This entry was posted in Photography. Bookmark the permalink.

4 Responses to Saturday Evening in Bjørvika

  1. Paleo Retiree's avatar Paleo Retiree says:
    November 30, 2013 at 3:29 pm

    Brr. How good a walking city is Oslo? And what’s the walking there like in winter?

    Like

    Reply
    • Atypical Neurotic's avatar Atypical Neurotic says:
      November 30, 2013 at 3:40 pm

      I think Oslo is a great walking city, with an incredible diversity of urban landscapes, not to mention square miles of woods with trails. In the city center, heating elements keep the sidewalks ice-free in winter, which lasts pretty much until the end of March. Otherwise, sidewalks can be icy, so we all have ice cleats for our shoes. I’ve landed on my keister more than once, even with ice cleats. And then there are the icicles…

      Like

      Reply
      • Paleo Retiree's avatar Paleo Retiree says:
        November 30, 2013 at 5:26 pm

        Heating elements in/on the sidewalks? Amazing. The Nordic countries really know how to deal with the cold, I guess.

        Like

      • Atypical Neurotic's avatar Atypical Neurotic says:
        December 1, 2013 at 12:00 am

        Follow-up: The heating elements consist of plastic tubes containing hot water and are embedded in the sidewalk understructure. When they upgraded the sidewalks on a downtown street that forms part of my route to work, I saw how it was done: plastic tubes were laid on top of a layer of asphalt, covered with concrete and then granite paving stones were laid on top. As I said above, icy sidewalks are not to be trifled with, and they represent a real hazard until the midday sun gets high enough in the sky to sublimate the ice (i.e. mid-to-late March). This is also why, for all the damage they do, studded tires are legal in Norway.

        Like

Leave a comment