When visiting a new city, one seeks to dispel misconceptions and replace impressionistic shards with solid ground. It's about as likely to get an internship with Santa Claus if you go on an expedition to the North Pole as it is to be sat next to Catherine Deneuve in a Paris café.
However, the Norwegian metropolis of Oslo quickly transformed into a kaleidoscopic dreamscape within hours of my arrival. Did I come to sit across from the prime minister of the nation, Jonas Gahr Stre, at a table in the Litteraturhuset café and order warm cheese buns and a pilsner on the patio? No, I did not.
Did I come here hoping to strike up a dordle conversation with Renate Reinsve, the lead of Joachim Trier's Oscar-nominated The Worst Person in the World, and end myself standing next to her at the pub Becco? Nei. Also at Becco, a DJ/priest (pause for emphasis) hovering over a set of turntables was something I never expected to witness.
But for a week in early September, Oslo persisted on presenting an idyllic montage of brilliant sunsets, captivating art, refreshing fjord swims, and a population that is precisely as cool as I'd expected. Does any other city match Oslo's (2019's "Green Capital" according to the European Commission) level of cultural sophistication, financial stability, and ecological consciousness?
Norway went from being one of the region's poorest nations to one of the world's wealthiest when oil was discovered in the North Sea in the late 1960s. Researching the societal impacts of the economic boom would take more than a week and need a unique set of skills. To put it simply, Norwegians have a marked inclination toward self-deprecation that borders on dysmorphia.
Recent years have also seen Norway's natural resources cause political tension. Soon as the conflict in Ukraine escalated, the nation replaced Russia as the EU's principal gas supplier, resulting in enormous — and divisive — financial gains. If Norway is Europe's largest safety deposit box, then why not use some of that wealth to help countries like Ukraine?
