We have slept, dried out, been fed and we are ready to head out again to explore even more of Oslo. The clouds have even lifted and the day looks promising. First stop today is the Akerhus Castle. We have seen it many times from the harbor, but have never ventured inside and it is quite fun. There are many great museums and we still have our museum cards! First we try the Resistance Museum, which is amazing. Christopher has studied WWII before but it is all new to Andrew and Katie. WWII was such a clear struggle between good guys and bad guys that they both catch on immediately and are captivated by the fight against the super villain Nazi’s.
Back out to sun-drenched 21st century Oslo of a quick breath and then back in time to tour the castle interior, which was nice, but the views were even better. Back outside again and across the parade grounds to the Armed Forces Museum and more Nazi’s. By this time the boys are pretend shooting Nazi’s around every corner and Christopher is coming up with plans for a new, better, stronger UN. I am wondering if Katie is going to have Nazi-related nightmares and I am also thinking, perhaps this last museum wasn’t such a good idea after all, though the boys clearly loved it.
A change of scenery: we take 2 buses to get out to the Viking Ship Museum which was a highlight last time. The kids, though, are completely museumed out at this point so opt for a frolic on the front lawn instead.
We come home early, in time for laundry and packing. The first rain of the day appears, but only just enough to produce a rainbow. It is close to Mid-Summer Eve and Nils has invited his brother and family over to celebrate with traditional Norwegian creamy porridge. Nils’ brother Torkin has been a missionary for the last 15 years and has recently returned to Norway to plant a church. He and his wife Inger are absolutely charming and we have a wonderful time hearing of their lives and their current project. All the kids are enjoying each other as good cousins do, older ones looking after the younger ones. It was a privilege to end our time in Oslo with a family gathering. We intended to get the kids to bed early but it is just too hard to tear them away from their friends so we let them stay up late again, knowing that tomorrow morning will be excruciating.
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