Oslo – September 2022

Before I start rambling on about our final day in Oslo, I omitted information regarding the accessibility of the other means of public transportation in the city from yesterdays post, clearly the T-Bane was just too exciting! Asides from the metro, Oslo is also home to a tram and bus network. As in many European cities, the former comprises of old and new rolling stock with only the new having low floor access so you may be waiting for a while for one to come. In contrast, every single bus is accessible, this seems to be a recurring theme across Europe. Anyway, back to today…

As our flight back to Heathrow wasn’t until 5pm, the morning was spent catching up on work emails etc before being kicked out the rooms at 12pm. As per before, we utilised the Flytoget train link between Central station and the airport for which I booked assistance for a certain train. Despite pre-booking, it seems that Norwegian train guards aren’t phased to simply assist regardless.

Now it’s time for the fun bit, THE AIRPORT! Apparently I didn’t register Superbunny onto the BA system which I did but there you go! Once we had faffed about resolving said issue, we were informed that the airports protocol to leave electric wheelchairs at oversized baggage to be collected by the forklifts onto the plane and only manual wheelchairs are allowed up to the gate. Oversized baggage was rather confused by this, however, it turns out that it is only BA’s protocol as they are required to put Superbunny in its own container to avoid any damage…kudos needed here for British Airways!!

Anyway, everything was dandy and we arrived at LHR slightly ahead of schedule for once, however, the answer to yesterdays cliff hanger is ‘kind of’! Although we parked at a remote stand and the lift was waiting to take us to T3, the piece of equipment needed to transfer Superbunny off the container was over at T5 which is at the other side of the vast airfield thus taking approximately 15 minutes to reach us…Heathrow needs forklifts!

So, where is next for me? Of course, Latvia as it is the only remaining country in Northern and Central Europe to roll around unless we are counting the self-governing states (or Romania/Serbia which some class as Central Europe, surely they are located in South East Europe?) which could take a while! Whilst in Latvia, we are staying in and exploring the capital, Riga. Unlike Oslo which is pretty easy to wander around in an electric wheelchair, Riga has taken a little more planning due to the scarceness of accessible taxis and general accessibility. Although the historic centre of Riga is pretty conventional in terms of drop curbs and pedestrian crossings, once you step outside the centre, you are faced with a concept that seemed to be popular to construct within the former USSR countries and indeed China in previous years. We all know that the USSR enjoyed constructing VERY wide roads hence instead of having a series of pedestrian crossings over ground, said architects decided to build huge underpasses with multiple exits which, in theory is good as it helps traffic flow etc, however, the majority of exits have steps rather than ramps making it near impossible to cross even in a manual wheelchair. I have noted that Riga have installed lifts at a few major exits but nonetheless I have booked a hotel which is near an over ground crossing and on the airport bus route hence everything should work (in theory!). We shall see on the 3rd October!

In the meantime, here is another photo of the stunning T-Bane…

After exploring the centre of Oslo and its associated sights yesterday, today we headed to a suburb called Stovner which is located on the very edge of the city and is surrounded by woodland. Of course, it seemed fitting to reach said area via the T-Bane, Oslo’s very own metro system (come on, this is me that we are talking about)!

From my prior T-Bane research, I was very impressed to learn that all stations bar one have a ramp and/or an elevator (whether the latter actually works remains to be seen!) and the trains are ‘apparently’ flush to the platform. Once we sought the accessible entrance to Jernbanetorget station (next to Central Station), we headed down into the earth. The thing that immediately strikes you is the lack of ticket barriers and visible ticket machines. Disabled individuals can travel the network for free anyway but we soon discovered that, in order to purchase a ticket, you either need to use the app or retrieve one from a local shop.

Now to discuss said trains, compared to many countries, the rolling stock is relatively new and is indeed level with the platform…at times! What they don’t tell you, however is that the gap between the platform and the train is rather large making the possibility for a wheelchair wheel to get jammed within highly likely (memories are now flooding back of last weekend where muggins was too busy talking at Kings Cross Underground station to remember that Paddington’s platforms are on a slight curve meaning that one needed to be in a certain part of the train to avoid said gap…a leap of faith was definitely needed!). The other issue when you exit the central section of the network, the platform height differs from station to station and we all know what that means. Anyway, as usual, Superbunny was able to jump onboard with assistance and everything was dandy…

After reaching Stovner, the objective was to find the Stovnertårnet which is another architectural splendor where the walkway rises up over the surrounding scenery, the best bit is that it is fully accessible! Following on from a journey through, what I think was a Scandinavian council estate, the structure presented itself…

The walkway winds itself up through the trees at a gentle gradient presenting panoramic views over the surrounding woodland and Oslo’s cityscape…

The theoretical plan after marveling at said structure was to enter the woodland for tea and cake at a café situated within, however I failed to realise that it is only open at weekends, made for a good wander nonetheless…

Tomorrow we head back to old Heathrow via the Flytoget airport train and then subsequent means of travel, the question is, will LHR still be in a complete mess?

The strategy for today was to explore central Oslo whilst taking in the main touristy sights whilst attempting to avoid the downpours. I must say that it is nice to be in a city where the majority of shops and restaurants are step free…think this will be my fix for the next few years at least!

Anyway, the architectural wander began by a purchase of a new waterproof as the weather today was similar to yesterday…WET AND COLD!! Nonetheless, let it start we did…

The majority of the major sights in Oslo are within walking distance hence it is easy to hop from one to the other, especially as ramps and drop kerbs are plenty…

After wandering for a while, we stumbled across the Oslo Opera House, I did read about the architectural concept of said building a few years ago, however, didn’t realise that it was located in Oslo! Now, the best way to describe the concept of walking up the outside of the building in the first instance is to have a gander at the below photograph…

Essentially, it’s a massive ramp up the side of the building, it is quite steep (one side is steeper than the other – trust me to go downhill on the steeper side!) but no match for Superbunny…

Apart from the steepness, the other issue is that, because the pattern is the same all the way up/down, it is difficult to distinguish which parts are flat and the parts that have ‘ledges’ until it is too late! Anyway, the views from the top are spectacular (if you ignore the cruise ship monstrosities!)…

It was shortly after this that a black cloud approached bringing heavy rain but we powered on regardless…

…if not a little drenched…

Tomorrow we try out the public transportation in Oslo (in particular, the T-Bane (metro)) to reach Stovner, an area on the city limits for some tree top walking etc!

Oslo has always been a city on my travel list, just never got around to visiting said place. However, seeing as I have only two countries left in Northern Europe to wander around (the other being Latvia next month), now seemed the appropriate time.

In preparation for our flight from old Heathrow, we arrived in ample time and, unlike flying to Zagreb, LHR pulled out their finger meaning that we had ample time to wander to the gate. I swear Heathrow employ whoever they wish regardless of their intelligence level as said staff at the gate failed to comprehend the importance of talking directly with the ground crew to ensure that they are clear on how to operate Superbunny! Ahh well, all turned out well for the short flight to Norway…

Like Zagreb, Oslo airport is pretty quiet in comparison to the epicentre of the UK which is Heathrow, the only difference this time was being greeted by the cold and heavy rain (you can never trust Weather apps nowadays?). The former meant for a rather quick experience through passport control etc.

Now, as Superbunny weighs approximately 100kg, major airports are required to use specialised equipment to transport it to and from the plane (unless you are traveling from Bristol where only strong manpower is used). This equipment varies from country to country so what could it be this time?? Only in Norway, Superbunny was treated to an airfield tour on a forklift before being graciously delivered to oversized baggage (only took around 40 minutes)!

The next quest was to arrive at the hotel, we achieved this using Flytoget which utilises the only high speed railway line in the country (reaching speeds of 130mph…thanks Wiki!) to provide a link from the airport to Oslo Central Station (where the Scandic Byporten is conveniently located within…I wonder who booked that??) in just 19 minutes.

Before I came to Oslo, I read numerous articles about how inaccessible the Flytoget rolling stock currently is hence I was expecting to be sat in the doorway. However, I was pleasantly surprised, I mean, it COULD be more accessible but it’s way more than the DEATH train! Essentially the guard has to come to pull out a ramp stored on the train…easy as that…plenty of room to maneuver…just don’t shoot up and fall down the steps for the opposite door!

As mentioned above, we are staying in the Scandic Byporten hotel in Oslo, the accessible rooms are pretty much what you would expect from a Scandinavian hotel…I swear that more and more hotels across Europe are being equipped with actual shower chairs…so much easier!

The strategy for tomorrow is to explore central Oslo taking in the sights such as The Barcode Project and the Oslo Opera Centre which, unbeknown to me, you can walk up to and on the roof…should be fun!