to be honest, at the outset of this last trip of the year everything felt like an incredible effort. putting myself on yet another flight, yet another train (by the way, best way to get from oslo’s aiport to the city centre: the comfy flytoget trains. thank you for the continued support, yay!), check into yet another hotel. the 31^st floor? whatever, almost.

but today was a game-changer.

talking to people at the city’s extraordinary opera house and watching its challenging interpretation of the classic “peer gynt” gave me, by education, both a sense of feeling electrified as well as being home.

walking around town with hours of free time at hand made me realize the last time i had experienced this freedom during a trip (outside of my time in amsterdam, which wasn’t really a trip anyways) was probably in linz – where, strangely enough, i had traveled to write about an opera house as well. it also reminded me of the fact that this usually shortlived sense of freedom is what travel used to be about for me in the first place.

finally, being welcomed with open arms (and a battery of beer cans) by someone you barely know yet immediately clicked with over a shared appreciation of music – there’s just nothing quite like it.

quite the day, really. and the view over oslo from the 31^st floor is fucking beautiful!