Oslo

One of the most enjoyable activities in Oslo is to ride the subway to the top of its Akers River Valley and stroll downhill through a long riverside park — once the city’s churning industrial zone, with factories belching and waterwheels spinning.

The Akers River, though only about five miles long, powered Oslo’s early industry: flour mills in the 1300s, sawmills in the 1500s, and Norway’s Industrial Revolution in the 1800s.

Along the way, I was chatting with my Norwegian guide, Aksel (who’d never heard of a “pledge drive”), about how different countries pay for their public broadcasting. I was astounded by how much Norwegians are taxed just to own a TV, but those I talked to all seemed to understand the value of quality news (that doesn’t need to be dressed up as entertainment in order to sell ads and be viable), high culture accessible to the masses, children’s programming that isn’t a tool of corporations marketing things to kids, and World Cup coverage with no commercial breaks.

I spend a lot of time traveling around the USA during pledge drive season to explain to Americans why they should kick in $100 or so a year for public broadcasting. This Norwegian and his countrymen value public broadcasting at the rate of $500 a year per family, and willingly pay that tax just to own a TV. I should bring this Norwegian with me to my next pledge drive.

In Oslo, there’s a concerted effort to make the harborfront a people’s domain. This ambitious urban renewal project, called Fjord City (Fjordbyen) — which kicked off years ago with the Aker Brygge development (now Oslo’s well-established harborside promenade and restaurant row), and proceeded with the construction of the dramatic new Opera House (its white-marble roof famously sloping into the fjord, creating a public plaza that lets you walk on top of the theater) — is making remarkable progress in turning the formerly industrial waterfront into a thriving people zone. This clip gives you a glimpse at a city truly reinventing itself.

Oslo is a classic old Norwegian city. But in recent visits, I’m amazed at some of the dramatic changes going on here. The new Oslo is both architecturally fascinating and extremely livable. These photos  illustrate some of the ways that Oslo just keeps chugging into the future.

Oslo’s Aker Brygge development has made its harbor a people-friendly promenade. Each night it’s a Nordic paseo. Just a few years ago, this stretch of harbor was an industrial wasteland. Today it’s part of a huge project pushing out the industry to make room for the people of Oslo. And since my last visit, the development has doubled in size with the construction of a brand-new housing development called Tjuvholmen — a futuristic mix of condos, shops, offices, galleries, and a little beach facing the open fjord.

I enjoyed a delightful, quiet moment watching seagulls and ferries come and go as the setting sun shone on the old fortress in Oslo’s harbor. Oslo’s fancy yacht club-style stretch of harborfront is a trendy restaurant row. But I didn’t feel like a fancy dinner — just a simple picnic picked up from a grocery store a block inland. Fortunately, the harborfront also comes with lots of picnic tables, comfy wooden lounges for two, and places where its citizens who can’t afford pricey waterfront restaurants can enjoy these same delightful views.

All over Europe, little Manhattans are springing up. You can read in the newspapers about slow economies, but when you actually travel around, it seems that northern Europe is on a building binge. This new strip of towering office complexes — nicknamed “the Bar Code District” — finally gives Oslo the modern skyline it never had.

I’ve left Stockholm, and have landed in Norway’s capital — Oslo. My first stop is a famous old ski jump that has a fresh new look.

A top sight in Oslo is the legendary Holmenkollen Ski Jump. One of the world’s oldest ski jumps (from 1892), Holmenkollen has hosted many championships, including the 1952 Winter Olympics. To win the privilege of hosting the 2011 World Ski Jump Championship, Oslo built a bigger jump to match modern ones that had been built elsewhere. You can ride an elevator to the top and stand right at the starting gate, just like an athlete, and get a feel for this daredevil sport. The jump empties into a 30,000-seat amphitheater, and you’ll enjoy one of the best possible views of Oslo.

As you ponder the jump, consider how modern athletes continually push the boundaries of their sport. The first champion here (in 1892) jumped 21 meters. In 1930, it took a 50-meter jump to win. In 1962, it was 80 meters, and in 1980, the champ cracked 100 meters. Most recently, a jump of 140 meters took first place.

While the view is exciting from the top, even more exciting is watching thrill-seekers rocket down the course on a zipline from the same lofty perch (600 Norwegian kronor per trip — that’s $100…yes, Norway’s expensive).