Rio - Oslo

All of the Spanish and Portuguese speakers must be wondering by now what am I going talk about right now. By the name you surely must have a first impression which is not completely right or wrong, actually.

So what is this all about? Well, Trafikanten is the name of the Transit Authority in Oslo. So right in front of Oslo-S (Oslo's Central Train Station) there's a tower and a Trafikanten office. It's basically one of most central areas in Oslo. From there you can get buses, bikes, trams, trains, subways, the port is nearby too. In other words it's a place where everyone passes by, including tourists.



Meanwhile is also where the "traficantes" stick around all during the day just "doing their job" or whatever you want to call that. So here I am, getting to Oslo-S, listening to my music and I see people buying drugs, guys keep saying words I can't understand (I think they're trying to sell me something) and a friend of mine even told me she saw some that had an OD just there.

It's really kind of creapy... Honestly the first time I walked around there, I just turned back. Soon enough I noticed that it is very safe (as basically everywhere here) with security guards walking around and stuff, but I guess they just "let them be".

Ok, ok... I know I'm from Rio and all of that, but I have never seen anything like this before. And I honeslty never thought I would see that here in Norway for crying out loud... But I guess that's part of the deal here. It's easier to control things if you know exactly where they are, who they are and all of that. I don't know exactly... Maybe I just find it strange. It's just one of those things where everyone knows what is happening, but everyone pretends it's just not there...

Well, honestly it would be cool to hear people's thoughts on that...


PS: I just noticed one thing: one month until my B-DAY!!!!!

So after telling everyone about my last few days. Let me get back to a few thoughts on the city of Oslo. First some facts of how different the situation is here, compared to Rio (yeah this blog is still Rio-Oslo...).

- Rio de Janeiro Metro System:

• 2 Lines
  
• 32 Stations
  
• Around half a million people transported daily
  
• Built for a population of 6 million people
  

- Oslo T-Bane System

• 6 Lines
  
• 105 Stations
  
• Around 200 thousand people transported daily
  
• Built for a population of 560 thousand people.
  

Some other interesting facts. At the bus stops here you have an electronic sign that tells you how long until the next bus comes. And you can check on the map exactly where it takes you. So anyone that's not from the city can figure out how to get around. And of course you still have taxis (VERY expensive), trains, trams and the city bike system that they want to start in Rio. Now fellow "cariocas" imagine a tourist trying to get a bus in Rio and in Oslo, sounds quite different doesn't it?

Now don't think everything is beautiful and perfect. Of course there are things that are not too good...
1- The T-Bane goes until 1am more or less
2- The bus system is not exactly 24hrs like in Rio, they have a night bus but it doesn't do the trick that well...

So last saturday (actually 3am on sunday) I had to walk cross town after a party.. Took me about an hour and a bit to get home. But it's safe and actually fun because everyone is at the streets at that time! Honestly it was quite an experience...

But I guess I have to get used to the system here.. But yeah, they are miles ahead from the transport system in Brazil. My only doubt is how is it going to be to walk a long distance in winter...

Update on yesterday. I left the office with my city bike and the weather was getting bad... At one point I left my bike at one of the stations (I had just felt some massive drops) and got my umbrella. Brilliant timing!!! Just in time not to get drenched...

Then later on I went to the karaoke and that was lots of fun!! Sang "La Bamba", "Mr. Jones", "Do You Want To?"(Fanny!!!!!!!)... But guess what happened on the way out?? LOTS OF RAIN!!! And where was my umbrella??? No where to be seen... I lost it somewhere... So long story short I wasn't very dry when I got home... But I survived.

But today the sun is out. Not too many clouds in the sky... And the forecast is good weather for tomorrow!!! So let's hope!!! Maybe a BBQ, Pic-nic, tribal dances to the Sun god..

Just check it out!! =)

So, first of all, let me just explain why am I writing in English. Basically because I thought it would be the best way to make this blog as inclusive as possible. I know you guys in Brazil can understand it and if I wrote in Portuguese, most of my friends from around the world just wouldn't stand a chance...

Now back to my first adventures. I arrived in Oslo at around 2:30pm on July 31st. It was such a great day. Blue sky, just a few clouds and the SUN!!! (I guess I already miss the sun.. I haven't seen it that often since then.. btw right now it's dark and raining). It was kind of odd to see Oslo from the airplane and think "Ok, so this is the place I'll be calling 'home' for the next year."

But the first thing I really noticed here was a first glance at how things in Norway work much better than what I'm used to... When I got the airport kart and started pushing it I had quite a surprise: it was very easy to push.. It moved smoothly!!!

Espen was the guy in charge of picking me up. He was always very helpful and we actually talked quite a bit and I found out he actually lived in Maresias, SP, for a few months. Here is a picture of us in the bus (btw the bus also rode smoothly!!)



So after a going up the hill with 60 kilos or luggage, we went to the lake nearby (Sognsvann) to chill out and have some beers...



After that we went to Jason's for a quick "warm-up" before Intern Beer. And before people get worried, I just have three beers during the whole day. That sounds ok, right?

I guess that's a good update on the first day. I'll try to get to the current events soon enough... =P

Beijos e abracos!!!