Oh Oslo!

 Trip date: May 2024

I have been known to do odd things just to fly a certain route or on a particular plane and on this trip I flew up to Canada so that I could fly KLM Business class in order to get one of their Delft Blue miniature houses. These adorable recreations of buildings and houses in Amsterdam are filled with Bols genever and are only available on intercontinental flights booked in Business or First. 

Since KLM doesn't fly out of Seattle I spent about $100 on Alaska Air for a 30 minute flight to Vancouver. This was also my first time using my Canadian passport so it seemed fitting to use it in Canada! On my 5 hour layover in YVR I hung out in the SkyTeam Lounge where I had some excellent cold peanut noodles from their noodle bar, then checked out the Plaza Premium Lounge and did some duty free shopping. It's a very nice International terminal!

I had transferred 161,500 Chase points to KLM directly for my YVR-AMS-OSL flight. This was my first time flying KLM Business class and I was super happy with my 3A window seat (but do wish I had gotten a better points transfer). My pod was outfitted with lots of space to stow stuff, an auto charging table, layflat bed and privacy door. And the bathroom was lined in miniature blue house wallpaper!

The 9-hour flight included a very nice drinks and dinner service (I had a Bols genever old fashioned, a poached lobster salad, mango rice with prawns, and a little cheese plate), some absolutely stunning views of the Rocky Mountains, a movie, and about 6 hours of sleep. I was hoping to see the Northern Lights but it never got dark on our flight path!

I will admit that when I woke up and had breakfast and everyone was getting ready for landing I was VERY concerned that I still didn't have a house! But then one of the flight attendants came around with a tray full of them! I didn't know I would get a choice! I was so excited! 

I had a connecting flight in Amsterdam, and security to go thru, but my little booze house fit in my ziplock liquids bag so it was safe! I hung out in the KLM Crown Lounge for 2 hours on my layover; it is a huge lounge with lots of room but also can get very busy. 

AMS-OSL... my plane got turned around mid flight! OMG I was terrified! They had pressurization issues so we had to return and wait for a new plane. As this is Europe, I was able to put in a claim for the delay and was refunded $326!

Oslo, finally! I took the Flytoget Airport Express from the airport to Oslo central station which took just 22 minutes for 240 NOK ($25) vs. 40 mins & €90 for a taxi. You can just tap your phone or credit card and they leave every 20 mins. 

My hotel, the Clarion Hotel Hub, was right across the street from the station. I got checked in to my very cool designer room, took a much needed shower and headed to the rooftop bar for sunset drinks and a snack with a view- 4 hours later than planned.

Oslo is such a beautiful city! 10+ years ago I had visited in the winter, so these views were very different. And the next morning when I woke up the weather was outstanding; actually a bit warmer than what I packed for!

I walked everywhere, as the city is quite flat, and really admired how much the city has grown since my last visit and how very cool and modern it is. I highly recommend everything I did as I didn't have a dull moment!

• Walk up on the roof at the Opera House for great views of the harbor and the city.

• Visit the Munch Museum; if you are in town on a Monday it is the only museum open which is great! When I visited the city in 2011 the collection was in a small temp space while this was being built. It's a stunning building! 

And if you are going to see The Scream you should go to the 4th floor as soon as you get there in order to find out the timing that the version you would like to see will be shown. Throughout the day they show one at a time, a painting, a drawing and a print. The others remain in darkness behind revolving walls. 

There's so much more at this museum though! I spent about 2 hours going through the various galleries. There are some wonderful views of the city and harbor here also!

• Explore the National Museum, the largest museum in Scandinavia (and the café & gift shop are super!). And there are usually a few really unique touring exhibits going on. I was lucky enough to catch a Kandinsky woodblock exhibit with items on loan from the Pompidou in Paris. The intricacy of the hand-carved blocks was amazing!

The National Museum also has a few renditions of The Scream as well as a great collection of other modern works, architecture, textiles, etc.

Oslo has over 50 museums to choose from; impressive for the smallest of the Scandinavian capital cities!

• Cruise the Oslo Fjord on an electric catamaran. My friends and I cruised the fjord when we were here in winter, all bundled up in reindeer pelts drinking mulled wine on a wooden boat. This time I took advantage of the summer-like weather and modern technology and saw it in much different light. And with a glass of cold wine.

The 1 ½ hour cruise gives you a chance to see the city from Oslofjord, which runs 75 miles from the North Sea to the Capital. I also saw lots of 100-year old houses, beaches, islands, and some historic ships. I've never met a boat I didn't like and really loved my time cruising around on this completely quiet one!

• Walk all over Oslo! The city is absolutely beautiful, mostly flat, and very safe. 

While traversing around keep your eyes peeled for Stolpersteine, or stumbling stones, small gold squares embedded in the sidewalks outside places where Jews and other victims lived. These places are the last known homes of victims and will generally list their name, birth year, and fates. There are hundreds around, reminding us of the victims deported and killed by the Nazis in WWII.

You can learn about Stefan here.

The Palace is on one end of the city while the Opera House is at the other. The waterfront is where you can rent a floating sauna or just sit and take in the views. And in between are gorgeous parks, tons of cute shops, cool public sculptures, and a few big grand hotels whose lobby bars just beg you to sit for a drink...

• Get a cocktail, or many! Oslo has some fantastic cocktail bars and bartenders using interesting ingredients not always found in the states. As I love a hotel bar, I checked out 2 on this trip (besides my own). 

The Hotel Continental is very well known for its restaurant Theatercaféen which opened in 1900. But I was checking out their modern lobby bar, Boman. This understated and elegant space was a super comfortable spot to take a break from all my walking and their Classic Cocktail menu charmed me with one of my favorites, the Last Word. 

The bar also has one of the largest private collections of art by Edvard Munch in Norway. No Scream though! 

Over at The Grand Hotel, the lobby bar Othilia is luxurious & a little showy. 

When I was there the cocktail menu theme was "From Canvas to Glass" & was reinterpreting works of art into delicious drinks. This wasn't my first time at this bar, I had been there all those years ago and had loved my classic martinis. So happy to see it continues to hit all the marks. 

The Grand Hotel is a stunner and is definitely worth a walk around before you leave!

At Svanen, or The Swan, the cocktail bar has taken over the space that was a pharmacy from 1896 to 2014! The Swan Pharmacy's interior is still intact, with marble and wood counters and columns, adorned ceiling, and lots of those cool apothecary cabinets. And swans, lots and lots of swans.  

The drinks however are all very modern, and very delicious! Such as my "Stolen Apples" with rum, gin, green apple, lapsang souchong, ginger & shiso. There's also a full menu of classics and some N/A options. All this and the bar is currently #32 on the World's 50 Best Bars list. 

I'd say the most famous cocktail spot in Oslo is Himkok (they also own The Swan) and it's marked only by a small H outside the front door. They are #14 on the World's 50 Best Bar list so this is definitely one you don't want to miss!

Inside you'll find a full distillery making Aquavit, Gin, and Vodka, which the bar uses to create inventive cocktails. There's another bar upstairs that specializes in high-volume draft cocktails. And an outdoor terrace in the summer for beers. It's a whole little city of booze! And on top of it, the bartenders are super nice and happy to give recommendations for other interesting spots around town. 

• Eat local and new nordic cuisine. My timing (Sun-Tues) did not allow for one of the big Michelin starred restaurants this time but I still had some absolutely lovely meals!

Fiskeriet actually has 2 locations, both are busy seafood markets selling freshly caught fish. And both offer delicious menus of seafood along with some lovely wines. I sat outside and had an absolutely incredible fish & chips along with a minerally glass of Alsatian white wine. I also did a bit of shopping, not for fish, but they have all sorts of food-centric goodies! 

Vaaghals is known for their house cured ham; think country ham meets prosciutto. I settled into a chair draped with sheepskin outside on their terrace and ordered the cured ham which comes with butter, homemade chicken liver paté and bread delivered in a cute paper bag. It's fantastic! My main course of perfectly grilled hake (white fish similar to cod) and roasted potatoes was similarly great! And during dinner you can create a 3, 4, or 5-course tasting menu from the offerings. 

For dinner one night I walked out to the new-to-me neighborhood of Tjuvholmen. This area used to be shipping docks and then in 2005 went through a 9-year redevelopment which turned it into a stunning and modern area with apartments, marinas, offices, parks and the Astrup Fearnley Museum. It was great to see the finished efforts!

The restaurant Sjomagasinet which in their own words is "part restaurant, part seafood bar & delicatessen, part wine bar and part event & meeting space." The name actually means "sea store" and it's an absolutely gorgeous space.

While my dinner was flawless with wonderful flavors and presentation, service was quite lacking. But not for the other tables around me, which were mainly large groups. I was definitely rushed along as a solo diner. 

By far, my best and favorite dining experience in Oslo this time was at Arakataka. There's an open kitchen on one side of the busy restaurant and the other is a wall of windows looking out to the neighborhood. The menu is set and you can choose 4 or 6 courses with optional add-ons. Wine pairings are also available. Basically this restaurant felt like it was saying "yes" to everything as long as you were enjoying yourself! 

Every dish was excellent, but if I had to pick my favorite it would be the white asparagus, XO sauce & chili. It was stunning (but really all the dishes had that new-nordic look and taste) and really unexpected! Highly recommend Arakataka and would not be surprised at all to see them with a 1-star anytime soon. 

And with that my visit to Oslo was over. I walked across the street to the train station the next morning and boarded a high-speed train to Stockholm.

Oslo has changed so much in the 10+ years I had last been there. I was so happy to go back again as I loved it much more than I did the first time! Also my KLM Delft Blue house looks adorable on my bar cart... it probably needs a neighbor!

All Oslo photos here. 

Other posts from this trip:

Weekend in Swiftholm

Everyone Loves Gothenburg!

Ambergris Caye, Belize

Trip date: November 2024

Last year I thought I was going to Belize for Thanksgiving. I booked the trip for the 3rd Thursday in November and was really surprised at how inexpensive the flight was ($537.30 RT in Premium)! And that's when I realized that Thanksgiving is always the 4th Thursday, not 3rd! 

Well I was still really excited about going to this small Central American country on the Caribbean and having a relaxing and fun girls trip with my friend Gail. I wasn't however excited to be at SeaTac at 6am for our direct flight on AlaskaAir. And I REALLY wasn't excited to hear the announcement while waiting to board that our flight was canceled due to Tropical Storm Sara. Back home we went to wait for updates. Long story short we were re-booked for the next day but BZE ended up closing so we were finally able to fly out 2 days later.

*Pro tip: Lyft/Uber in Seattle are incredibly expensive and I burned about $150 to and from the airport. Luckily I had just purchased yearly travel insurance from Allianz as it was required to travel to Antarctica and I was refunded before even landing in Belize! I'm now buying this insurance yearly.

Because our 6-hour flight arrived in Belize City after the last water taxi to Ambergris Caye left, and I was afraid to fly out to the island in one of the small planes, we spent one quick night at the Harbour View Hotel. They have a restaurant across the street which was fine for a quick dinner and breakfast the next day, and they didn't charge us for having to change our reservation due to the storm. But in general I would recommend heading straight out to the island.

*Another pro-tip: there is a duty free shop at BZE next to baggage claim with much better options than you will find in the local shops.

It was an absolutely gorgeous morning when we took the 1½ hour water taxi to San Pedro on Ambergris Caye. Everyone on the island gets around on golf carts so I had reserved ours in advance with C&S. They met us at the dock, helped us with our luggage, and drove us to their office which was conveniently attached to a grocery store. Golf cart and groceries procured we made our way to the Marriott Alaia where we had an oceanview 2 bedroom suite. I had found an offer called Belize-A-Little-Longer where we got our 6th night free and a cabana for a day.

The pool cabanas were so comfortable and once we found out they were only $100 we reserved another day. Having an entire day just spent at the pool is like heaven for me. And it didn't hurt that the spa was just steps away, so I also had a lovely massage one afternoon. 

The food and drinks at the pool were really great, I'd say my fish tacos were some of the best on the island! And sometimes a bottle of rosé from our kitchen just happened to find itself in an insulated water bottle and in the beach bag, hitching along to the pool.

Of course I did leave the resort and did some super fun stuff over the course of the week via golf cart, plane, and boat!

One of the things I've always had on my bucket list was to see the Great Blue Hole. You can either take a boat, which is 5 hours round trip + time spent snorkeling/diving or you can take a 1 hour flight and look straight down on the mysterious underwater sinkhole. 

There are only 2 local airlines that provide flyover tours, Tropic and Maya, I went with the latter. It was $230 for the hour flight and the schedule was filled solid when I booked. I chose to go on my first day just in case it was canceled because of bad weather, that way I'd have a few more days to try to book in. 

The tiny plane seats just 10 passengers and the pilot. The co-pilot seat is also available at a higher price. I actually have a pretty solid fear of small planes like this and before coming on the trip had been discussing if I would do the flight or not with a two good friends, the answer was OF COURSE so I took ½ a xanax and got on board!

Although Tropical Storm Sara hadn't left much of a trace on the island, there had been a lot of flight cancellations and the airline was still catching up. So our tour left 1 ½ hours later than scheduled. We flew over the Great Barrier Reef, Turneffe Atoll, and a very cool ocean freighter wreck before arriving at the Blue Hole. The pilot then did a full 2 revolutions of the hole on each side of the plane so that everyone had amazing views. 

                                        

The Great Blue Hole is roughly 1000-foot wide and 400-foot deep! It was an incredible site! But all of the scenery we flew over was really incredible! The clarity of the water is stunning!

On the way back we ended up landing in BZE to pick up some folks whose other flight was canceled and then dropped them off at the teeny airport on Caye Caulker before returning to Ambergris. Taking off and landing multiple times in about 5 minutes really was trying my phobia! 

Another day Gail and I drove our golf cart out to Secret Beach. It's about an hour each way and the rough dirt roads are really rough! There were potholes that you could drown in! A few times we waited for another cart to attempt a pothole crossing before forging ahead!

Secret Beach is a big stretch of beach clubs, all with their own vibe. We chose Maruba Beach Klub (yes, with a K) because the music was a decent level and the loungers looked comfy (& they were). We parked the cart and were shown to the beach where a server set up our chosen loungers and got us menus. 

Even though it was a warm blue sky day, winds from the tropical storm were strong! The normal clear water was murky and rough! There would be no swimming or eating at a table in the ocean or playing on any inflatables. But we had a great day with margaritas, and nachos, and a serious match of giant Jenga!

There's no charge to enter the club but there is a food & beverage minimum which gets you your wifi, loungers, games, etc. 

We also did a ½ day snorkel trip from the Alaia dive dock to Mexico Rocks. Belize's barrier reef is the 2nd largest in the world and it lies just 1/2 mile off of Ambergris Caye. Being such a short ride out we were just in a small dive boat and when we got to the site there was a park ranger who met us in his boat to collect the park fees. Because these reefs are protected areas, a divemaster is always with snorkelers and divers, this is great as it makes Belize a place that I would travel solo to as I would still be able to snorkel!   

When we jumped in I was shocked at how warm the water was; it was like 80F! There were tons of rays, conch shells, tropical fish and amazing coral heads- which I had never really seen before. It was fantastic and the divemaster was really good!

Another day we did a full day out on a catamaran with Seaduced by Belize. It was an early start with just 10 others onboard and plenty of room for everyone as they had comfy bean bags on the bow. It's an older boat but in good shape with a great crew. 

We hadn't been sailing for more than 15 minutes when a large pod of dolphins came up beside us to race! Then a big turtle swam on by! Fantastic!

Our first stop was Hol Chan National Reserve; 160 square miles of seagrass beds and coral reefs. This reserve started off as only 3 square miles in 1987 when it was established!! This time the park ranger had their own floating office and we pulled up to pay our fees.

Then it was in the water for one of the most amazing snorkeling excursions I have ever been on! We had beat the other excursion boats and had most of the reserve to ourselves for a while. We followed our divemaster and saw barracuda, trumpet fish, huge schools of snapper, rays, tons of conch, a nurse shark, and an eagle ray!!! Not to even mention all the amazing coral. Wow!!

From here it was on to Shark Alley. This section of the reef use to be where fisherman would clean their catch and toss the scraps into the water, attracting nurse sharks and rays. We got in and tread water a safe distance away while the captain tossed some chum in. Because sharks have been used to this and it isn't changing their behavior, it is allowed in the reserve (vs in places like South Africa where chumming attracts great whites while people cage dive!). It was pretty crazy both in the water and onboard watching!

We continued sailing to Caye Caulker where we had a couple of hours to explore on our own. This little island is just 5 miles long and 1 mile wide so it didn't take long to see most of it! I had conch fritters for lunch at the Rainbow Grill, then Gail and I did a bit of shopping. All the roads here are sand and pretty much everyone was on a bike. There were quite a few oil-drum bbqs with lobster, fish, and shrimp kabobs along the road and picnic tables to eat at- I'd do that for lunch if I was there again.

It's a cute little place but I was very happy that we were staying on Ambergris! 

Our sail back was just stunning, the water is so clear, and so many shades of blue, the reef easily visible below. What an outstanding day!

As Belize borders Mexico to the north, there is an interesting mix of Caribbean and Mexican food. While we didn't have any "oh my gosh amazing" food moments we really liked our lunch at Elvi's Kitchen so much we also had dinner there one night!

At Caramba you pick out your fresh catch of the day and the owner encouraged me to get a whole lionfish which is invasive to the reefs. It was a delicious fish! So juicy and flavorful! I had to get a couple of stone crab claws too as you never get those on the west coast.

As for drinking, ee had late afternoon cocktails on the dock at Wayo's on our way back from Secret Beach. There are quite a few of these palapa bars around the island, this one was very friendly and lively!

And one night we had a spectacular sunset while sipping on some cocktails on the dock at Hula Bar. There were even rays swimming in the water below us!

Ambergris Caye is so relaxing and chill, I really liked it!

All Belize photos here

36 Hours in Honolulu, Hawaiʻi

Trip date: Dec 2023

In travel hacking there is something called repositing. This means that you fly to a different airport in order to take advantage of a great mileage redemption. And that's exactly what I did on my way to New Zealand. I paid $463 for an Alaska Air Premium Economy flight from Seattle to Honolulu. And then I was upgraded to First Class! 

I hadn't been to Honolulu since I was in college so I decided to stay 2-nights and enjoy the stopover.

I had booked the Sheraton Waikiki using Marriott points and got a big King room with a partial ocean view and balcony. Feeling a bit lazy after my day of travel (it's a 6 ½ flight to HNL from SEA) I decided to stay within walking distance for drinks and dinner and go on a little mai tai crawl.

First stop was the Sheraton's beachside bar Rum Fire. My mai tai was pretty basic and just served in a pint glass, but the Christmas lights and decor around the pool were quite fun. 

Next I walked over to the beautiful Royal Hawaiian aka the "Pink Palace". This is such a gorgeous old property! I made my way to the Mai Tai Bar, also located right on the beach, and had a much better drink.

And just next door I had dinner at Duke's, which had the best of the 3 mai tais. Duke's is hardly fine dining, but I've been eating there since I was a kid so it is fun for me.

In the morning before breakfast I took a walk down Waikiki Beach and found it a lot smaller than I had remembered! It was fun to see all the surfers and Diamond Head in the distance.

One of the reasons I chose the Sheraton was that their Edge Infinity Pool is only for 16+ year olds. Don't come at me parents, I just don't want to hear kids screaming while I'm chilling with my book & a cocktail at the pool! 

I was able to reserve a single mini cabana for $60 for the entire day. It wasn't too crowded, the service was great, and this is definitely one of the prettiest pools and views I've been to. That was a very relaxing day!

That evening I took an Uber to the Kaimana Hotel for dinner at their restaurant Hau Tree. First stop was the bar for a lovely martini. The bartender also told me that they had heard Jason Momoa was rumored to be stopping by since they were using his vodka brand. Exciting, but he didn't!

I had a table outside under one of the Hau trees; the setting is so pretty. The restaurant sits on the beach so the sound of the waves adds to the atmosphere. My appetizer of housemade vinegar and dill potato chips served with creme fraiche and caviar was perfect with a glass of champagne. I followed that with their fresh caught fish of the day and a lovely Russian River Valley pinot noir which they poured by Coravin. I really enjoyed this spot.

And that was about it! Mahalo Waikiki for the quick but enjoyable stopover! 

The next morning I headed out to the airport for my flight to New Zealand. I was really surprised that HNL does not have any duty free shopping and also the Plumeria Lounge for Hawaiian Airlines business class passengers was possibly the most basic lounge ever. First world problems...

All Honolulu photos here.