Planning for the Oslo Blog Gathering, Norway Travel Fair 2010 gave inspiration, impulses and make some new contacts which can help as well. Exhibitors from all over the world make this Norway’s largest arena for the travel trade and visitors. Their aim is to be an inspirational market and meeting place for all Norwegian travellers by providing information as well as face to face personal contact. Europe is the world’s leading tourist region, with 500 million arrivals per year accounting for 53 per cent of global tourism. Of course Norway has a lot of potential in the world travel market, both within and beyond Europe. The fair’s PR strategist Bjørn B. Jacobsen, said at the opening: “Our biggest challenge is to build better awareness about and greater knowledge of the travel trade as an industry of the future. That also embraces the importance of idea, product development and concepts….” and I was thinking: let us show them how to make use of social media as communication channels too
My wife DianeCA and I were there to meet some of the OsloBG’s associates and get inspiration and of course we invite you along as well. Let’s start with the gatherings key contributor; visitOSLO:
Not all the staff at visitOslo knows in detail about OsloBG, yet – but all at their stand do now It was inspiring to discuss with them this experiment of using the Blogsphere and other Social Media to gather people from all over the world for three days of exploring Oslo and Norway; our culture, history and traditions.
Their site is an excellent start for your exploration and to find out what you would like to see and experience while joining us in August! Their site has an English version, and of course it is all free!
Visitnorway.com:
Not only Oslo, but Norway’s tourism organisations as a whole are aware of the internet as the most important travel information channel. The Ministry of Trade and Industry has given Innovation Norway the responsibility for the development and maintenance of the official travel guide to Norway: Visitnorway.com. The site includes several means of planning your next trip to Norway and in a lot of languages: visitnorway.com/es or, …./fr, /de, /uk, /us etc!
Of course we had a visit to talk about OsloBG at their stand too, with some spectacular show to attract visitors:
Left: Looking at OsloBG website – Right: An acrobat’s performance
Having fun at a travel fair:
To introduce, promote and have fun, there were of course entertaining attractions as well. To make it short, in pictures:
A needed massage – Glass blowing Fun for the children too of course.
I hope you will stop by the sites of both VisitOslo and VisitNorway and check out the information they have on travel and tourism. These are two official channels for tourism and give thorough information on what to see, what to do, and where to go when visiting Oslo and Norway in general. Some people coming to the trip may want to extend their stay to see more of the country since they have already travelled so far, and this is a good place to get information in planning your trip. If you are definitely planning on joining us for the Oslo Blog Gathering 2010, I hope you will remember to book your program fee soon! Only the first 50 booked will be able to participate in the reception in the City Hall with the Mayor due to space restrictions.
Plans for the Oslo Blog Gathering in August are really taking shape now. First Hotel Millennium – the HUB of the gathering – invited us to hold our plan meeting last night at their hotel. We wanted to get the assistants together and brainstorm on how to make this gathering the adventure of a lifetime. To set the mood, our charming hosts at First Hotel Millennium, the Sales manager and her staff, set up a warm and welcoming tapas dinner. The atmosphere was relaxing and personal, and of course the food was delicious.
To the left; The Sales Manager – at the end of the table: First Hotel chain’s city manager – and the rest planning gang.
We began with a little information of what is planned so far, followed by a guided tour of the hotel and all agreed; The First Hotel Millennium is a perfect resort, HUB and meeting place for the gathering; the service is outstanding, the rooms are excellent and there will even be a gathering information stand in the reception. Even more, it’s situated in the heart of Oslo, close to the main street Karl Johan and all sources of public transportation.
Let me then share some highlights from our plan meeting and brainstorming last night:
visitOslo’s massive contribution:
visitOslothe city’s tourist marketing and service institution, is a key contributor to this gathering. Their Convention Director joined us and shared her knowledge and experience. She emphasized how much information the participants could find on their website beforehand to prepare and make sure each and everyone gets what they want from their stay. A good example is their Oslo’s top 10 attractions. To give all the gathering assistants a head start, she even distributed the Oslo Pass to everyone so that we all could try it out and prepare as local hosts.
The Oslo Pass:
Oslo is a compact city and most attractions, museums, woods, mountains and the fjord are available by foot or public transportation within 30 minutes of the city center. The Oslo Pass – included in the gathering’s program fee! – gives you free entry to more than 30 museums and attractions, free travel on all public transport, free entry to outdoor swimming pools, free guided walking tours, and special offers in restaurants, shops, and entertainment.
The Local Hosts:
The response has been overwhelming: Blog friends from all over the world say they will meet up, plus: Expats and other Norwegian bloggers want to enrich the gathering by volunteering as local hosts. So instead of making a fixed program and guided tours that everyone has to follow, participants can chose their favourite spots and the local hosts will invite you to join them in different routes.
Here is the link to these wonderful OsloBG assistants and local hosts – go visit them and read about how it is to live in Norway from an Expat’s perspectives: Nothern Natterings – A Canadian in Norway – An Alien in Copenhagen (One year in Norway) – Return to Norway – American in Norway – Wandering the World – Irish Nomad in Norway – My Grand Adventure Part II + TorAa from Norway.
Booking is open:
Don’t hesitate, meet up with bloggers from around the world in Oslo. The booking is open and the first 50 participants will even be invited to meet the Mayor of Oslo at the City Hall. The program fee is mandatory (including the Oslo Pass, the guided tour; Highlights of Oslo, joining the local hosts choice of the day as well as the casual gatherings in the long summer nights evenings). Accommodation is optional and of course we recommend First Hotel Millennium for a favourable price! Click to book now!
The exhibition Back To The 80s in Oslo at The Norwegian Museum of Cultural History is a reminder of this decade of contrasts. It helps us to understand that history is happening here and now, that there is no coincidence and that we’re going to face it again. The story is not over – and the 80’s are not yet forgotten.
Anyone remember these fashions or Miami Vice?
I was in my 30s at the time and remember much of this exhibition well. Some of us have spent almost 20 years trying to forget the 1980s. We have destroyed the images of ourselves with short hair on top and long in the neck (maybe hair everywhere, sprayed and teased up to a fur balls the size of the sun). We have sent Poco Loco-sweaters, shoulder pads and our white washed jeans to Africa. We have done our best to suppress the music that can best be described as a crime against humanity, like Kenny G’s Songbird, Modern Talking, Brother Louie or the Beach Boys’ Kokomo.
Do you still have you’re LPs and enjoy vinyl?
The girls are no longer lounging in their pleather sofas and dreaming of Pat Sharp, Don Johnson and Patrick Swayze, but they still blush mysteriously when they remember their dates at Café Checkmate with newly rich Yuppies (young upwardly mobile professional individuals) and tanned UN soldiers home on leave from the war in Lebanon.
No girls in the sofa when I was there, but I still enjoyed the Stress Less
Contrasts:
For many of us the 1980s represents a historical base point which we have partly succeeded in forgetting. But, as Bruce Springsteen sings in The Riverside from 1980; Memories come back to Haunt me. The exhibition shows that the 80s was a decade that perhaps more than anything else was characterized by sharp contrasts; between community involvement and individualism – despair and optimism as well as wealth and poverty – black and pastel, Punk Rock and dance pop and even between fear and liberation. All this was well illustrated at stands, displays rooms and furnishings:
The exhibition room at The Folk Museum.
Laughter and suspense:
While the music of pop artists was positive and upbeat, the 80s began with intense fear at the height of the Cold War, right wing politics of The Reagan administration and Margret Thatcher. Fortunately it ended with liberation, the fall of the Berlin Wall, and a completely changed political climate.
Posters of pop icons: Madonna, Duran Duran, Michel Jackson, Bonjovi and Dire Straits.
Along the way, we invented CD players and computers bread and milk became available around the clock, environmentalists who were more than hippies and a housing boom. The banks could lend us money to buy new homes. Having fun was allowed again. Here is a collection of stands that might jog your memory:
Left: Mac & Osborn (I had both!) – Right: TV & Videogames Left: Children become consumers with Star Wars and designer clothes – Right: Adults got VHF cassette players.
It was an impressive and very visual exhibition taking me right down memory lane from the decade when I got finished my college years and got my masters degree in economics, started my career as a sales trainee, had my first born – a daughter, played A-Ha’s big hit Take on Me on my record player, bought my first Volvo and experienced the introduction of micro computers (do you remember spread sheets like SuperCalc and VisiCalc or WordPerfect?). What a blast from the past.
This is an example of the kinds of exhibition you may see at The Norwegian Museum of Cultural History. Here are some other earlier posts from there: Lefse and rural farmhouse from Norway and Folk Dance in Bunad from Norway.
It’s at Bygdøy island, just 20 minuets by boat or buss from Oslo, where you also find the Maritime, Viking Ship, KonTiki and even more museums. All this will be at your disposal at the Oslo Blog Gathering in Oslo in August this year. Even more: if you join us and book the Program Fee – entrance to these museums will be included! Click the logo to the left to read the program and how you can participant at a compact three days program to explore the city and Norway’s history, culture and traditions!
The beauty of nature becomes clear on a sunny winter day. In Oslo, Norway, we’ve had the loveliest weather with fresh, crisp air (-15C to -25C = 5F to -13F) for the last week. With quite a bit of snow as well, the atmosphere and the lightening calls for a photo hunt or two. So my wife (DianeCA) and I have had plenty of quality time this weekend as we love to enjoy the crystal clear scenery and we gladly take you with.
As natural Norwegians, we seek the sea and then of course the area around Oslo Fjord is perfect. On Saturday we were up early and went to our favourite island, Kalvøya and this photo is taken at sunrise a bit after 9AM:
I’ve mad a lot of posts from this island (From frozen Paradise to hot summer beaches in Oslo Norway) and also demonstrated the significant four seasons. Allow me again to give an example from yesterday and the same place from last summer (I’m sure you’ll sort out the right season )
I assume you agree there is a significant difference from January to July
Since pics say more than a thousand words and I have posted it at Flickr, here is a slide show – enjoy:
Then today we went to Bygdøy, the island where you’ll find the Folk Museum, the Viking Museum, the Maritime Museum etc. and of course beaches:
This pic is taken at 1:30PM – The sun is low in the horizon (sets at 3:30PM)
Here is a slide show from our lovely beach day:
I end up this week’s quality time with my wife at the Oslo Fjord by the Maritime Museum:
Taken 12:30PM
Another slide show from my Flickr account:
The Scandinavian people know how to enjoy all the four seasons. As I have said many times, there is no such thing as bad weather, only bad clothes. And with a good layering of wool you can be out in -20 degrees Celsius and still not be cold. It is a natural part of life in the north, and you can see this in how the children and the animals are looking forward to going outside to play. The snow was like powder and perfect for having a good time, and the sunshine was warm on our faces even though the temperatures were quite low.
Sometimes in taking my photographs I get a bit carried away – I have to get down where the action is you know. Here is a little vid from my wife (DianeCA) showing the action during our photo hunt:
You should go visit her blog to see Diane’s catch from our adventures!
Many were also out getting sunshine these past two days because here our daylight time is still quite short, and around Christmas we had a lot of snow, and therefore not that much sun, so everyone was charging their batteries. We as creatures of this earth need the sunshine and the fresh air, and even to get used to the cold in order to keep us healthy and happy. I do hope that you have been out enjoying the weather wherever you are as well.
I hope you will stop by the sites of both VisitOslo and VisitNorway and check out the information they have on travel and tourism. These are two official channels for tourism and give thorough information on what to see, what to do, and where to go when visiting Oslo and Norway in general. Some people coming to the trip may want to extend their stay to see more of the country since they have already travelled so far, and this is a good place to get information in planning your trip. If you are definitely planning on joining us for the Oslo Blog Gathering 2010, I hope you will remember to book your program fee soon! Only the first 50 booked will be able to participate in the reception in the City Hall with the Mayor due to space restrictions.
wordless Wednesday
