Norway - Oslo City Hall

You're travelling abroad to visit the City Hall? Why not! Oslo's City Hall (rådhus, in Norwegian) has more than what it looks from the outside.

The front side of the city hall is decorated with wooden sculptures depicting stories of Nordic mythology. I am somewhat familiar with some part of the tales like Ragnarok and characters like Odin, Fenrir... (thanks to reading lots of manga based on this story, and also the game Ragnarok Online), but sadly I don't know that much about the mythology when I was there. I wish I read Wikipedia more often these days.

Fenrir, calling for Ragnarok

Those aside, there were still more surprises to come. Inside this seemingly plain-looking building are beautiful murals and paintings.

Simply beautiful. And standing in the middle of these murals felt absolutely different from looking at the unprofessional photos I took.

The second floor is accessible for viewing. The view from the City Hall was stunning. If I was not restricted by time, I would have spent more time just gazing outside the window, looking at this panoramic sight.

If you like to pay attention to more details, try looking up the rooms in the City Hall. The ceilings are embossed with alluring patterns.

The designs in the City Hall are very pleasing to the eye. There are just a lot of objects around the rooms worth examining in greater detail. Well, you can say I have a weird hobby, but I think these little details make a great impact on the overall aesthetics of the City Hall.

Oh and by the way, Oslo City Hall hosts the Nobel Peace Prize ceremony every 10th of December (and I didn't know that when I was there! Thanks, Wikipedia!).

If you go to Oslo, you definitely must visit the City Hall, even if it's just for a short 5-10 minute visit :)