Oslo Day 1. The Opera House, 10:56 pm

This is part of the roof of Oslo Opera, photographed at 10:56 pm on our first day in the city. I had several other alternatives of this amazing experience, including this one, taken some eight minutes earlier, which came a close second as today's blip.

We got in our taxi at home at 5.30 am for our 7.10 flight to Oslo (Rygge). One thing I'd have to say for Ryanair's much criticised policy of flying to smaller airports is that it's wonderfully quick at the other end. This was certainly the case today, when it was very much a case of walking off the plane, straight through passport control and right through baggage reclaim without any appreciable delay. The transfer coach to Oslo itself was ready and waiting, and we were at the central bus terminal in just over an hour. We had a beer there before heading outside to find the stop for the bus to our apartment.

A quick orientation with Kjersti, our apartment owner, and we were more than ready for a bit of a siesta before venturing back in to the city. We just went on a bit of an extended wander, really, orienting ourselves as we always do in a strange city. We found a nice hotel bar where we stopped for a beer, and then later on found an equally nice restaurant for a nice spot of food. We explored a bit more afterwards, finishing up at one of the city's harbours, being anxious to find our way to the sea before going back home for the night. From there we walked our way back to the central station, where we went for another little wander and just sort of stumbled on the Opera House.

What an extraordinary building it is! It was a really wonderful experience, walking all over the wildly sloping roof, soaking up the atmosphere and enjoying the White Nights ambiance. I can fully understand how this building has become so popular with the inhabitants of Oslo. It's a wonderful example of integrating a new building into the fabric of a city. It's a irresistible magnet which inevitably attracts people at all times of the day.

As the icing on the cake, I happened to spot a poster for the Opera as we walked across the pedestrian bridge back to the central station and our bus stop. By a wonderful chance, there's a performance of Peter Grimes on tomorrow night. I've decided to go to it.