I've never made any year count more than this one -- at least, when it comes to adventuring. It's only fitting that on these little escapades I've found some totally amazing places, and this fantastic historic spot is just one of them from my Oslo trip.
It was somewhere in between tourism and chance that we ended up at the Kloster. My friends and I were determined (well, I was the most keen) to visit one of the islands in the Oslofjords --most especially to take a wander through some woods. Booking the tour was easy, as there are ferry rides that go to all of them, so we sort of picked this one out of a hat, as it were. (The booking person didn't seem to have a preference of island, so we pot-lucked Hovedøya.)
I'm so glad we chose this place. I mean, the other islands are probably awesome, but this one definitely seems special -- not least on account of the Kloster! What's one of those? In this case, it's the ruins of an ancient monastery -- built in 1147, to be precise. It's not only ace to take a look at the structure (and play the imagination game of trying to visualise what went where) but you can actually go up into one of the old towers of the abbey, as it still stands in tact.
Inside there you get a gorgeous view of the ruins and you can check out some Norwegian graffiti scratched on the wood. It's not necessarily going to while away more than an hour, but it's worth taking a look at for sure. And if you want more adventure, head north and you'll find a gorgeous little beach. Climb the cliff (carefully) next to that, and you'll find a load of canons at the top too. Basically, the whole island has cool and curious little spots to explore. There's even a cafe serving drinks and eats in the summer!
Oh yeah, and the woods are epic as well. We found a huge tube (no idea what for) which makes amazing for acoustic games. read more