Cheap Weekends away Oslo, Norway, seeing sculptures, Viking boats and Kon-Tiki

 

Kon-Tiki, on display inside the Kon-Tiki Museum, Oslo

Bahnfrend - Own work

Oslo is the capital of Norway.

Wrap up warmly. Wear your woollies, your thermal underwear, and your ski clothes.  The Norwegian weather is changeable and they have a saying, there's no such thing as bad weather, only bad clothing.

What To Do and See 

1 Guided walking tour past the sculpture of a huge cat. 

For an overview of buildings, areas, and scenery, extra or alternative tour options, depending on the weather, include a hop on hop off bus, and other land and sea vehicles including bikes, and boats, and a side trip fjord tour

2 Munch museum. The man who painted The Scream and many more.

3 The National Museum, on the waterfront, contains The Scream.

4 Viking ship museum

5 Kon-tiki Museum. (Thor Heyerdahl's boat named after the old name of an Inca god.)

6 Food tour including reindeer, moose, fishcake, whale, waffles. 

On a press tour to Finland I opted for steak instead of reindeer, thinking the reindeer would cost more to my hosts, but reindeer meat was readily available, and beefsteak was rarer and more expensive. So check the menu prices. The local speciality might be dearer or cheaper.

7 Royal palace, huge place, neo-classical with gardens.

8 Oslo Opera House. Rooftop walk, suggested sunset.

9 Henrik Ibsen Museum. Playwright. 

10 Vigeland Sculpture Park (Vigelandesparken) - sculptures of Gustav Vigeland. Highlights are the boy, the stages of life. (You might wish to visit a second sites of interest, the museum, where he worked in the attic. A third location is the museum of his brother, which contains more artworks and a mural.)

Some of the locations and tours are offered as a two part package ticket. 

Weather , Sun, Snow, Rain Skiing

Going north, you could see the Northern Lights in winter. Experience long hours of daylight in summer, but only 6 hours of daylight in winter. Skiing in some areas in winter, swimming in summer.

Flights from the UK to Norway go from London, Heathrow, London City Airport, and Gatwick.

Useful Websites

Flights

https://www.skyscanner.net/uk

https://www.kayak.co.uk/stays?lang=en&utm_campaign=Destination+-+IS+-+Iceland+-+Country

https://www.expedia.co.uk/Flights-Search?trip=roundtrip&leg1=from:LON,to:OSL,departure:

Norway

https://www.visitnorway.com/things-to-do/art-culture/art/museums/the-national-museum-of-norway/

Oslo

https://www.localcityguides.com/en/oslo/itineraries/oslo-in-one-day-top-attractions-day-1

https://www.viator.com/Oslo

https://en.wikivoyage.org/wiki/Oslo

https://wikitravel.org/en/Oslo

https://www.visitacity.com/en/oslo/activities/all-activities

Photos

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Works_by_Gustav_Vigeland

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Kon-Tiki,_Kon-Tiki_Museum,_2019_(03).jpg

Updated Monday March 30th.

Amazing Viking Age Village In Sweden, and Yorvik at Historic York in England

If you visit the UK, the pride of the city of York is  the Yorkvik attraction. It was a Viking site discovered when a multi storey building was being built. What to do!

The solution to allow the building to proceed was to construct a museum and attraction below. The planned office block went ahead overhead.

To prevent the tourists touching and damaging the site, some items were put in display cases.  The rest of the site was explored by a railway including passing a mixture of mock-ups and the actual findings. The project was a huge success.


Demo of coin-making at Yorvik Viking Centre.

York is a wonderful little city, with a fine Cathedral and a walk around the city walls. Narrow alleys lead to boutique shops and a couple of Chocolate centres with museums. Do you remember Rowntrees of York?

Useful Websites
SWEDEN
Stavgard, Gotland, Sweden

UK
Yorvik, York, Yorkshire

About the Author
Angela Lansbury is British by birth and education, also lived in the USA and is a resident of Singapore. Travel writer and photographer, author and speaker. Member of five Toastmasters International Speakers Clubs.
Author of twenty books on Amazon and Lulu.com.

Vikings Invaded Nov 1st. Festival in February 2018. Note For Your Diary

It was 1 November AD866 when the Vikings first invaded the Anglo-Saxon town of Eoforwic knowing that the local residents would be in church - without their weapons - celebrating the feast of All Saints. Today, three brothers – Halfdan Ragnarsson, Ubba Ragnarsson and Ivarr the Boneless – returned to the city to start the countdown to the next Viking invasion – the JORVIK Viking Festival 2018, which runs 12 – 18 February 2018.

Here they are renacting in 2017.

'To Die' Today - How you can correct common errors, pronunciation for public speaking by Angela Lansbury

How do you speak correct English when you are English? How do you speak correct English when you are not English? 

UK
When I was a child in the UK, many schools, especially private schools, offered extra paid for lessons in elocution. Schools and teachers wanted to earn extra money. Parents wanted their children to sound posh and get better jobs. Doting mothers, like mine, wanted their offspring to win certificates in poetry competitions run by Drama schools which awarded certificates at different levels. 
   In those days every child did a party piece when invited to a birthday party. I wanted to recite a poem without the embarrassment of stammering or stuttering over long, puzzling words.

   Recently I met Toastmaster William Brougham, who came to be General Evaluator at Harrovian Speakers' Club. He took a video of me for YouTube in which I explained grammar rules; a viewer suggested that we should produce another video on pronunciation. Before making that video, I thought I should jot down a few thoughts. Whenever I jot down a few thoughts, they expand until I have an article, sometimes a book. For those people who can't watch videos in silent situations, here are some handy notes on pronunciation.

   Start by noticing the silliest errors and most memorable misunderstandings. When you are asked when you are going to the hospital for a check-up, and you want to tell family, friends or colleagues, 'I'm going today', don't shock everybody by saying, 'I'm going to die!' 

Australian & Others
Improving Vowels
Problem with A and I
A and I need to be sounded differently. Lots of people make an A sound like an I. 
For example, here are pairs of words which have different meanings: 
Day. Die.
Way. Why.
Make sure you are not saying the second when you mean the first. 

If you are the Grammarian at a Toastmasters International speakers' club, note any pronunciation which could be improved.
   When you are asked to evaluate a speech, speak to the person you are evaluating, before the meeting starts and ask what they would like you to notice. If they don't ask about pronunciation, offer to make suggestions. So long as they agree, smile, nod, or even shrug, if you are asked to 'Read out the objectives', you can add, "'Susan/John' asked me to comment on the pronunciation of words and make helpful suggestions for improvement".  That way you appear not to be criticizing, but following their request for help. 

Problem with A and OI
Bay. Boy. (We drove around the boy. Should be 'we drove around the bay'.)
Ray. Roy. (I gave the book to Roy. Should be I gave the book to 'Roy'.) 
Say. Soy. Be careful what you soy. Should be 'Be careful what you say'.)
The listener who hears constant mispronunciations has listen hard to work out which word you mean. 

   Our upper class accents sound as if we are speaking copying courtiers from the time of the Vikings. 

Swedish

A Swedish speaker has perfect, clear upper class vowels like the Queen's Speech. 

French & the UK

A French au pair girl told me she could not understand the chatter on tube trains and in bars, but she could understand HM The Queen. 

Speed and Spaces
   When the queen delivers a speech, she also speaks very slowly. She leaves a gap between each word.
   Not like everyday gabble. (We're gonna 'ave an en' to innit!) 
   If you are a teacher, you often speak to children. If you are a pupil, you want the teacher and class to hear your question.
   If you are a public speaker, your audience includes one person in seven hard of hearing. (I found that statistic in a fundraising leaflet).  If you are retired and speak to local groups of retirees, many more will be hard of hearing and will be helped if you speak loudly, slowly, and clearly.
   If you make a living speaking to businesses, many of them have foreign staff or hold international conferences.

Yiddish - OY VEH!
   The Yiddish expression Oy veh hints that oy is a common sound in Europe, where the Yiddish language combines the local language such as German with Russian and Hebrew. I have also heard a speaker from central Europe, the Czeck Republic, using this intonation.

Australia
   Australians use an oy for an A. If you have trouble understanding Australians, it may help to note which words are likely to sound differently.

Some native English speakers also over-use oy. Here's another example, this time where the mispronounced word has no meaning. 
      What time of doy? (Should be 'What time of day'.)

Solution 1
Find out if you have a problem
   If you use English as a second language, and even if you don't, read aloud a few sentences of your speech. You can make a recording with your smart phone. If you don'g have one - ask somebody else at a big meeting. Ask a friend of acquaintances to tell you if you need to change any pronunciation.  (If you have a problem speaking another language, it's a great conversation opener to ask for help and make a friend.)

   Sometimes you don't know what you are doing wrong. Sometimes you're told but you can't hear the difference. Sometimes you keep trying but you don't know how to make the second sound.

   Can you hear the difference? Use the internet, your own computer, at a school or library, or airport lounge or other public place. Go to a dictionary which has the symbol you can click on to hear the word said aloud.  

Check the position of your lips. Look in the mirror.
Try saying 'boy', pursing your lips as if shouting angrily, or blowing up a balloon.
then say 'bay'. Open your mouth wide, as if the dentist has asked you to open your mouth, and smile.

PHONETIC SPELLINGS 
   Phone means sound, as in the word telephone (distant sound).
   Why is English not phonetic? (Meaning, why do the sounds not always match the spelling?) One reason is that the traditional spelling has been preserved in the dictionary, but speakers have changed the most popular pronunciation. 
   Watch out for words which are not pronounced the way they are written. Just as some people drop the s from yes and say yeah, many words have lost the last letter or an earlier letter because over the centuries the lazier or quicker or easier to say pronunciation has become standard.

Silent Letters
B in the word doubt is silent. The word is pronounced 'dowt'

PLACE NAMES 
   Edinburgh 'Edinbr'
   Leicester 'Lester'

CONSONANTS - WORD ENDING
G - pronounce G at the end of the word
Nothing (not 'nothin').
Sitting (no 'sit in')

How to improve:

Chinese
CONSONANT CONFUSION
Problem:
L and R
   Speakers from oriental countries such as Hong Kong and Thailand often have trouble hearing or saying both consonants. Sometimes they try too hard and over correct making more errors.
The old joke goes that the pilot of your plane wishes you 'a pleasant fright' instead of a pleasant flight. I thought this was a joke. Then I heard airline staff say it.

   Sometimes people misunderstand and ask you to repeat a sentence. Other times, they listen but misunderstand.
   At a Toastmasters meeting I sat through a speech in which the speaker said he worked for the Loyal bank of Scotland. I assumed that, because of the banking crisis, they had wanted to change their name to reassure customers. Or maybe they had split into two branches, one called the Royal Bank, another called the loyal bank. While I was musing on the merits of changing a company name, I missed two or three sentences of the five minute speech. Then I started listening again and heard the speaker make another change to a word in the same sentence. I realised I had been slow to guess it should have been 'Royal' Bank. 

   Some workers are told by colleagues and bosses or customers that they need to improve their pronunciation. They are not upset if you tell them the correct pronunciation. On the contrary, they are very keen to get help. Especially if it's free! 
   A course on pronunciation is sometimes given at centre such as London's City Lit. The courses are often good value given the hours of lessons, but learning one sound each week takes a lot of time. If you need to give a speech at a wedding, you may have a year to prepare. But when giving a funeral speech, doing a job interview, or a presentation in a new job, or answering the phone, you don't have a year to prepare. So, everybody, please take time, when asked, or offer to help, if you are one step ahead of your friend in pronunciation. Watch out for these:

Chinese
T and TH and S and SH
Problem saying 'th'
TH is hard to pronounce for people who speak Mandarin or Cantonese, such as Singaporeans.
I often sit through speeches and am puzzled. I remember the first time a woman said, 'I have tree children.' I assumed 'tree children' was a popular Chinese translation of a word such as tomboy, kids who climb and are sporty. Then she said, 'Two of them are at secondary school, the tird is ...' The turd is!

Ah - she means three and third!

Solution to th
   You can practise a sentence with alternating t and th. Make up your own. For example: The three children climb threes. 
   T - tongue tapping behind top teeth.
   Th - think about poking out your tongue and pulling it back through your teeth stroking under your top teeth. Say teeth, teeth, teeth, moving your tongue from tapping behind to almost gently biting your tongue while breathing out.

S and Sh
   She sells sea shells on the sea shore

   Do email me and tell me your problems or solutions. I and everybody else would be most grateful. And send me or tell me funny mispronunciations and misunderstandings. I would love to hear them.

SUMMARY OF TIPS
Problems to notice: 

• Ay and oi. 
• Missing G or T. 
• L and R
• S and SH.
• T and TH.

Solutions

• Read a newspaper aloud to identify problems. Underline difficult words.
• Check how words sound using online dictionaries.
• Practise tongue twisters.
• Look in the mirror at how you are placing your tongue and opening your mouth.
• Join a Toastmasters Club and ask your evaluator for help with your pronunciation.
• Read a speech aloud. Underline words or highlight letters. Ask a friend to listen and advise.
• Come to my UK club harrovians.org.uk . (I am president until June 31 2013. Then 'Past P'.)
• Go as a guest to any great club such as HOD (Thursdays, 2nd and 4th most months).  I am a member and committee member. Check google Toastmasters International/ Find a club.
• If short of time, go to toastmasters clubs when overseas on business or holiday. I visit several clubs in Singapore.  It has many clubs so you are near one most evenings and weekends.
• Harrovians meets Mondays, usually first third and fifth Mondays (except months with bank holidays), door open at 7 pm. Speeches start at 7.30 prompt. Meeting ends 9.30 prompt. 
• Members receive a magazine and a mentor helps you write and rehearse speeches. Membership is about £79 a year plus £20 for two manuals on speeches and leadership.
• harrovians.org.uk toastmasters.org 
• More about toastmasters
• Go to a pronunciation class or private English tutor.           For grammar rules see YouTube Angela Lansbury author speech grammar / Kensington 25
• For a friendly chat, or one hour lesson in person or skype, my email is on my websites featuring the names: anna london 8 (gmail). No spaces. 

Angela Lansbury is the author of fifteen books including: Quick Quotations For Successful Speeches; Wedding Speeches And Toasts; Poetry Workshop Workbook; Angela's Animals (A-Z of comic poetry plus facts); How To Get Out Of The Mess You're In. See Lulu.com
-ends-
Copyright Angela Lansbury April 24 2013