Article two : Oslo
I
was on my comfort pajama and the day was just perfectly well for me until my landlord informed that my apartment will be renovated and it will take three months to fix everything and I will have to find myself a new place. I couldn’t speak as it was a lot to process and I had no plans of moving out until I finished with my masters or had any job offer. I tried to look for a new apartment in Volda in all possible local sites but nothing caught my attention as the apartment I lived in was my home from 2017 my place of zen. I did even bother to look for more apartment and just made my mind, if I have to move out of this apartment then I will just move in to a new place, a bigger city.
Next moment I found myself researching on moving in to capital city!
Indeed a big step in my life, I knew the challenges of living in the capital city, how one can easily get lost in the crowd. Let me tell you, nothing is easy in life and one has to dream big and work towards it. I believe in myself, in my willingness of not giving up easily, I am prepared for all the storms, the downfalls and this is not the first time. I have been on this road of ´fresh start to my life´before so I know the drill and ready to face my demons.
Like every other organised person I started off with some basic research starting with Big City research, ́Life in Oslo ́ after immersing myself about four articles on about living in Oslo, I made my list.
Job hunting and apartment
I took bus to Oslo to find job and if you have read my previous article you will know how I managed to land a job on the very first interview. Lucky with the job, happily took bus back to Volda and looked for an apartment in possible sites. Nothing interested me as leaving a bigger house behind and sizing down to an apartment was really a hard choice to make. I looked around in my living room and realised I have too many things and so made another list – things to give away and move away with essentials only.
Meanwhile, a good friend of mine sent me a link to a small room available in Grunerløkka, I love that area and I quickly wrote to the owner of the room. He agreed for room visning on Friday and I went to check out the place with six luggage in hand. The roomies were really kind and let me stay in rather sleeping under the bridge that night and the next day they confirmed I can take the room. Lucky me!
Exploring Oslo by foot
Oslo is called the green capital and are not car-friendly because of constant traffic, there are trams, buses, Ubers, locals with cars and politi cars around. The availability of public transportation is great in Oslo, traffic and parking are serious obstacles that are sometimes better to avoid. The locals love to biking and electric scooters (which I find really annoying) are great ways to find out about things going around the neighborhood and it costs less than maintaining a car.
I enjoy walking and exploring Oslo by foot during summer was the best way to get a good insight of unfamiliar surroundings. And when the city you live in is Oslo, you will come across some of gratifi. Street arts and sculptures in the nook of the city.
Minimalism and Budgeting
Minimalism is a hustle when you just love clothes and most of them are inherited by my sister after she was married. When moving to Oslo I was prepared to mentally for my four room apartment in Volda to shrink down to one living room space. I gave away few carpets and lamps, paints and some art stuff, kitchen stuff and tons of jackets I owned. While one wants to furnish, decorate and even renovate your new apartment, I decided to do no IKEA stuff in my area. I just sit on the comfy carpet and few house plants which purify the air thus make it feel more like your own home. I gave away a big bag of clothes which I haven't been using for months. I did pare down my belongings to make moving easy because I took the bus and moved my stuff, crazy indeed. Oslo offers good second hand stores and I often find some really colourful clothes which I love to wear.
Moving to a big city with small budget can be really challenging, I learnt the hard way the housing, food, transportation, utilities, services, and even taxes is much pricier here. When I shop for groceries, I buy most from Grønland if you are early you get fresh vegetables for about two weeks. I ditch super stores who sell veggies and fruits packed in plastic, and carry my own bags while I shop and I cook my own meals everyday. I am careful with my spending habits, I choose to walk and luckily my workplace is about 20 minutes from home. I keep track of my spending in my journal so I have an overlook of transaction and work on what can be done better.
Gather Information
I have to know three to four people in Oslo yet I am still a stranger in this city, I want to get rid of this uneasy strangeness. Information is knowledge to any newcomer can have in the very beginning of their new life in a new city. And this helped me to find a new apartment for myself. Living in Oslo for about five months, after gaining a good knowledge about my surroundings I found myself a good place closer to work and center.
Once my basic necessity has been covered, with good job and place to stay I want to fill up my hours with living and doing things I enjoy. I have been an early bird, I had to take the bus at 6:40 back in India for University so this has been most of my life. I learnt from my dad to give the first hours of the morning just to yourself and call it ́holy time ́ for my body, mind and soul. I joined a yoga class at seven which is a good start to my day and I follow it up with good breakfast, meditate and listen to chants and calm my soul.
Enjoy free time
Oslo offers a lot of clubs, volunteer retreats and cultural organisation I got little information on this from the page New to Oslo which I talk more about in my next article. Living in big cities means surrounded by people from different diversity and you may be lucky to learn about few which you have never encountered before.
Oslo has a lot of parks where you can stroll, run and even work out in the gym area, definitely save gym membership when you are living in Oslo. Just a tram ride and you can walk around the lake called Nokkelvann, enjoy walking and the fresh air in the woods around the river.
The best way to kill free time is visit libraries around, enjoy the quietness and work on a project or borrow books to read. I find myself ending up in the small coffee shops, meeting up with old friends and enjoy plant based desserts. Yes if you are vegan, Oslo is best place to find good food outlets around the city and at the Universities. Big cities always offers tons of things to do and to get yourself immersed in its charm, do not get bewitched rather remind yourself to prioritize your well being. Choose what is healthy to your body and mind, get to know yourself better, enjoy your own time; cherish this life and choose to be yourself.