week 1 - settling in

I spent my first week or so in Oslo getting to know the area. My apartment is in the neighborhood of Torshov, and is in a large, white apartment complex. The building is in the shape of a horseshoe, with a pleasant courtyard in the center, and sits above the well-known Åpent bakery. The apartment is about a quarter mile from Akerselva river, which runs from Maridalen Lake to the north, bisecting the entire city, and emptying out into Oslofjorden (the Oslo Fjord) to the south.

The bakery serves a wonderful variety of breads, and we pick up a new loaf ever couple of days to make our traditional breakfast of brødskiver --sliced bread, cheese, sliced meat or laks, and vegetables.

I have been running every other day or so along Akerselva to Maridalen Lake, which has a well-used path that runs along its banks. Architecturally, this has been extremely valuable. Many of the buildings along this path are adaptive re-use projects constructed of brick, similar in style and site conditions to the Olympia Brewhouse renovation I am proposing for my thesis. The Akerselva path is always busy, frequented by groups of young mothers and fathers pushing strollers, joggers, and mountain-bikers. I feel that the successful development of this area will be a good inspiration when considering the brewhouse's proximity to the Deshutes river, and how to best take advantage of this relationship.