On my last visit to Oslo, I was struck by how peaceful the city felt. It seemed a world away from the commotion and angst that comes with the 24-hour
Rick Steves news here in the US. I couldn’t help but take notes: Parents park their baby carriages on the sidewalk as they abandon their infants for a few moments to step into a store to do some shopping. You can hear birds in the city center, which is nearly traffic-free. And when you do see a car, it’s usually electric . A"congestion fee" keeps most cars from the center of town. And where traffic used to clog the harborfront, a tunnel takes cars under the city rather than through it.
Every time I come to Norway, I'm fascinated by their experiment in big government. My friends here enjoy telling me why they don’t mind their high taxes. For example, everyone loves November. It’s"half tax month" as the government wants people to have some extra money for the upcoming holidays. I visited one of Oslo's infamous old"brown cafés" – so named for the smoke-stained interiors. Of course, no one’s smoked inside here for ages. Nowadays, Norwegian restaurants and bars are routinely equipped with blankets so those who still smoke can do so outside--even in the cold season. To consume nicotine indoors, locals use snuff – snus in Norwegian. Men will notice that in urinals here, little used-up packs of chewing tobacco pile up where cigarette butts once did.
Wire Easytravel101 Tns Travel Smoking Ban Norway Tobacco
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