Norway has only one palace and this is it.
The Royal Palace is situated at the end of the Karl Johansgate in Oslo.
From the Wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Royal_Palace%2C_Oslo
For most Norwegians it is mostly associated with the royal family standing on the veranda on the second floor for three hours every May 17th, greeting the school children of Oslo parading on the Norwegian national day.
As a child , I attended some of these celebrations in Oslo as a spectator and in the mideighties I was here with my son on such a day.
In the nineties I heard the Royal Palace had been renovated and the renovation was very expensive because the building had not been maintained and updated on a regular basis.
A few weeks ago I found out that the general public, now in the summer, could visit the Royal Palace for a one hour guided tour.
My ticket cost 95 kr (around 16 US dollars) and was bought and paid for at the local post office in Moss.
This morning I took the train to Oslo and walked up to the Palace.
After putting plastic covers on our shoes, a very competent guide walked us through some of the 173 rooms.
Here is some of what she told us:
It was King Carl Johan who started to build the palace in 1820, but it was only his son who saw the building finished in 1849.
(Till today I personally have seen Carl Johan only as a Swedish king, though historically he is to be considered a Norwegian-Swedish king. One learns...)
More about the history of the palace
http://www.kongehuset.no/c33469/artikkel/vis.html?tid=33470
Till the year 1905 the Palace acted more as a hotel for the Swedish king who spent very little time there.
Only in 1905 when Norway became independent and King Haakon and Queen Maude and their little son Crownprince Olav were invited to become the royal family of Norway, did the Palace become a year round residence for the King and his family.
The present King Harald and his wife Queen Sonia, have a private apartment on the third floor (not part of the tour) but all the rooms in the Palace are in active use by the Norwegian government and the royal family.
Most official guests to Norway stay at the Royal Palace . We visited one of the guestrooms.
"The palace is not a museum", said the guide, "but we hope you will treat it as such."
Read more on the royal family's homepage
http://www.kongehuset.no/c28587/seksjonstekst/vis.html?tid=28701
If you click on Guided Tours you will see seven photos of the places I saw today.
Was it worth the visit?
I feel so.
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