OSLO DIARY PART 2

Oslo Diary part 2

As we got out of the car, the first thing that I realised was just how very quiet our surroundings was. I could hear the smooth, surreal stress free, sound of silence.

I almost didn’t want to breathe,in case I was dreaming. If I woke up, I again would be with,   People and modern life’s clashing crowds, cars and everydays crushing, pounding noises.

I was, dreaming, in a real  life dream.    

Then a bird sang. The highest sounds, he tweeted in a teasing way. In such a moment of me requiring more from our feathered friend. No, only two tiny tweets he allowed me.

So different to our birds in our garden back home.

I could not hear a car, a motor bike, voices, hammering from a nearby neighbour in his house, a grass cutter in their garden, with their dreadful petrol sounding engine from their lawn moor.

No ball games, dogs were not barking. Were we on our own?

Just silence.

I didn’t want to move, in fear of spoiling that moment.

“Where were all the people for the conference?

Then Alan and Arty spoke and guided us in.

We walked through the door. I really didn’t even expect a hotel like reception, but there was one. Oh my word? This place was huge? There was no smell of foisty carpets, no smell of yesterday’s books. Not a smell from steaming fish from the rehabilitation kitchen? Just nothing. We received our card from reception and off to our room. Arty was sent to the basement, as we had not walked up any steps, and yet, she was told her room was downstairs.

Oh God, what was she going to be staying in?

Well, we went to our room. 222. Easy to remember I thought?

We opened the door. Normally I love to explore with Hub, and we are like children searching our hotel rooms looking for what there was where, but this was a rehabilitation centre for the blind, so I think he felt like me, we were both a little afraid to look.

Well, only for one moment, then, we were like hamsters on a wheel.

We had half an hour before dinner, half an hour before we were to meet with Hubs colleagues. OMG?

As my heart pounded with excitement and nerves with a small measure of curiosity, and you know what that did to the cat?

You don’t?

Well, we in the UK, have a saying

“Curiosity killed the cat.

The bed was a double, this was a bonus. I was expecting two singles, like back at boarding school.

Lovely chairs and a coffee table. The lights in the room were all adapted for people with poor sight. Everything was in Braille, and the pictures on the wall, were all tactile too. Can you imagine? Wonderful.

The furniture was typical Scandinavian. Oh you know when you have been travelling all day, and you are like me, and don’t do public toilets, unless you really have to?

Well,

We had no ensuit.

No toilet. Oh, we would share a bathroom on the landing?

Then we found a door which was not the wardrobe and found a lovely large shower room. Oh fantastic. Then we looked for towels, found them, so check, and then there was hand wash, check, loo rolls, check. Heated tiled floors in the bathroom.

Oh the lights in the bathroom were so amazing, after I almost called the emergency button; I found a large selection of switches for lights, with Braille on. They were lights adapted for partially sighted, with dimmer switches.

We had three huge windows in our room and a fridge.

I can describe it as a large private hospital room. Very clean though. I dressed for dinner and we met with Arty.

I was almost too afraid to ask her what her room was like, but she volunteered.

Though it was downstairs, it must have been built on a hill, as she had two big windows.

She said they overlooked the enormous lake.

As we walked along the corridors to the meeting place for dinner, there were different tactile floorings. We sat at our table as I was introduced to some of Hubs colleagues. They were really nice people. Very friendly.

The food was amazing. So many salads and breads. Cheeses, fish and meats. Then it was hot foods. I ate starters only. There was tea or coffee and juices.

Desserts too.

Hub had steak and said it was wonderful.

I just could not believe this place, but, it was to get so much better and the very most unsuspected things occurred.