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A Day In Oslo With MBV, JWV & Lei.Noire

Welcome to my fourth series: A Day with MBV In Oslo. In this post, I will be having two other travel bloggers join me! Carry on reading to find out more!

Last year I was asked by Jenna of JennasWorldView if I would like to catch a cheeky flight to Oslo for the day and of course, I said yes!  

I mean, who in their right mind would say no? 

JennasWorldView a day in Oslo
JennasWorldView

We were later joined by Liz of Lei. Noire who also wanted to spend a day in Oslo! Looking back now, I can honestly say that it was a lovely day, filled with lots of laughter, plenty of shade and small girls talk. Read below on more detail and find out how we spent a day in Oslo. 

Lei.Noire a day in Oslo
Lei.Noire

Where is Oslo?  

Oslo is the capital of and most populous city in Norway. It was known as Kristiania from 1877 to 1925 when its original Norwegian name was restored. Oslo is now known to be the economic and governmental centre of Norway.  Oslo is primarily a city that is a little bit like London in that it’s a city that is meant to be walked. Many of the city’s attractions lie in the central part of the city. To make the most of your day in Oslo I would suggest using the city’s extensive and efficient public transportation system.  

Please don’t make the same mistake of travelling on the fast train as we did. And then end up paying more than you need to. I would also advise against using taxis in Oslo. Oslo is known to be very expensive, and you’ll be spending more than you anticipated. 

A day in Oslo

I started the day bright and early by catching and meeting Jenna on the train to Victoria station. It was good to catch up before the busy day we hadn’t planned ahead! Jenna had niced me with some tasty snacks, which I was soo grateful for. Me and Jenna were so busy chatting that we almost missed our coach. 

You can easily catch a coach to Stanstead Airport by booking through National Express.

Gunnars Generasjonsbar   

We first headed out to get some brunch! We hadn’t really planned what we were going to do. Well, Liz had given us a list of things that we should do a few days before, but we hadn’t agreed on a brunch location.

Lucky for us, Jenna was able to locate Gunnars, and we headed to the restaurant. It took us forever to find this restaurant! We went through back streets and all sorts! When we eventually found the restaurant we were very much impressed with what we ordered.  

A day in oslo brunch
Brunch

JWV: I don’t really do travel logistics but when it comes to finding a good spot for brunch you can count on me. Social media is a powerful tool and I managed to find this lovely spot after a few minutes of scrolling on the gram.

Location: Torggata 13, 0181 Oslo, Norway 

The Royal Palace  

Royal Palace in Oslo for the Day
Royal Palace in Oslo

We then headed to the Royal Palace in Oslo. It wasn’t far from where we had brunch, but it had started raining! Can you believe me and Jenna paid 10 pounds for an umbrella?!! Honestly, you should be smart and bring your own umbrella-like Liz did! 

a day in oslo with MyBreakingViews

Historical Fact: The Royal Palace in Oslo was built in the first half of the 19th century. It was built as the Norwegian residence of the French-born King Charles III John of Norway. Who reigned as king of Norway and Sweden.

Liz: I love learning more about history when travelling. The palace is sitting on top of a hill elegant and modest. I was surprised at how close you could get – unfortunately, we could not go in as it was closed. Oslo is a beautiful, calm place – you can see more on my Oslo vlog coming soon on my YouTube Channel.

Location: Slottsplassen 1, 0010 Oslo, Norway

Frogner Park 

Frogner Park Oslo

Liz then suggested that we should head over to Frogner Park. This park was the most challenging place to find! and I didn’t waste any time to let Liz know about it! I do apologise, Liz. Once we were able to locate the park, I was blown away by how beautiful it was. 

Liz: The ladies doubted that this place existed and where ready to head back but to be fair we had been walking for a while and a random lady had directed us down a ‘short cut’. In the end, we found the park just before it got dark! The sculptures are a unique and interesting expressing of ‘human form’ by Gustav Vigeland – definitely check it out if you are in Oslo.

JennaFinding Frogner Park was a stressful yet funny experience. Lucky for you I caught the entire thing on video so be sure to Subscribe to my Youtube Channel. A day trip to Oslo blog is also coming soon.

Location: Nobels gate 32, 0268 Oslo, Norway

Oslo Opera House  

The last thing we wanted to do was head over to the Oslo Opera House. I had heard how beautiful the sunset was and wanted to see it for myself! Unfortunately, google maps lied to us and we didn’t manage to see the sunset.

Final Thoughts on a day in Oslo

I think it’s fair to say that we all enjoyed Oslo and would certainly go back! A few things you might want to make note of if you are going.

  • Everything closes a little earlier than usual on Saturdays.
  • Oslo is very expensive so bare this in mind if you want to stay there!
  • The Norwegian currency is NOK (Norwegian Krone) so you won’t get very far with Euro. However, a credit or debit card is approved almost anywhere so grab your Monzo.
  • Norway has the Best Salmon so be sure to have some!

Hope you enjoyed our time in Oslo. I still have Dublin and Bologna to walk you through, so subscribe so you can stay in the loop with my monthly newsletter of blogposts!

a DAY IN OSLO

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7 Laws You Should Know About Singapore

Happy New Year everyone! I would like to welcome you all to my first Singapore special. This month will be seven years since I moved to Singapore for my study abroad, so to mark this special moment we are going to be looking at seven Singaporean laws you should know before visiting.

We will be learning the difference between travelling to Singapore as a tourist and living there as a student, where to go and much more. You don’t want to miss out so be sure to follow me on Instagram and subscribe to the blog!

Singapore, to some degree, is seen as a city-state with culture, local and international cuisine and real iconic attractions. It is one of the cleanest countries I have ever lived and visited. But there’s more, the country is also famous for its strictness with laws and considering I was able to live there for over 6 months and not once get arrested, I think I did pretty well ( hey just saying).  

When I moved to Singapore in 2013, I knew I was going to need to learn about the laws of the country. Some of their laws include the ban of chewing gum, not being allowed to walk in your house naked, not flushing the toilet and more. If you will be heading to Singapore soon then here are a few laws that you need to be aware of.

7 Strict Laws you should be mindful of before travelling to Singapore  

Exchange Rate: 1 SGD (Singaporean Dollar) = £0.56 GBP (Pound Sterling) AND 1 SGD = $0.74 (American Dollar)- You may need to to convert the punishments. 

For other conversation rates I use XE:Covert.

1. Yes chewing gum is illegal in Singapore  

chewing gum is banned in singapore

I said it. Yes, I was more shocked than you when I read about this in 2013! Chewing gum is wholly forbidden, which explains how clean the streets are in Singapore.  

I wouldn’t want to be caught bringing chewing gum into the country so don’t even think about selling it and certainly don’t import it. 

Punishment: Selling chewing gum can result in fines of S$100,000 (Singapore dollars) and up to 2 years in prison.  

2. Feeding Pigeons in Singapore can get you into trouble 

I’m not a big fan of pigeons myself, so this law is music to my ears, but bird lovers, please take note. You could face a fine if you are caught sharing your food with a local pigeon.  

Punishment: S$500 fine 

3. Begging in the streets is illegal in Singapore  

singapore streets

I remember living in Singapore and not ever once seeing a beggar. You may on occasion find a beggar selling packets of tissues outside a food centre, but if I was you, I wouldn’t even entertain it. Begging is illegal and can lead to a hefty fine.  

Punishment: S$3,000 fine or imprisonment for up to 2 years in prison. 

4. Not flushing the toilet is illegal in Singapore  

This would seem a pretty obvious thing to do, but some people don’t have house training! Singapore has quite rightly made this illegal. Officials are known to conduct random checks in public toilets to make sure people flush after they go. So please flush after yourself. I would say to avoid a fine I would suggest flushing after you go.  

Punishment: S$150 – S$500 fine 

5. Walking naked in your house is illegal 

Walking around your house naked is considered a form of pornography. And while you’re here, you should also know that pornography is also prohibited in Singapore. Don’t walk around naked in your home.  

Why? Well because it may cause a disturbance to your neighbours and you might receive an unexpected fine.  

Punishment: S$2,000 fine or up to 3 months in prison 

6. Don’t do drugs especially in Singapore  

Many countries ban drugs, but Singapore has much stricter sentencing for those that are caught trafficking or in possession of drugs could receive a hefty fine and or death penalty.  

You may think you can’t get caught but think again. Singapore officials can conduct anonymous and random drug tests to anyone without a warrant, and if you’re caught with drugs in your system, then you could be looking at a penalty. These included drugs taking before you enter Singapore so be mindful when travelling other parts of Asia.

Punishment: S$20,000 fines, up to 10 years in prison or the death penalty 

7.No Eating and drinking on public transport  

Durian
Durian

And the final law that I have to offer you today. Please do not eat or drink on any form of public transport this includes the MRT the bus anything! I remember when my friend told me about being fined when she was caught eating ice cream on the MRT! There are lots of food centres eat there or within closed doors. Oh and Durian a special fruit is also banned on public transport – don’t do it!

Punishment: S$5,000 fine  

Despite all the laws that exist in Singapore, it is actually one of my favourite Asian countries to visit and live. I think if I can live in Singapore for 7 months and not face a fine then you will also be fine.

What about you do you know any of any fines that exist in Singapore or around the world? Share in the comments below!  

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A Day with MBV In Copenhagen

Heyyy MyBreakingViewers, and welcome to my third edition of A Day with MBV Series.  Today I will be talking about my recent trip to Copenhagen!  I was pleased with this trip because as you know I’m one ½ of @BTravelCreators; and was able to collaborate with @Traveleatslay.  

Let’s get into it then!

This trip was hella jokes, where does one even begin (I am literally beaming as I write this!) We had someone blasting music throughout the day. This really added to the mood and the weather in Copenhagen was good considering it was the end of February.  

I can’t remember how much I spent on the day. However, I have shared on other trips a good breakdown of costs (just this one I haven’t – I am truly sorry).

Sunday Munday  

We started the day with some grub! What? A girl has got to eat! This was in my opinion, an easy journey to the restaurant called Sunday Munday. This was a restaurant for waffles eaters and get this EVERYTHING is vegan. This was great for me as I decided to go vegan for the month and it was my last day.  

Nyhavn Harbour – coloured houses  

Every time I think of Copenhagen, I always imagined seeing the pretty colourful houses. So when we landed, I was like I want pictures near the colourful houses and that we did! What I loved about the colourful buildings was the richness in colour. It really showed me that there is colour in the world. Which resonates with MyBreakingViews statement

Building Colour Into Your Travels

Interesting fact: Nyhavn is a 17th-century waterfront, canal and entertainment district in Copenhagen, Denmark. It is lined by brightly coloured 17th and early 18th century townhouses and bars, cafes and restaurants. 

Cost – £0.00  

Manon Les Suites – the hotel  

Whilst eating at the restaurant Sunday Munday. A staff member suggested we should head over to the Manon Les Suites and so we did.  The hotel in one word was breathtaking and I will be certainly going back and staying at this hotel! When I am rich of course!

Travel Tip: It is always good to listen to the locals. They should know their country a lot better than a tourist.  

Cost – £0.00  

Christiansborg Palace 

It took us a while to find this place and it seems the lifts/elevators in Copenhagen are slightly old fashioned. When we finally got up there you could see a good view of the country.

Interesting Fact: Christiansborg Palace is a palace and government building on the islet of Slotsholmen in central Copenhagen, Denmark. It is the seat of the Danish Parliament, the Danish Prime Minister’s Office, and the Supreme Court of Denmark. 

Cost – £0.00  

Dinner at Skipperkroen 

We got a bus back to Nyhavn (colourful houses) to see if we could find somewhere to eat. We wanted to unwind while we waited for our plane. Note: There are quite a lot of restaurants in this area.

Now, remember when I said I was practising being a vegan for the month! This was a struggle when we got to this restaurant because they didn’t even know what it meant. I ended up having potatoes, some bread and veg – they added some fish. This clearly showed me that they didn’t know what veganism meant. I didn’t eat it ask anyone!  

Cost – (more than £30 for veg potatoes and some bland fish)  

I hope you enjoyed my third series A Day with MBV in Copenhagen. I will be sharing my A Day with MBV in Ireland ….. subscribed so you can stay tuned!

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Series: A Day with MBV…

Welcome to my Series: A Day with MBV

Before I get into the logistics. I would like to say that I hope the month of August is a fruitful month for every single one of us. Can you believe it’s been two weeks since I relaunched MyBreakingViews website? It has been extremely overwhelming with all the lovely comments, and I can’t thank you all enough for your support!

I feel like a new month is a call for something BRAND NEW. Read on, you will get it soon.

I’ve brought you all here today to tell you about my new series called ‘A Day with MBV…’ I’ve been flying to a few countries (here and there – you know) and participating in a number of activities this year. All of these have been quick little things, which I have thoroughly enjoyed.

It’s funny how day trips abroad and group activities can be an excellent way of meeting new people, as well as experiencing something new. Most of my activities and day trips have been planned by @traveleatslay or @btravelcreators. Want to be involved? You got to follow to be involved! Read – Black Travel Creators Turns 1: Highlights

Anyways, all these activities got me thinking; how can I share my days with you all? Where you can ask questions to build your travel knowledge, and most importantly, enjoy the travel with me! And then it came to me – I could do a series of my activities.

Let me formally introduce you to my series:

A Day with MBV…

What can you expect with A Day with MBV series?

A Day with MBV… will be packed with lots of goodies! I will be writing about my day in a country or my day somewhere close by, like the Hitchin Lavander Farm! It could be absolutely anything! I want to show you what you can get done in just a day!

A Day with MBV...

This will sometimes contain a small itinerary, (which you can steal) of where to go, what you should do, how to go and do it, and a cost break down of the different attractions, where you can eat and more! Heck, you might even get a free day trip on me!

Want to be up in the mix? Subscribe to my mailing list, you don’t miss out on the first A Day with MBV…

My first post of the series will be ‘A Day with MBV In Prague‘.

Subscribe & Stay Tuned

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