Akerselva, du gamle og graa! Akerselva, dig holder jeg paa.
Selv om Donau er aldrig saa blaa, kan den i skjønhed aldrig dig naa.
Slike farver vist aldrig man saa, som hvor du munder ut paa skraa,
i den yndige duftende vraa mellem Nyland og H.A.H.
Seilbar er du visstnok ikke; uten da med pram.
Vandet er for sterkt at drikke; (men vi drikker dram).
Naar det er for litet vand, gaar brukene istaa.
Det er leit nok, men det kan jo ingen si’ no’ paa.
Akerselva, du gamle og graa! Akerselva, dig holder jeg paa.
Selv om Donau er aldrig saa blaa, kan den i skjønhed aldrig dig naa.
Slike farver vist aldrig man saa, som hvor du munder ut paa skraa,
i den yndige duftende vraa mellem Nyland og H.A.H.
The last part of the river walk should perhaps be called the hipster route. It starts with a colorful silo in the area called Kuba, which some people believe to be connected to Cuba somehow. The Kuba silo belonged to Bjølsen Mill and was built in i 1953. Nowadays it serves as a student’s house with circular tailor made furniture.
After Kuba you can enter the area Nedre Foss and Vulkan (which means volcano), which used to be a “whole in the ground” more or less. These days it’s a booming area filled with two hotels, a food court (Mathallen), restaurants, bars and a contemporary dance scene. This area has something for every taste whether you are a gourmand with a big wallet or a poor hipster wanting a cheap snack.
When leaving Vulkan, make sure you head in the direction of Brenneriveien which will take you through Oslo’s hipster zone number one finding your way to the river walk again. In Brenneriveien you will find grafitti and street art of variable quality.
Head into Ingens gate (nobody’s street) where you will find the bars Ingensteds and Blå, which are both clubs and music scenes. Blå unfortunately does not have accessible toilets, but you can probably use the toilets at Ingensteds (nowhere) if you ask nicely.
During the week-ends you can find an arts and crafts market on the bridge crossing the river from Blå. However – it’s usually very crowded, so if you want to keep your social distancing, it’s probably not the place for you. The same goes for the concerts with Frank Znort Quartet, who is a musical collective playing two sets every Sunday of the year. In fact they haven’t missed a single show since they started many years ago. And when Corona came, they managed to set up streaming in the very last moment. The show must go on. Because their motto is “We fuck up your Mondays”. We still haven’t had the chance to see them live. But thanks to Corona, we have now seen them perform.
After you have crossed the river from Blå you will pass the squatting area Hausmania.
And if you fancy a drink again or a singalong, you can get not too expensive beers and a karaoke booth at the bar called Syng situated idyllically close to the river.
At this time you are most certainly hungry. But this is no problem at all. Because several of our favourite (not too expensive) restaurants are situated above the bridge called Ankerbrua. The photos below are from Südøst, which has one of the nicest outdoor servings in town. They serve Asian fusion food and sushi and they have a very nice cocktail bar as well. In the basement you can also find a nightclub which is accessible via a lift. On the other side of the street you can find one of the best Italians in town called Trattoria Popolare. Enjoy!
If you should be broke or not hungry yet, you can always continue the rest of the river path. But unfortunately you will not get that far. After passing Hausmanns bridge (in the photo below) you will enter the area called Vaterland. This is still a bit scruffy area with the accidental drug seller. But unlike before there are also a lot of “normal” people there, so unless you are the very nervous type….it’s no problem to complete the river walk.
Unfortunately this is where the river walk ends. Because by Radisson Blue Plaza (Oslo Plaza) the river goes underground and doesn’t show up again before the Opera House. If you want to see the last part we recommend the following route: go left around the corner of one of the shabbiest bars in town (Stargate), head up Grønlandsleiret (Oslo’s Asia town) and head South at Tøyenbekken.
If you fancy a pitstop again we recommend the bar Oslo Mekaniske Verksted. If not…continue south, cross Schweigaardsgate and enter the pedestrian bridge Akrobaten. Unfortunately you need a pin code to use the elevator (send me a message if you need it).
If you don’t have the pin – you have to wheel yourself up the hill past Oslo Immigration Police. When you exit the Acrobat bridge on the other side – Voila! You will find yourself in the brand new area Barcode, where you can find the Opera House, the new Munch museum and the last drops of the Akerselva river….
The end….