Grunenlokka – Oslo

Accompany João Nauman to discover the trendiest part of Norway’s capital. ‘Lokka’, to its friends, is the most vibrant and cosmopolitan place in the country.

—

Grunelokka is an area bounded by four avenues, with cheap rents that attracted the city’s working class 100 years ago. The buildings haven’t changed, but they housed factories then, being so close to the river. Today, everything is different. Some people compare it to London’s Soho or even Greenwich Village, although for me it has much more of the spirit of Williamsburg in Brooklyn which threw up the New York arty music scene.

Everything smells new. The way people dress, looking out for the latest trend, the cycling movement and mums with strollers – mafia mothers as they call them here. Then there’s the triumph of designer shops over the international chains, the abundance of parks, the pavement cafés which grab every patch of sun  – a rare thing in Oslo –  and the bars with their spontaneous bands.

There is no trace of tourists here, just locals – mostly artists, designers and architects. A recent New York Times article on Oslo went no further than banal references to museums, palaces and gardens, which probably explains why Lokka – as it’s commonly known – is not yet on the tourist route.

Which is unfair, they say, as no other part of the Norwegian capital offers such an interesting and varied collection of shops, and nowhere else would you have the chance to keep up with the habits of the city’s most avant-guarde sector. A morning coffee at Tim, for example, or the North African grocers’. Norwegian designer store (ceramics, clothing, furniture, jewellery), games in the kids’ play areas, a cocktail at Bar Boca, or maybe even a hand of backgammon at Bugges café. One way or another, a visit to Lokka guarantees you an instant taste of the rhythm of Norway’s capital.

By João Nauman

—