Sigrid’s guide to Norway | CN Traveller

Ever since winning BBC Music’s Sound of 2018, Norwegian singer-songwriter Sigrid has won legions of fans with her emotionally unguarded lyrics. This month she returns with her third studio album, There’s Always More That I Could Say, which she has dubbed an “accidental breakup album”. After performing at a string of international festivals, including Latitude, Y Not and the Montreux Jazz Festival, the Alesund-born songstress likes to circle back to base in Norway. Here, she tells Noo Saro-Wiwa about the places that make her Nordic homeland so special.

Polar Bear, SvalbardPaul Souders/Getty Images

Svalbard

“I went to Svalbard last September for a gig and we stayed a night at Nordenskiöld Lodge, the northernmost lodge in the whole world. It was incredible – the best hotel I’ve been to. The two Italian women running it had guns to protect themselves from polar bears. It’s pretty hardcore. We got our water from chunks of ice that fell off the glacier. Our kayaking trip was probably one of the highlights of my life. We saw polar bears – a mum and her cub – swimming not far away from us. It was thrilling. I’ve never been so scared – my heart was pounding. It was the most sensational experience of nature.”

Fuglen Oslo SentrumCorey Hart

Fuglen

“This is one of my favourite coffee bars, and it’s also a vintage design shop. It was founded in Oslo in 1963 but now also has outposts around Japan. There’s great coffee, including the fruity black type I like, and Norwegian waffles with brown brunost cheese. In the evenings it turns into a cocktail bar with live shows.”