Thermometers told those present that it was around 25 degrees centigrade when the first of the afternoon’s visitors waited to be admitted to the Storting building. And even though calendars insisted that it was still only 9^th May, the Storting felt the need to set up water stations and hand out free muffins to prevent dehydration and keep up the blood sugar levels of those waiting in line.

“We decided to get here an hour and a quarter before the doors were supposed to open, so we’ve just been standing here enjoying the sun,” said Jan Halsli.

At the head of the queue, Jan, along with Sarah Mohebbi and Jogå Rokavina, were the very first visitors to walk into the building at 4 o’clock on the dot.

Lots of languages in the line

The gentle hum of different languages enlivened a line that stretched from the Storting’s entrance, past the wrought iron gates and all the way down to the lions on Karl Johan. Leslie and Trevor Harvey, two British cruise tourists who had been tipped off by the visitors’ information office, had made their way to the Storting building.

“We haven’t even visited our own parliament yet, but we’ll soon have been inside yours,” said Leslie Harvey.

American Claire Cavaleri has lived in Oslo for 10 years, but had never been inside the Storting before Monday. With a family member, Patti Cavaleri, visiting her from the USA, what could be better than dropping in at the open day during her own, personal guided tour of Oslo.

“We basically know nothing at all about the Storting and the building. No, hold on! We know that it’s 150 years old this year,” Claire Cavaleri said.

Dressed up to the nines

For while the Storting as an institution is as old as the Constitution, the building itself was not opened until 1866. Consequently, the building’s jubilee was the main subject of the open day, a celebration that almost 300 5^th-year school kids had taken part in earlier the same day. The birthday building itself was dressed up for the occasion; floral decorations of red, white and blue adorning the façade.

Almost at the back of the queue outside was 11-year-old Leander Lavoll-Nylenna, ready for his first visit to the national assembly. It was his stepfather, Christoffer Wiig, who had put forward the idea, but according to himself Leander had been easy to persuade.

“I didn’t know much about the Storting before I came, but I’ve seen some of the rooms on TV. I know that there’s a Storting Chamber inside. That’s where the politicians sit and have their meetings and decide lots of things,” Leander said.

How many Lego bricks make a Storting?

Inside the Staircase Hall lots of the visitors found the Lego scale reproduction of the Storting fascinating and impressive. Matija Puzar is a Lego Certified Professional. He spent around 200 hours and used 35,000 bricks to construct it. Lego-building tends to be a hobby that enthusiasts enjoy in their spare time, so Matija spent two weeks of his holiday to complete the project in time for the jubilee. To the delight of the visitors at the open day.

“I had absolutely no idea there was such a thing as a professional Lego builder. I grew up with Lego myself, but I’ve got to admit that my own projects were considerably less complicated than this one,” said Anfinn Bernaas.

After a long career in the Centre Party, Anfinn knows the Storting building well. His main reason for coming to the open day was because his husband, August Ringmann, had never been inside.

Found out about committees and whips

Some of the visitors had heard or read about the event in advance, and had planned the visit. Others were curious passers-by who had succumbed to a spur-of-the-moment temptation.

“We just happened to be walking past earlier today and saw hundreds of children in brightly coloured t-shirts running around here. As soon as we found out what a grand event it was, we decided to organize our day around it. None of us has been here before,” explained Karin Kaasbøll, who – along with Jens Lillebye – had made her way to the exhibition in the Historical Hall on the building’s second floor.

The jubilee celebrations at the Storting set the seal on a memorable long weekend for Karin and Jens, which had also included a confirmation. On Tuesday they were due to return to Ringvassøy, outside Tromsø, in the north of the country.

“It was fascinating to get a look around the building. In the Storting Chamber we learnt about how the Members of Parliament work in the committees and why there are often very few of them present during debates. It was also interesting to find out about what the whips,” said Jens Lillebye.

Shambhu and Ranjana Shaw were two others who had chanced upon the jubilee celebrations. They had been on their way to Aker Brygge to sun themselves on the dockside.

“We’re originally from India, but we’ve lived in Oslo for many, many years. And yet we’ve never been inside the Storting. To come here was a wonderful experience,” said Shambhu Shaw.

Tempted by a fairy-tale

Perhaps the most regularly photographed and filmed room in the Storting is the Central Hall. It’s here, on the building’s third floor, that MPs and government ministers conduct their press interviews after debates in the Chamber.  On Monday afternoon and evening, however, the Central Hall was home to other important activities. Children were given the opportunity to colour in lion masks and pictures of the Storting, take a trip round the building in the virtual world of Minecraft, or build Lego. Jessica Kjelle (10) had sat down with her grandparents May and Arill Kjelle at the colouring table.

“Actually it was the Storting lions that made us come. We told Jessica about the prisoners who had carved the stone lions about three years ago. We were talking about it again a few days ago and she remembered the story well. The fact that the stone mason was a murderer had clearly made a great impression on Jessica,” said May.

“And then I remembered that his name was Gudbrand i Lia, just like in the fairy-tale,” explained Jessica herself.

When her grandparents discovered that the open day was just around the corner, they decided to take Jessica along. None of the three of them had been inside the Storting before.

“But I’ve gone past the building lots of times, when I’ve taken part in the 17^th May parade. I’m going to do it with my school this year as well,” Jessica said.