As I was fetching myself a cup of coffee before heading down to the market at Vestkantrorget, this very well dress gentleman stepped into the shop. I had to ask for a portrait, and he obliged. Thanks Martin!

While I was sitting on a bench at Vestkanttorget, just taking in the hustle and bustle of the Saturday antique market, this very pleasant lady sat down beside me. We chattet for a bit, and it turned out her grand parents lived in my home town of Mo i Rana around the year 1900! They worked at a hotel there that is still one of the nice ones in the my home town. Crazy coincidence.

Mikael grows vanilla in Buganda in Africa. Never heard of Buganda? Me neither. So let us learn : Buganda is a Bantu kingdom within Uganda. So what is Bantu you ask? Wikipedia says : The Bantu peoples are an ethnolinguistic grouping of approximately 400 distinct Indigenous African ethnic groups who speak Bantu languages. The languages are native to countries spread over a vast area from West Africa, to Central Africa, Southeast Africa, East Africa and into Southern Africa. Bantu people also inhabit southern areas of Northeast African states. About 20 years ago, he had a photography studio in Oslo, which I rented for a shoot once. Crazy coincidence.

If you want to know more about his vanilla project, that gives all the revenue to a junior school in the Buganda area, check out their website : kimeravanilla.com

Ivar, the guy in the portrait below, told me that this things are pretty popular now as low-effect electrical guitar amps. They can be upgraded to give more power, as this one currently has 1W.

When I shot the portrait of Martin in the coffee shop, he told me he and his friend would be coming down to the market. We met there and we talked about portrait photography, lighting and lenses. Street portrait photography is a wonderful way to meet new people.

Back at my bench, two ladies sitting there started chatting right away. Possibly impressed by my big camera. I don't know. Anyway. They both used to be teachers as a school near my home town where many of my relatives studied back in the day! Crazy coincidence.

Brit, Guri and I had a nice long conversation about everything from the weather in the north, to vanilla, to how nice it is to live on Majorstua.