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Norwegians say: 'There is no such thing as bad weather - only wrong clothes.'

But on a chilly late spring day, I find it's possible to have both.

Oslo is a city of museums and cafes, of surprisingly good food and wonderful art galleries.

A place for reflection: Oslo - with districts such as Aker Brygge to the fore - is a city framed by water

The weather plays second fiddle, though when the sun comes out and the fjord sparkles under blue skies, it is all the nicer.

Start with Edvard Munch's The Scream, for it deserves to be heard.

A whole room at the National Gallery is dedicated to Norway's most famous artist while his later work is in the Munch Museum, as well as other versions of The Scream.

He painted four, with one selling in 2012 for £74 million - making it the most expensive artwork ever sold at auction at the time.

It was painted from a viewing point at Ekebergparken, which, if the weather permits, makes a wonderful walk. It is high up above Oslo with panoramic views over the water.

At the excellent restaurant, order the perfect local sandwich of dark bread, topped with chunks of salmon, dill, the famous sour cream from Roros and salmon eggs.

From there head to the other side of Oslo's harbour and the Viking Museum, which has three of the world's best-preserved Viking ships from the ninth century.

The ships, discovered in burial mounds, were supposed to transport the bodies of high-ranking chieftains to the next world. Rich and intricate carving on the wooden artefacts found with them is testament to the Vikings' artistic skills (which are also on display until June 22 at the British Museum in London).

Boats and Norwegians are inextricably linked. Nearby are the Fram Museum and the Kon-Tiki Museum, documenting expeditions that brought the country to the world's attention.

No other sailing vessel in the world has been further north or south than the Fram.

Looking back to the past: Norway's great seafaring heritage is easily examined in Oslo

Used for three polar expeditions, it was on the last that Amundsen became the first person to raise a flag on the South Pole. A restored Fram is the museum's centrepiece.

The Kon-Tiki raft looks so fragile that it defies the imagination that explorer Thor Heyerdahl sailed it 4,970 miles from Peru to Polynesia in 1947. He went on to conquer several other oceans in papyrus or reed boats.

However, we are steered to a ferry for the ten minutes it takes to return to the city centre across the fjord and disembark close to the shiny new district of Tjuvholmen. Originally an island renowned for its low-life and the execution of criminals (Tjuv means thief), the need to expand a rapidly growing, oil-rich Oslo meant the whole area has been redeveloped in the past year.

'Thank goodness! Something exciting had to happen in Oslo,' says Tommy, a young local.

And that excitement has spread, outwards and upwards, changing the skyline, bringing in international architects, plus a scattering of Michelin stars.

It's the capital's coolest, costliest place to live, with a bridge connecting you to the city centre and a plethora of sophisticated art galleries to explore.

I stay at the gorgeously warm and welcoming new design hotel, The Thief. The rooms are filled with modern art from Andy Warhol to Richard Prince's Cowboys.

Its just-launched spa has low ceilings studded with twinkling lights, fulfilling their promise 'to steal you away from everyday life'. Isn't that exactly why we travel?

Go now, for Oslo is no longer an everyday city.