When you first set eyes on it, you could be forgiven for thinking a spaceship had crash landed in the cold Scandinavian waters of Norway's capital. Despite that sci-fi exterior though, the inspiration for the Oslo Opera House's spectacular design actually stems from the Norwegian people's love for climbing mountains and getting outdoors. The public are free to walk all over it (and have even been known to ski down it).

Opened in 2008, the building cost the equivalent of £430 million ($760m). With its oakwood interior walls and moon-inspired LED chandelier, the intentional nods to the natural world continue inside.

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