The link between free speech and peace continues inside with the temporary exhibit – The Dangerous Zone – about German journalist Carl von Ossietzky who exposed the Nazis through his newspaper writings. Stopping to view the walls plastered in pages from Ossietzky's weekly newspaper,Die Weltbühne (The World Stage),Fallet challenges us to think about the concept of heroes and villains."In 1931,Ossietzky was convicted of treason,imprisoned and sent to a concentration camp,"she says."In 1936 he was awarded the Peace Prize."

More a series of contemporary installations than a museum the next room houses The Nobel Field,a permanent exhibition honouring every Peace Prize laureate since 1901. A moody space,where individual information screens stand about like petals planted in a garden of fibre-optic fronds.

From Nelson Mandela to the Dalai Lama,Aung San Suu Kyi to Barack Obama,these are the kind of people Alfred Nobel had in mind when he set out his last will and testament –"Those who shall have done the most or the best work for fraternity between nations,for the abolition or reduction of standing armies and for the holding and promotion of peace congresses."

The story of Nobel's life is told through an interactive book where a giant volume of blank pages comes to life through projected images. Fallet explains it was Nobel's decree that the Peace Prize be selected by a five-member committee chosen by the Parliament of Norway."The prize is awarded annually on the 10th of December in the Oslo City Hall,"she says."The recipient receives a Nobel Medal,Nobel Diploma and a sum of 8 million Swedish Krona ($1.19 million)."

Next is the temporary exhibition – Syria is my only home – a photographic display about life as a refugee as seen through the eyes of children,an attempt to put a face to some of the 2.4 million Syrian children living as refugees.

In 2013,a joint project between UNICEF Lebanon and the Lebanese organisation Zakira handed out 500 disposable cameras to Syrian children in a camp in the Bekaa Valley in Lebanon. What did the children choose to photograph? The cramped conditions,the biting snow,the scraps they burn to keep warm? No. They photographed each other – smiling,playing with sticks,and giving piggybacks.

The children's quotes,printed on the walls,are equally moving."I wish I could go back to Syria and learn all of the alphabet,"said Hiba,aged 9."I would eat dirt if it could bring me back to Syria,"said Rewan,aged 9. A longing for home is the common theme,reinforcing the notion that no one becomes a refugee by choice.

The newest display is Hope over Fear,a photographic exhibition dedicated to 2016 Peace Prize Laureate President Manual Santos,the Colombian people and the promise of peace after 52 years of civil war. By my reckoning if the world has witnessed the end of just one war,then this is the most potent prize of all.

TRIP NOTES

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VISIT

Guided tours (2pm in English and 3pm in Norwegian) are included with the entry ticket of NOK100. Tours operate daily over the summer season,but only on weekends during winter. Centre is closed on Mondays during winter. Phone +47 48 30 10 00. Seenobelpeacecenter.org

FLY

Thai Airways flies from Sydney and Melbourne to Oslo via Bangkok. Seethaiairways.comSTAY

The Thon Hotel Bristol is an elegant hotel in the heart of downtown Oslo within walking distance of all major attractions. Seethonhotels.com

Kerry van der Jagt travelled as a guest of Lindblad Expeditions