Home!

Alan and I arrived safely home and well this morning!  I even stopped by and worked a bit before we headed to our house.  It is also safe and well, thanks to my wonderful friends who watered plants and brought in the mail.  My blue poppies are still blooming and my peonies are perfect. I certainly thought I would not see them at all.

A few things to mention about our first cruise with Fred Olson!  Apparently this company has the reputation of the passengers being "Newly weds or nearly deads".  Well, in our experience, this was not the case.  We made more friends and had much more fun than any other cruise we have been on!  We would never hesitate to recommend this cruise line or go on another cruise with them.  Don't get me wrong, the age range is on the upper scale, but not solely 70's and above!

And as for the problems with Norovirus.  I know that is always a worry on any cruise ship.  And if you read the passenger forums, it sounds really scary for this ship alone.  But when I mentioned we had no self service on the buffet, I didn't realize that was not meant for the duration of the cruise.  And I apologize for not coming back to that.  After leaving the ship for our first stop at Alesund, we arrived back to find a transformation - suddenly there were no holds barred at any of the self service places - whether it was the buffet or the 24 hour coffee.  We had access to everything!  After being so controlled for the first 3 days, I was feeling a bit confused.  I had accepted we would have to exercise restraint at the buffet, only to have this lifted.  What happened? 

What I did not realize was we were all under a sort of quarantine and after 3 days no one fell ill.  So there was no Norovirus to worry about!  This did not mean we didn't have to wash our hands or use the hand gel that is everywhere, but that is on all ships and we are used to that.  I have kept meaning to put this change in, but when on board, I had to count the minutes and always felt rushed when putting the blog together.  Now I have all the time in the world!  Trouble is, I am feeling terribly jet lagged.  Why?  Maybe the sleep deprivation from those wonderful sunny nights!

However, we would all have not embarked on our journey to Norway as passengers and then disembarked back in Scotland as cargo had they enforced the staff serving us all at the buffet for the duration of the cruise! 

Hail, Gastronome, Apostle of Excess, Well skilled to overeat without distress! Thy great invention, the unfatal feast, Shows Man's superiority to Beast. --John Boop”

Bergen – our last port in Norway

We were a bit disappointed when we learned that there was only a half day scheduled for Bergen – our last destination on this cruise.  I must admit though, we had wondered why there was one sea day going home when we had two on the way to Norway, so it did make sense.

 

Alan and I had a nice relaxed day in Bergen, mainly retail therapy and taking pictures of beautiful old buildings. 

Clothes in a shop window

 

 

Sunday market

 

 

 

 

 

We also visited a fish market and saw what whale meat looks like.  Not appetizing looking at all, black and thick looking.  Our table mate had found a place offering tastes of whale, moose, reindeer and other things.  We never saw that place and I really couldn’t see Alan or myself tasting whale, at least, anyway!

The other big cultural difference I observed is the abundance of fur clothing!  Oh, and the availability of purchasing seal, reindeer, goat and other hides, or a whole fox to use as a stole around your neck.  They were beautiful, but in the UK, and probably USA, wearing fur is so frowned upon.  I know it gets much colder here, so there would be a market for these. 

Bergen is Norway’s second largest city and had 3 cruise ships in on the day we were there.  One was the Azura, which was our last cruise ship, and might have been the one to take us to Norway this year.  The main argument that won our interest was not having to fly to Southampton to board a cruise, but rather to drive north for about an hour and a half to get on this one!  There is no comparison in cruises though.  One is a small, intimate, more old fashioned ship. The other is huge, glitzy, busy and amazing.  (Uh oh, that makes it sound as if I prefer the Azura!  Not true, they are both as good and as different as each other.)

If we had a whole day in Bergen, I would have liked to take the funicular to see the view, apparently that is quite striking.  However, we had loads of Kroners to spend and had not shopped much at all.  Plus, I just wanted to wander a bit and see the city on the ground.  Glad I did too!

Right off the ship, there were tall ships docked, plus a beautiful castle we had to walk by. This castle is very similar to the keeps in Scotland, and about double the size of Dean Castle in Kilmarnock (my favourite Scottish castle).  The castle was much grander than a regular “keep” though and it would have been nice to go in.  Again, IF we had been there for a full day!

Walking along the harbour, there are rickety old houses, leaning this way and that.  Reminded us a bit of the Shambles in York.  There were alleyways in between some of them, and going in – they were really ancient looking wooden structures.  I thought they were absolutely beautiful, but too close and too dark to get a good photo.  But again, it was like the Shambles, only with a Viking touch!

But it became time to return to the ship.  And there was a send-off party at the pool!  And it was very sunny, maybe not really warm – but sunny.  The myth around Bergen is it always rains, or as my Swedish friend told me-

A couple was visiting Bergen and it was raining.  They stopped to ask a boy if it always rains in Bergen and he said “I don’t know, I am only 10!”     So we were extremely lucky to see this beautiful city in sunshine!

 

Flam

 

Here is the picture of Flam as we headed for our dock after I had been awake since 4am watching the beautiful scenery pass by my window!

 

 

 

 

 

While Alan and I were on the Flam/Myrdal rail line, we saw darling villages and farms, plus spectacular waterfalls!

 

There was also a road with 21 hairpin curves on it.  This was originally built for the construction workers to get up to the area of building all the necessary tunnels for the rail line.  They would have been using horse and carts though, not cars.  And this road is no longer used, thank goodness!  Well, yes it is, but only for hikers and cyclists!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We had a 5 minute stop, both going up and coming down, at this huge waterfall.  While we were stopped, music starts and there is a Huldra singing to us.  (look closely, she is in an orange dress close to the ruined building.) 

Like I said in the previous blog – we heard her even as far as Flam and ran to buy our train ticket!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Leaving Flam was even more spectacular than our arrival.  Captain Stein decided to take us on one of his favourite detours.  I had heard of this trip, but it was not meant to happen on this itinerary.  We were so lucky!  I do wish I had caught the name of the fjord he took us down, apparently it is quite famous because it is so narrow.   Captain Stein calls it the Narrow Fjord, but I don’t think that is its real name! 

Whether the ship is able to go on this or not is strictly dependent upon the weather.  He explained that there can be no wind for them to take the ship on this narrow fjord.

I really tried to get a photo that would catch the perspective of how close the ship was to the sides. Quite an undertaking since my camera battery died in the middle of this adventure. Then I just used my Ipad!  Nothing was quite good enough though.  Alan has given me some of his photos.  But they don’t really catch it either.

We would turn a bend and it would look like we could not go any further, but there would be a tiny channel in the distance. This went on for about an hour, until we really did have to turn around!  How on earth we did that is way beyond me.  This manoeuvre was more like being on a train turntable.  I would never have thought what Captain Stein did was possible in such a long ship.  At the point where the ship was perpendicular to each shore it appeared to us that the bow and the stern were only 30 feet away from the shore, each side.  In other words, he did a full 360 degree turn.  We actually missed our dinner seating to enjoy this experience!

I mentioned Captain Stein in passing before, but he is such fun as a Captain.  And he especially enjoyed himself on this detour.  The first time he sounded the ship’s horn, there were campers just minding their own business and not noticing this giant approaching.  We were on the deck above him when he told us to watch them!  He also sounded the horn to a lady on the other side waving a big sheet. He told us she is in her mid-80’s and never misses this event! 

If you look closely you can see the white sheet she uses. She is standing in front of the white building, between the small red and large brown buildings.  I also have a picture of Captain Stein waving to her, but thought this one is at least a bit clearer.  Other people came out and took their photos on shore with the Boudicca behind them.  So they must see the ship passing them as quite an event too!

 

Captain Stein is the living proof that, as Mark Twain said, if you find a job you like, you will never work again!