Kristiansand/Stavanger

17 May, 2018

Let a day go by and the catch-up is tough.

Yesterday we spent an easy, enjoyable day in Stavanger. Stavanger is a beautiful, small town that seems to have been the launch pad for the petroleum industry in Norway. Like every other port we’ve visited, it’s clean and in good repair. The orderly little white wooden houses give it a sense of homogeny. We walked the old town area with the cobbled streets, white wooden houses with only the splashes  of blue or yellow doors and the beautiful spring flowers in pots or flower boxes attached to the outside to give it variance. 

We visited the maritime museum and the petroleum museum - I know, it sounds like the last museum you would want to visit, but it ended up being very informative as well as insightful to the ethical dilemma the Norwegians seem to have as a country that sits on a huge quantity of oil reserves while struggling with the ecological impact fossil fuel creates. They are not moving forward with this industry without serious consideration of what the ultimate outcome will be economically and ecologically.

On a lighter note - today we docked in the southern Norwegian port of Kristiansand. A happy coincidence is that today is Norway’s Constitution Day. It’s a national holiday that exceeds any American holiday that I’ve ever experienced. We made our way into town on foot to find a little street side cafe in the heart of the town which afforded us great seats for the parade. This parade is all about the children of Norway and it seems that each grade in every school participates. Kristiansand is a larger city than the ones previously visited and it appears that EVERYONE is out and about dressed in traditional clothing or their “Sunday best”. People  are smiling and greeting one another.   

The Norwegians on a whole are a very attractive people. Beautiful olive complexion, light hair and eyes and an overall appearance of health and vitality. The children sing as they march in the parade and shout “Hurra”! Everyone is eating ice cream and carrying the flag of Norway. Rosettes are worn in the colors of the flag of Norway and the streets are packed!

After the parade we walked to the cathedral in hopes of seeing the free concert we heard was being offered there. We followed the crowds into the cathedral to discover that we were attending a Lutheran service. It was all in Norwegian, but so beautiful with lots and lots of singing, organ music and even a horn section that played exquisitely. The congregation sang along with the choir and the cathedral was filled with heavenly sound. After the service, several people asked if we were with the ship and welcomed us to Kristiansand. They said that the last song they all sang was the national anthem and how fortunate it was that we were here on the absolutely best day to be in Norway. I think they’re right. 

We stayed for the organ concert and it was fabulous. Afterward we walked around town a bit. It was a beautiful sunny day and the crowds of traditionally dressed people, the spring tulips and the cherry trees in bloom made it an almost dream-like experience. It is certainly one we will never forget. 

Flam, Norway

May 15, 2018

Yesterday was a day at sea as we traveled from Amsterdam to Flam, Norway. A day at sea at this point in time was a day of trying to get a little sense of normalcy back. The 12 hour time difference coupled with the fact that the sun doesn’t set here until after 10pm and rises around 4am is making the jet lag, well….lag. My head feels like it’s filled with sand. Tomorrow will be better I’m sure. 

This morning we arrived in Flam. It’s a tiny, tiny town and the end of a huge fjord. Robert got up at 4 this morning to watch us come into the fjord. I opted for a couple more hours of sleep. When I opened the curtain in our cabin I looked out at the splendorous mountains rising vertically from the sea and exclaimed, “Well, crap. There’s snow”. There’s a reason I live in Maui. Any kind of cool weather makes me wear far too many clothes and grit my teeth. Snow isn’t something I find appealing on any level. But that aside, I can’t deny that the scenery of the fjords is spectacular. It was a beautiful blue day with sunshine and innumerable waterfalls coming off the cliffs. 

We had breakfast and were in line to disembark at 7am. We had made reservations to take the Flamsbana railway to Myrdal. It’s a 1 hour scenic ride on an electric train that takes you through 20 tunnels and past countless waterfalls to the even tinier town of Myrdal. Spring is in the making here, particularly in the lower elevations with beautiful  wildflowers and brilliantly green leaves just emerged on the birch trees. Water is everywhere. We stopped briefly in Myrdal and then headed back to Flam, stopping at the Kjosfossen waterfall and saw Huldra, a mythical forest spirit who lures men into forest to seduce them with her singing. 

Taking a brief rest, we returned to town (about 250 meters away) and took a boat into the world’s tallest and narrowest fjord. More waterfalls. We arrived at the end of that fjord to yet another tiny town where we caught a bus shuttle back through an 11.5km tunnel and a 5km tunnel. Basically, we just drove the entire time back through the mountain.

After an extensive nap, we stood out on the sundeck to watch us pull away from the dock, do a dainty pirouette (no small item on a 975ft. ship) and make way out the Sonenfjord. A good day ashore.

The Baltic - Day 2

May 15, 2018

Yesterday was a day at sea as we traveled from Amsterdam to Flam, Norway. A day at sea at this point in time was a day of trying to get a little sense of normalcy back. The 12 hour time difference coupled with the fact that the sun doesn’t set here until after 10pm and rises around 4am is making the jet lag, well….lag. My head feels like it’s filled with sand. Tomorrow will be better I’m sure.

This morning we arrived in Flam. It’s a tiny, tiny town and the end of a huge fjord. Robert got up at 4 this morning to watch us come into the fjord. I opted for a couple more hours of sleep. When I opened the curtain in our cabin I looked out at the splendorous mountains rising vertically from the sea and exclaimed, “Well, crap. There’s snow”. There’s a reason I live in Maui. Any kind of cool weather makes me wear far too many clothes and grit my teeth. Snow isn’t something I find appealing on any level. But that aside, I can’t deny that the scenery of the fjords is spectacular. It was a beautiful blue day with sunshine and innumerable waterfalls coming off the cliffs.

We had breakfast and were in line to disembark at 7am. We had made reservations to take the Flamsbana railway to Myrdal. It’s a 1 hour scenic ride on an electric train that takes you through 20 tunnels and past countless waterfalls to the even tinier town of Myrdal. Spring is in the making here, particularly in the lower elevations with beautiful wildflowers and brilliantly green leaves just emerged on the birch trees. Water is everywhere. We stopped briefly in Myrdal and then headed back to Flam, stopping at the Kjosfossen waterfall and saw Huldra,           a mythical forest spirit who lures men into forest to seduce them with her singing.

Taking a brief rest, we returned to town (about 250 meters away) and took a boat into the world’s tallest and narrowest fjord. More waterfalls. We arrived at the end of that fjord to yet another tiny town where we caught a bus shuttle back through an 11.5km tunnel and a 5km tunnel. Basically, we just drove the entire time back through the mountain.

After an extensive nap, we stood out on the sundeck to watch us pull away from the dock, do a dainty pirouette (no small item on a 975    ft. ship) and make way out the Sonenfjord. A good day ashore.

The Baltic - First Days Are Tough

May 14, 2018

So let me begin by saying, long distance travel can be brutal. I know, I know…first world problem. Mostly I make note of this so that A: I remember next time I think I want to book a trip and B: so that I can refer back to the first day and hopefully, at the end of the trip declare that it was all worth it.

We left our beloved Maui at 10:30pm on Friday night. Packed into an Alaska Air 737 bound for Portland, Oregon. 737s are my absolute least favorite aircraft to fly on. I’m sure I slept, but it was the pillow-around-the-neck, no, try the head on the fold down tray, no, lean on husband, no, nothing works attempt at sleep. We arrived Portland at 6:30am neither rested nor refreshed and about to spend 6 hours waiting to board our flight to Amsterdam via Delta Airbus 330. Fortunately, we discovered some comfy chairs with ottomans where we could catch a few winks. 

The flight to Amsterdam was about 9.5 hours - cramped but comparatively comfortable. I think I did get an hour or two of cumulative sleep and arrived in the Netherlands completely sleep deprived and nearly delirious. Customs was easy, the airport transfer was chaotic and the ship boarding was appalling. Organization was non-existent and having had next to no sleep was not helpful in navigating the labyrinth of Holland America’s shore crew.

We finally arrived safely in our stateroom which is small but comfortable. We are conveniently located on the sun deck where one can walk, play basketball or shuffleboard. We are at the end next to the door to the outside, have a window that looks out onto the deck and only two decks from the Lido deck with pool and dining. We slept, went to the muster drill and sat on the observation deck as we sailed out of Amsterdam to the North Sea.

By now, I’m an emotional chocolate mess - missing my kids on Mother’s Day, despising my husband for nearly everything imaginable (and I admit most of it was imagined), irritated that many people around me were foreigners speaking another language - oh dear….

So today is a new day. The jet lag is beginning to wane, the sun is shining and the day at sea will help me settle. The seas are calm, the weather is pleasant but cool and the adventure is about to begin.