Honnigsvag, Norway. The northernmost place in mainland Europe, and it has a museum worth visiting if you're ever in the area. RQS and I waited until mid morning to get off the ship and onto dry land. We were rewarded by a brisk slap in the face with cold, misty air. But that was the last time we felt uncomfortable while off the ship.
But first....
This would be the first time we set foot on land above the Arctic Circle, and the sun was out. (I should say that the clouds didn't get in the way of having adequate sunshine to cast shadows.) At least three ships were in port, something that surprised me given the small population of this town. And yet, it felt no more crowded than the last time we were in Bar Harbor, Me. But then, most of the people who got off the ship were taking shore excursions.
Immediately above is how things looked as we got off the ship. There was more of a crowd getting back on the ship than there was trying to get off. (BTW, that's the closest you will likely get to seeing RQS's face.) Although it was a little bit more crowded when we left the pier, we still weren't bumping into people as we walked to the North Cape museum.
The North Cape museum is both a historical museum as well as an art museum. The first thing we looked at was how the Nazi occupation affected Honningsvag. I can't imagine being one of the families who were forced to leave their homes because of the scorched earth policy of the Nazis. But the town was rebuilt after the enemy left. Then we looked at some of the art on display. (I wish I could have taken some of the paintings home with me.) After this, it was upstairs to see artifacts from the fishing industry this town was founded on.
Shortly after leaving the museum, it was back to the ship. Lunch awaited us at the pizzeria. Yum! Fresh Mozzarella cheese on top of a pie with mushrooms and truffle oil (or, what is claimed to be truffle oil these days). It tasted a lot better than the pizza we'd get on the Lido deck, but this pizzeria is an up-charge for passengers on the basic plan. For us, we can eat there as often as we'd like - a nice perk of our fare category.
Later on, it was off to eat some sushi. This time, we had much better service than the last time we were at this restaurant. And yet, the staff still preferred to communicate with me, as I was the male sitting at the table. They should have been talking to RQS, who raised an issue first with placing an order. Such is life. If I had been travelling as Marian, this gaff would never have happened. But the meal was good, and we were able to enjoy it - the music in the atrium wasn't yet loud enough to spoil a meal. By the time we left, however, the band changed and we were ready to go back to the room for the night.
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