Bye Bye to RQS and Hello to "Tall Vicki". (A short post.)

 

This past weekend RQS came up to Croton, and we had a relaxed time together.  But like all good things, the weekend had to end, and RQS had to return home.  As much as I am always a little sad when she leaves, it also is the opening for me to have some "Me Time" which I can use to recharge my emotional batteries and be ready for us getting together later in the week.

Around 3:00 pm, I drove to Croton-Harmon and kissed RQS goodbye for a few days.  Hopefully, she got home before the rain started.  This gave me some time to take care of some things, such as filling up the gas tank in my car and mending an article of clothing.  I figured that I could kill a couple of hours before getting dressed again and going out to have dinner with Vicki #1.

The skies opened up around 5:00 pm, with loud thunder passing through the area.  As soon as it came, it was gone. And I proceeded to the Sushi joint in town to meet Vicki. Vicki suggested a change of pace in our meal, where both of us would share a house special seafood soup for 2, a noodle dish with shrimp, and a mild maki roll.  I'd order the first 2 dishes, but go with a simpler roll with more flavor the next time we eat there. It was a short dinner.  And all too soon, we went home.  

It wasn't much of a day, but a relaxing one.

Norwegian Fjord Cruise Vacation - 06/22/24 (Honningsvag Norway - North Cape)

 

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.

Norwegian Fjord Cruise Vacation - 06/19/24 (Hellesylt & Geiranger, Norway)

 

We awoke early to see Geiranger Fjord before a short port at Hellesylt to drop off cruisers who had ship arranged shore excursions.  While stopped at port, we went to the main dining room for breakfast to start our day with a good meal.  And then the ship headed for Geiranger.

Shortly after breakfast, the ship started heading for Geiranger.  Unfortunately, we were told that the winds were too strong for the "sea walk" (read: a gangway to the pier).  Instead, this became a tender port, something both of us dislike due to the time it takes to get on and off the tender boat.  You can imagine how RQS felt when she heard that we would need to use a tender boat to reach dry land.  (Three guesses, the first two don't count.)

We got our tender coupons and found that there would be a 1 hour wait to get off the ship.  So we headed to the pizzeria to kill some time and have a light lunch.  By the time we were finished, I had some GI Tract issues which forced us to go back to our cabin for a while.  When I was done, they no longer were using tender tickets to manage capacity on the boats taking us to shore.  So, it was on to the tenders, and then on to shore.

After walking around a bit, we went back to the ship.  Geiranger may be a beautiful place to live, but it must also be a little bit boring after the tourist season ends.  One thing I noticed about reboarding procedures is that no one is asking for personal id.  I think the reason they tell us to carry a government issued ID is that people might have to be flown to the next port to meet the ship if they miss reboarding the ship in port.  

Once we rested, we made it down to the sushi bar.  This was a disappointment for us, as they were slow in bussing the tables, greeting us as we arrived, and delivering all of what we ordered.  At least, the food was good.  Both of us will be writing Princess after the cruise to comment on our experience at this restaurant.

 

 

 

PS: We later saw videos of excursions from this port which made me wish we had taken the coach tour to the top of the mountains surrounding Geiranger.  After seeing the view from the top of the mountain, snow on both sides of the road, and the fjord 3000 feet below, I wish we had taken the bus excursion at this port.

If you knew sushi, like I know sushi....

There is an old song that goes:

"If you knew Suzie,
 Like I know Suzie,
 Oh, Oh, Oh, What a gal..."

I rework that in my head, replacing "Suzie" with "Sushi", whenever I go out for sushi.  Today was one of those days I did just that.

- - - - - -

But first....

As has been happening lately, I didn't go to sleep when I wanted last night.  Knowing that I'd have a hard time waking up in time for lunch, I set multiple alarms on multiple devices to ensure that I'd be able to get ready and meet my friend with minimal delays. After showering, shaving, and making up my face, I decided to put my earrings in.  With q tolerable "struggle", I was able to do so without much effort.  This is important, as I don't want to go back to the piercing shop a third time.

At noon, I drove into Croton to meet my friend from the census.  We try to meet at least once each month to catch up on things, and today, we met at a sushi joint in town. The conversation flowed like water.  All too soon, it was time to go home - and none too soon, as I had GI Tract issues.  When done, I drove to Target to buy a bathroom / shower shelf, so that all my bath needs could be in an easy to reach place.

And then, it was time to go home.  I got on Route 133, and less than a mile from the Saw Mill River parkway was the site of a multi car accident blocking the road.  Instead of waiting for things to clear up, I drove back to the Saw Mill parkway, taking a wide detour to get home.  Given that it is raining as I write this, I'm going to close out this entry because I doubt anything more of consideration will happen tonight.

Dinner with Vicki

 

It's always nice to get together with Vicki.  Tonight, it was sushi dinner at a new joint in Croton.  Although this place has been around for a few years, we never made it there for dinner.  We finally did, and enjoyed the experience.

But first....

When I got up today, I was in a rush and forgot a few things. This was a harbinger of little things to come. Arriving at the office, I found that I didn't take my morning medications.  So I figured that I'll avoid trying to play catch up, and take my evening pills when I got home.  I then noticed that I had lost an extendable back scratcher, so I used one that wasn't as effective - and left it at the office.  Since I had no more lunches available to me, I planned to buy 2 more lunches to finish out the week on my way home - that wouldn't happen either.  But I get ahead of myself.

I was surprised that I wasn't as sleepy as usual today, and was wide awake when I left the office.  Since I had errands to run, I drove to the auto parts store for a cabin air filter.  From there, it was off to Walmart to pick up some coin wrappers. Unfortunately, I didn't have the time to stop off at home to drop off my goods, so I didn't bother going to Shoprite as planned.  Instead, I met Vicki at the Sushi parlor.

Vicki and I had a belated birthday celebration, ordering way too much food.  Yet, we did a good job at finishing what was in front of us, and figured that we'd be going there again soon. Both of us liked the dresses each of us were wearing, and I felt good about my choice of what I wore today.  Once done with our "nutritious dishes of little raw fishes", it was off the the Blue Pig for dessert.

All too soon, it was time to leave - and we went our separate ways.  I will miss her when she retires and leaves the NYC area....