Norwegian Fjord Cruise Vacation - 06/25/24 (Alesund, Norway)

 

Another day for which bad weather was predicted, and we got some nice sunshine with clouds.  Somehow, mother is treating us while our hometown suffers in a heat wave.  We could get used to wearing sweaters in the summer quite easily....

Today, we had to get up a little earlier than usual, as we had a treat in store for us: the Easy Hjorundfjord Cruise excursion.  This trip is on a catamaran which sails through the fjords, where we could see some of Norway's most awe inspiring vistas first hand.  Comparing the Trondheim excursion with this one would be like comparing Little League Baseball to the Major Leagues - there is no comparison.  So, instead of my usual narration, I will share the following photos to try to give you an idea of how awe inspiring this excursion was.

Don't you wish you were on this trip?

Norwegian Fjord Cruise Vacation - 06/24/24 (Trondheim, Norway)

 

When we first boarded this cruise, we were informed that the time for our Trondheim excursion (Trondheim by Streetcar and Coach) had changed from 9:00 am to 10:00 am.  Since this benefited us, we did not mind the change.  What we did mind was that RQS thought she reserved an afternoon excursion.  It didn't bother me much, as I was the one getting up early for most of this cruise so far.

Once both of us were fully awake, we trekked up to the buffet for breakfast, then back to our cabin to prepare for the excursion.  I made sure to put on some sturdy shoes and to arrange my backpack for easy access to my coat before going to the tour bus.

Although the tour was advertised as being 3 hours long, we were back at the ship by noon.  RQS felt like we didn't get our money's worth - and she would have been right.  Yet, we wouldn't have known how to get around this city by ourselves, nor would we have had access to a historic tram going to the end of the line.  If anything, we know what not to do if we ever visit this city again.

Once back on the ship, it was lunch time followed by a short nap.  After this, we dropped by the future trips desk to see why some paperwork hadn't yet been delivered, and we were told that it's due to the time difference between Norway and corporate HQ.  This sounded good to me, so it was off to dinner and then the show in the ship's theater.  Although the show was entertaining, I wouldn't have paid to see it.

- - - - - -

By now, you know the routine on this cruise ship:

1. Get up.
2. Get some breakfast
3. Get off the ship and do some sightseeing (Port days only).
4. Get some lunch.
5. Get some rest.
6. Get some dinner.
7. Get some entertainment.
8. Get to bed.

It's a simple routine, and one that could also get you fat.  And that's what I'm feeling after almost 2 weeks of being away from home.  Although I've been walking more than when I was at home, I've been eating more as well.  I'll hate to see what the scale says when I get home.  I'm beginning to think that maybe, just maybe, I should take the plunge and go for weekly injections to curb my appetite.  Yet, I know that's another part of the equation that has to be addressed: why I eat so much.

Norwegian Fjord Cruise Vacation - 06/23/24 (Sea Day #4)

 

When it's a sea day, this is the view one expects from a balcony cabin.  Of course, when you're above the Arctic Circle, you can get this view for days at a time.  However, we're sailing south, and we will soon enter the region where the sun sets every night - at earlier and earlier times each day.

This sea day was uneventful.  For the most part we rested, listened to the music from the main atrium and watched TV in our room.  Yet, we made one important decision: We decided to book an Alaskan Inside Passage Cruise for next year.  So we walked over to the future cruise desk and chatted with one of its staff members.  He presented us with a deal, that allowed us to get the line's concierge service, credit that would be used for payment of the cruise, and access to other deals (such as volume discounts from hotels with whom Princess does business) that would be unavailable if we booked the Alaskan cruise through our travel agent.  Although we don't know if this deal will be worth it, it looks like it should be a good bargain, as we will be taking our cruise within the 2-year window for the deal.

  

Later on, it was dinner at the ship's specialty seafood restaurant.  Our original plan was to watch a show in the ship's theater, then mosey to the restaurant around 9:00 pm.  However, there were no available seats in the theater, so we went to see if they could accommodate us at the restaurant.  This time, we had a better dining experience because the music from the atrium was not disturbing.  My starter was a pleasant Cioppino.  It was tasty, but not as good as those I've had in the SF Bay area.  Next was a dish they called a Concerto, basically seafood over pasta with a light red sauce.  This was yummy, and as good as any I've had in NYC's better Italian restaurants.

As you can guess, by the time we finished our dinner, we were not in the mood for anything other than bed.... 

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 - 06/21/24 (Sea Day #3)

 

The day started off by bright sunlight coming in from our balcony doors, waking us up hours before our normal wake-up time.  The ship had crossed the Arctic Circle, and both of us were awarded certificates for this event.  It's a nice and inexpensive way to give cruisers a keepsake to remember the cruise by.

- - - - - -

The first thing we planned to do was attend an enrichment presentation on the port after next, Trondheim.  However, we ended up missing it because we were relaxing in our cabin.  So, at 1 pm, we went to the outdoor pizza venue for some slices and were greeted by some frigid air.  BRRRR!   We grabbed our slices and went indoors to eat.  On our way back to the buffet area, we saw several people in the pool and in the hot tubs.  I wouldn't do that in this weather.  Shortly after our pizza run, it was time for afternoon tea.

Afternoon tea was pleasant.  We struck up conversations with several people at our table.  One couple was from Oklahoma, and we were able to maintain a civil conversation that referenced politics without trying to defend positions of either major political party.  (My statements focused on the commonality of opinions shared by most Americans, as the leaders of each party have gone to the extremes.)  RQS was having her conversations with people on the other side of our table as well.  After tea was over, a couple  came up to us and mentioned that they visit NYC from time to time.  Of course, I gave them tourist advice that most people wouldn't get from guidebooks - to venture into the outer boroughs to see functioning ethnic neighborhoods such as Arthur Avenue (a real Little Italy) and Flushing (Asian enclaves for Chinese, Japanese, Vietnamese and Koreans).

Later on, we had a specialty meal scheduled at the steakhouse.  As much as we tried, there was no way we could finish our meals.  We started with a sea scallop appetizer. The onion soup came next, and it was fantastic, as was the steak.  Instead of ordering a 16 oz. beef chop, I should have ordered the 7 oz. filet. RQS couldn't finish her smaller main course, and I had to leave most of my steak uneaten.  Neither of us could complain about our desserts, but they weren't exactly what would sate our cravings for the evening.

And now, thoroughly loaded up with carbs to digest, it was off to our room and off to sleep.  

Norwegian Fjord Cruise Vacation - 06/20/24 (Sea Day #2)

 

The day started at 6:00 am, with the sun having been out for an hour or two.  We had gone through choppy seas last night, and the motion of the ship (thanks to the ship's stabilizers) helped rock us to sleep.  This allowed us to wake up fully refreshed for the day....

After a hearty breakfast, we decided to go to Princess's pop up seafood restaurant, "Crab Shack" for lunch.  So, we called the reservations desk and found that the "nominal fee" for this meal would be $39/pp. + 18% Svc. Chg,  We registered ourselves for lunch and proceeded to kill time until for our feast.  And feast we did!  Each of us ordered a bowl of clam chowder and a seafood bucket which contained mussels, craw fish, shrimp, snow crab legs, and small clams of various types.  Both buckets contained enough food to feed two people, and I even had to give up with food left in the bucket.  Before leaving, we changed our next specialty dinner reservation to the middle of next week.  This way, we wouldn't have to eat two large meals in a single day.

A little bit later, RQS went out to exercise and I had some quiet time to myself.  It was nice to be able to rest and let my stomach do its thing for a while.  When RQS returned, we put a load of laundry into the washer, and moved it into the dryer when it was done.  This will give us another 5-6 days worth of clothing we can wear, but will force us to do another load sometime next week.

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.