7th-14th - In the Arctic

Thursday 7^th Tromso – Gateway to the North Pole.  The largest town in polar Scandinavia.  300km inside the Arctic Circle on the same latitude as northern Alaska.

We woke just after 5, by which time we were passing the outer snow-capped mountains. The fjord opened out into a very wide bay. It was COLD . . we are heading for maximum 5c today. Luckily our balcony doors are double glazed.   We are now at 70 degrees North.  We had a good breakfast, rugged up and went out onto the top deck.  It was freeeeezing.  Our bodies were warm enough, it was just the face and ears that were cold.  We watched a few people heading ashore and walking out of the dock area, so maybe there is a bus stop nearby.   We also set off and luckily there was a bus waiting.  Cost 56 kroners (about $8 for both of us) to get to centro.  We walked a couple of blocks and located the pretty modern library.  Warmth and free wifi so we could skype Steph.  She had seen us on the pool deck 2 days ago and posted the image onto Facebook for all to see.

Modern library

I left Chris in the library and walked 2.5km in the drizzling rain to the University Museum.  This is the most Northerly University in the world for any of you quiz buffs.   This has collections from the Stone Age, Viking era and middle ages, Hanseatic period and the local Sami culture.  Most displays had English translations and there was a video of the Northern Light phenomenon.  I spent an hour or so there and then walked back to the library in the drizzle passing the Polar museum and a ship in a glass house.  Very short wander in the town centre and we caught the bus back to the ship.  Late lunch and then an afternoon of fun and frivolity in the Tiger lounge. 

The afternoon quiz was national capitals. We did well, thanks to previous cruises and freakishly knowing the capital of Somalia. There was a German group sitting to our left who were obviously referring to lists and were pulled up by Sebastian. We thought we might be contenders but we weren’t counting on the travel agent sitting behind us! Also, we had been looking at the pocket diary atlas for some reason the previous day and noticed Odessa on the Black Sea. So when they wanted the capital of Ukraine we thought we were in . . L . . Kiev was under the staple between the pages!

We finished with half an hour of Joseph before dinner, which had some tasty dishes. The only entertainment was the Pirate Party, which was a tribal war between 2 rival passenger teams. This kept us awake until midnight, so we finally got to go out to see the Midnight Sun. It was hidden behind clouds but there was obviously broad daylight.

Friday 8^th Further North.

Sun: Up   Latitude:74N Temperature:2c

We slept late and suddenly realised we hadn’t quite missed Joseph so we guzzled brekky and made off with a pile of fruit. Which wasn’t the ideal way to prepare for 45 minutes aerobics but we kept it all together. The quiz was all about European Soccer so we skipped that and J went to an Italian lesson and 2 dance classes.

Today was the second leg of the cumulative quiz. We shared 7/10 with one other team, which left us in a 3 way tie for the overall lead with 3 rounds to come. Dinner followed a 30 minute Joseph – the German couple took turns crying but the other couple didn’t seem to notice. We are having what you would call a champagne sundowner if the sun was going down, before the evening show - Dracula. J did the Mambo lesson.

Another very good show. The pole dancer was back with a similar act but performed on the silk ribbons. The original balancing trio were back and the male vocalist who sang a Queen number rather well. These shows are very artfully compiled and effectively presented and its probably the best thing MSC have going for them.

Saturday 9^th Ny Allesund – 80 degrees North

We woke to bright daylight. It was only 3am but there was no cloud and it was like a sunny day at home. We slept in until about 7 then had a brekky and took to the gym, mainly for the forward views. We were due to enter the Magdalena Fjord at about 7.30 and cruise for a few hours and we did head towards what looked like a shallow bay. As we approached very slowly, it seemed that the bay did veer off to the right and open out but there were rows of exposed rocks jutting out from both sides and the Captain announced that we were going to stay outside and enjoy the views from there. At this point, the TV monitor showed us a bare whisker short of 80 degrees North.

Smaller ship in front of a glacier

An oldish and small Norwegian ferry cruised past us, totally dwarfed by our 15 storeys. We had heard about them – apparently they provide a mail and freight service and call in to each of the fjords and you can travel on them but they are not fitted out as passenger carriers or cruise ships. I was curious to see where it went after it passed us so I went out the back into an open area, expecting that I would totally freeze in my wet Tshirt. In fact, with the sun shining brightly and no wind, it was very pleasant. I walked the whole way round to the back of the ship, surrounded by hundreds of passengers who were rugged up to the ears in blizzard proof gear. I got some looks of astonishment.

I went back and told J it was beautiful, which of course she did not believe, but she brought the cameras out and we took a lot of snaps and footage. We do have some good pics and I will just say that it was a lovely and spectacularly beautiful place and we were blessed to be there on such a perfect day. We took off again after a while and the breeze of our motion immediately chilled the air. It was time for Joseph anyway and we arrived just in time to stop him packing up because nobody else had turned out. A few more arrived and we had another good sweat. This ran on to a game of transporting coffee beans by sucking them against a straw. J won and I nearly choked by managing to suck a small bean right through the straw. So now we have a MSC tie pin to add to the booty haul. The Aussie girls from Canberra had saved a savagely toxic apple cocktail from the bar demonstration and I drank it, which fuelled a sound snooze after lunch. We were just tucking in to the salmon steaks when somebody walked past in a West Coast windcheater. I waved him down and showed him my 2006 Premiership wristband. Interesting to meet another Eagles supporter in the Arctic Circle.

We had been late in getting tender tickets so we were scheduled for a very late one. But we met the Aussie girls again and decided on impulse to go down when their number was called, just on the offchance of getting on. As luck would have it, one of our friends from the entertainment staff was on duty and let us past.

The settlement at Ny Alesund consists of about 30 research scientists, who live in a tiny community at the site of an old coal mine. This was where Amundsen took off from on his Zeppelin flights over the North Pole, which is 1000 miles away.

 It has the northernmost hotel and post office in the world and there is a souvenir shop, which must open only on about 6 days of the year when cruise ships come in? There were 2 ladies serving and 3500 customers so there was a one hour plus queue to get a fridge magnet, which displays the engine from the old train at the coal mine and the latitude 79N.

Coal train

Line up for the most northerly post office in the world

Most northerly pub in the world

Oldest building in town...was once the school

Signs proclaim that you must not leave the town site without a weapon and sure enough a local emerged from a building and took off on a cycle with a very serious looking rifle across his back.  (polar bears)  There was a radar station just outside town and a scattering of scientific instruments and apparatus all over the place. No sign of bears but there was a small grey reindeer near the water close to the town.

Reindeer, a lot smaller than I thought they would be

A pod of what was apparently Beluga whales(below) skimmed just under the surface parallel to the beach just as we were heading back to the tender. So lucky to see them.

Shop...with locals sitting in the sun on the verandah watching the crowds while downing a beer.

A very large glacier

We missed the afternoon quiz and Joseph and went straight into dinner. We left at 8 and headed south. No shows tonight – just a Hollywood Quiz at 10.30. The sun is still shining brightly and lighting up the white mountains and snowfields as we cruise slowly South. Little birds are flapping frantically to get away from us but only a very few succeed in taking off and skimming the waves. Most of them stop and dive under water again. Could they be Puffins?

The movie quiz was enjoyable – we offered to share with the German redhead but she said she had some others coming. So we whupped them lol. We didn’t win overall but we had a good time and enjoyed the feeling that we had got all the answers we possibly could. Only 2 wrong.

Sunday 10^th Longyearbyen

Still latitude 78 and 4c. Still 24 hour sunshine. The shuttle buses were all sold out but it was only 2 km into town and a pleasant walk. So much for the ship leaflet which said it was 20 minutes by bus!! There wasn’t a lot to see – a few shops and a supermarket. Oooh and the library, which must surely be the northernmost. There was also an overpriced museum cum information centre, where you had to wear little shoe condoms. I assumed that was to protect the wooden flooring but the library (which was closed until 11am) had signs explaining that this is a tradition from the days when there was an active coal mine in town.  All shoes removed to stop coal dust entering the houses.

Skidoo anyone?

eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeek

A limo up here????   Why?????

Old coal buckets and frames

Dog sled....with wheels for summer time

It was interesting (well it fascinated me) that the supermarket had frozen Norwegian salmon for about the same price we pay. So what was so special about the stuff they were selling in the market at Bergen? Maybe it was fresh but  . . 5 times the price???

We walked back to the ship in time for Joseph at 10am. Except that it was Sebastian and he stood and talked at us for 40 minutes instead, while his colleagues and his supervisor wandered up and tried to attract his attention. The game and the group dance didn’t happen either but there was hardly anyone on board.

We went into lunch early . . along with 3000 others . . so we took our plates down to the cabin, where I © managed to spill Bolognese sauce on the sheet. I made the effort to stack the plates on the fridge before we fell asleep, but then dropped the whole lot on the bedspread anyway. We slept for 2 hours and then wandered in to watch the games. J won a cap naming an Elvis song and then they went straight into an unannounced quiz where you had to identify celebrities from caricatures. We had seen and solved most of them last year and managed 20/22. To our great surprise, that was enough to win Tshirts. J’s German friend sat with us and we shared answers – wasn’t she delighted! She doesn’t speak any English but they have compared Grandchild Stats and we have seen her pics.

Next was the lesson to learn the Euro 2012 Dance, which J and friend both did. Then 30 minutes of Joseph, watched by a big crowd that was there for the bingo afterwards. We had snowy mountains outside our window for most of the afternoon but have now launched into the crossing back to the mainland, still well above the Arctic Circle. Must remember to get a lotus in while we are up there.

One of the photographers begged us into sitting (standing actually) for portraits after dinner. (Did I mention that I got Bolognaise sauce inside my collar at dinner?) J went to the samba lesson, which was stolen by a baby somewhere around 20 months that got put on the stage and then started bobbing and clapping to the music, rather like what Lachie was doing recently on Facebook. We haven’t been counting but it is 13 days until we get home (and probably about 18 before we regain our senses.)  (J:  can’t quite believe it is so close now)

There was a classical music show which was very good. We were surprised that we were familiar with all the operatic pieces they played and sang (very well). The animation team was out drumming up support for the Carnival at 10.30 and J got scragged by Josephine (Frau Friend) and promised to come back and dance with her. They put on a good show in the Tiger Bar, scene of the aerobics, quiz and games.  J was coerced into wearing a handmade crepe paper costume for the Carnival parade and had to strut her stuff across the floor.  The dancers breezed through, everybody got dragged up for a conga/samba which ended on the dance floor and YMCA. We sat with Josephine and J danced with her until she suddenly announced it was bed time. We are getting used to it but it is weird to return to your room at midnight to sun streaming in the window.

Sebastion & Natasha

Hmmmmmm.. Autumn.  Joseph is in the background, smiling as always.

Monday 11^th Honningsvag

In reality a sea day - we don’t reach land until 7pm and then cast off again at 2am tomorrow. The Dutch couple from Meadow Springs are unhappy that when they booked their excursion they thought it was for 8am. Honninsvag is the northernmost mainland town in Europe (71N). The excursions are to the little monument at North Cape, which is the northernmost point. Having been to 80 degrees  on the island, we weren’t inclined to spend $90 each to see a statue. There is no entertainment at all tonight.

We remembered the photos at lunchtime and went for a look. They had printed 5 A4 photos and blown up 2 of them to A3 size. They had also put in a lot of time with the photoshopping, removing, inter alia, the Bolognaise from my collar. The pictures are 20 and 30 Euros respectively with discounts if you buy more than one. How do they make any money because they would be paying a bucketload to MSC for the photo franchise? We did warn the man that we NEVER buy pictures but he was very confident of his work. I should warn the children that J mentioned “Photos” and “Christmas Presents” in the same breath.

The day was spent in the Tiger Bar. I cancelled the service charge, J scored a couple of tiepins for naming songs (Abba & Michael Jackson) and we did fairly well in quiz contests about European soccer and Scandinavia. In the afternoon we formed a group in the front row with the Dutch and a couple of Aussies from Canberra and the redhaired German lady joined us. There was also the flamboyant  ABBA fan from Switzerland. We made the backbone of the entertainment – they might not let us get off! Rachel stood in for Joseph, which made for an easy aerobic session. We have taken to doing it barefoot and are getting very good at it. C was sensational in his singlet. ( Huhh Hmmmmppppffff)

Dinner was freestyle to accommodate the late excursions. We went in about 7 and were shown to a table with the German/American couple we usually sit with. Luckily they were happy to see us. We rugged up and went ashore – it was 7c and just a comfortable temperature for wandering. There wasn’t a lot to see – people were going to see the church which was the only building the Nazis left standing when they retreated in 1945. We had a short internet session, enough to establish that nobody had died. We had gone back for a cup of tea before I realised that this was our last stop above the Arctic Circle. Luckily we were moored right next to the town and it was easy enough to go back – I found an adventure shop that displayed its latitude prominently (71N) so I squatted on a quadbike for a photo in broad daylight at 11pm.

Famous local dog, Bamse

Tuesday 12^th Heading South

Sometime in the next couple of days the sun will set – briefly at first. We are really enjoying the late starts with brekky and then Joseph at 9.15. He is making it harder and still getting a good turnout. We booked the scenic excursion for J in a couple of days and the Captain has invited us for cocktails after dinner tonight.

The morning quiz was to recognise celebrities from their childhood pictures (and a clue from the presenter).  We were sitting with the Aussie girls and the Swiss when Josephine (German lady – who speaks very little English but seems to love us) hove into view across the dance floor. She squealed and waved and careered towards us – I lay back to get out of the way and she dived on me and kissed me then set about J – her Idol. We were sharing answers with the others but doing our own sheet as a trio. Josephine suggested that the racing driver might have been Michael Schumacher and it was!!! And we thought she was excited before! We got 19/20 but there were a couple of 20s so we didn’t win.

The mainland is visible some kilometres away from our balcony. We are in bright sunshine but the mountains are topped with clouds. We didn’t see any boats at sea while we up north but now there are a few fishing boats about.

The afternoon passed in the Tiger lounge. Strange that Joseph came and tried to tell us Kenya won the first World Cup when we know it was Uruguay? Sebastian had to kick a soccer ball 40 times but couldn’t manage to – he actually got to run a quiz this afternoon. J not feeling the best and didn’t do Rachel’s aerobics.

The 10.30 entertainment was guessing movies by the theme music.  We got all but 1 (The Matrix).  Then the entertainment team acted out each of the movies during the answer time.  Very funny.  We had seen this done before but not this well – Joseph kept stealing the show, usually in frock and wig, and the finale when he and Sebastian came out and did Rocky really brought the house down.

Wednesday 13^th At Sea

We crossed the Arctic Circle at 7 am and tonight the sun will finally set . . at 11.44pm! The usual morning with a men vs women competition that the men won. The afternoon amusements didn’t start until 4pm because they were auditioning the Talent Show, which we didn’t know about. Trying to organize the Aussies to sing. Seems there was another helicopter evacuation last night.

We finally had Round 3 of the cumulative Champions Quiz, which we started as joint leaders. The questions were quite weird – do giraffes live longer than zebras (unfortunately no) what colour was the first chewing gum (pink) etc. We managed 8/10 which was the top score, thanks to Josephine’s hubby dropping in and telling us that it was divorce that was illegal in Italy until 1970. So now we are the sole leaders. We won an MSC keyring each which J immediately passed to our German dinner companions, who happened to be there. They looked very happy with that. Without getting too far ahead of ourselves, IF we stay ahead in the final  game we will each win a small rucksack full of MSC merchandise, which we pretty much have already.

Joseph did the 5pm aerobics and J shot out after dinner to learn the River Dance. Rachel was a bit lacklustre this morning so I went up and pumped some iron. I have a list of things to do on the internet while J is sightseeing tomorrow. 3 more cruising days and we will be at home in 10!!

We went down to the Miss Polar Ice show. J had outright dismissed any thought of competing but when Olga came and asked her she looked undecided and got sucked up on stage. The first eliminator of the 20 or so women was to be one of the final four to keep their balloon intact which was tied to their ankle, while trying to stamp out everyone else’s. J and a couple of young Spanish girls nodded and winked at each other and hunted as a pack, thereby reaching the final 4. Thereafter they had to perform a solo river dance (good timing for J), select their partner by feeling their face while blindfolded, and protest their undying devotion by reading a script in Norwegian – with a mouthful of ice. (Very funny when you watch someone else do it – not so funny when it is you)

The staff - Olga pointing at us

Me centre stage

The winner was by applause, which went overwhelmingly to the Italian girl on a national basis. There obviously weren’t any Aussies to shriek when J was introduced. But I was very proud of her. This was worth another Tshirt and a pair of caps. We are beginning to think that maybe we should have a look at the cruise video because we must feature in it by now.

Thursday 14^th

We woke early with the boat navigating its way into a long fjord and then dropping a few loads of sightseers who will be taking buses to our eventual destination. C had a fever and we had only a very short stay ashore checking emails (none). J went off on her tour after lunch and returned in time for sailing at 6.

Notice the blue flowers on the roof of the building

My tour went to Mount Dalsnibba which sits high over the town site of Geiranger.  The guide was excellent giving information on this town/ local area and Norway in general.  Up a series of switchbacks through the town, past stunning waterfalls and farms until we reached the snowline.  Deep banks of snow will be there until mid-July.  We stopped at a restaurant that sits beside a frozen lake for afternoon tea.  Then set off for the top which was shrouded in a heavy mist with a few snowflakes gently falling.  Pity as the view straight down from the look out point seemed extremely steep.  We stopped at another lookout point lower down the valley on the return journey.

Hotel on the frozen lake.  Note holes and cracks in ice

The lake again

Viewpoint in thick cloud

Ice banks

Valley views

Note people on rock outcrop on the right

Most buildings have gardens on the roof for insulation

7 sisters falls

Male bottle shaped falls

We ate in the buffet. Actually we took food from the buffet and sat inside the solarium with sweeping views as we slowly cruised out of the long fjord. It was simply stunning, combining the best of the Norwegian fjords clothed in snow and Milford Sound in New Zealand with its sheer cliffs and cascading waterfalls. The town is locked in for most of the year by snow and the risk of falling rocks – no boats even. There is only one zigzag road that is open for part of the time. The houses look microscopic, huddled at the foot of the towering mountains with the fjord lapping right up to them. The summer tourist season is only 2 months long – Magniifica will not be coming up this far again this year. We are delighted that we took the opportunity.

We caught the second show at the theatre – probably their best, with all 3 troupes of lifting, balancing and gymnastic performers, as well as the dancers, who seem to get taller and lankier each time we see them.