June 17, 2014 Flam, Norway

Flam Village

Flam Village

Waterfall

Waterfall

Laerdal Village near Flam

Laerdal Village near Flam

June 17, 2014   Flam, Norway and Scenic Cruising of Sognefjord

 Flam is a very picturesque village located several hours from the open sea at the end of an extension of the Sognefjord, the Aurlandsfjord. The name of the village means “little place between steep mountains” which is exactly what you find at Flam. Snow-capped mountains surround the harbor. It is a popular holiday destination for hiking, fishing and biking.

Our shore excursion took us on the Flam Railway dating back to 1940 when this section of the railroad was finally completed after twenty years of construction. It was a major challenge for railway engineers of the period due to the fact that 80% of the line has a gradient of 55%, the equivalent of 1:18. In addition to the steep grade, a total of 20 tunnels exist — 4.5 miles in length– and 18 required to be hand dug.

The result is a spectacularly beautiful train journey providing panoramic views of the Norwegian mountains and valleys. Waterfalls cascade down the mountains into the river below. We saw fruit orchards, sheep grazing and goat farming for cheese production along the way. The train stopped along the way for a photo stop of one of the largest waterfalls in this area. When we reached our destination at Vatna-Halsen we disembarked the train for waffles and coffee at the local hotel. Some free time allowed us to wander out into the beautiful countryside to explore some of spring’s wildflowers, a local lake and to look for Trolls. Unfortunately as we have learned the trolls only come out at night so we were not lucky enough to spot any Trolls.

We returned to Flam via the railway where we explored the Flam Railroad Museum to gain more insight into the construction and history of the local railroad. In Flam we wandered the small village, which consists of a hotel, market, visitors center and a variety of large souvenir shops selling trolls and other Norwegian items. No wifi internet sites were to be found……lots of frustrated people, or at least us!

The entertainer on this night was Petrina Johnson a star of the BBC television series “Showstoppers” and has also performed in London musicals like Sunset Boulevard, Copacabana and Evita. We had enjoyed her voice on the world cruise last year and she was excellent this night as well.

June 16, 2014 Stavanger, Norway

Stavanger Harbor

Stavanger Harbor

Kent Smoking his Fish

Kent Smoking his Fish

Stavanger Wooden Homes

Stavanger Wooden Homes

June 16, 2014   Stavanger, Norway

 As this was our second stop in Stavanger this trip we checked out a couple of new museums and explored a few new parts of town. The weather was once again sunny, warm and glorious.

Our first stop was the Norwegian Petroleum Museum that is located in a sleek, modern building along the fjord not far from our ship. The museum has an enormous amount of information about the offshore oil industry that has made Norway one of the richest countries in the world after the discovery of oil in 1969. They have films showing where the petroleum comes from, models of dozens of drilling platforms, a collection of drilling bits, drilling rig helicopter transport information, a film about the divers who work at the ocean floor in special pressurized vehicles and suits. It was a very interesting museum that gave us much more insight into what happens on a drilling rig in the middle of the ocean.

We also visited the Norwegian Canning Museum located in the one of the town’s former canning factories dating from 1880 to 1930. In 1915 Stavanger exported 350,000 cans of sardines to 59 countries. Inside the museum we saw equipment from each step of the process: the arrival of the fish in crates of ice; the salting; the threading , which made them ready to be smoked in huge wood burning ovens; the removal of the heads; packing the fish; adding oil and sealing the cans.

They also have equipment for you to see how the cans were made from metal, soldered together, sterilized, washed, sealed, packed in waxed paper and labeled with a paper label. In later years the exterior wrapping was replaced with cans that were already printed onto the metal.

Laborers used to do most of the work by hand including solderers who could solder 500 to 600 cans closed a day, the threading of the fish on thin rods ready for smoking, packing of the fish into the tins to the actual can production. In this particular factory in addition to the smoked sardines they also made fishballs and fishcakes that were either boiled or fried. No samples were available. Canneries existed in Stavanger until 1982.

We shared drinks and dinner with several of the LGBT group. The night’s entertainer was a violinist who played classical, Gypsy, Jazz, Country and Irish Fiddle music. He is a very accomplished musician and the show was excellent.

June 15, 2014 Sea Day

June 15, 2014   Sea Day

 It was a quiet sea day to relax before a string of four port days of touring and exploring ashore. We attended a couple of lectures about the upcoming ports of call and what shore excursions were available as well as the things to see and do in the next couple of ports. Kent actually worked out at the gym to enable the consumption of more deserts, while Mark worked on his blog.

The LBGT gathering included a couple of new fellows and six of us decided to dine together in the dining room, then attended the show on the first row to better see the “blossoms” up close!

 

The evening’s entertainment was a show by the Ryndam singers and dancer’s called Classique. The show included music from Mozart to Manilow showing how classical music and dance has inspired artists of all generations. Most agreed it was one of the best shows we’d seen so far!

June 14, 2014 Dover, England

June 14, 2014   Dover, England

 This morning the majority of the guests who were on the ship for the last week were headed home and a new ship full of passengers were arriving. We took a double decker shuttle bus to the Dover Castle that sits atop the hill overlooking the port. The Castle has a 2,000-year history of protecting the English coast at its closest point to France across the channel.

The castle grounds consist of the great tower, medieval tunnels, churches, halls, an underground hospital, secret wartime (WWII) tunnels and more. Henry II built the present castle in the 1180’s, and over the next 800 years it was adapted to meet the changing demands of weapons and warfare.

Inside the Great Tower you find a museum, interactive exhibition and recreated interior of the castle from the time of Henry II. Costumed actors portray the King and his court roaming the rooms of the castle reenacting what may have gone on at the time the castle was built.

We took a tour of the Underground Hospital built within a maze of underground tunnels. The tour of the hospital takes you through the hospital wards, operating room and nurses dormitories.

The “Operation Dynamo: Rescue from Dunkirk” tunnel tour takes you through some of the 3.8 miles of underground tunnels where the 1940 operation to evacuate hundreds of thousands of soldiers from Dunkirk, France was planned. With the use of actual film footage from the time along with recreated war rooms, they bring to life this difficult time in the spring of 1940 when the allied forces came close to total destruction by the advancing Germans. Luckily they were able to evacuate most of the allied forces (some 385,000) from the beach at Dunkirk before the Germans who had them surrounded arrived.

The tunnels were built using technology available at the time to build mining tunnels. The chalk like material of the hillside was excavated and the tunnels were lined with steel arched supports. The tunnels are maybe ten feet high at the center of the ceiling and about fifteen feet wide at the base. It is damp and musty and would have been filled with cigarette and pipe smoke at the time. Not a very pleasant environment to work in or to be recuperating from surgery. All aboard time today was 3:00pm so we did not have a lot of time to explore ashore but we enjoyed our time at the Dover Castle.

We were required to attend another lifeboat drill for this next two-week segment of our trip. There was the usual sail away party on deck as we departed Dover; an opportunity to check out the new passengers who boarded the ship today. There was an LGBT cocktail event in the bar where we met a new passenger, Eldon, from Saskatchewan, Canada but now living in Florida. He is a very nice gentleman in the accounting business. We had dinner this evening in the dining room with a new friend, Eddy, who was on the ship last week as well. He is a derivatives trader from Melbourne but has been traveling the world for several months. He is headed to Hungary to purchase property to refurbish and rent to students. His father lives in Budapest. Eddy has lots of interesting stories to tell from his 45 years of life!

 

June 12, 2014 Ulvik, Norway

Ulvik Fossli Hotel

Ulvik Fossli Hotel

Reservoir on the Plateau

Reservoir on the Plateau

One of the waterfalls near the hotel

One of the waterfalls near the hotel

June 12, 2014   Ulvik, Norway and Scenic Cruising of Hardangerfjord

 Ulvik is much more of a village than it is a city. With a population of only 1000 residents or so you can hardly call it a city. The city was once difficult to access but just last year a new suspension bridge slightly larger than the golden gate bridge was opened making access in and out of the town more accessible.

Our tour on this morning took us about 90 minutes drive out of town to the Hardangervidda Nature Center in Eidfjord where we saw an interesting film presentation on a 225-degree wide panoramic screen. The movie featured the local floral and fauna, waterfalls and canyons as seen from a helicopter. In addition to the film there was a very nice museum of taxidermy animals and exhibits showing what exists in the local area. There were birds, rabbits, rodents, elk, reindeer and more.

Our next stop was a drive up to the Hardanger Mountain Plateau. The meandering roads along the rivers and fjords are scattered with homes and vacation cottages of all sizes and shapes. In the lower elevations of the area you find many fruit orchards including apples and cherries. This area is the fruit basket of Norway. As we climbed to the higher elevations we found that trees were no longer able to survive the climate and the land becomes much more barren. At the top of the plateau is a large man made reservoir and power plant. Not only was it raining at the reservoir but also the temperature had dropped into the 40’s. Snow can still be seen on the surrounding hillsides. Between the melting snow and the rain you find many incredible waterfalls throughout the area.

We stopped on our way back to the ship at an old historic hotel that started operating here more than 100 years ago, before modern roads were built and people could arrive by automobile. The hotel is still owned by the original family who started the hotel back in 1891. We enjoyed a variety of cakes, coffee and tea in the hotel. The hotel sits just above the Voringfoss waterfall that is a sight to see.

The town of Ulvic is very small so there is little to see other than a few hotels, a juice and cider factory, the local church and a cemetery.

Even though we have not headed too far north yet, we are experiencing very long days and very short nights. Sunset tonight was at 10:59pm and sunrise was at 4:14am. It seems as though the sun never sets and it is difficult to judge what time of day it is without looking at your watch. It is still light when you go to bed and light when you get up in the morning.

We were invited to a cocktail party this evening in a lovely suite on the ship. Two new friends Dan and Elsie from Oakland and Berkeley were hosting the party in Dan’s cabin. Tonight’s dinner was another formal dinner with the traditional escargots, steak and lobster and soufflé for dessert. The entertainment was another show by the Ryndam singers and dancers called Droom. The show is like an enchanted dream garden, where mystical creatures both good and evil dwell. This production was one of the most elaborate we have seen on a ship with extensive costumes, props and video projected backdrops. These new shows are much grander than those we saw when we first started cruising in 1996.

June 11, 2014 Stavanger, Norway

Pulpit Rock

Pulpit Rock

Stavanger Church

Stavanger Church

Stavanger Waterfront

Stavanger Waterfront

Norwegian Waffles

Norwegian Waffles

June 11, 2014   Stavanger, Norway

 Stavanger is about 30 square miles in size and is the fourth largest city in Norway. Prior to the discovery of oil in the North Sea in 1969, Stavanger was known as a canning town with over 50 canneries operating. Since the discovery of oil this city of 125,000 has become known as an oil town. The boom of the oil industry has also made it one of the most expensive cities in the world and one with very low unemployment. The city is comprised of many wooden homes from the 18th and 19th centuries. These beautiful old homes are protected by the city’s cultural heritage department as a reminder of its past.

We took a cruise through the Stavanger Archipelago this morning in search of the natural wonder called Pulpit Rock. This protruding rock cliff is unique in that it is square in shape, measuring 82 by 82 feet, flat at the top and rising nearly 2,000 feet above sea level. The rock was formed during the last ice age some 10,000 years ago when the edge of a glacier was believed to stop just above the mountaintop.

The Fjords are beautiful with a variety of terrain ranging from gentle sloping hillsides to steep rocky cliffs along the banks of the Fjord. After viewing Pulpit Rock from the water we stopped at a shore side restaurant for traditional Norwegian waffles served with jam and sour cream. The waffles are thinner and more soft than crunchy than those we are used to at home, but nonetheless delicious.

In the afternoon we explored the city center on foot. The city is built on the hillsides surrounding the Fjords and the charming streets are narrow and winding. We wandered the largest surviving wooden house settlement in Northern Europe where we are able to visit a museum in one of the old wooden houses where several families, as many as 30 people may have lived at one time. Times were tough in this old canning town and housing was expensive. In the city center you find Norway’s oldest cathedral built around 1100 overlooking a lovely lake with swans, birds, flowering beds and park benches.

The entertainment this evening is a one-man show by Jonathan Clark. He is a singer, comedian and vocal impressionist for a large number of stars like Michael Jackson, Ray Charles, Neil Diamond, Tina Turner, Tom Jones, etc.

June 10, 2014 Kristiansand, Norway

Summer Homes

Summer Homes

Lillesand Waterfront

Lillesand Waterfront

Lillesand Architecture

Lillesand Architecture

Another Summer Retreat

Another Summer Retreat

Kent and his new pet Moose

Kent and his new pet Moose

June 10, 2014   Kristiansand, Norway

 As a gateway to and from the continent, once a military stronghold, Kristiansand is the fifth largest city in Norway with a population of about 85,000. This area has been inhabited since prehistoric times. In 1996 a well-preserved skeleton of a woman dating back to 6500 BC was discovered in the area.

Known today for being the second largest attraction in Norway is the local zoo, attracting over one million visitors a year. Bryggeri is a local producer of beer and soft drinks since 1859. The Hennig-Olsen family has been producing ice cream in the area since 1924.

Kristiansand is also known as the sunniest city in Norway and also known as the floral town of Norway. In summer you will find more than 20,000 flowers in bloom around the city.

Although the forecast called for rain, we lucked out and the weather was warm and sunny until late in the day when we had some light rain. By then most guests had returned to the ship and we were on our way to the next port of call.

Our tour this morning took us by boat from Kristiansand to a town called Skottevik. The 90-minute boat ride took us into many small inlets, around small islands where we could see how the locals spend their weekends or holidays at second homes on the sea. Many of these home have existed here for hundreds of years and been passed down from generation to generation. These homes range from very small cottages to very elaborate looking homes, but most all of them are painted white. White paint was once a luxury item and was brought back to Norway by its sailors. All who could afford to have a white house did. For others it might only mean they would have a white façade but today most of the houses remain white. The landscaping is very picturesque with hills of stone and lush green landscaping.

After the boat cruise we boarded a bus for a scenic drive to the town of Lillesand, named for its small sand beach. The sand beach is about the size of a postage stamp but it is a beach. Lillesand is a charming seaside town of 18th and 19th century timber homes, all of which are painted white. The gardens are filled with spring flowers in bloom making for a very inviting spot.

In the afternoon we headed into Kristiansand on foot where we discovered pedestrian only streets filled with shops of all sorts. We walked through the local fish market, checked out the third largest cathedral in Norway, the 1672 fortress and a band playing music in the central square. Souvenir shopping featuring trolls of all varieties seem to be the most popular. You can find troll key chains, statues, figurines, refrigerator magnets, postcards and more.

Tonight’s entertainment was a show by the Ryndam singers and dancers called Heat. The show took you on an exotic tour around the globe via a wall of projected photos and videos. The songs mostly featured fire or something steamy.

You may be asking where all the talk about the people is? Well, we did meet a 43 year old, gay music producer from Nashville who is quite a character. He had just finished working with some producers for Cold Play and Rhianna in London. Since he had finished his work earlier than expected and friends were sailing on the ship he decided to join them. He is quite the storyteller with one joke after the next, always entertaining. Most often found entertaining at the bar or in the casino at a black jack table.

There are a large number of Brits on the ship since the ship leaves and returns to Dover, eliminating the need to fly anywhere. The British enjoy their full English breakfast of baked beans, sausage, bacon, eggs and tomatoes. Beer and tea with milk are in high demand as well. We have enjoyed interacting with the Brits but we are always amazed at how we speak the same language but we often have trouble understating what they are talking about. The expressions and words they use to describe things are often very different from American English.

June 9th, 2014 Oslo, Norway

Oslo

Kent in the Center of Oslo

Vigeland Sculpture Garden

Vigeland Sculpture Garden

Oslo Parliament House

Norway Parliament Building in Oslo

Oslo Street

Oslo Street

Oslo Vigeland Sculpture Garden

Vigeland Sculpture Park in Oslo

Viking Museum Ship

Viking Museum Ship

June 9, 2014   Oslo, Norway

Oslo, Norway was founded in 1049 by Harold III, although scientists have found evidence of earlier habitation. The name Oslo is generally interpreted to mean “meadow at the foot of a hill.” Around 1299, King Haakon V took up residence in the city and Oslo became the capital and center of commerce for Norway. In the 14th century, Oslo came under the dominance of the Hanseatic League. After a great fire in 1624, the city was rebuilt and renamed Christiania (later also Kristiania) until 1925 when the name Oslo was made official again. In World War II, Oslo fell (Apr. 9, 1940) to the Germans, and it was occupied until the surrender (May, 1945) of the German forces in Norway.

Oslo is still considered one of the great maritime centers of the world and is Norway’s most populous city with about 635,000 inhabitants. The population including the surrounding suburbs climbs to around 1,500,000. Oslo is the economic and governmental center of Norway. The city is also a hub of Norwegian trade, banking, industry and shipping. It is an important center for maritime industries and maritime trade in Europe. The city is home to many companies within the maritime sector, some of which are among the world’s largest shipping companies, shipbrokers and maritime insurance brokers.

Oslo is a beautiful city featuring both old traditional stone buildings as well as modern glass construction. The main square is comprised of a wonderful park with water fountain, colorful landscaping and great sculpture. Surrounding the park is a classic old hotel, the parliament house and a variety of shops and restaurants spilling out into the street like you would find in Paris.

In the afternoon we took a tour, which took us to the Viking Museum where we found the remains of several Viking ships that have been uncovered from the times of the Vikings between 800 and 1100AD. The ships were used in burials of kings and queens. The ships would be filled with everything that the person buried might need in the afterlife (The Kingdom of the Dead) including horses, food, jewelry and servants.

Our next stop was at the Kon-Tiki museum where we learned more about Thor Heyerdahl who wanted to prove that inhabitants of South America and Polynesia were indeed trading goods and knowledge using small boats or rafts. He proceeded to build several rafts from reeds and balsa wood in the 1900’s and travelled from South America to Polynesia only using the wind and the ocean currents.

The last stop of our tour was at the Vigeland Sculpture Park. Gustav Vigeland was a stone sculptor of the human form. In this park you find more than 200 of his sculptures representing human life from birth to death. He sculpted babies, children, young people, adults, older people and people at death. In addition to the granite sculptures he also sculpted in bronze representing the human life cycle as well. On this day the park was filled with people of all ages enjoying the sunshine, as it was some type of holiday and most people had the day off from work.

The evening’s entertainment back onboard the Ryndam was a comedian by the name of Tom Sutton. His thoughts and jokes were very well thought out but not especially funny.

June 8, 2014


June 8, 2014 Sea Day

We enjoyed a fairly quiet day at sea today: breakfast in the dining room, lunch in the casual Lido Restaurant which is more like a cafeteria, afternoon tea in the dining room and a formal dinner in the dining room complete with tuxedos. As you can tell we are not getting off to a very good start with the diet.

There was an art history lecture, shore excursion lecture, port lecture for Oslo and Kristiansand.

The entertainment this evening was a show called “Aces High” performed by the Ryndam singers and dancers. The music included songs from the Big Bands to the Beatles.

June 7, 2014

White Cliffs of DoverJune 7, 2014 Dover, England

We departed from Victoria Station by train at 8:22am bound for Dover, England where we would board the Holland America Line ship the Ryndam for our cruise of the Norwegian Fjords. When we had booked the train tickets months ago there appeared to be a direct train to Dover but by today that was not the case. We had to take one train most of the way, get off of the train and board a bus for a twenty minute ride to another town. There we were able to catch a second train to take us into Dover where we would need to take a short taxi ride to the port. We arrived at the ship shortly before noon.

We had sailed on the Ryndam in 2002 from San Diego to the Mexican Riviera, but the ship has luckily been renovated and remodeled since then. The cabins have been updated with new bathroom finishes; the cabin has newer carpeting, drapes, and bedding, light fixtures and sofa.

By 4:00pm we had set sail for Oslo, Norway.

On this voyage we have what they call open seating dining which means that we have no assigned table for dinner but instead can arrive at the dining room for dinner anytime between 5:30 and 9:30 and be seated similar to how you would be seated in any restaurant. On this night we shared a table with three British couples that were all very nice.

The entertainment on this night was a variety show introducing the ships singers and dancers, as well as the different groups of entertainers who perform around the ship in different lounges.