GoNordic MiniCruise

You might think we'd have had enough of ships, but not so! I discovered that GoNordic runs a ferry from Oslo to Copenhagen, and turns it into a "mini-cruise" when you book two days in a row (so they don't have to deep clean those cabins in between). So mom and I boarded the Nordic Pearl for two nights of accomodation for the price of one night in Oslo, with a bonus day in Copenhagen, a new city and country for me!

It was fun. The Nordic Pearl is a lot larger than either the Hurtigruten Kong Harald or the Northlink Hjatland, the two overnight ferries we have done before. Here's a picture of the Nordic Pearl next to the Hurtigruten Trollfjord, which is itself twice as big as the Hurtigruten Kong Harald. In other words - the Nordic Pearl felt big. 

Our cabin was not big - pretty standard Northlink size. Very adequate. I might not need the window anymore (it helps with sea sickness) but it's sure nice. 

Mizucon Norway
The surprise was the passengers. So far, the Norwegians we'd seen have been a drab bunch. Black, brown, and other dark colors. With our purple raincoat, and my neon yellow rain pants - we stand out. But when we got to the waiting room to board the Nordic Pearl - that all changed. Pink, purple and red hair. Bright clothes. People greeting each other enthusiastically. The passenger with the 6' white angel wings and three swords. On board, there were pirates and maids and super heroes. You name the costume - we probably saw it. I finally asked someone in a fairly understated costume - and found out that we were in the middle of a con! It's held right on the boat - it's probably cheaper than regular hotel rooms - and how cool! No pictures - it didn't feel appropriate. 

Journey
Traveling south we could see land on both sides - it was a lot like the west of Norway - but a lot greener. 

Copenhagen
We got 6 hours in Copenhagen. At first, with the cold wind, gray skies, and rain, we weren't sure we'd make it. But in the end we had a lovely day. Mom got the open faced Scandanavian sandwich she wanted, and I got a lovely plate of spring rolls. And there were SO many bicycles. And bike carts. And strollers. We had to be careful to stay on the pedestrian sidewalk and not the bicycle trail. 

Journey North
The trip back north was a bit quieter, but still lovely. We slept great in our snug little cabin. 

When we got back, we took a truly miserable walk in the pouring rain with all of our stuff - but you see that I'm still smiling when we got to the airport! I was able to carry almost all of our stuff in my frame pack and one big suitcase, so mom only had to carry her daypack. 

Saunas and Wild Swimming

Scandanavians are serious about their saunas. There was a sauna on our Hurtigruten ship - free to use anytime. But it got more creative when we got to Oslo. In the harbor, there were several flotillas of funny little houseboats. We finally realized that they were saunas. They were very individualistic - so we have no idea how one chooses which one. When we passed by, there was an almost overwhelming smell of wood smoke. 

And then I spotted this craft wandering around the harbor. A sauna boat! They added a motor to the back, and presto-chango - it's a sauna boat! 

In Stromstad, later in our trip, we spotted this odd looking contraption on the water. Turns out it's a swimming spot. I assume the three or four sides create a protected spot in the center for swimming in the cold ocean. 

I have not swum in the ocean on this trip - but I did wade in the harbor in Oslo!

Oslo

I used to think that Oslo was location on the sea, in the bump in between Sweden and Norway. In fact, it is quite a bit further up a very long fjord - the yellow star in the photo below. 

Sørenga
In Oslo, we stayed in the Sørenga neighborhood, an old container dock that has been recently transformed into aparentments and recreation space. It was lovely. 

We arrived by train Monday evening, tired after our exciting rail journey. It supposed to be a 15 minute walk from the train station to our apartment, but with our ill and slow walkers, and carrying all of our stuff, it was more. But it was gorgeous.

In the daylight, it was still delightful. This is the swimming beach at the end of the peninsula, and shot of the whole area that I took later. 

The next morning, I walked Wendy and Meg across the causeway to the train station in the rain. They headed home earlier since Meg had to be at work. Mom and I get another week of vacation!

The next day, we took a nice long walk - also in the rain. We stopped to watch a woman feeding the razorbills - but not the seagulls. She dropped fish into the water while using a rake to ward off the seagulls. The razorbills were willing to dive for the fish. We don't know why she was doing this, but it was fun to watch.

We walked down Karl Johan, the main street, and got a glimpse of the Norwegian palace - and saw a few other things as well. 

Bergen Railway

With such a short visit to Bergen, Meg and I raced outside in the morning for an extra walk in the gorgeous sunshine. 

Bergen Express
The train journey from Bergen to Oslo is supposed to be one of the best rail journeys in the world. It takes 7 hours to go from the west coast of Norway up and over the mountains to the capitol, Oslo. I agree - it's pretty great. It went from fjord to mountain lakes (and a mountain glacier!) to fall colors and farm fields. 

Arriving in Bergen

Today is the last day of a 12 day cruise for many of the passengers and the last day of a two trip cruise for many staff. So it's filled with nostalgia. The nature/culture expedition guide Sofia created a video of the 12 day trip - I bought a copy. We had to check out of our cabins by 10 am, so the common areas of the ship are filled with people in a very different way. Mom says she hasn't been surrounded with this many adults napping in many years! 

Bergen
As the crow flies, it's just over 200 miles from Bergen west to the Shetland Islands. During WWII, England wanted to support the Norwegian resistance, so one of the things they did was send supplies and remove people via small fishing boats from Shetland to Bergen. It was dangerous work - sailing at night and in high seas were safest from the Germans - but not exactly safe! This operation was called the Shetland Bus. We learned about this when we visited Shetland, so I was pretty excited to see Bergen for myself. 

We arrived in the bright sunshine, which is apparently unusual for Bergen. Everyone was out enjoying the weather. We hauled our stuff across town and up a very steep flight of stairs to our Airbnb, then hauled our tired bodies further to the base of the funnicular. 

Fløibanen funicular
Bergen is a small harbor with a little bit of flat ground surrounded with steep hills. The funicular starts near the harbor and rises practically straight up to the top of a nearby hill. At the top was a lovely area to watch the sunset, restaurants, trolls, a little library in an old phone booth, a playground - and hiking trails. Meg and I took a fast hike through the pine trees to an amazing lake. 

Trondheim and Kristiansund

Regular cruises can adjust their shore times to suit the passengers. The mail boat stops so many times that many of the stops are fast or inconvenient. This morning, we arrived in Trondheim at 6:30 in the morning, when first light isn't until 7:15. Meg and I didn't want to miss any of our time in Trondheim, so we climbed out of our cozy beds and disembarked by around 7 am. We were rewarded with lovely early morning light. 

Walking Deck
One of the best things about this ship is the 5th deck walking track. One lap is 220 meters, so approximately 8 laps to the mile. I think Meg has logged many miles on this track! Walking AND enjoying the scenery is the best.

Kristiansund
Just before sunset, we arrived in Kristiansund. 

Dinner
The food has been really good. Fancier than we are used to, and so many choices. The fish is fresh enough for me to love it - I only love fish when it is super fresh.

Molde
Just before bed - a quick stop in the port of Molde.