Bruce and I just got back from a 5-week double-cruise adventure up to the Arctic Circle and across Europe. We started out flying to Boston at the end of July for Holland America's
Voyage of the Vikings cruise. After taking Metrolink to the airport, flying for 3 hours, waiting another hour for the shuttle, checking in to the ship, and participating in that dreadful life jacket drill, we didn't have much energy or time left for sightseeing, so we headed straight to the Lido deck for a sail-away drink (a good way to start a cruise, in my opinion).
Our first stop was Bar Harbor, Maine. Since we'd been here just 2 years ago, we walked over to Acadia National Park to do some hiking. The day started off fairly mild, but being the last day in July, it got pretty hot. After a stop-off at the Visitor Center for a water bottle for Bruce and the shuttle bus for me, I headed back to the Village Green to do some sketching. While I was sitting there, someone came by asking if I knew where the lobster ice cream shop was. I thought the lady was joking, but when I got back to the ship, several people said they'd tried it. I prefer my lobster the old-fashioned way - smothered in butter on a dinner plate, not frozen inside an ice cream cone.
Our second day was a day at sea. Days at sea are never my favorites, but I met a few people who also brought painting supplies with them. This lady really got into the Viking theme by painting pictures she found on her iPad.
The third day we stopped in Sydney, Nova Scotia. Sydney's big claim to fame is the Giant Fiddle statue right on the cruise dock. During the Port Talk the previous day, the Cruise Director had recommended that you wait until mid-afternoon to take photos, rather than take them right when you got off the ship. Everyone must have taken his advice to heart, because very few people were taking selfies of the fiddle in the morning, but it was jam-packed with people in the afternoon.
Personally, I thought this maritime statue a little farther down the boardwalk was much more interesting and it wasn't surrounded by tourists snapping photos with their iPads. The only thing is it's a little scary to think about shipwrecks when you're only on day 3 of a 17-day cruise, and there's a hurricane brewing in the southern Atlantic.
Our next stop was Corner Brook, Newfoundland. It was a very friendly little town - most people in Canada seem to be very happy. There was a group of ladies (real human beings) standing at the end of the pier when we got off the boat handing out candy with a welcome message.
I had Google'd Corner Brook before we left home and found a nice hiking trail. There was a loop that went around a lake and one that climbed a steep hill (of course, Mr Mountain Goat wanted to do the hill).
I hiked along with Bruce for most of the hill, but then gave up and headed back to the stream (I hate those hills that seem to be never-ending). I found a very peaceful spot next to a bridge to do some sketching.
Several swans were swimming up and down the stream. I thought about trying to draw one in my painting, but I'm not very good with objects that don't stand still. But suddenly one of the swans started coming for me snapping at my paint box. I was desperately slipping and sliding away from him trying not to spill my sketchbook in the water when I noticed this idiot lady behind me throwing crackers into the water. And of course, she was standing in front of a giant sign that said, "DO NOT FEED THE SWANS! THEY BITE." I felt like throwing her in the water, but instead went off to find a Dr Pepper to stop my hands from shaking.
The next port was Red Bay, Labrador. When I originally signed up for this cruise, I'd thought August would be a good time to go north and get away from the oppressive summer heat in the Midwest. But I didn't realize that warmer summer temperatures can cause impenetrable fog in cold climates.
Since we tended to be the first ones off the boat, we were able to take the tender over to Red Bay. But once we got there, the fog came down so heavily that the tender drivers couldn't see to get back (that was kind of a creepy feeling). We walked around the town for a bit, but the mosquitoes were unbelievably thick and vicious. Luckily the fog lifted by early afternoon, so we could get back on board.
And as we were leaving the harbor, we got to see our first iceberg. It didn't seem that impressive until the Captain told us that it was actually the size of several football fields (we were looking at it from several miles away). During the Port Talk, they said polar bears live on icebergs, but I never saw one.
Since the fog was so bad, we had to skip our first Greenland port. I actually didn't mind a "rest" day at sea, because I wasn't used to back-to-back hiking with Mr Mountain Goat. Cruise ships always offer a lot of on-board entertainment during sea days, but one thing that seemed to be most popular were their apparel sales. One day, they sold sheepskin jackets and vests for $20. Since it was getting colder out, people mobbed the tables. Fortunately, I brought my winter coat, so I didn't have to buy a sheepskin vest. I wonder if those people realized they were going to have a tough time fitting something so thick into their suitcases when it was time to pack up.
We were finally able to dock in Nanortalik, Greenland - a very colorful little fishing village. I had to laugh at these passengers from the ship, because they'd all signed up for a walking tour of the town. I don't know how in the world this tour could have taken 2 hours, because the town wasn't that big, but since the average age of our passengers was around 80, the guide was probably taking it slow.
Bruce and I headed off on another hike (a flat one this time). Luckily, we both brought hiking boots, because the ground was quite rocky. When we got to the end of the trail, there was a lady from the ship who wanted to climb up the mountain. There was no trail, but she thought she saw a statue on top of the mountain. I passed, but she and Bruce headed up the hill. That yellow-green "grass" is actually moss and quite spongy. Bruce said it felt weird walking on it.
It's hard to believe that flowers can grow in such a cold climate, but they were very pretty (maybe August is spring-time in Greenland). I thought about sketching this scene, but instead I found an old fishing boat to draw. Old fishing boats were quite abundant in this town.
The next day we were supposed to do scenic cruising through Prince Christian Sound. The captain had warned us that we might have to bypass it if the fog became a problem, but we woke up to clear blue skies. There was always debate among the passengers about whether a balcony cabin was worth the money (since all you see is water when you're sailing on the ocean), but I'm really glad we had our own balcony on this day. The views were incredible.
We passed by a tiny little village occupied by the Inuit tribe - what we used to call Eskimos, but is now considered a politically incorrect (why is beyond me). Again, I noticed how colorful all the houses were.
The people in this village were either very friendly or very bored, because a whole bunch of them jumped in their fishing boats and came out to wave at us.
On August 10, we finally made it to Iceland. The entrance to their local park is made from whale bones - a little creepy, but it fit the area. Incidentally, we frequently saw whales from the ship, but they came and went so quickly that I never got a picture.
We tried going on a hike in Isafjordur and found a very nice path just above the town (notice all the icebergs out in the water).
But as we were walking along, we realized that it wasn't just a hiking path, but the top of an avalanche dike built to keep the snow from burying the town.
Isafjordur was another friendly little town. While we were there, the residents came out and had an impromptu parade for us.
We actually made 2 stops in Iceland - Isafjordur and Akureyri. We got to Akureyri on Sunday, so the church was open - our first of many, many churches on this adventure. This church was fairly new with a modern architectural style - quite a contrast to the medieval Gothic churches we saw in Europe.
Scandinavian people are obsessed with trolls, since trolls play such a prominent part in Norse mythology (Iceland is considered one of the Nordic countries along with Norway, Denmark, and Sweden). I saw these giant trolls outside a souvenir shop. They were so ugly, but quirky cute, and luckily half-price in the miniature, take-home size.
After a couple more days at sea, we ended up at my favorite stop - Bergen, Norway. By this time, Bruce was getting pretty tired, but I cajoled him into leaving the ship as soon as it docked, so we could hustle over to the funicular and ride it to the top of Mount Floyen (rather than walking).
Once we got to the top, we had a great view of the town, plus a variety of hiking trails to choose from (complete with mountain goats).
There was a troll forest for kids to play in with ziplines and swings and a multitude of trolls.
The trolls look a lot more Disney-like in Norway than they did in Iceland.
After hiking for a while, I found a bench away from the crowds so I could do some sketching. Everything was very, very green and quite lush (more of that Scandinavian moss).
Since it was such a nice day, I walked back down into town rather than ride the funicular down. It wasn't a bad walk, but it was steep and long. I felt sorry for the people who were trying to walk up to the top, but I didn't blame them because the line at the funicular was very long (good thing we went early). There was a gorgeous old building right across from the funicular that drew my attention for a potential sketch. I was trying to find out what it was when I saw the Starbucks sign attached to the side of the building. It's a little depressing, but not uncommon, to find American food chains housed in historic structures in Europe. At least it wasn't a McDonald's, though that was just down the street in an historic timber-frame structure built in 1710.
One of the things that cruise ship room stewards are known for is making animal figures out of bath towels each night while you're away at dinner. We found out later that they even sold a book in the gift shop on how to make your own towel animals at home.
On the last day of the cruise, all the room stewards got together and made a towel animal zoo around the swimming pool. It became obvious that some of them were much more creative than our guy was (maybe I should have bought him a copy of the book).
Our last port was Rotterdam, Netherlands - home of the Holland American cruise line. We docked right in front of their headquarters building.
Rotterdam is supposed to be one of the busiest harbors in the world. I had to laugh at all the barges that floated past us, because evidently rather than park their cars in a parking lot, the boat captains just drive them right on board and carry them along with them. I guess that's one way to beat rush hour traffic. We didn't get to see much of Rotterdam, because we left the ship and boarded a bus for Amsterdam for the second part of our adventure. To be continued...
