We had originally planned to do a Holland America cruise that went above the arctic circle to Spitzbergen, but that cruise had to cancel the Spitzbergen part because they weren't allowing cruise ships there for now. So we chose two back to back cruises that did the fjords of Norway.
(At this moment, the videos aren't working, but I'm working on it.)
Thursday,
June 22– In the air—Finally!
There was no parking
up close or in garage at Asheville Airport so Ray dumped me off with luggage
then tried again and ended up shuttling from the far lot. Inside terminal was
crowded. Summer travel is no fun. Plane
to Amsterdam was late arriving into Atlanta, so we boarded an hour late then
sat on plane for 3 1/2 hrs while they tried to fix a mechanical communication
issue. Finally on our way, but plane was jam-packed full and we had no Wi-Fi. I
couldn’t sleep at all.
Friday,
June 23—Amsterdam & Crazy Hours
We didn’t arrive in Amsterdam until afternoon. The train into the Central Station and our hotel had no place for luggage, & the next 2 trains to Amsterdam Central were cancelled for some reason, so we took a taxi. Arriving later than expected had its perks—we got our room immediately at the Amsterdam Central ibis. It’s a small room and the air conditioner is permanently set at 23 C with the window only opening at the top and very small. So hot. Slept some. We walked down to the Harbour for what I thought would be sunset, but the sun didn’t even start to go down until 10:07. Dark at 10:30. Then coming up again at 5am but light enough to see by 3 am and totally bright by 5:19.
We got to see our ship arriving for our cruise tomorrow and a tall skyscraper with a revolving restaurant AND SWINGS 330 ft. high that you could swing in on the very top out over the edge of the building—sounds a bit terrifying to me. And to get up to the top, you have to take this elevator that has so many flashing lights that they warn you not to even use the elevator if you have epilepsy or migraine problems or even to watch the video of the elevator as it ascends!
We walked around town a bit and saw the Basilica of St. Nicholas that we’d seen on a past trip. Back to the room and slept 10:30-midnight, awake midnight to 5. Totally jet lagged.
Saturday, June 24—On to our Ship
Breakfast at de Volkslust Bakhus in the Amsterdam Central Mall. I had scrambled eggs on wheat toast, smoked salmon, salad, croissant and coffee. Ray had an English breakfast. Walked through the Amsterdam Central Station Mall & did some window shopping for all the stores were closed. Back to the room and slept from 8-10:45am.
Woke up to check out and get a taxi to board the ship, Holland America’s newest ship, the Rotterdam. Easy boarding process and we are into our cabin 5109 with a balcony. Very soon after, our luggage arrived and we unpacked then slept 3-4:45. Our cabin stewards are Putu and Agung.
Settling in:
For dinner that night, I had a salad, Norwegian Salmon and potatoes. We had Chateau Smith red wine, and Ray had the steak. Lemon tart for my dessert. Table for 4 but just for us. #315. Waiters are Mr. Z Zaidarrami and Rina, both very nice.
We were on our balcony to watch our ship going through the locks, which raised us to sea level. In 2022, this larger sea lock was built for big ships like ours. This lock holds enough water equal to 252 Olympic swimming pools. Our ship is super quiet and smooth.
Sun, June 25—Day at Sea
We slept most of day as we are still jet lagged. Formal nite tonight for dinner. Salad, Beef tenderloin, & blueberry cheesecake--so light--with almond crunch on top. Ray went to the dance show, but I stayed in and watched Ticket to Paradise with George Clooney and Julia Roberts.
Monday, June 26—Oslofjord & Oslo
Slept midnight to 8am. Breakfast at the New York Pizza & Deli on deck 10. Today we are traversing the over 124 mile long Oslo fjord.
We had wrongly
turned left to look for the cathedral and ended up in Slottsparken, a park with
the Royal Palace. It was built in Neo-Classical style in 1824. King Haakon VII
& Queen Maud arrived in Norway in 1905. During the 1940 German occupation, Maud
and the children exiled to America and became very close with President
Franklin Roosevelt. I had just watched
this story on PBS.
We should’ve known we’d do it again—we can’t come to Europe without getting every direction backwards. We finally figured out the map and walked and walked eastward until we found the Cathedral. But we couldn’t go in because a state funeral being held. The cathedral was built in 1694 and is the 3rd one—the first was moved for better protection and the 2nd one burned. The first had been built by king Sigurd I in the first half of the 12th century. Their son, Olav V was king until he died in 1991 when the now King Harald V & Queen Sonja took over. Harald was an Olympic sailor. He is the first king born in Norway in 567 yrs. The first king of Norway was King Haralson Fairhair in 885.
The lovely elephant statue we’d seen on our way through the Aker Brygge area has now begun to move. So cute. Beautiful old sailing ships in the harbour along with the Dykkaren (diver) statue in shiny silver. By Ola Enstad. Looks like he can’t decide whether to dive or not.
Bought my little Viking guy who “spoke” to me before. He will represent my ancestors from Norway.
Would’ve gone to see the Viking Ship Museum, but it’s been closed for rebuilding since 2021 and will stay closed for rebuilding until 2026. Some of the best-preserved Viking ships were discovered on these shores around Oslo. Oslo is the warmest part of Norway and was a strategically important waterway in WWII. Interesting modern architecture mixed with the indigenous Sami culture.
Passing by the Borre area where many Viking burial mounds have been found:
Seven of my oldest Viking ancestors are from the Vestfold/Borre/Holtum,Telemark area around the Oslofjord:
My 31 GGF
Gorr, the Sea King, Thorsson born 365
Tuesday,
June 27—Kristiansand
I finished
up the movie “Delicacy” then slept from midnight until 8 when Ray woke me to go
into Kristiansand. Quick breakfast then we walked in to such a pretty clean
city. Saw the performing arts centre with its roof that looks like a troll’s
hair, someone said. But I think it’s like a lovely drape of fabric over the
top. The McDonalds here is in an old bank with chandeliers. The language is so
funny. Ice cream is “iskrem.“ It reminded
me of the Welsh language with “ambwulanz” for ambulance.
We walked over to the old town part of Kristiansand called Posebyen with its timber-clad houses and a hospital. Then back to Kirkegata where the cathedral is located. This is a Neo-Gothic building built in 1884 and sits right in the middle of the central square. Inside were huge pillars made of wood, dark dark blue stained glass, and a huge organ.
Spent
this afternoon resting and reading. Dinner
in dining room of crab cakes and prime rib. And Ray had almond mousse cake
and I had a craquelin—crunchy puff pastry with chocolate and praline creme
filling. Watched “Brian & Charles,” a very strange movie about a robot.
Wednesday,
June 28—Eidfjord & Hardangerfjord
I woke
at 6 after only 4 hours sleep to have a croissant & coffee out on our balcony.
Today we are cruising thru Hardangerfjord to Eidfjord at its innermost
part. Hardangerfjord was formed in 80,000 BC due to glacier melts &
erosion, and it is the 2nd largest fjord in Norway and the 4th largest in the
world at 111 miles long. It plunges down a half mile at its deepest
point. Hardangerfjord has the town of Ofda at its innermost point, but
today we cut off into Eidfjord.
This
is the place where the Norseman Extreme Triathlon will be on August 5. Eidfjord
is the starting point. 250 participants from all over the world will swim 2.36
miles (3.8 kilometers) in the fjord, 111.847 miles (180km) of cycling up
Måbødalen, across the Hardangervidda plateau to Rjukan and ending in finishing
a full marathon (26.2 miles) to Gaustatoppen! Ray is NOT doing this.
We immediately went ashore to look for the white stone medieval church. It was built in the 1309 and is surrounded by an old cemetery. It was built as a repentance by a woman named Rike-Ragna for letting her husband drown. Her tombstone stand by the wall of the chancel with a picture of the apostle James with a foot-length dress, pilgrimage staff in his right hand and Bible in his left. Rike-Ragna is kneeling in front of him with clasped hands. On the stone it is written "Here Ragna Åsolvsdotter er er dessa kirkju let gjera". The story tells of a domineering and powerful Rike-Ragna who built the church to pay for her sins, the most egregious being watching her husband die without helping him. For some reason she left him on a rock in the sea and continued into town. The tide came in and drowned him. Strange.
We also looked for the Haereid Iron Age Burial Site with the largest number of ancient burial sites in Western Norway with 350 graves dating from 400-1000 AD.
We didn't find either of these sites. My blisters from walking in the wrong shoes (decided to bring my LIGHT water shoes instead of proper walking around shoes—bad decision) the last two days kept me from climbing more hills, but it’s probably fortuitous that they did, for we would’ve been walking WAY out of the way! We’re coming back here next week so we’ll try again for the church and the ancient burial site, using the little tram.
Back to the ship for a lunch of pizza and panna cotta and the movie “Finding Altamira” and a nap. Saw a float plane take off down Eidfjord and head straight for one of the mountains, turning at the last minute.
This afternoon we sail bk down Hardangerfjord with our cruise director (who btw sounds just like Coach Sue Sylvester from Glee) presenting commentary as we go along. Her commentary drives me insane as she agrees with herself out loud after every sentence. For example:
“Ahn heeruh vee hahv duh veelledge of Eidfjord, yeah, wid dee population of less dan one dousand, yeah uh, and…”
Did learn from her that the Hardanger Fiddle requires that the devil teach you to play it. And that Hardanger embroidery is white on white.
We had dinner in Dining room and slept with the oh so gentlest of rocking of the boat.
Ray happy with his dessert tonight:
Sailing back down Hardangerfjord:
Thursday,
June 29—Sognefjord & Flam
We
cruised the King of Fjords—Sognefjord—the largest and deepest (at 4,291 ft) in
Norway, stretching nearly 130 miles inland from the ocean. It’s the 2nd largest
fjord in the whole world and cuts through some of the highest mountains (5,577
ft) in Norway. Glaciers sat upon mountaintops above steep farmlands and
absolutely glassy water, so still. Tons of waterfalls at every turn.
Steep sided rock walls reminded us of the Cliffs of Insanity from “The
Princess Bride.”
We had breakfast in the dining room this morning then went ashore. Ray had gone ashore earlier and purchased us tickets for noon on the Flam Railway (smart man) which runs on a winding route on sheer slopes that reach up to 2831 ft above sea level. The train went from the end of Aurlandsfjord in Flam up to Myrdal station where many people doing land tours of Norway arrived from Oslo and Bergen. Our tickets were less than half the price of what we would’ve paid if we’d bought them as a shore excursion on the ship!! Flam sits on flat land but is surrounded by towering mountains.
Construction of the railway started in 1923 and was completed in 1940. It is said to be one of the greatest engineering feats in Norway. The 20-km long railway line is one of the steepest standard gauge lines in the world, with 80% of the journey running on a gradient of 5.5%. There are no less than 20 tunnels,18 of which were built by hand. One of the tunnels even takes a 180 degree turn inside the mountain.
The train runs alongside a construction road that was built to transport materials from the fjord to the mountains when the Bergen Line was built around 1900. The construction road is known as the Rallar Road and these days is a popular cycling route from the top back down to Flam.
The train takes a 5 min break each way at the Kjosfossen Waterfall which has a surprise as the Huldra (a seductive forest creature) dances around and “magically” disappears then pops up in a different part of the ruins alongside the big and powerful Kjossfossen waterfall which has a height of over 738 feet.
Back on the ship, dinner in the dining room was supposed to be dressy but we didn’t see that on the schedule and just showed up in very casual clothes, but it was fine.
Winds are up now but I’ve been very impressed with how this newest ship in the Holland America line uses the pod engine system that keeps the ship so very steady!
Friday, June
30—Sea Day
We had breakfast in dining room then went back to our cabin to watch the movie, “Family Squares.” Very good, in my opinion. Spent the rest of this very peaceful day reading. Dinner in the dining room was so good—Trio of Salmon for appetizer, Norwegian Roasted Salmon as my entrée, and a Double Chocolate Tart for dessert. We enjoyed talking with the dining room manager, Dadan, about cruises we’ve all taken.
Afterwards, back to
the cabin where my “Grubbie Hubbie,” as Ray has taken to calling himself,
brought me a croissant and a ginger ale.
Saturday,
July 1—Amsterdam again
Back in Amsterdam for the second part of our cruise, we had hoped to go sightseeing or take a canal cruise or at least go shopping, but it was pouring rain, so we just sat on the boat. We had breakfast in the dining room then went to deck 12 to sit, then to our own little cabana on deck 10, then to our cabin where my GH (Grubbie Hubbie) brought me a hot dog. We will have dinner in the dining room. Rina has left the ship but a new waiter, Eko, is very nice.
Speaking of the canals, Amsterdam is 6.6 ft below sea level. Most of the buildings built around the canals are built on wood pilings that go deeply through the peat and down to a sand level. There are over 165 canals in Amsterdam that cover over 46 miles. They are anywhere from 5-10 feet deep. An average of 12 drunk men per year urinate in a canal and fall in and drown because they can’t find a ladder to get out. Over 15,000 bikes are found in the canals per year—stolen, the biggest crime problem in Amsterdam. Three times per week, 14 of 16 canals are closed and cleaned by pumping in water from a nearby lake. This forces the dirty water out of the locks on the other side of the city. It also creates a current.
Sunday, July 2—Sea Day
Well, it’s been a hell of a day on the North Sea today. 42 mph winds rocking & tossing the boat furiously since 10pm last night. Not fun. All my stomach muscles are aching from tightening up so as not to fall over and to be able to counteract the rolling. Ugh.
All I had to eat today was bread, rolls, croissants and a milkshake and lemonade.
This same trip across the North Sea last Sunday was a millpond. Not a single wave. Couldn’t even tell the boat was moving. We will reach the fjords again early tomorrow morning and it should be fine again then.
Ray had to go to the formal dinner tonight alone.
Monday,
July 3—Back in Eidfjord & Hardangerfjord
Breakfast in the dining room on the ship. Then we got off the ship in Eidfjord, this time knowing where to go—straight to Tourist Info to buy Troll Train tickets.
The train took us up to see the ancient Viking graves at the Haereid Iron Age burial site--basically mounds with rocks--250 graves dating from 400-1000 AD:
Then it made the trip over to the Eidfjord Gamle Kirke--old church--built in 1300s. It was closed, but it was pretty on outside, made of stone and painted white. The newer church is just down the same hill.
We shopped in the shops and the Coop & Joker stores for noodles and peanut M&Ms and an umbrella. We found all except an umbrella. Looks like it might be rainy for rest of cruise. We had seen lots of people from our cruiseship carrying huge orange umbrellas, but we couldn’t find them for sale anywhere, not even on the ship.
We cruised back down Hardangerfjord with the same narration
by our cruise director lady.
Tuesday,
July 4—Skjolden & Sognefjord
Not much to do today as I’m not paying $170 each to go to a
church that I can’t even take pictures inside. So I will hope to take a pic as
we leave on the ship tonight.
We just walked around town and bought an umbrella for future rainy shore days. And Ray bought noodles again. I’m looking for shoes. Stupidly I brought 4 pairs of shoes on this trip. I should’ve known we wouldn’t stick to our plan of just relaxing on our balcony and would want to go exploring. So I have my formal heels for dressy nights, my Mary Jane’s which I grabbed the wrong ones and they are too small, my water shoes from LLBean-which are good for abt 20 minutes of walking but have no padding at all and gave me blisters just walking around Amsterdam So that leaves me with my Teva Sandals which are amazingly comfortable for hiking, but when you are having to wear a sweater and jacket because of the temps and bristly winds, sandals don’t work—my toes freeze!!
I could wear socks with the sandals but even if I did agree to do that, as Ray has suggested, then the sandals would fit too tightly and I would again get blisters. So I’m hoping once we get to Trondheim, they will have a store where I can buy some Keds, at least. And I stupidly left several pairs of hiking boots at home because they were so bulky and heavy.
Lunch was in the Lido on the ship—salad, focaccia bread with olives & peppers, and bread pudding.
Dinner in dining room. Show tonight is a magician. I may go. If I do , it’ll be my first show for this cruise. I didn’t go—haven’t broken my record yet.. The entertainment for this cruise is seriously lacking. Thank goodness there are movies on our TV in the room.
This is the Urnes Stave Church built in 1130. It is the oldest in Norway. Some timber used is from the 10th c. There are 3 older churches under it and carvings from the 3rd one were used when this one was built. These carvings incorporate Celtic Art & Viking traditions and myths using animals fighting. A common depiction is of a lion (Christ) struggling against snakes & dragons (evil forces). A lily equaled salvation.
Stave churches are Christian churches, and many show the transition as Norway moved from Paganism and worshipping Norse gods into Christianity. Many of the carvings look like pictures from the Book of Kells.
There were more than 1300 state churches at one time, but now only 28 remain. Stave churches were built entirely out of wood with load bearing posts known as “stav” in Norwegian. They used local pines that were tarred every 4-5 years. Sometimes one side is black from the tar and the other light brown.
Inside the church is an altar with Jesus on the cross and the Virgin Mary and John the Baptist below. A ship candelabra with 9 candles hangs above it. The number 9 is sacred to the Norwegians. This church was dedicated to St. Andrew. Also inside are 3 “cages” or rooms—all so you couldn’t see those people inside them. One was for the local chieftain & his family. One for the poorest people, and the last for unwed mothers—although the men who impregnated them were probably sitting in plain view in the congregation.
There is also a sliding window inside one of the cages for those not even allowed inside to take communion— those with diseases & MENSTRUATING WOMEN!! Very hypocritical in my opinion.
Nearby in the village of Vinjeora, a big heavy left-handed sword was recently found buried. Viking warriors were usually buried with their axe, shield, spear, and sword.
The other option today was to buy the shore excursion that bussed you up to the glacier in Jostedalen National Park FOR $300 EACH! No, thank you.
Wednesday, July 5—Andalsnes
See the vertical mountain wall (Troll Wall) and go to ski resort to eat a
waffle--$160 each.
Scenic drive to a valley with a waterfall--$170 each
Drive up a mountain on a bus, see Troll Wall, buffet lunch--$300 each.
Drive along fjord and take ferry and return--$310 each.
And none of these go to either of the 2 places I want to visit!
I wanted to visit the island of Giske where two of my ancestors are buried at
the only marble church in Norway. Alesund, where I could;ve gotten a bus to get there, was on our original cruise itinerary but not on this one. The church is covered in chalk today, and there is
supposedly a family tree of my ancestors at this church! And it was the
birth site of my 24 GGF, Rollo Gange-Rolfe the Ganger Ragnvaldsson, born in 846
in Maer and died in 932 in Rouen, Normandy, France.
He was the son of my 25GGF, Ragnvald the Wise (Jarl of More) Eysteinsson 830-
890, who was buried at this church. The Mjelthaugen burial ground on Giske
dates to the Bronze Age.
We can’t go to Giske because even if this ship was going to Alesund, which it
isn’t, we couldn’t walk thru the underwater tunnels to reach Giske because that
is outlawed. So I thought maybe Molde, where my ancestors ruled? But no—nothing going there.
So there’s a gondola—Norway’s longest cable car—that takes
you up to a VERY expensive restaurant —gondola is $48 each for the 5 minute
ride.
And the only other choice is the Andalsnes Train Chapel —a church on rails
dedicated in 2003 in the presence of King Harald & Queen Sonja of
Norway.
I woke up at 3 and spent HOURS on deck 12 trying to locate the island of Giske as we passed by. Don’t know if I got it or not. (As it turned out, I did!) I think I did get some shots of the Atlantic Road built over the sea.
Area where I searched for Giske Island:
The Atlantic Ocean Road or the Atlantic Road 5.2 mile long section of County Road 64 that runs through an archipelago in Møre og Romsdal county. It passes by Hustadvika, an unsheltered part of the Norwegian Sea, connecting the island of Averøy with the mainland and Romsdalshalvøya peninsula. It runs between the villages of Kårvåg in Averøy and Vevang in Hustadvika. It is built on several small islands and skerries, which are connected by several causeways, viaducts and eight bridges—the most prominent being Storseisundet Bridge.
The route was originally proposed as a railway line in the early 20th century, but this was abandoned. Construction started in 1983, & during construction the area was hit by 12 European windstorms. The road was opened in 1989, having cost 122 million Norwegian krone, of which 25 percent was financed with tolls and the rest from public grants. Collection of tolls was scheduled to run for 15 years, but by June 1999 the road was paid off and the toll removed. It is a popular site to film automotive commercials, has been declared the world's best road trip.
Passed by Molde, both coming & going, in the Romsdal district at the foot of the hills and facing the fjord that opens out to a panorama of 87 snow capped peaks. This is where we sailed. The town of Molde is known as the town of roses not because of a profundity of roses but because of the climate--it shouldn’t be able to grow roses at all!
Old painting of Molde and the flag of Molde--showing a whale chasing a herring into a basket:
We walked around Andalsnes, saw the train chapel, then back to the ship. Here in Andalsnes there is a 5905 ft sheet rock face called Trollveggan, the Stigfoss waterfall, and the Gudbrand Gorge that is 65 ft deep.
Thursday,
July 6—Trondheim & Trondheimsfjord
Breakfast in the dining room again, then heard an announcement that because of tidal changes, there is only one gangway to get off the ship until 11am. And wheelchairs can’t use this gangway. I was upset FOR the poor people in wheelchairs who had shore excursions to get to. This “fjord” is ice-free year round. And the airport runway extends into the fjord!
Video of bicycle lift: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qQWcINWlR38
We just want to walk to the lovely St Nidaris Cathedral. This is the largest Medieval Cathedral in Norway and was built over the tomb of St Olav. In a tribute to King Haakon VII, king during WWII, someone has supposedly carved a face that looks very much like Bob Dylan! This cathedral is Gothic style and is beautiful. The ruins of the old St Olav Cathedral is in the basement of a building in the city center.
The building I thought might be the Royal Residence was! Stiftsgarden, the largest wooden mansion in Scandinavia with 140rooms and 43,055 sq ft. It was built as private residence in 1774-8.
We walked around for three hours until the blisters on my toes—even with thick socks and blister patches on them-- made me miserable. Never bringing water shoes again. No padding at all! Stupid decision.
We walked through the mall, and I bought thick socks and more blister patches.
There was a “Torget” sign to shopping, which I thought was funny because it was so close to Target. Torget means city square or market. Tog means train. Brugge means pier or wharf.
We walked by a set of 3 stores: First called WORK, second called WORK WORK, and third called COMA.
There was an H&M, 2 7-Eleven stores , a McDonald’s and a Burger King. We saw the statue of Olav Tryggvason in the center of town. He was the king of Norway from 995-1000 and the great great grandson of King Harald FairHair.
There were Stone Age burial mounds at end of fjord on the island of Ytteroya.
Over the speaker this evening, the Captain announced that
this will be our last sunset for a few days. Tonight sun down at 2324 and bk up
at 215.
Friday, July 7—Sea Day
Woke up this morning to a foghorn and very deep fog as we
head north to the North Cape.
I had room service breakfast and finished watching the movie MASH with
Ray.
I washed my hair and relaxed, reading, until dressy dinner. I had filet
mignonette from the Pinnacle last night. Tonight I had filet mignonette from the
dining room. And creme brûlée for dessert.
Saturday,
July 8—Honningsvag & North Cape
Honningsvag is a sparsely populated place. It’s ice-free year round because of the gulf stream, & its economy is good because shipping through the Barent Sea isn’t affected.
The city here was destroyed in bombing during the war, and
the church that gave temporary shelter to residents here has an exhibit of
those historical times.
Up the hill and down the street is Sjogata Pub which has
its own brew—Perleporten Kulturbryggen—and the best selection of beers in town.
We shopped a bit, but most stores weren’t open until later.
As we left this area, we saw the North Cape—the northernmost point of continental Europe—though there is actually a small peninsula 1499 ft further north. And actually Svalbard is even more north. The North Cape Headland is 984 ft tall.
North Cape served as the finish line for the 45 runners in 2009 Trans Europe Foot Race—an ultramarathon that began in Bari, Italy, 2787 miles away & took 64 days to run.
We arrived at the North Cape and the captain did TWO 360°
spins so we could take all the pics we wanted.
Up until after midnight just to see the midnight sun. It was just as bright here at midnight as it is midday at home, seriously!! Shadows and all. Kind of freaky!
Sunday & Monday, July 9 & 10—Sea Days
Woke up at 7 and it’s overcast, so darker now than at midnight!! We won’t see land for 2 days until we get to the Shetlands.
Our TV has lost its satellite connection, so I’m glad I brought books.
Captain
reported seeing a whale on the port side. Ray saw a pod of porpoises
while on treadmill. And he found a new friend on th eway to breakfast the next morning:
Lerwick is the main town & port of the Shetland Archipelago. In the middle of summer, as it is now, Lerwick’s nights only get dark twilight. Better than winter, I guess, when the days have less than 6 hours of daylight!
The name “Lerwick” has its roots in Old Norse and its local descendant , Norn, which was spoken in Shetland until the mid 19th c. It means bay of clay. Evidence of human settlement here dates back to the Neolithic (4000-2500 BC) and the Bronze Age (2500-800 BC). A Stone Age axe head was found submerged in Breslau Sound.
There is also an Iron Age (800 BC - 800 AD) Broch of Clickimin that was constructed as early as 400 BC.
Lerwick was founded in the 17th c as a herring and white fish seaport to trade with the Dutch fishing fleet. Lerwick’s wooden huts were burned down in 17th c. by the residents of Scalloway on the west side of the Mainland who disapproved of the immoral & drunken activities of the fishermen & sailors. It was burned down again in 1702 by the French fleet.
When home, we regularly watch the British TV show, “Shetland,” about a police crime unit set in Lerwick. Some of the scenes are actually filmed in Lerwick.
The largest Up Helly Aa fire festival take place in January every year. There’s also an exhibition here of the event.
We enjoyed walking around the city and seeing the Town Hall with its amazing Stained Glass windows.
This one shows King Harald Fairhair and my 25th GGF, Rognvald Eysteinnsson who was made Jarl of More and given much land by the king in compensation for Ragnvald's son having died in battle with his father & king:
I missed most of dinner to get photos of Bressay Lighthouse on the shore as we passed with rain blowing in on me in the cold temps, so I ordered room service when back in the room.
Wednesday, July 12—Bergen
We walked the ½ mile into Bergen from the far off cruise ship dock and went way out of way in the wrong direction trying to get to Brygge Old Wharf.
Ended up at a street that operated very much like San Francisco’s Lombard Street with its zig zaggy road curves:
The line to take the funicular was so long because another cruiseship was docked right in town—the HUGE NCL Prima. I thought our ship was big but this was a monstrosity—and parked right in the middle of town! It is 965 ft long and carries 3099 passengers. With us carrying 2668, can you just imagine how this changes the character of these small towns when we both pull in on the same day? But they must enjoy having the influx of money from the tourists coming in. I would hate the cruise ships if I lived here.
I loved the architecture of the buildings and the hilly cobblestones streets.
One store that sells, interestingly, only lamps, hats, and pillows, had the sweetest doggie in the window. It looked like it was his favorite spot to lie in and people-watch.
Bergen has 230 rainy days per year—this was one of them—and is surrounded by 7 mountains & fjords It is twinned with Seattle and I could see why—it had a very Seattle feeling about it.
The Medieval Bryggen Wharf area with its colorful wooden houses on the old wharf was once a center of the Hanseatic League trading empire. Trading here may have started as early as the 1020s. Now there are 300 cruise ships calling here per year.
Thursday, July 13—Sandnes (Stavanger)
Stavanger began as a shipbuilding & fish-canning town then earned its status as epicenter of black gold and extraction of North Sea oil.
As a shore excursion with Holland America, a bus would take you to Lysefjord and it’s Preikestolen (Pulpit Rock)--n iconic ledge more than 600 meters above fjord. It only costs for a $3800 boat cruise there for 12 people. Guided hikes are $123 each.
Woke up with a sore throat and thought about not even
getting off the boat since it was raining so hard, but I really wanted to do
the adventure out to Sverd I Fjell. I
did a Sucret throat lozenge and felt all better.
Today's excursion was all about trying to get to the 10 m tall (abt 32 ft 9 in) Sverd
I Fjell monument. This bus didn’t go
there, but went nearby, so we walked the rest of the way—in the rain. I figured if my Viking ancestors could tackle
this land, so could I.
In 9th c, 872AD, Haralson Fairhair announced himself as King of the Norwegians after the Battle of Hafrsfjord here and united the country for first time. On the NE shore of the fjord is a monument of 3 bronze swords embedded in rock. The tallest sword symbolizes Haralson Fairhair as victor and the other two the defeated pretenders to the throne. It represents lasting peace in Norway.
My 25th Great grandfather, Ragnvald The Wise Eysteinsson, 830-890, Jarl of More, had accompanied Harald Fairhair on a great military expedition. First they cleared the islands of Shetland and Orkney of the Vikings who had been raiding Norway then they continued on to Scotland, Ireland, and the Isla of Man. Sometime during this campaign, Ragnvald’s son Ivarr was killed and in compensation, Harald granted Ragnvald the lands of Orkney & Shetland and made him Jarl of More. When he returned to Norway, Ragnvald gave these lands to his brother, Sigurd Eysteinsson.
*****This monument is very impressive. I have included other photos of it so you can see it in other conditions.
Friday morning, I woke up with a lot of congestion. Figured I’d picked up a cold from being in the rain all day the day before. By evening, I didn’t even feel like going to dinner. My ears hurt and I felt really bad. I figured my old nemesis, the sinus infection, was striking again. At 10pm, I went down to the med center, hoping they would give me an antibiotic, but they were so busy with this old lady who was having heart and breathing problems, that after an hour, we just left. I started on the antibiotic I carry with me for UTIs, but was told it would work just as well for sinus problems.
We packed our bags and that's when I found the umbrella I had seen other passengers carrying in the rain all 3 weeks & I had tried to find one to buy it--we had one all along, waiting in our closet.
Saturday, July 15—Disembark in Amsterdam
By Saturday morning, I was feeling even worse. Getting off the ship was such a chore. We disembarked and went straight back to our original hotel which we had booked for one night. Friday night was my night from hell. That night, I started to suspect that something was really wrong. I vaguely remember Ray dragging me over to the Med Center at the Amsterdam Central Station to try to get seen, but it turned out to be impossible to even get an appointment!
I didn’t sleep AT ALL, only dozed for a few minutes at a time all night then would spend the rest of the time moaning in pain. I got up every hour on the hour with general all-over pain and achiness, just trying to find some solution. I couldn’t breathe and was miserable. The antibiotic didn’t seem to be working at all. I felt like I was in one of those horrible dream sequences where you’re having drug withdrawal and hallucinating.
Sunday, July 16—Flight Home
Can’t say I woke up because I never really went to sleep last night. I don't see how I made it on to our flight home, but I just had this overwhelming need to get home and get on the proper drugs—whether this was a sinus infection or something much worse. We got to the airport in our taxi and went straight to the KLM lounge.
Our flight was on time and with heavy doses of Nyquil, I slept for 3 hrs on the plane, totally knocked out. I don’t remember this flight at all but evidently I watched 2 movies & tried to eat some lunch. The movie, “The Quiet Girl,” I think was very good.
Here is the Stroopwaffel we got on the flight home:
We had a 4 hour layover in Atlanta which was miserable. Finally we got home to Asheville & both took Covid tests. Both of us were positive for sure. We tried every way we could think of to try to get Paxlovid that night but nothing worked—CVS was closed, went to the hospital but there was such a LONG wait that the doctor on call talked me out of waiting because he said they couldn't even guarantee we’d get Paxlovid at the end of it. I went home and made appointments for us at CVS for tomorrow. morning.
Monday, July 17—CVS
Things are so much easier when you’re in your home country. Went to CVS and got drugs without a hitch. Hopefully on our way to feeling better, but right now I am so very achy all over, and have super congestion and pain and headache and super fatigue. Ray has a terrible-sounding cough and feels yucky.
***Well, the hope about feeling better soon? That wasn’t to be….As it turned out, Ray’s cough lingered as did him continuing to test Positive on every Covid test even up to today (July 29). But he hasn’t really felt bad.
I, on the other hand, have tested Negative since 4 days after starting on the Covid drugs and I am still testing negative. BUT I am the one who I believe had all the Covid congestion go into a terrible sinus infection—the worst one I’ve ever had. I coughed so hard all day on Thursday that I woke up on Friday with every muscle in my stomach and chest feeling like I had been run over by a huge truck! Continuing to cough was excruciatingly painful, making me yell out while coughing and gagging on green gunk. My wheezing has me sounding like I swallowed a doggie squeeze toy!!! I did a virtual doctor visit because I just didn’t have the energy to go out. She sent me an antibiotic, so I hope it won’t be too much longer before I can get rid of all this congestion—though it’s still bad today.
...at least I hope I do!
