DAY 8 NY-ALESUND

First of all thanks for all your comments. I love hearing from you and getting the local news. Sorry photos are slow in coming – we are in and out of Internet connections. Should be good from now on…so I will post photos for days 6 and 7.


There are four “settlements” on Spitsbergen, one of which is Longyearbyen (named for an American, Longyear, who discovered coal literally poking out of the ground and started a mining company). We are headed for Ny (pronounced new)-Alesund, research stations of 35-40 more-than-hearty souls. We are 1900! If there are any polar bears, they will run a mile when 1400 Brits storm the beach, haha. It is going to be cold and there is really nothing to do but hope that some wildlife will appear…although, according to t he captain, one couple hopes to have lunch there. Hahaha

Ny Alesund is on the southwest shore and we approach through Kongsfjorden. It was originally called Whales Bay by Hudson 1607 and later Deere Sound by Poole in 1610. It is usually ice-free between May and November and is one of the world’s northernmost settlements and is, in fact, the world’s northernmost functional public settlement.

Ny Alesund was founded as a coal-mining town; Roald Amundsen started his North Pole flight here in the Airship Norge; the Norwegian government took over the area in 1935 and made it a major fishery station until WWII when it once again became a coal producing area; after a major mining accident in 1962, the government decided that the location was too remote from rescue services and discontinued mining; in 1968 the Norwegian Polar institute opened a research base; in the 1980s and 90s other nations increased their scientific activities and turned Ny Alesund into an international Artic research base; in 2004 and 2008 respectively, China and India open their research stations.

At present, there are 10 countries that maintain research stations. Ny Alesund is now home to the new Arctic Marine Lab, which remains open year-round, whereas some of the other stations do not. There is an abundance of wildlife, particularly birds and especially the Arctic tern – more later. But also polar bears, Arctic foxes, whales, sales, walruses.

We approached Spitsbergen from the south, passing several islands and then entered Kongsfjrden and anchored of Ny Alesund. It was misty and raining….. 40F but, fortunately, no wind. We were surrounded by an Arctic landscape of dark mountains still partially covered in snow, glaciers and tundra. Some patches of green here and there. The research station consists of a handful of colorful buildings: labs, dormitories, a post office, a gift shop and a hotel. The Chinese center is flanked by two enormous Fu dogs. Most of the buildings are colorful, providing cheer in the Arctic night. There is a huge bust of Amundsen and his airship post still stands at the edge of the settlement. I took the very first tender at 8am with a handful of people. We were restricted to the gravel paths within the settlement; Cunard personnel were posted everywhere to make sure we did not wander out of town or walk on the fragile tundra.

The settlement is also a bird sanctuary and so there are strict rules about approaching their nests. It is obvious that we needed to respect the rules of this research station; we were also told the personnel would be watching us. Well, trouble started right away. A couple ran off over the tundra to get a closer look at an old mine locomotive. Wasn’t a minute before a very, very angry researcher came out and shooed them off. Then, as I turned right and continued down a “street”, I saw some terns attacking a group of people….and I mean attacking, pecking at their heads. Well, they were too close to the nests, which are mere depressions in the gravel about 2 feet fro the road. The nests were marked with tiny yellow flags only visible when one was virtually upon them. As I approached, I found one couple very close to the nest, the man had his hand up in the “come and perch position” (maybe he thought they were parrots!!!); the tern was screeching, and swooping; another man was screaming at them from afar in English to get away from the nest. Well, that was in vain – what language should he have used -----hahahahah, French of course. Well, at this point the tern was attacking me, too, but I literally grabbed the couple by the shoulders and pulled them away, swung them around and explained the situation. They were very contrite and upset…what did I get for my troubles, a big peck on the head and it HURT!!! But really, in nature, agitated aggressive behavior on the part of a creature means it is protecting its nest or its young. The photos tell the story!!

We had been told over and over to respect the tundra and the nesting sites. Signs everywhere indicate this. True, it is all in English, but the big red X-es on signs are international. I overheard one man opine – “I don’t see why we have to stick to the paths.” (Roll eyes!!) Another couple just set off over the tundra at the edge of town to approach some birds on a little lake. The obviously trampled the tiny alpine flowers and mosses which are so fragile. It was a fascinating visit, but I wonder about the advisability of cruise ships stopping there. I left after about 2 hours jus as the crowds came and the mist lifted. The stark beauty of the area was revealed – absolutely stunning. I went back to the ship to enjoy it in peace.

Quiet afternoon. Met some of the gang in the Queens Room for pre-dinner dancing. Old two-left-feet here just watched. Margaret and Michelle are very good. I did no go to the show after dinner – too tired. Worked on the blog and settled in for a good night’s sleep. I’ve got the hang of it now. Keep the curtains closed; do not be tempted even to peek outside; keep your back to the window and back into bed, put the mask on…and voila!!!

DAY 7 ARCTIC SEA EN ROUTE TO NY-ALESUND

Overcast and cold (42F). Some waves – 4-5’…a bit of motion, but not much. Lots and lots of sea birds: auks, petrels, glaucus or Icelandic gulls, shearwaters…but mostly fulmars, who put on quite a performance, pirouetting on the surface in search of food. We passed Bear Island this morning – anyone remember Alistair McLean’s novel of the same name (and the really bad movie)???

I am posting some photos from last night’s “sunset” and the midnight buffet. Also a self-explanatory posting on the TV -take a careful look.

We are well into the Arctic Sea heading for Svalbard, an archipelago of which Spitsbergen is one island. You’ll have to move well northwest of Norway toward the North Pole in order to find it on the map.

Went to two lectures this morning: Peter Quartermaine, a terrific maritime historian whom I have heard on previous voyages, spoke about “The Box Ships” – the history of containers, container ships and container ports. Containers, invented by an American hauler have revolutionized the international movement of goods and have brought about profound economic, human and architectural changes in our time. (N.B., He borrowed heavily from the book, “Container Ports I have Known and Loved: by M. Heslop) His talk was fascinating and accompanied by wonderful slides.

The next talk was by Jane Davey, who is an expert on Norway and who has been with us from day one. I have not been able to get to all her lectures, but caught up on the TV where they are broadcast on a loop. Today, she spoke on “Svalbard: Gateway to the North Pole”. Not only was it informative, but it was also extremely funny. She is better than a passel of comedians. She had us in stitches.

After lunch, I went topside to try to identify the birds – it was cold and windy. I came inside, went to the library, got a book on birds and stationed myself in a very comfy armchair in front of a picture window. What a sight! But, more importantly, the very nice gentleman next to me had fantastic field glasses and knew his birds – so he id-ed them for me!!!

Then it was time for another cocktail party – this time hosted by the Cunard Sales Dept. (as in, book now, we want your money!!!) Seriously though it was lovely as usual. Yoyo sends her best to you Paul and Amy….prices for QE 1011 will be released in a few days.

Then time for dinner…a scotch in the Commodore Club…then ABBA night in Illuminations (nightclub). We sang and danced ourselves silly until 1 a

DAY 6 HONNINGSVAAG AND NORDKAPP

It is Sunday, so it was full English breakfast day for me – in the cabin. Yum! Then I dressed warmly and went topside to meet friends and take in the scenery as we approached Nordkapp which we passed at about noon and then arrived at Honningsvaag about 1:00 pm. We are at anchor and there are 3 other cruise ships here: the Tahiti Princess (seems out of place!) which was later replaced by an MSC ship; a Fred Olsen ship; and a Hurtigruten ship - they were all moored at the docks.

Honningsvaag is a fishing town, pilot station and now tourist stop on Mageroya Island. It has been settled for over 10,000 years. It is the proverbial “roof” of Europe and its northernmost shore is Nordkapp (71degrees10’21” N lat.). Strictly speaking Knivskjellodden, a few miles west, is a few degrees north, but no one minds. There is a complex at Nordkapp consisting of a visitor center, a post office (so you can post you card from the roof of Europe!), a souvenir shop and a theatre with a film presentation.

Mageroya (pop. 5,000 hearty souls) is part of Finnmark province where Bergen once exiled vagrants, vagabonds and condemned prisoners (sound familiar?) These people manned the fisheries which grew in number. The region is also part of nation-less Lappland which straddles Norway, Finland and Sweden. More than 70,000 ethnic Sami live in the area. The Norwegian government helps protect the Sami nation. They speak their own language and there is a Sami parliament and court at Karasjok.

The sun does not rise here between mid-November and the end of January. There are 24 hours of sunshine from May 15 to July 30. Due to the temperate sea water, winter temperatures are much milder than one would expect –January 24-hr. avg, is -4C). Estimated high temperature for today is 8C (around 46F).

The morning was rather cloudy, but eventually the sun came out and one could see nice patches of blue.

You can see from the photos that this area is pretty bleak, but has its own beauty. It reminds me of Cape Horn and the Falklands. There are no trees and very little vegetation; I found some pretty arctic wildflowers under foot and caught glimpses of color here and there on the hillsides. I saw some raptors, some ducks and plover-like birds, but could not identify them. There are bird colonies in the area and there were excursions. Well, I said “penguins” to that – if I book they’ll be cancelled! Haha. So, I took a bus to NordKapp after lunch. It really wasn’t that cold – at least there was no wind. Just a sweater and my fleece sufficed – I took an anorak but did not need it. I met up with Jacques, Jacqueline, Bryan and John who had arranged for a taxi to Nordkapp. We walked to the edge of the cliff; visited the “King’s View” from deep inside the cliff; watched the film presentation which was very good – no narrarion, just the four seasons in this area, set to music; saw the lovely sculptures done by children from around the world and a statue of a Norwegian mother and child; and took lots of photos.

On the way to Nordkapp, the bus stopped at the obligatory souvenir stand – ah but his one is run by the Sami and they showed off a couple of tame reindeer who ate lichen for us. They were bit scruffy as they are growing new antlers and are shedding their winter coats. But adorable, nevertheless. The Sami bring them here each year – by ferry - for summer pasture. There were plenty of them in the pastures, even newborns, and we had to brake for a group crossing the road. Reindeer come in all colors, none of which is Rudolph-chocolate-brown. Just as we have different hair coloring, so do they. Most of the ones we saw were very pale. I bought a little stuffed one for my collection.

Hard to believe, but people come here, from all over, to camp, hike and bicycle. The Norwegians believe in fitness and outdoor sports. I saw some elderly people cycling up hills with no effort at all.

Met two young Welshmen who’d asked someone to take their photo and it wasn’t very good, so we offered our services. They were wearing full motorcyle gear, so we wanted the story. They have been traveling the world with their bikes for 3 years; they’ve loaded he bikes on ferries, ships and planes. One sold his house, the other his business. They are now almost at the end. They were so nice and didn’t mind the barrage of questions. And they travel light – just what the saddlebags of BMWs will take --- oh yes, and they are camping.

I am including two extra photos: one of the sky at 1:30 a.m. this morning and one of me taken at Nordkapp – I am showing off the lovely scarf Ross bought me for Xmas.

There are 30+_ French people on the ship – I think I have met most of them!!! I have been speaking French every day. Also met some Belgians and an Anglo-French couple – so more French.

Back at the ship, after dinner, I worked on the blog. Then, around 10:30 went topside to meet everyone and wait for midnight and the sun NOT to go down IF the skies clear. It was too cold to stay outside and so I took photos every 15 minutes and then popped back inside. Cunard put on a midnight buffet of desserts (and a smoked salmon station): strawberries flambéed in rum, sugar and butter; butterscotch and chocolate fondue with fruit, cakes, marshmallows for dipping; cakes, mousses, fruit….you name it. Plus a hot chocolate station – as in add your own liquor! The presentation, anchored by a model of Tower Bridge, and 4 huge ice sculptures and including many chocolate and butter sculptures, was beautiful...but it was a madhouse. We waited until things calmed down and seats became available and then moved in for a nice quiet time.

After that, it was bedtime for this bonzo!!! I still can’t get over this 24-hours of daylight. It is amazing.

DAY 5 EN ROUTE TO HONNINGSVAAG

Despite another “nuit blanche” in the truest sense of the word (I barely slept and the sky never darkened), I sallied forth after posting Day 4. After a clear morning a cold mist settled upon us just as I went out onto the Lido deck to meet the Cruise Critic gang. I sat with them for a while, covered in blankets, then gave up and went to do some errands, including booking tables for 13 (!!!) for Indian night on the 3rd. Bryan is a people magnet and invites everyone to come along for everything. He is going to the Queens Room as 2:50 to stake out tables for tea, which begins at 3:30!!!! (Note – not to worry, Roscoe, you are still the king of people magnets!!)

Met Jacques and Jacqueline for lunch in the Britannia Dining Room at 1. Delicious 3-course lunch with a very nice Argentinean pinot gris and delightful conversation. Finished at 2:45…..tea 45 minutes later with the gang. This is far more than I usually do!!! Then Jacques, Jacqueline and I went off to do Wipeout Trivia…we lost badly.

Here are photos of Bryan and John; Margaret, Jacques and Michele. I need to get one of Jacques and Jacqueline.

Very nice dinner with my tablemates – then a double Glenfiddich and an early night. I’ll let you know tomorrow if I sleep.

We entered the Arctic Circle this afternoon. 66degrees30'N. Tomorrow Nordkap, the northernmost inhabited area in Europe.

Thank you all for your comments. They should all be posted by now.

DAY 4 HELLESYLT TO GEIRANGER

Well, after very little sleep, I woke to find us hemmed in by mountains as we passed through Storfjorden and Suunylvsfjorden to reach Hellesylt where the ship hove to without anchoring to tender off passengers doing the overland to Geriranger. The ship then proceeded to Geiranger.

(Note – we had no Internet for 24 hours that is why y our comments did not appear until last night after we entered the North Sea again.)

Today’s, tour lasted 9 hours and our destination was the Briksdal
Glacier in the Jostelsbreen, Europe’s largest icecap at 200 square miles. Our route took us through Hornindal, Grodas, past Hoornindalsvatn Lake to Stryn and the on to Olden through Loen. At Olden we followed Lake Oldenvatn to the Briksdal Glacier. The walk of 45 minutes uphill through beautiful alpine scenery with stunning wildflowers and a rushing river was wonderful. 45 minutes back down and a delicious lunch of cream of leek soup and wild salmon awaited us, all washed down with local bitter (yum) beer. I met a nice couple from Nottingham – Jenny grew up in Heswall, Jill, small world – and spent the day with them.

After lunch, we made our way back to Stryn, followed the lake to Flosnes and Hjelle, and then took the winter road to Videseter, Dvupvasshytter and Dalsnibba. We briefly passed into Eastern Norway where the glaciers and fjords gave way to alpine lakes with ice still breaking up and snow-lined roads. We looked for reindeer, but none appeared. We’ll have to wait until Nordkap. Summer skiing is popular in this area. It was all breathtaking, especially when we took a one-track unpaved road up a series of hair-raising hairpin bends up to a viewpoint. We could look back at the alpine lakes and down to Geiranger fjord. Words fail! (I’ll let the photos speak!!) We then dropped down to Geiranger where the Victoria awaited. A picture postcard-view the one used in all the brochures for this cruise. On our way down, we made a photo-op stop where a ewe and her two lambs awaited their daily dose of sugar. Mother was quite aggressive, even climbing halfway up the steps of our bus. The minute another bus arrived, she was off again. It was very funny.

Now for some details. All the places named above are tiny villages or towns. There are some factories – buses and furniture (mobel in Norwegian – like meuble in French)- and dairy farming. The haying has just been completed and the white plastic bales are visible le in all the fields – toilet rolls for
Trolls as the guide said. Hahahaha. Most of the old isolated settlements are now abandoned – though at one point, the farmers were not allowed to leave- government wanted to maintain local populations. Along the fjords, we saw abandoned farms perched on a few square meters of grass, virtually inaccessible. One can only wonder why people settled there rather than in the valleys. Inaccessible….and yet the children went to school!!! They rowed for an hour across the fjord, then walked...stayed at the school for 3 days, then back to work the farm for 4 days. There are old one-room schoolhouses everywhere. The old farmhouses are tiny – and people had large families then! Many old houses have grass roofs. Kiwis will appreciate this – invasive lupines everywhere. An import gone amok!

Guide was wonderful and explained the meaning of all the names. Hornindal means mountain (horn – like Matterhorn) in the valley (like dale). Hellesylt means holy moor (moor as in Yorkshire moors not Arabs, hahahahah/.

Norway prides itself on good environmental management. The word for environment, incidentally, is milieu!!! Hydroelectric power is controlled; all rivers run free and may not be dammed or diverted. The proceeds from local hydroelectric power paws for school and homes for the elderly. With the advent of tourism in this area, especially Geiranger, agriculture has become a hobby. The last cow left Geiranger a few years ago. Geirangerfjord is listed as a UNESO World heritage site.

Little factoid - the ship was “Mediterranean moored” in Geiranger – using anchor and mooring lines.

Arrived back at the ship too late for my early dinner seating. Had Indian food in the Lido then went outside to take photos of the Geirangerfjord as we made our way back to the North Sea. We passed many beautiful waterfalls, each with its own little legend…Seven Sisters facing the Suitor, for example…and the ubiquitous “Bridal Veil” falls. Met up with the Cruise Critic gang and we stayed on deck until 11:29 waiting for the sunset---but the sun did not completely dip down – it just hovered at the horizon. The colors of the sky were stunning.

No sunsets for 7 days. The weather is supposed to be wonderful throughout the cruise. It was 85 degrees today – HOT!!! Needed a fleece later ion the evening.
Sleep is well night impossible, even with blackout curtains and a mask. My biorhythms are completely off. I should have been exhausted after all the walking and fresh air, and I was when I got back to the ship…but then I felt more and more awake. I had been warned about this.