Sunset

Sunday, June 25th
Amsterdam, The Netherlands
ms Koningsdam
Voyage of the Midnight Sun
Disembarkation Day
Chance of Rain - 66 Degrees

Well, the sun has finally set on the Voyage of the Midnight Sun.  We are docked in Amsterdam, and getting ready to leave the ship.

Here are the highlights from the land of never-ending daylight:


The Blue Lagoon in Iceland

Momo in Amsterdam

The Hydrotherapy Pool & Thermal Suite aboard ms Koningsdam

The Kjosfossen Waterfall in Flåm, Norway

Geirangerfjord in Norway

Sel de Mer aboard ms Koningsdam




The Midnight Sun in The Arctic Circle

Nordkapp in Norway

Tree in the Mist & Waterfall from the Water in Eidfjord, Norway

Next Stop:  Stay Tuned

Stavanger, Norway

Friday, June 23rd
Stavanger, Norway
ms Koningsdam
Voyage of the Midnight Sun
Day 13
Chance of Rain - 58 Degrees

The weather on this trip has been a mixed bag.  Mostly marginal, occasionally great, never terrible.  We were really hoping for good weather for our boat ride today, but it turned out on the verge of terrible.  The fog was so thick this morning, we couldn't see the bow from the forward decks.  No scenic cruising.  The fog lifted enough to dock the ship, which was no guarantee, but the clouds and drizzle remained through the day.  No worries.  Rain has never kept us below decks.

We docked in the Vågan harbor, right in the heart of town.

Stavanger is the Dallas of Norway, the "Arabia of the North," home port of the oil business.  Oil was discovered in the North Sea off the coast of Norway in 1969, and it has transformed the economy making Norway the richest of the Scandinavian nations.  Norway is the third largest exporter of oil in the world at 1.6 million barrels a year, and holds one-half of Western Europe's oil reserves.  They know it's a finite resource, the petroleum expected to run out in 30 - 70 years, so they are holding the proceeds in trust for future generations, currently valued at more than $1,000,000 per Norwegian.  In spite of their wealth in fossil fuels, Norway is determined not to rely on them.  Electric cars, for instance, are subsidized by 50% by the government, and enjoy every privilege on the road imaginable.  Stavanger has an outstanding Petroleum Museum.  Given the weather today, we probably should have done that instead.

But, we are here to bask in the splendor of Norwegian natural beauty, and the Lysefjord is said to be one of the most beautiful.  It is famous for one rock formation in particular, Pulpit Rock, a promontory, more of a diving board really, that juts out over the fjord at a height of 1,959 feet.  The true glory goes to those who hike up the mountain for a view from the top, but the view looking up at the people looking down is supposed to be pretty cool too.

We cruised through the Stavanger Archipelago in a catamaran on our way to Pulpit Rock.  Perhaps this would be a good time to review our Pet Peeves of Photography:

• Taking pictures through windows.
• Taking pictures through rain-streaked windows.
• Taking pictures with flash through windows.
• Taking pictures of distant subjects with flash.
• Photographers who don't know how to disable their built-in flash.
• Tripods in inappropriate settings.
• Selfies - the word.
• Selfies - the concept.
• Selfie Sticks
• Posing for a picture in front of something that would be way more beautiful without you standing in fucking front of it.
• Adults taking pictures with a camera phone.
• Taking pictures with a tablet.
• Taking pictures with a tablet with the cover of the tablet hanging down below it.

When we got close to the Rock, we scrambled out on deck in the pouring rain to take pictures.  With the boat drifting directly underneath, we craned our necks to look straight up into the clouds, rain dripping into our eyes and mouths, and we could just make out the faintest visage of Pulpit Rock.  Drying the lens between each frame, we managed to record the image for posterity.  In this case, the picture does do it justice, which isn't much.

We also cruised into a little grotto for a pleasant view, the high walls of the cliffs protecting us from the driving rain.  And, we got within inches of another great waterfall, but the rain combined with the mist emanating from the avalanche of water, made it better to look at from the inside.

This being Norway, of course, we had to stop for waffles with sour cream and jam.  For those keeping track at home, that's three waffle stops on this trip, from a train, a bus, and a boat.  It's like a road trip in the American South with a Waffle House on every corner.

Wet and weary, we set sail back toward the ship, and then on the ship for home.

Next Stop:  Amsterdam, The Netherlands

Eidfjord, Norway

Thursday, June 22nd
Eidfjord, Norway
ms Koningsdam
Voyage of the Midnight Sun
Day 12
Cloudy - 66 Degrees

The name of the village is Eidfjord, but it's actually located on the Hardangerfjord.

The sprawling Hardanger Mountain Plateau is the largest in Northern Europe.   We boarded a bus for a drive to the mountains through the steep Måbødalen Valley.  With all due respect to Belgium, waffles seem to be the national snack of Norway.  We stopped at the Halne Mountain Lodge for another round of waffles with jam and sour cream, and a look around the plateau at about 3,700 feet above sea level.

Our next stop was at the Sysen Dam, one of Norway's largest embankment dams. The base of the dam is a watertight core of sand and gravel, topped with tons and tons of rock.  It measures more than a half-mile long, 265 feet tall, and 813 feet wide at the bottom.  Unfortunately, no dam tour.

After taking in the dam, we continued to Fossli and the Vøringsfossen Waterfalls, cascading almost 500 feet into the wild Måbø Valley below.  Overlooking the falls is the Fossli Hotel.  Edvard Grieg composed his Opus 66 while in residence there.

Sailaway tonight took us out of Eidfjord, back down the Hardangerfjord, and under the Hardanger bridge.  Barely under.  ms Koningsdam clears the bridge with just a meter to spare.  That was close!!!   Just as we emerged from Hardangerfjord, the captain took a detour to port for a closeup of the falls, and the bridge that passes in front of them.  Just amazing.  The falls, and the ship.  Nearly 1,000 feet long and 100,000 tons, she turned on a dime at the mouth of the fjord.  Back and forth, 30 degrees to port, then 30 degrees to starboard.  Three full cycles so everyone got a look.  Finally, she turned to starboard one last time and steamed away.

Next Stop:  Stavanger, Norway

Ålesund, Norway

Wednesday, June 21st
Ålesund, Norway
ms Koningsdam
Voyage of the Midnight Sun
Day 11
Overcast - 54 Degrees

Ålesund is a lemons out of lemonade kind of town.  In 1904, a massive fire burned the entire town down to the ground.  It was such a devastating tragedy, and such a complete loss, that all of Norway, and all of Europe, came to the rescue and helped them rebuild.  Kaiser Wilhelm II, Emperor of Germany, loaded his three largest warships with supplies and sent them to Ålesund.  In just three years, the entire city was rebuilt, in stone, not wood, and in the prevailing architectural style of the time, art nouveau, Jugendstil in Norwegian.  The historic center remains intact, and represents the largest and most complete collection of art nouveau architecture in Europe.  The tragedy has become the attraction.

After standing in the cold and wind for an hour and a half, we boarded a hop-on-hop-off bus for a tour of the city.  They were down a bus, so we didn't dare hop off for fear of missing the boat, but it was a nice tour.  We walked back into town at the end for a closer look, and the larger perspective from the ship.

Ålesund hosts a yearly summer solstice festival.  Last year, they set the world record for the largest bonfire.  Preparations are in full swing for this year's festival, and they are going to try to break their own record.  The pyre is set on the waterfront.  The fire boat gave us a salute at sailaway.  They must be practicing for the bonfire.

Next Stop:  Eidfjord, Norway

Honningsvåg, Norway

Sunday, June 18th
Honningsvåg, Norway
ms Koningsdam
Voyage of the Midnight Sun
Day 8
Mostly Sunny - 50 Degrees

This is our only stop North of the Arctic Circle, a little hole in the ice on the Barents Sea called Honningsvåg, officially recognized as the Northernmost city in Norway.  This is a matter of some dispute.  Norwegian law defines a city as having at least 5,000 residents.  Honningsvåg has only 2,500, but received the designation as a city prior to the law establishing the 5,000 resident threshold.  The 2nd Northernmost city in Norway, which has more than 5,000 residents, is pissed.

But, this is the gateway, not the destination.  Our ultimate destination is Nordkapp, or the North Cape, which has laid claim to various designations:

The Northernmost Point in Norway
The Northernmost Point in Continental Europe
The Northernmost Point in Europe

All are false.  Honningsvåg and the North Cape are both located on the island of Mageroy, thus not even a part of Continental Europe.  And, the North Cape isn't even the Northernmost point on the island of Mageroy.  Knivskjelodden is further North, but only by a reindeer whisker (71º 11' 08" vs 71º 10' 21" North Latitude to be specific), and it's inaccessible.  So, the North Cape is the SYMBOLIC Northernmost Point in Europe, and we are all about symbolism.

It was a beautiful, crystal clear, blue sky and sunshine morning for the drive out to the North Cape, about 45 minutes from Honningsvåg.  This is a truly barren, windswept landscape, above the treeline even at sea level.  Winter is not yet a distant memory here.  The low places still have patches of snow, and the lakes are still partially frozen-over.  The vegetation is sparse, just more than 200 species in total, but there are reindeer.  We saw herds of white reindeer with little brown babies.  The babies are adorable, and one would fit in my suitcase just fine, but the adults aren't much to look at.

The North Cape is a promontory with a dramatic vertical cliff face rising 1,000 feet above the Arctic Ocean.  The views down to the surf and out over the ocean are spectacular.  We are told.  It was fogged-in solid while we were there, and all we saw looking out to sea was the inside of a marshmallow.  It's a cool place, though, with a visitor center, research station, and a monumental globe marking the NOT Northernmost point in Europe.  It's one of the most striking and apt monuments we have seen.  The fog, and the hordes of smiling idiots, cleared around the globe for a split second to give us one good shot.

We had hazy sunshine for sailaway.

And, a view of the North Cape from the Arctic Ocean as we sailed by.  Dramatic, indeed.

Next Stop:  Ålesund, Norway

Midnight Sun, Arctic Circle

Sunday, June 18th
Arctic Circle
ms Koningsdam
12:30 AM

We crossed the Arctic Circle at 5:18 AM on Saturday, June 17th, and we have the certificates to prove it.

The port lecturer onboard ship quoted Wikipedia to explain the Arctic Circle and the Midnight Sun.  We will do the same:

"The Arctic Circle is the most northerly of the abstract five major circles of latitude as shown on maps of the Earth. It marks the northernmost point at which the noon sun is just visible on the northern winter solstice and the southernmost point at which the midnight sun is just visible on the northern summer solstice. The region north of this circle is known as the Arctic, and the zone just to the south is called the Northern Temperate Zone. North of the Arctic Circle, the sun is above the horizon for twenty-four continuous hours at least once per year (and therefore visible at midnight) and below the horizon for twenty-four continuous hours at least once per year (and therefore not visible at noon); this is also true within the equivalent polar circle in the Southern Hemisphere, the Antarctic Circle.

The position of the Arctic Circle is not fixed; as of 8 June 2017, it runs 66°33'46.7 north of the Equator. Its latitude depends on the Earth's axial tilt, which fluctuates within a margin of 2° over a 40,000-year period, due to tidal forces resulting from the orbit of the Moon. Consequently, the Arctic Circle is currently drifting northwards at a speed of about 15 meters (49 feet) per year."

All of that is to say, the Arctic Circle is defined by the Midnight Sun, and the sun will not set for the next three days while we sail in the Arctic.

Here it is, taken at midnight right off our verandah to the port side, facing West as the ship steams North up the coast of Norway.

Geiranger, Norway

Thursday, June 15th
Geiranger, Norway
ms Koningsdam
Voyage of the Midnight Sun
Day 4
Partly Cloudy - 71 Degrees

It was another early morning onboard ms Koningsdam, up at 4:30 for scenic cruising through Geirangerfjord, another a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and "one of the most scenic destinations in the world."  It 's 120 miles long and a mile deep, absolutely spectacular.  There was just enough sunshine and blue sky for contrast, with waterfalls, sheer cliff faces, and deep green forests in every direction.  The air was cold, but so fresh and clean with just the hint of the sea.  This is why we came.

We are so fortunate to be here during prime waterfall season.  They all have names, but the most famous are The Suitor and The Seven Sisters, facing each other across the fjord.  The Suitor is said to have proposed to each of the Seven Sisters, only to be rebuffed by one and all.  If you look closely, you can just make out seven separate waterfalls cascading down the cliff face.  We came upon The Suitor first, still in shade, and then The Seven Sisters came into view just around the bend, bathed in sunlight, sporting a rainbow sash just as we passed.

Geiranger has just 400 year-round residents, but welcomes more than 600,000 visitors during the summer.  This is a tender port, so we are not docked.  ms Koningsdam is at anchor, and it's about a ten minute ride in one of the lifeboats to reach shore.

We took the tender to the pier ashore, and then took a bus up the 5 km winding road to the summit of Mt. Dalsnibba, 4,911 feet above sea level.  The hairpin turns are so many and so steep and so tight that two vehicles cannot pass at the bend, one must back up to let the other one by.  We passed another bus on a straightaway, its side mirror an inch away from our windows, its other mirror scraping the rock face.  The bus stopped part way up the road for a view back down the valley, and a waterfall ready for its closeup.

It is still a winter wonderland up top.  The view goes on forever, and proves how crazy the road is.

We have seen cairns in several places on this trip.  These figures made of collected stones are indigenous to the peoples above the Arctic Circle, man-made landmarks in the tundra with few natural ones.  We are familiar with them as inuksuit used by Canada's First Nations.  Here, they are a popular souvenir that visitors leave behind.  Disturbing the rocks is technically a crime, though.

On the way back down the mountain, we stopped at The Norwegian Fjord Center for exhibits on fjord life and a slideshow of the fjord in all four seasons.  The slides showed what an incredible place this is, and how our pictures on this one day in time don't do it justice.  The Fjord Center is on the Waterfall Walk which descends down the hill into the valley and follows the cascading series of falls that delivers the water from mountain to fjord.  The resource is so pure that the municipal water supply is free, and they drink the water untreated.

The light at sailaway wasn't as good as it was this morning, but The Suitor and The Seven Sisters deserved another look.  They didn't disappoint.

Next Stop:  Trondheim, Norway