At Sea & Debarkation

            Sunday, 20 Sep 2015 – We awoke at 9:00 AM and went to breakfast at 10:00 AM.  After breakfast, we started packing up for our trip home.  While packing, we mostly watched the news programs; then we took a break for a small lunch, watched part of “Meet the Press,” and finished packing.  Before dinner, we left our big suitcases out in the corridor by our cabin door.

For dinner, we sat at a table for four with Gail and Jim.  We talked afterwards for quite a while, until it was apparent that the wait staff was becoming annoyed; then we said our goodbyes.

Although we had planned to dance, we decided to return to our cabin instead, where we watched an interesting movie about Stephen Hawking, The Theory of Everything.

            Monday, 21 Sep 2015 – We awoke to the alarm at 5:45 AM.  Wondering about the outdoor temperature, we stepped out on our balcony – and there, on the starboard side of our ship, was a gorgeous view of the New York City skyline and the Statue of Liberty.  Although it was still dark, lights sparkled everywhere!  After rushing to breakfast by 6:15 AM, we returned to our cabin to finish packing.  One of the most difficult times during cruises for us is the final step of checking out of our cabin by the 8:00 AM deadline.  When we have run late, our friendly cabin stewards have turned into ogres!  However, we’ve been gradually improving – and this morning we were out by 7:45 – a record for us!  Then, pulling our hand luggage behind us, we made our way to Club Fusion, where we waited with other Elite and Platinum passengers for our turn to leave the ship.

            At 10:30 AM we disembarked the ship, but it was 11:30 AM by the time we finished standing in the long customs line and boarded our Princess airport transfer bus.   We arrived at the LaGuardia Airport at 12:15 PM.

At the airport, the seating areas anywhere near our gate seemed to be set up like a large restaurant, with mostly benches or hard-backed chairs pulled up to counters or tables.  The tables were all equipped with I-pad looking devices, on which you could check your flight status or order food or drinks.  To Sally, it seemed a little like a “Steak ‘N Shake” restaurant.  After playing with the menu for a little while, we decided to walk back (pulling carry-ons) to the food court for lunch.  This area also seemed peculiar to us.  On could pick up anything from fruit items, a buffet meal, to pizza.  After deciding to order two slices of pizza, then we had difficulty figuring out where we should pay.  The “pizza lady” seemed a little annoyed with us and pointed to another area for payment.  A woman there scanned our credit card for payment; then we returned with the receipt to pick up the pizza.  (Most wait staff was completely eliminated in this process!)

After consuming the pizza, we pulled our luggage back to our gate.  This time, we saw a few empty seats of the scarce conventional (somewhat comfortable) type and ran for them because they were in high demand!  Finally, at 4:25 PM we boarded our plane, which then waited in line on the tarmac for another 30 minutes before finally taking off.  The flight to Minneapolis was only about 2.5 hours, just long enough for the serving of complementary drinks and [tiny] snacks, and we soon found ourselves making our way though the Minneapolis – St. Paul Airport to our gate.  When we first entered, we were shocked to see that the seating was the same as in LaGuardia – apparently the new trend for airports.  However, we did manage to find a couple of traditional seats near our gate, where we waited for our turn to board our plane to Peoria.

At 9:30 PM we landed in Peoria.  The hardest part was Jesse’s search of the parking lot for our vehicle; we had been running very late, and he didn’t notice exactly where he had parked.  After our 1.5-hour drive back to Bettendorf, we finally made it to home-sweet-home at 11:30 PM.  Back to cooking and straightening up – where is that cabin steward?

Signing off from another WONDERFUL cruise!

At Sea & Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada

            Friday, 18 Sep 2015 – Although this seemed like an at-sea day, it was not that because we were to dock at Halifax, Nova Scotia at 7:00 PM.  This new schedule was a result of skipping Newfoundland due to the storm there, and then being unable to dock earlier at Halifax because another ship had reservations for the dock space.

            As we headed to the Horizon Court for breakfast this morning, we saw Jim and then, Gail, at a table on the deck.  Since they were going to eat, too, we selected our food and then carried it on trays to join them.  After talking for a long time with them, we went back to our cabin for a while before having our lunch/snack in mid-afternoon.

            At dinner, we sat with Gail and Jim plus two other couples: Maureen and Joe (of Long Island, New York), and John and Maggie (of Texas, but formerly of Des Moines, Iowa).  Maureen and Joe are the first people we have met who have been taking the same vacation as we have: first, the Royal Princess cruise around the U.K.; then visiting London for four nights; and finally, boarding the Caribbean Princess for both the Norwegian fiords and the current cruise.  One difference is that they cruised to England on the Queen Mary, thus avoiding flights altogether.  (Gail and Jim will fly to Seattle, but then cruise from there back to Australia, in order to avoid that long flight.)  Although it was about 8:00 PM when our ship finally docked in Halifax, there was a long line of people waiting to leave the ship.  Alternatively, we danced again to music by the Alphard Duo.

            Saturday, 19 Sep 2015 – We awoke to our alarm at 7:30 AM, and went to breakfast at 9:00 AM.  We proceeded ashore and boarded our tour bus at 11:10 AM.  Our tour guide was Ron and our driver was Paul.  (Yes, those were their names!)  We drove from the waterfront and into the historic heart of downtown, past some of Halifax's most famous historic landmarks and attractions.

            One of the first sights we passed was the Maritime Museum of the Atlantic, which features one of the world's foremost collections of Titanic memorabilia, including the ship's only surviving deck chair.  We continued on past the Historic Properties, a renovated 19th century district that reflects the time when merchant ships and privateers came into the harbor.  Incidentally, Halifax harbor is the second best natural ice-free harbor in the world.  (First is Sydney, Australia.)

            Our first stop was the Fairview Lawn Cemetery, burial site of 121 victims of the Titanic.  Because Halifax was the closest major port to the sinking of the ship, all of the recovered bodies were brought here along with many pieces of wreckage.  Although most of the victims are memorialized with a small gray granite marker giving their name, date of death, and marker number, some families paid for larger markers with a more detailed inscription.  However, one-third of the occupants of the graves have never been identified and their markers contain just their date of death and marker number.



View from the Citadel

For a bird's eye view of the city, we traveled up to the top of Citadel Hill for a photo stop. Citadel Hill has a renowned history.  The city was founded here in 1749 and its strategic position overlooking the harbor led the British military to build a guardhouse and fort.  A total of four forts would be built atop this hill.  The present Citadel, completed in 1856, is officially called Fort George, named after Britain's King George II, and its distinctive star shape is typical of many 19th century British forts.  From this panoramic viewpoint we looked out over the city's downtown skyline, the harbor, and the ceremonial guards at the Citadel's entrance.  Off in the distance we could see the town clock.  Commissioned by Prince Edward, Duke of Kent in 1800, the clock has kept time for the community since it began operation in 1803.

On our return trip to the pier, we continued on past the exclusive (expensive!) neighborhoods of Halifax's South End, past the universities, hospitals and parks before returning to the pier.  Since the tour was only scheduled for 1.5 hours, we were back onboard the ship and enjoying lunch in the Horizon Court by 2:30 PM.

Since Gail and Jim were not available for dinner, we joined Bill, Brenda, Ron, and Tia, all from Ontario, Canada, about 30 miles north of Toronto; and Marilyn and Lisa from Vancouver Island, Canada.  As usual, we mostly discussed our cruise experiences.  After dinner, we danced to the Alphard Duo for 45 minutes before returning to our cabin.  Before retiring, we set our clocks and watches back by one hour – this put us back to New York’s time, or EDT.

4 Days at Sea (Extended to 5)

            Sunday, 13 Sep 2015 – We awoke at 7:30 AM, but lounged in bed until we went to breakfast at 9:30 AM.  There we had a long conversation on genealogy with David and Margaret from Vancouver, Canada.  In the afternoon, we watched the new version of Poltergeist on TV, interrupted by a light lunch at 3:00 PM.



Jesse, Sally, Gail, & Jim

            This was a formal night, so we dressed in our formal attire and at 6:00 PM, we joined Gail and Jim in the Club Fusion for the Captain’s Circle Cocktail Party for complimentary cocktails and dancing.  Sally and I were mostly the only couple on the dance floor, but four other couples joined us for a waltz.  For dinner, we sat at a table for four and all enjoyed a lobster dinner.  After dinner, we drank tea and talked until 9:00 PM.  We were only able to dance to two songs before the Alphard Duo went on break; then we retired for the night.

            Monday, 14 Sep 2015 – On this second-of-four at-sea days, we slept until 10:00 AM.  After watching a little news on the TV, we went to breakfast in the Horizon Court at 11:15 AM.  Although the restaurant was a little crowded with late risers enjoying breakfast before the 11:30 closing time, we were invited to join a woman from Orange County, California, at a table set for four.  (She would be taking breakfast back to her cabin for her husband, who had been sea sick for the last few days.)  She introduced herself as being Chinese, born in Taiwan, and now living in the Los Angeles area.  After breakfast, we returned to our cabin and watched TV, namely the movie “Saving Mr. Banks” about the author of the Mary Poppins book.  We barely recognized Tom Hanks, who was playing Walt Disney in the movie.  In our reluctance to pull ourselves away from the movie, we missed lunch – though we treated ourselves to a dish of ice cream mixed with Coca Cola.

            We met Gail and Jim for dinner and then joined two other couples:  Richard and Donna, of upper state New York (but winter in Arizona); and Bill and Jane of Essex, England.  The table was too large (and the surroundings too noisy) to carry on large group conversations, but we did manage to discuss cruising.  After dinner we danced to Jumari and then to the Alphard Duo.  Before retiring, we set our clocks back again by one hour.

            Tuesday, 15 Sep 2015 – On this third-of-four at-sea days, our progress of dressing for breakfast was slowed while also watching the American political show, “Morning Joe,” on TV.  Since the outdoor temperature was still about 48 degrees, we raced through the open-air part of the Lido deck on our way to the Horizon Court.  Today was another TV movie day: first, we watched the last half of “Still Alice” about a woman with early Alzheimer’s, before pulling ourselves away to eat a mid-afternoon lunch.  (Although we try to restrict our portions, it seems impossible for us when eating at a buffet!)

            Back in our cabin, we heard our ship captain’s announcement over the speaker system that our ship would not stop at St. John’s in Newfoundland, Canada as scheduled for safety reasons; the weather there was becoming stormy, resulting in high waves.  Therefore, our ship would sail within a distant view of Newfoundland, but would head to Halifax, Nova Scotia, where we would dock for two nights.  Later in the day and during the coming night, the sea became rougher.

After shutting off the TV (we had been watching “Roman Holiday,” an old movie that, yes, we had seen a long time ago), we hurried – albeit late – to meet Gail and Jim for dinner.  This time, we sat at a table for four.  Our waiter was from the Ukraine – Sally wondered whether east or west Ukraine, but she didn’t ask.  After dinner, we danced for perhaps 20 minutes or more to the Alphard Duo.  They seem to play a tango, sooner or later, if we happen to be there at the right time – and tonight we were lucky again.  When we returned to our cabin, we watched the rest of “Roman Holiday” before turning in.

            Wednesday, 16 Sep 2015 – On what was to be the last of four at-sea days, Jesse was tired in the morning from watching TV too late and Sally, from just not sleeping enough.  (We will have a fifth at-sea day since we won’t be docking at St. John’s in Newfoundland.)  While still lying in bed, Sally discovered that the one-hour political program “Morning Joe” was extended on TV for at least 3 hours in the morning on our Princess ship TV.

            Before walking to the Horizon Court for breakfast, we noticed that, besides still being cold, it was raining.  Accordingly, we chose a path that would at least keep us dry.  Although one or two very hardy souls sometimes have been swimming in one of the pools, the weather was so poor this morning that nets were affixed over the pools.  (A very few do use the hot tubs, though it is hard to imagine emerging from a hot tub into 48-degree air temp!)  At breakfast, we ate with, and then continued to talk with, Sandra and Eric now of Tucson, Arizona.  His parents were music teachers who taught in various places; at one point, his father had been a band director at Southern Illinois University.  Sandra teaches Zumba five mornings a week at their homeowner’s association’s community center.  Except for a light lunch at 3:00 PM, we spent the afternoon watching political programs on TV and napping.  Gail called about 4:00 PM to let us know they would not be joining us for dinner. 

At 6:00 PM we went to dinner, where we joined Richard and Donna of upper state New York, with whom we had dined previously, and Mike and Barbara of Naples, Florida.  While talking, we shared horror stories from previous cruises, the worst being one of Richard and Donna’s cruises that encountered two hurricanes; during that cruise, about 200 passengers suffered fractures from falls, even though the captain had urged them to remain in the cabins, preferably in their beds!  After dinner, we danced to the Alphard Duo.  Before settling in for the night, we had hoped to watch the Republican presidential debate; however, it was broadcast only on CNN, which we don’t receive on our cruise ship.

            Thursday, 17 Sep 2015 – On this unscheduled fifth at-sea day, we awoke at 8:30 AM and watched recaps of the Republican presidential debates.  Because there seem to be so many commercials on the ship versions of the news programs, to avoid most of them, we switched back and forth between Fox News and MSNBC.  Although we also receive BBC news, their reporting on the debates was minimal.  Finally, at 10:30 AM we went to breakfast.  For much of this day, except for a light lunch at 2:30 PM, we continued to watch TV news.  (We noted, especially, the big earthquake in Santiago and Valparaiso, Chile, where we were just a few months ago.)

            Since it was much warmer today, about 68 degrees, many passengers were lying in deck chairs around the pools, although there were very few actually wearing swimsuits.  Tonight was our last formal night.  For dinner, we sat at a table for six with Gail and Jim, plus Tom and Cheryl of Baja California, Mexico (retirees from the US).  When we discussed our so-so views of the aurora borealis on this cruise, long-time cruisers, Tom and Cheryl told about the gorgeous view they had in Alaska north of Denali.  They also described sitting in an outside hot tub, when the temperature was 40 degrees below zero, and then dressing warm to walk 50 yards or more to shelter.  (Thanks, but no thanks!) 

After dinner tonight, we were fortunate again to enjoy a tango with the Alphard Duo (as we have several previous times) during our short 15 minutes on the dance floor.  Before going to sleep, we watched the last half or more of the movie “Interstellar.”  Since we missed so much of it (the beginning and also parts that we couldn’t hear), we decided we’ll have to rent it later!

Tonight we were told again to set our clocks back an hour, making us only one hour ahead of Eastern Time in the US.

Reykjavik, Iceland

            Saturday, 12 Sep 2015 – We awoke to our alarm at 5:30 AM.  After an early breakfast, we met our tour group in the Princess Theater at 7:30 AM.  Our tour bus departed from the Reykjavik pier at 8:00 AM, with guide Gritawool and driver Yold (not sure about the spellings!).

            Reykjavik is located in southwest Iceland, and two-thirds of Iceland’s population lives in the Reykjavik area.  On this full-day’s journey we visited Iceland’s three most famous landmarks known together as the Golden Circle.  We continued through dramatic countryside to cross the Moorlands Mosfellsheidi, an ancient undulating field of lava.  Eventually, we reached Thingvellir National Park, which was established in 1930 as a protected area of genuine historical, cultural, and geological value.  This rift valley offered incredible views of the Reykjanes Ridge, an aboveground portion of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, which separates the Eurasian and North American tectonic plates.  (At one point, our guide mentioned that we were on the American plate and, much later, that we were on the Eurasian plate.)  Iceland’s largest natural lake, Thingvallavatn, is located in this area.  Thingvallavatn is also the largest lake, by volume, in Europe.

Our bus stopped at Althing, where the Icelandic Parliament began meeting in 930 A.D. under a towering cliff along the western wall.  Not far from there, we walked through an area between high cliffs of rock (looking almost like old ruins), left from volcanic action 9,000 years ago.  [The word “Parliament” as used in this case was confusing; in Iceland, it seems to mean the geographic place where chiefs met, not the group itself.]

Gullfoss Waterfall

We continued on to the beauty of the Golden Circle's second stop, Gullfoss Waterfall.  How spectacular!  It was difficult to stop gazing at this three-tiered curving stone cascade, with water rushing and tumbling until it plunges down a deep ravine.   At this stop we walked a long way to get slightly different views.

Next, we traveled to the Golden Circle's final stop, Strokkur, an explosive geyser that blasts every few minutes as high as 60 feet – but spurts for only a few seconds before dying down to build up pressure for another blast.  (It was very difficult to snap a photo during that short time.)  Strokkur is also surrounded by other steamy spouts, which erupt from the ground at boiling temps.  While walking through the enclosure, we saw the algal deposits and hot springs.

For us, it was impossible to avoid comparing this waterfall and these geysers with those in Yellowstone.  Although Yellowstone Falls is high, it is not as spectacular as Gullfoss.  However, Old Faithful geyser (even though it is not as “faithful” as it used to be, such as in the 1950’s) has a much higher display than Strokkur and the spray lasts a longer time.  Admittedly, Yellowstone Park, with its luxurious pines is a much different environment than the barren, but dramatic, Icelandic landscape; nevertheless, both are definitely worth seeing.

Outside Restaurant

            At a nearby restaurant, we enjoyed a typical Icelandic meal including soup, poached salmon and potatoes, and vegetable salad, plus coffee.


            After lunch, our bus continued to Hengill, a mountain resting on a volcanic ridge, to visit Hellisheidi Power Station, the second largest geothermal power plant in the world and the largest in Iceland.  Building on geothermal forces generated by three volcanic systems dating back 11,000 years, this plant began generating electricity in 2006 and set its sights on generating hot water.  This hot water plant was introduced in 2010, and the last two high pressure 45 MW turbines were added in 2011.  On the walls of the power station were bits and pieces of information, with corresponding dates (in years), including the following:  a power plant had been built in Boise, Idaho; an Icelandic group went to study it, and in 1970 they returned from Boise to start building this plant.

Zombies at the Pearl

            From there, we headed to Perlan (The Pearl), a 10-story architectural icon in Reykjavik.  From the outside, its appearance was of a tall, round dome.  The Perlan is geothermally heated by water being forced through steel supports, and provides water storage for the greater Reykjavik area.  After entering, we walked around the outside circle on top, taking in phenomenal views of town and the surrounding landscapes.  Although we took the elevator up, we walked down the spiral staircase – cautiously, avoiding the temptation to look down!

            Among some additional facts that we learned today about Iceland is that the 100th anniversary of women having the right to vote was celebrated in June 2015.  Also, Iceland had the first female president in all of Europe, and today 44 percent of their parliament consists of women.  Yes, Iceland is a quite a place!

            At 6:00 PM, we met Gail and Jim for dinner, where we also shared a table with two widows, Rhonda and sister-in-law Diane of Brisbane, Australia; and Gary and Regina of Nashville, Tennessee.  Regina shared some of her many adventures with us, including camping out in the Australian outback and going on African Safaris.  As she and Gary have only been together for a little over four years, he did not share in her adventures.  Since no dances were scheduled until 9:00 PM and Sally was very tired from our all-day excursion, we decided to return to our cabin and call it an early night.

Isafjördur, Iceland

            Friday, 11 Sep 2015 – After lying in bed awake for a couple of hours, we finally got up and went to breakfast at 10:00 AM.  Since our day’s excursion was not until 2:20 PM, we watched the end of Kate and Leopold (one of Sally’s favorite movies) on TV and another movie, The Best of Me, barely finishing it.  We rushed out of our cabin to board one of the ship’s tenders at 1:40 PM, before the movie credits started running!

            Luckily we boarded an already-waiting ship’s tender at 1:45 PM.  On the pier, our tour bus departed Ísafjördur harbor at 2:20 PM, with tour guide Karla and driver Sveinni.  Although Karla spent her early life in Germany, she later lived in Canada.  To us, her language sounded like American English.  Her degree is in forestry.  Since 2000, Iceland has made a limited effort to reforest, but some Icelanders don’t like this because (1) sheep are restricted from these areas; and (2) trees can block the view for tourists.  Although we missed seeing trees, we also sometimes could not see distant cliffs because some trees blocked our view.

Ísafjördur, the westernmost city in Europe, is located almost on the northwest corner of Iceland and is the “unofficial capital of the western fiords.”  In fact, Ísafjördur is the last stop for ships headed to Greenland or North America.  The first settlement here was on a sandbar in 1200.  Since the water is not terribly cold, the fiord does not freeze.  Although whales and wildlife abound, both fishing and the population are decreasing.



Osvor Museum Curator

After being driven through a long tunnel of almost 6 km, we continued to Osvör Museum and Fisherman´s Hut.  Definitely a tiny outdoor museum, the curator, dressed in traditional Icelandic fishing garments and standing beside a boat near the water, gave us a picture of how local fishermen made their living off the seas during the beginning of the 20th century.  Dressed in leather clothes that had been waterproofed with fish liver oil and mittens that each had two thumbs, he definitely looked realistic.  A nearby hut by the sea was used as the fisherman’s house, and another nearby hut (with wire over it to keep out birds) was for drying of fish.

Arctic terns nest in this part of Iceland, but are now leaving to fly south to Antarctica for summer there (flying 40,000 miles!).  Also, fish meal is made here.  Although the smell is bad at the fish meal plant, the jobs have meant money.    The story is told that a young man came to visit his girlfriend’s parents, wearing his stinky work clothes; they smelled him and said, “OK, you make enough money; you can marry our daughter!”

Although people have been at the mercy of avalanches from the snow falling on their villages, in recent years some walls have been built to prevent this from happening.

We returned to Bolungarvik, a quiet village that lies on a bay surrounded by snow-tipped mountains.  Here, we stopped at the small pastoral (Lutheran) church.  Named Hólskirkja, "the church on the hill," it sits in an evergreen valley of grass, moss, and at some times of the year (but not now), Arctic poppies.  Designed by Rögnvaldur Ólafsson, named Iceland's first architect, the church was built in Norway and transported to Iceland over 100 years ago and was placed on the same spot on the hill where churches have stood since the year 1200.

Although it lacked expensive features, there was some decorative painting on the walls.  Two girls sang three traditional songs to us.  Outside was a cemetery that was interesting at least to Sally, who has visited many cemeteries for genealogy.  Some plots had a fence or stone wall around them; inside one of the stone walls, the ground was strewn with sea shells of about 2 inches in diameter.

At a glacier-fed stream, our bus stopped and we each drank cold, pure water from the stream.  Sally climbed carefully down the small embankment to dip out her own glassful of water, and also picked some tiny, wild blueberries growing beside the stream, which she shared with Jesse.

Soon, we passed the “troll’s seat,” a big, curved area cut by a glacier; indeed, it didn’t take much imagination to see that someone with a very large butt might have sat in that spot in order to soak his/her feet in a stream below.

A highlight of this tour was Seljalandsdalur, a glaciated river valley with gentle slopes and the stunning waterfall Seljadalsfoss.  By then, the sun’s brightness behind the waterfall made the foreground (the waterfall) appear dark in photos, for which we had no remedy.

The final stop of our day’s tour was at the Maritime Museum located in Nedstikaupstadur.  Unless a person is very interested in fishing, this small museum probably is probably not of great interest.  While there, we were encouraged to enjoy a snack of “Icelandic refreshments” (dried fish, tiny squares of shark, and liquor).  When given the opportunity, Jesse usually takes two of any treat; however, with the shark squares, he regretted having taken two!  They burned the mouth like fire.  The liquor was also like liquid fire.  Only the dried fish was palatable, though extremely dry and stringy.  When we re-boarded the bus, one fellow passenger drew laughter when he commented that he could now skip dinner since the fish had satisfied his appetite.

Back in Ísafjördur, we boarded a tender at 5:30 to return to the ship.  A sign at the pier indicated that this area was restricted to tourist traffic through September 15.  Our ship was one of the last (if not the last) of the season to stop here before Iceland’s long winter.

            Since Gail and Jim chose to eat elsewhere, for dinner we joined another couple at a table for four:  Lorraine and Serge, of near Quebec, Canada.  Although English is a second language for them, we managed interesting conversation, especially with Lorraine.  She is particularly well traveled; she and another lady friend drove many miles throughout the American West, visiting all of our western national parks. 

After dinner, we danced to Alphard Duo in the Wheelhouse Bar before retiring for the night.  At 11:00, we received a telephone call again that Northern Lights had been sighted on both sides of the ship.  We looked only from our balcony; although we could see a little lightness in the sky toward the back, it was not as bright as last night and there were too many clouds to see much at all.

At Sea and Akureyri, Iceland

            Wednesday, 9 Sep 2015 – We went to breakfast at 10:30 AM.  At that time, the seas were only “moderate,” but they became rougher later in the day.  In fact, some drawers of cabin furniture were sliding open unless stuffed with an item in the side to keep them closed.  On Deck 5 waves were hitting the sides of the ship hard.  We lounged around in our cabin until 3:00 PM; then went for a light lunch.

            We met Gail and Jim for dinner at 5:55 PM, where we joined two other couples:  Kirk and Linda from Toronto, Canada; and Mike and Jan from Tulsa, Oklahoma.   We talked a lot about the benefits of being Elite passengers on Princess.  After dinner, we danced to Jumari, then to the Alphard Duo.

            Thursday, 10 Sep 2015 – In the Horizon Court, it was the most crowded ever for breakfast because passengers were all trying to eat early.  We ended up sitting between other passengers, in a situation where the middle seats are usually left free.  At 9:00 AM we met our tour group in the Princess Theatre; and at 9:30 we climbed into our tour bus at the pier.  Our tour guide was Oscar and our Driver was Hanky (?) – or that’s what it sounded like!

            Today was a very windy day; at times, it felt as if we might be blown off our feet.  Oscar told us that earlier, the strong winds had caused some damage further south in Iceland.

            As our bus wound through the small city and then the countryside, Oscar said that Danish merchants were the first ones to come here 160 years ago.  Although Iceland’s climate tends to be somewhat more moderate than Iowa because it’s on the Gulf Stream from Central America, both their past winter and this summer have been colder than normal – possibly the only place in the world for that to be true.  On the sides of many mountains, snow can be seen, and usually it would have melted in July.  Now, Oscar said, it probably won’t melt before the snow starts falling again.  Only two days earlier, they had their warmest day of 2015, most unusual!



Boiling Mud Pools

Twilight Castles

            At first, we saw a lot of green areas, but very few trees.  Apparently, forests were used up many years ago for lumber and fuel, and the wind and sheep were not good for their re-growth.  Oscar pointed out some special horses that “can run in five different ways.”  (Now that sounds like quite a trick!)  Anyway, they sell these horses especially to Germans.  Fishing has become an expensive sport in this area of the interior, with a license costing the equivalent of $1,000 per season.  Much of the land here is very stark, with no green color at all – just large and small volcanic rock.  Iceland is the youngest of any place on earth, with volcanoes having created the country more recently than other places.  The continental plate between the Americas and Europe is located here.  We passed through rugged, volcanic landscape and dramatic lava formatiodense vapors at one of the most active volcanic areas on Iceland. Of course, we could smell sulfur.  ns.  Upon arrival at Namaskard, we walked near boiling hot mud pools that let out a steady roar and At Dimmuborgir, which means "twilight castles," we saw weirdly shaped lava formations that were left exposed in the bed as this former lava lake cooled and receded. Next, we headed to Skutustadir where large craters situated on the southern shore of Lake Myvatn are called pseudo or rootless craters. They were formed when lava overflowed the lakeshore's sodden ground.

            In school, children here learn English at 9, and Danish at 11.  Why Danish?  Iceland was part of Denmark for many centuries.  The Icelandic language is the oldest Scandinavian language; it has changed some, but other Scandinavian languages have changed more.  However, all Scandinavian languages are similar enough that those speakers understand one another.

            Our bus stopped at a local restaurant, where we enjoyed a sit-down meal with salmon as the main course and conversed with Diane and Stuart from Atlanta, Georgia.  From there, our coach continued to Godafoss Waterfall.  In the year 1000 the Viking Lawspeaker Thorgeir Thorkelsson made Christianity the official religion of Iceland; after his conversion, Thorgeir threw his symbols of the pagan gods into the waterfall. 

            Since we were tired, we decided to eat dinner at the Horizon Court at 6:30 PM and call it an early night.  However, at 11:00 PM we received a phone call from the Cruise Critic call chain that the aurora borealis was visible on the starboard side.  Although we didn’t relish getting up, we hadn’t fallen asleep yet and our balcony is on the starboard side of the ship.  (How lucky!)  Therefore, we put on robes and went to check it out.  Bright light was visible on the horizon.  Although we searched the sky above the horizon for any streaks of light or color going upward, we saw none.  However, there were some small clouds in the foreground higher in our view than the horizon which might have been concealing any other lights from our eyes.  But, we did see some Northern Lights!

Shetland Islands (Lerwick), Scotland

            On Tuesday, 8 Sep 2015, we awoke at 7:30 AM, well ahead of our 9:30 AM alarm.  By 11:15 we headed toward the Island Dining Room, and from there followed a group of passengers just starting to board one of the ship’s tenders.  We sat on the top level – and, yes, the wind was cold!  After a short (five- or ten-minute) ride to the pier, we walked around for a few minutes more until our bus started boarding at 12:00 PM.

Our tour bus departed at 12:20 PM, with tour guide Hamish (James in English) and driver Robert.  Hamish told us facts about the Shetland Islands, where some remains of the Stone Age can be seen.  Dutch discovered great schools of herring here.  Later, the Scots came.



Scalloway Castle

First, we traveled across a landscape of peat and heather-covered moors to nearby Scalloway, the former capital of the Shetlands.  Scalloway offers quite a colorful history.  Patrick Stewart, 2nd Earl of Orkney, built the castle in the late 16th Century to tighten his grip on Shetland, using the local people as slave labor to build and maintain it.  Known for his cruelty, he was hanged for his misdeeds in 1615.  It's an oft-quoted comment on Patrick's ignorance that his execution had to be delayed to give him time to learn the Lord's Prayer.

Since there was no wish to restore the castle, it has been left in ruins.  We explored the first and second floors of the ruins.  Although some passengers climbed the narrow stairway to the upper floors, our tour guide had advised not doing so.  (It didn’t look worth the effort to us!)

After seeing the interior of the castle ruins, we toured the Scalloway Museum, which was very close to the ruins.  An interesting exhibit there was on the "Shetland Bus." When the Germans occupied Norway during WW II, some young Norwegians went by boat to Scalloway under cover of darkness.  Since thousands of British soldiers were stationed in the Shetland Islands at that time, the British trained the Norwegians, and also gave them arms and explosives to perform acts of sabotage.  Some British agents also went to Norway.  On return trips, the boats would carry refugees back to Scalloway.  The “Shetland Bus” was the nickname given to the secret fleet of boats.

During both WW I and WW II, Shetland lost more lives than any other British country relative to population.



Shetland Ponies

From Scalloway, we made a short stop at Carol's Ponies, a Shetland pony farm.  Carol, the owner, told us about these ponies and then answered questions.  Apparently, Shetland ponies used to be in great demand for work in coal mines, but now the market for them is fairly small.

Each time we exited the bus during our tour, we were attacked by swarms of small biting flies, so we were always among the first passengers to re-board the bus.  Then, from the comfort of the bus, we would watch the other passengers swat flies and scratch.  After returning to Lerwick, we boarded a ship’s tender again for our return to the ship.  We were back in our cabin by 3:45 PM.

For dinner, we sat at a table for four with Gail and Jim; then we danced to Jumari in the Explorer’s Lounge.

At Sea and Bergen, Norway

            Sunday, 6 Sep 2015 – Today was a “rough” sea day (with waves of 7.5 to 12 ft.), with temps in the low 50’s and the swimming pools sloshing from one side to the other.  Although all of the children disembarked at Southampton, the pools still were not inviting today!  We ate a very late breakfast, and talked for an hour with a younger couple (Cindy and Ed) of Toronto, Canada seated nearby.  For the remainder of the afternoon, we lounged in our cabin.

Again tonight, we met Gail and Jim for dinner, this time dressed in our formal attire.  After dinner, we attended the Captain’s Welcome Aboard Party.  Although the captain had postponed the Champagne Waterfall until later in the cruise due to the rough seas, but the wait staff still served complimentary champagne.  After the captain finished his welcome speech, we danced a little to the Leal Quintet in the Piazza; then, after saying goodnight to Gail and Jim, we went up to the Wheelhouse Bar and danced to the Alphard Duo until they went on break.

Monday, 7 Sep 2015 – Today, we awoke by our alarm at 9:30 AM.  When we turned on the TV, Meet the Press was showing on MSNBC, with Colin Powell being interviewed.  We watched that until 11:00 AM, before going to breakfast.

At noon, we could see from our balcony that the ship was parking in its assigned place along the Bergen pier; and by 12:30 we stood in a long line beside the ship in order to board one of the Princess’ shuttle busses.  Since no one was allowed to walk through the very large cargo area beside the pier, the busses needed to transport passengers for that distance and then also through a tunnel to the center of Bergen.

When we had been in Bergen four days earlier, we had decided to take the hop on – hop off bus.  Although we had expected that many people would want to ride this bus and that we might have to wait for some time in order to board, that didn’t happen.  Plenty of shuttle busses were available for those who wished to ride; and many people intended to walk around the city, not ride.  In fact, since a bus was sitting there right then, we bought tickets and boarded.  We chose the “open” upper deck, near the front.  For the next hour, we sat on the tour bus, listening to a narrator describe the sights through an onboard audio system.  Although there were 12 bus stops on the tour route, we stayed onboard.

Bergen has played a crucial role in Norwegian history and culture since Olav the Good founded the city in 1070.  Perched between the sea and seven hills, Bergen has witnessed Vikings setting sail on voyages of exploration, trade, and war.  In the Middle Ages, its old port was a major trading hub for the Hanseatic League, the band of Germanic merchant whose trading empire encircled the Baltic and North Seas.  We rode by the Hanseatic museum and, if we had felt more ambitious, we would have checked it out.  In the 19th century, Bergen was home to such cultural luminaries as the violinist Ole Bull and the composer Grieg.  We passed monuments memorializing these famous citizens of old.  Although now oil is a big export of Bergen, fish is still very important.  We drove by the famous fish market.  Although Oslo is now the capital of Norway, Bergen was the capital and largest city for many years.

One comment about Norwegian merchandise:  we saw coats, stoles, etc., of genuine fur for sale in stores.  Considerable wild life can be found in the back country of Norway and hunting is definitely allowed, though it is regulated.

After returning to our cabin, we rested before dinner (Sally slept!).  Our friends, Gail and Jim, came back later and were very tired after walking all over Bergen.  We happened to see them briefly.  Since they chose a quick meal in the Horizon Court, we sat at a table for nine people: a woman, her husband, and brother from Perth, Australia; a couple from Rockford, Illinois; and a woman and a very young woman (Nicole) of Washington, D.C. (we could never ascertain their relationship).  The table was so big and the dining room so noisy that we didn’t try to find out most people’s names and couldn’t hear much that was said by the people sitting far from us.

Although we had been thinking that Tuesday would be an at-sea day, when we saw Gail and Jim briefly, they had set us straight on that issue.  Indeed, we set our clocks back an hour tonight, but prepared for an excursion again on Tuesday!  (We were glad that we happened to see them!)

At Sea & Stonehenge

Friday, 4 Sep 2015 – We went to a late breakfast this morning, and then lounged in our cabin.  (Sally took a nap.)   Today the sea was a little “roly-poly” as our captain calls it (or with “moderate” waves) and the air was cool; very few hardy souls were on deck.  At 3:00 we attended a wine-tasting party, this time held exclusively for Elite passengers.  As usual, we were not particularly attracted to any of the wines except for the final glass of dessert wine – and all of them would cost more than we’ve ever spent on wine!  At dinner, we sat with two couples: Gary and Carol of near Williamsburg, Virginia; and Jerry and his wife of Orlando, Florida.  Afterward, we danced in the Explorers’ Lounge to Jamari and then in Club Fusion (very briefly) to recorded music.

Saturday, 5 Sep 2015 – We awoke to our alarm at 7:30 AM.  Although this was disembarkation day for most passengers, we were among the 500 who would be remaining onboard for the next cruise ending in New York City.  Horizon Court was extremely crowded; many people had checked out of their cabins by 8:00 and then were “camping out” until time to disembark.  After eating breakfast, we proceeded to our excursion meet-up point in the Princess Theater.

Our bus departed the pier as scheduled at 9:30 AM, with driver Shane and tour guide Mickey.  In 1620 the Mayflower had sailed from Southampton to what became Plymouth, Massachusetts.  Much later, Southampton had been the last port for the Titanic before it hit an iceberg four days afterward.  During WW II, the city was heavily bombed, as were all major sea ports, and later was rebuilt with no particular plan; therefore, it is not picturesque at all.



Salisbury Cathedral

The first stop for our bus was Salisbury, where we strolled through the town center with our guide, to view the 13th-century English Gothic cathedral completed in 1258.  Built a few years after the rest of the church, the spire is a sight to behold, soaring up 400 feet and dominating the landscape for miles around.  The cathedral is home of one of only four original Magna Charta documents, which dates back to 1215 A.D.  [“Charta” is written “Carta” in England, which might be a newer spelling?]   In fact, one of the signers (a baron) was buried here.  As we wandered around Cathedral Close (the immediate area of the Cathedral), we observed the black-and-white, half-timbered houses that added to the charm of this location.



Stonehenge

Next, our bus proceeded on to Stonehenge, which dates to more than 5,000 years ago.  From the bus, our guide pointed out burial sites (burrows) not too far from the road that we wouldn’t have noticed otherwise.  Finally, our bus pulled into a bus parking area; from there, we walked to the main entrance, where we each received entry tickets from our tour guide, as well as audio-guides (like a telephone, and similar to those at Westminster Abbey a few days earlier).  At the Stonehenge entrance, all visitors must “hop on”a special small bus to a point closer to the Stones.  Then we saw the Stones, some 24 feet high, which were fenced off in 1977 due to erosion.  (Fencing them off prevents people from “crawling all over them” and making good photos possible for everyone.)  As we walked along the encircling pathway for close up views, we heard on our audio-guide about the genesis of the site, archaeological evidence about the builders, and their tools and methods of building.  No one knows exactly why Stonehenge came to be.  Although we walked for quite a distance, possibly as much as one mile, all visitors were walking slowly, sometimes stopping, to listen to their audio-guides.  There was much detail, which Sally found extremely interesting.  After completing our walk around Stonehenge, we boarded a small bus again for our return trip to the main entrance.  Here, we toured a small museum and walked through an area with mud and grass huts and other displays to show how the original Stonehenge construction workers might have lived.

At the beginning our day’s trip, a few drops of rain fell on the bus immediately after people boarded.  A little later, it turned out to be partly sunny.  However, in the open countryside at Stonehenge, the wind was cold; a warm jacket and hood or cap felt cozy.  We had been allowed almost two hours there, which had sounded like a long time but turned out to be just about right.

By 3:35 we were back aboard our ship.  New arrivals for the second part of the Caribbean Princess’ journey had already boarded and were attending their required safety drill.  (We “had been there, done that” and didn’t have to repeat it!)  After freshening up, we walked down to the Shore Excursions desk.  There, we cancelled our ship’s excursion at Bergen, where we had decided to take the hop on – hop off bus instead, and we purchased tickets for excursions to Isafjordur, Iceland; St. Johns, Newfoundland; and Halifax, Nova Scotia.  Excursions at those three ports had not been available when we made our reservations several months ago.  Luckily, the excursions were not yet sold out.

Having been in contact with our Brisbane, Australia friends, Gail and Jim, we knew that they would also be aboard for this cruise.  [We first met them in San Francisco at the start of a cruise from there to Sydney, Australia in September 2012, but visited with them again in Brisbane in December 2014 when we cruised around Australia.]  Tonight we sat together in the dining room at a table for four.  Afterward, they went with us to the Explorers’ Lounge, where we danced to Jamari for 15 minutes until he stopped playing; then we went with them to the Princess Theatre, where the Welcome Aboard Showtime was presented.  Although Gail and Jim had said that at this show it is usually announced how many people are aboard the ship from the various countries, this time exact numbers were not given.  However, it was obvious that most people are from the USA.  (Jesse actually stayed awake for the entire show!)