Geiranger, Norway

             Tuesday, 19 Jun 2018 – We arose early this morning in preparation for meeting at 9:15 AM in the Showroom at Sea for an excursion.  At first, the room was full of passengers because, even to take a tender ashore, a ticket (and a wait) was required here.  However, 9:15 came and went, until it was obvious that only our excursion remained to be called.  Finally, about a half-hour late, we were called; after taking the tender ashore, we were directed to a bus, where we sat and waited with the other passengers.

Geiranger Troll

            Before too long, we were told that, at first, a broken door handle required a wait for a second bus.  The bus was procured.  However, now they were waiting for a bus driver!  During that time, several passengers (including us) left the bus briefly to use a restroom.  Eventually, we were told that we each had a choice:  (1) wait 30 minutes for the bus driver; or (2) accept a refund for the excursion.  Since we had already waited for a considerable time, we elected to receive a refund.  There was a nearby Hop On/Hop Off bus, which would have required only a 20-minute wait.  Jesse voted for this.  However, Sally was not really interested because the main attraction to this city was a drive (via a winding road) up a mountain, and this road had been closed due to the bad weather.  We had already been informed of this fact while sitting on the bus.  In fact, low-lying clouds were hanging over the tops of the highest terrain, which appeared to have fresh snow, and the normally beautiful view was not lovely at all today.
             Note:  We had chosen one of the “easy” ship’s excursions out of Geiranger.  Some others involved being in a rigid inflatable boat (RIB), kayaking, hiking, or bicycling.

            After returning to the ship, we sat at lunch at a table with Lynn of Australia.  Lynn has traveled the world over, including even a 6-month tour of the U.S. by bus!  (She admitted that bus was probably not the most comfortable way to see the country, but she had visited all 48 continental states.)  Also, Lynn had made many sea voyages on Holland America, including five previous trips up the Norwegian coast (this is her sixth) because she loves Norway.  However, she said that she had never seen such bad weather as today; usually, it rains part of the day, but is also clear for part of it.

While we sat for our lunch, the captain announced that we would be sailing through rough waters and would try to stay fairly close to shore in order to avoid the open sea.  He advised, however, to ensure that breakable items in our cabins are not set upright so that they could fall over and break.

            Later, Sally took a nap and Jesse went to daily Mass.  Although Sally converted in 1995, she believes that it is enough to attend church once a week!  On the other hand, Jesse wants to support the concept of having a priest onboard because, if no one comes, then Mass might be dropped.

            Since we had eaten so much at lunch (because of going late), we danced for about a half hour before dinner.  At that time, the view from the outside windows was riveting.  Whitecaps were everywhere.  At times, our ship seemed too close for comfort to rocks on the shore (or islands).  On the dance floor, we began to feel the tilting of the ship – for several minutes, we felt as if we were dancing on an incline.

Still Light at Midnight

By the time we arrived in the Lido Market for dinner (about 7:45 PM), most people had finished eating and left.  Although we were able to sit by a window while eating, land appeared more distant and the view was less exciting.  However, even at 10:30 PM, our ship was still passing by small islands, rocks, and an occasional lighthouse.  And whitecaps still revealed a churning ocean, splashing up several feet when they hit rocks.  The captain and crew had their work cut out for them during the dark of the night!  We don’t really mean “the dark of night” literally.  It was still light outside when we turned in at midnight!