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USA, UK and Norway

August - October 2019
  • Rosie Marzouk
We start with a week in San Diego visiting Michael’s family. We fly to London and spend 6 days there, then north to spend time with Omnia and Gill and Bob. Next the 12 day walk along Hadrian’s Wall and then Norway and a boat up the coast and fjords Read more
  • Rosie Marzouk

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  • Rosie MarzoukTravelerUSA, UK and Norway
    View from the topIn Grieg's house1Grieg's composing hut

    A Glorious sunny day in Bergen

    October 4, 2019 in Norway ⋅ ⛅ 3 °C

    A really almost perfect day. First I have to correct a gross error from yesterday when we weren’t properly orientated - the $100 hamburger was a misreading of the menu! When scrutinised today we found it was item 600 on the menu, not 600 kroner, and actually was a fairly normal price!! So I apologise for giving the totally wrong impression.

    So now for today - it started with breakfast, which is included with the room - and it was a massive buffet. Not a simple continental breakfast, but every choice you could conceive of - all the usual eggs, bacon, croissants, amazing bread, baked beans, but also couscous, radishes, salads, caviar, and also for us the pièce de resistance - an orange squeezing machine!!! And even the coffee machine produced good coffee. So that was an excellent start, and kept us going till dinner.

    It was a beautiful day - sunny and sparkling. Our first objective was to ascend the mountain looking down on the city - we took the funicular up, admired the breathtaking view from the top, and then walked back down on the zigzag path. Amazing views all the way. Then we took a break in a coffee shop and decided to spend the afternoon going to Grieg’s house, a little way out of the city. We got the light rail back towards the airport and alighted at a station called Hop, and walked about 20 minutes following the signs. Spent a lovely couple of hours there. There is his actual house, a museum, and a small house by the water where he composed. Looking out from there you can imagine how he was inspired to compose his music. Very good and very manageable. Got the tram back. I had a short visit back to the hotel and Amr had time looking at shops and a general wander. We all met up with C and J at a wine bar we had found this morning.

    Also this morning on our initial reconnoiter we had found a wonderful place which we had totally missed last night. A building which is the information upstairs is a sort of fish market below. Not the open fish market which is also nearby, but a series of shops which sell fish (caught that day) and all have restaurants attached to them. Just perfect for what we were looking for, so we had booked a table for 6.30, and when we came we were glad we had. We were not the only people who liked to dine there!

    And we had the BEST meal. I had halibut baked with butter and chervil, with vegs and salad, just perfect. And Amr and I each had a glass of Alberiño. We were all totally satisfied.

    Bergen is just lovely. Everything works. No dilapidated houses or buildings. And SO picturesque. Maybe because of their long dark winters everything is designed to allow light. All the walls are glass (I keep having trouble finding the door and trying to enter through a window)...the breakfast room which is huge, and spread round a whole floor, feels so light and not crowded because of this light. And our hotel room, though fairly small, makes used of the space so cleverly that we feel almost spacious. The shower is two glass doors that magnetise together to make a square shower recess. But they can rotate back to the wall and that square becomes part of the bathroom space.

    Also, a very comfy bed. And unlike many European beds which are two beds pushed together, with double sheets over all, but with a crack in the middle that you can’t sleep on...this bed is one double mattress but with 2 doonas (each neatly folded German style), far preferable! So we have had a wonderful day, corrected our first impressions as novices, and wonder how people, who have been brought up here all their childhood, feel when they visit other countries and realise that all the world is not as beautiful as Norway! (Maybe Switzerland would qualify)...

    Anyway, we are very much looking forward to our 12 days, starting tomorrow, on the Hurtigruten boat...we can drop our bags there at 12.30, and then come back at 3.30 to check in. I think we sail at about 9 pm. So new adventure, and I have no idea of the wifi situation so if nothing published for a while it is because of the lack of wifi. But Amr says I can use his hot spot from his phone with the European SIM! (If he has reception)...anyway, we’ll see how it goes. I will write up each day, as particularly on the boat they may merge in my mind. Have plenty of books on my kindle to read as we float up the fjords!    Read more

  • Rosie MarzoukTravelerUSA, UK and Norway
    Cabin without bedsCabin with beds

    Now on the Hurtigruten boat Nordlys

    October 5, 2019 in Norway ⋅ ⛅ 9 °C

    Today is an exciting day as we are now on the boat that we will live on for the next 12 days. This morning, after our sumptuous breakfast we packed up and checked out of the hotel at midday. Got a taxi to the terminal where we could leave our bags (which would be taken to our cabins) and then we were free for a few hours as check in to the boat wasn’t till 3, boarding at 4 and cabins ready at 6!

    So Amr and I went to an exhibition of Edvard Munch paintings...really good - he is so famous for the Scream that I hadn’t realised he did so many others and it was really good. Another building had the permanent exhibits - more Munch and other Norwegian artists, and some modern art - Picasso, Bracht, Klee....so that took the time till we could check in and board our ship.....

    And here we are snugly in our cabin. Now writing a bit later as we had a briefing before when I was writing - about the ship and excursions and meeting the crew etc...a sort of routine as on all ships I guess, like we did on the river cruises. I think there are about 350 passengers...but people come and go at the various ports. We found our cabin and are amazed at how spacious a small space can be! Had expected to be more cramped...there is a luggage room where we can put suitcases, but we probably won’t bother as they can be put aside easily. When we arrived the beds were put away. One was a couch and one pulled down from the wall. But we pulled them into their bed formation and don’t think we’ll put them back, as plenty of room with them down, and we won’t be in here much except to sleep. Bathroom small but all works perfectly, and there are shelves and spaces to put things everywhere. We have completely unpacked - luxury!

    Carole and John booked a posher cabin than us, and with their package they get free wifi, and can log on 5 devices each! so John has very kindly let me log on my iPad, and the wifi seems good, so I think I can do the blog. We have been allotted dinner sittings and we are at 8pm which is good. C and J have been put at a 6.30 sitting and may change to coincide with us at the same table, but I think they actually prefer earlier, so we’ll see. Dinner tonight was a buffet free for all, delicious food but I can see why they regulate the times, tables and sittings as it was chaotic and people who didn’t get in early had to wait for quite a long time.

    Anyway, we left at 9.30 pm and I was out on the deck well rugged up as it was cold. Amr found it too cld and sought a warmer vantage point, but it was such fun seeing the lights of Bergen receding...just beautiful, and a huge, low, almost half moon low on the horizon. Gorgeous. Now clean and tucked in...there is even a pull out clothes line in the bathroom, and a heated floor (the bathroom floor was heated in the hotel too)...I guess Norwegians know all about cold. Now 11pm and will try to sleep, but rather excited!    Read more

  • Rosie MarzoukTravelerUSA, UK and Norway

    Update!!

    October 5, 2019 in Norway ⋅ 🌙 8 °C

    Wow! It s almost midnight, and we have just seen the Northern lights!! In our briefing we were told that we can press a button on our cabin phone to allow announcements at any time (only to see the northern lights would be after 10pm)...and there we were, I was still reading in bed, and Amr wasn’t yet asleep, when the announcement came....it is possible any time from October on, but the stars have to align, and they did. It is a beautifully clear night, the sky is full of stars and there was the light patch ahead of us, almost green...so special. People can go on a whole 2 weeks and never see them...it was amazing how many people were up there on deck, roused from their comfy beds...great excitement! No photos, couldn’t be captured - you just had to be there...Read more

  • Rosie MarzoukTravelerUSA, UK and Norway
    1
    11Ålesund at sunset

    First full day on Nordlys

    October 6, 2019 in Norway ⋅ ⛅ -1 °C

    All tucked warmly into bed after a hot shower...We had a fabulous day. First of all, this boat trip is much more upmarket than I had imagined. It is a working ship delivering things and taking on cargo etc, but as passengers we have everything we could possibly want very comfortably. Food is delicious, and almost exclusively specialities of Norway. Just come back from a superb dinner...orderly tonight at proper times and tables, delicious fish, lamb and dessert...We all have a key card that is necessary all the time - key to cabin, used to disembark and embark, to go to meals, to buy wine or beer...so we have it round our necks tied in a shoelace (most people have it tied to them!). It all works very well.

    Today we went through the most beautiful scenery that I think I have ever seen....but I know there will be more to come. Quite early we docked at a very small town where quite a few people left the ship to go on excursions. Carole and John did and said it was wonderful - they were bussed, went on ferries and eventually ended up back at the ship where we next stopped. We didn’t do the day excursion, but had signed up for an art nouveau walk through a small town, Ålesund, which had been razed by a fire in 1904 and was rebuilt in art nouveau style. Interesting and beautiful. That was at the end of the day as the sun was setting. Photos will show how beautiful. Also the amazing picture postcard scenery of fjords and mountains. So spectacular and totally different from our also beautiful Australian countryside.

    I think we will enjoy these 12 days. Tomorrow morning we arrive at Trondheim and there are many excursions. We are going on a nature walk into the hills (mountains!) with the boat expedition guides, and C and J are going kayaking on the river through the city which looks spectacular. Sounds like a good day. We stop at Trondheim on the way back south when we will have a chance to walk through the city then. It already feels cold....have been wearing many layers, but hope I have enough to add when we reach the Arctic Circle!! What a life!    Read more

  • Rosie MarzoukTravelerUSA, UK and Norway
    1

    A stop at Trondheim

    October 7, 2019 in Norway ⋅ ⛅ 7 °C

    Another magnificent day. It’s 6pm and dinner not till 8 (we did manage to sort out dinner with C and J together at 8!), so perfect opportunity to write what I can remember of the day. I keep forgetting little gems when I actually get down to writing...so here goes. We are at present jus cruising up the coast from Trondheim but just had a dramatic few moments when we made a right angle turn and through a very narrow passage...they only do this slight diversion when conditions are good, so again lucky.

    We docked at Trondheim at about 10 this morning, and we assembled to do the nature hike up in the hills. C and J went off to their kayaking. There were only 5 of us doing the hike, and 2 guides (not local guides, but 2 of our ship people which was fun as we are now getting to know them - Sven (who is actually German) and Nikolas. This hike turned out to be quite strenuous. We got driven out of the cry and up to the hills (Trondheim is quite flat, and the hills surrounding it are not called mountains). From there we walked uphill along an uneven and often muddy track, with many roots to trip over! It was beautiful, and we could do it easily, but certainly had to watch each step. Sometimes the water was icy so that was another hazard but I actually got hot - guess it was the work of walking, but I had prepared for the cold, and didn’t need my gloves or hat (but I did wear it in case I lost it), and tied my down jacket round my waist. The view from the top down to Trondheim was stunning of course, and we had hot drinks and chocolate up there to restore our strength. A great morning. One thing, when we first set out on the path we came across a group of kindergarten children - they must have been about 3 - all rugged up in jackets, hats, gloves and carrying backpacks and thermoses, also setting off for a hike. They were being introduced to nature and learning to be good Norwegian trekkers!

    Got back to the ship in time for lunch, and relaxing this afternoon. Watching the passing islands - just rocks poking up often, and so many of them. We passed a very old and famous octagonal lighthouse - you must certainly need guidance through all these hazards. Amr has been washing - there was a queue for the washing machine, but he does love to organise this! He is now at a talk about how to get your camera to take photos of the northern lights. They can pick up colours that are harder for the eye to see, but I doubt if my iPhone camera can do it very well...

    Tomorrow is a big day - we cross the Arctic Circle! This is almost as much of an occasion as crossing the equator is (or used to be when you did it in ships)! It will be between 7.30 and 8.30 am.    Read more

  • Rosie MarzoukTravelerUSA, UK and Norway

    A P.S from Monday

    October 7, 2019 in Norway ⋅ ⛅ 0 °C

    Just have to add that it is now 10.15pm and all cosy in bed, but at dinner (again a delicious meal, 3 courses beautifully presented, no choices, one always featuring fish, and just the right amount!) they announced that the northern lights were again visible, so we went out and again you could see them, more dramatically than last time! It’s hard to see vibrant colour, more just light and a hint of green to the naked eye, but still pretty thrilling. I put on both jackets at once and found that this works well in the cold!! Aren’t we lucky....the weather has so far been so kind, and there are predictions for more of it tomorrow. Glad to see the lights before going to bed and having to drag on clothes over nightie to go up on deck at midnight to watch!!! We have just docked somewhere for 30 minutes to offload and load cargo, and we have about 3 short stops during the night - about 2,4 and 5 am...so you get used to the boat noises during the night. There was a small amount of boat rocking now we are in the open sea for a while, very mild - in the fjords it is so calm. Off to read and sleep.Read more

  • Rosie MarzoukTravelerUSA, UK and Norway
    Marker of the Arctic Circle
    Autumn colours1Amr is pointing to our portholes

    Across the Arctic Circle

    October 8, 2019 in Norway ⋅ ☀️ 4 °C

    Now we are officially in the Arctic. We crossed the “line” at 8.03 this morning, and you pass an island with a globe on a stand that is the marker! Everyone out with cameras. We are again amazingly lucky with the weather, and so far our Arctic experience has been a beautiful sunny day, and not all that cold (when you’re in the sun, or not in the wind!). We keep passing stunning rocky crags, and mountainsides covered in autumn colours, just stunning and not possible to capture in photos.

    There were many stops during the night, but the first one where people could disembark was Bodø, a small town and not cute and historic as it had been bombed and burnt down in WWII and rebuilt in the 50s and 60s. However, not as ugly buildings as some from that time! We didn’t go on any of the excursion but had a walk to the town, had a coffee and hot chocolate, and came back to the ship and tried the jacuzzi! Lovely to be in the hot steaming bubbling water when the air outside is so cold...we sat in it till we pulled out of port and watched Bodø recede!

    Now having the quiet time before out 8 o’clock dinner, watched the sunset and passing islands. It is getting quite rocking as we go into the open sea for a while. When going down to our cabin a little while ago it was hard walking steadily along the corridor...hopefully not enough to get seasick...all Part of the adventure.    Read more

  • Rosie MarzoukTravelerUSA, UK and Norway
    21Tromsø

    Another Arctic Day

    October 9, 2019 in Norway ⋅ ⛅ 2 °C

    We are getting very accustomed to this shipboard life. Last night I was late to bed as there was a special very narrow fjord that we entered at about 11.30pm. Carole and John retired fairly early, and Amr gave in and went off to sleep but I really didn’t want to miss it so managed to last, and put on many layers of clothes and watched as we squeezed into this very small fjord - the Trollfjord - and there are many legends about it. We just went in and turned round, very tight navigation, and went out again, but it was fun - they turned on some floodlights to light up the sheer rocky cliffs on each side. Then I stayed out a bit longer to see the northern lights. These clear nights they are usually visible, but I have not seen it as a bright colourful sky, just a lightness and vaguely green.

    Anyway, this morning we had leisurely breakfast. Breakfast and lunch are buffets and no set time or table and it usually works fine. There are so many choices of wonderful arrays of food, it takes discipline to choose wisely and not pig out!! Abundance of smoked salmon and many fish options always, every form of salad and hot options. Not to mention sweet choices. At dinner we sit in our set tables and are served dinner - no choice, but usually very delicious and artistically presented small servings of a 3 course meal, featuring Norwegian specialties. So this morning we found favourite places to sit and read and watch the passing scenery as there was no disembarking until 2.15. We went through such a passage of gorgeous snow topped mountains, small towns perched along the waterfront here and there. Stopped to unload cargo at a couple of places, and finally arrived at Tromsø.

    We did not go on any of the very expensive excursions (if you are thinking in Australian dollars) - we choose these very judiciously! But we walked round the town, very pretty and surrounded by mountains. Being October some museums are closed (from Sept 30), and some shops and cafes close by 4 pm, but we had fun walking and being yet another fine day it was not unbearably cold. We did buy Amr a beanie (found a bargain for 49 kroner as opposed to the crazily expensive ones for sale on the boat.). I was worried about his head and ears getting frozen and he hadn’t brought a beanie with him, just his Tilley walking hat - not exactly suitable in the Arctic! And we finally found a bar open and had a wine and coffee before getting back to the ship. Carole and John had also wound their way back to the same bar, so that was fun! Now back and relaxing before dinner, and about to depart Tromsø.    Read more

  • Rosie MarzoukTravelerUSA, UK and Norway
    Rainy view from the stern this morning
    Honningsvåg

    Reaching our northernmost point

    October 10, 2019 in Norway ⋅ ☁️ 4 °C

    A fairly quiet day today. After breakfast Amr went for his ritual sauna and walk round the deck. On deck 5 you can walk right round the ship - he says 5 laps is just over a km! It is always nice to get out there and watch if it’s not too cold or breezy! At 11.15 we docked at Honningsvåg which is where some people went on an excursion to the North Cape marker. We contented ourselves with a wander through the town which did not take long...we did go into the North Cape museum though which was interesting and well displayed. This place, like so much of the coast of Norway, was burnt to the ground by the Germans when retreating, so it also is rebuilt, and quite pretty and neat. Of course, it is basically just a fishing town. We are way above the tree line now, and the land we see is just rocky crags. Any trees in the town were planted, and probably have trouble thriving.

    Since leaving Honningsvåg we have been going out in the open sea and have to take care walking around, quite rocking! And I think this will continue as looking at the map we are out in the Norwegian Sea till we reach Kirkenes tomorrow morning. At the moment we have just pulled in to a fjord so it’s relatively calm, but we’ll be out in the open again soon, and continuing north till we reach our northernmost point before turning southeast to reach Kirkenes. There will be a few offload stops during the night, but for passengers that is the next port.

    Kirkenes is the end of the voyage for quite a few people who just do the northern journey, though quite a lot of people are, like us, continuing on the southward journey back to Bergen. So tomorrow there will be the bustle of people disembarking and others embarking.

    And today we did see rain for the first time!! There wasn’t much, and although it is quite cold, it wasn’t snow, so not that cold. By the time we walked around the town this morning it was quite bright, and though clouds are about there is also quite a lot of clear sky. I looked up the weather for tomorrow in Kirkenes and supposedly there will be snow overnight, but cloudy and little chance of precipitation in the daytime. That is so good as we have signed up for a walk to the Russian border! We do go part of the way in a bus, but then have a 4 km hike, which they have already warned will be wet underfoot. Glad I haven’t cleaned the mud off my shoes since the last muddy walk!

    Now sitting quietly - Amr got us prime position chairs at the front - which is good for now. There are many sitting places and chairs and it is usually easy to find a cosy place to sit and read etc. with a view looking out at the passing spectacular scenery. It is getting too cold to sit outside for too long, although there is one outside place that has heaters and is partially glassed in. There are 2 “public” decks where you can find places to relax - 4 and 7. The other decks are just cabins. 4 and 7 have bars, the dining room, lots of room for everyone, although I don’t think we are filled to capacity. Let’s hope for anther fine day tomorrow.    Read more

  • Rosie MarzoukTravelerUSA, UK and Norway
    1Northern lights
    Looming cloud this morning1Border postsCleared border line opposite, and camera tower

    Kirkenes, a beautiful walk in the snow

    October 11, 2019 in Norway ⋅ ☁️ 3 °C

    This morning we arrived at Kirkenes at about 9am. During the night there was quite a swell and rocking of the ship in the Barents Sea, but rather than feeling queasy we slept well. On arrival at Kirkenes there was an enormous low grey cloud hanging on one side, and semi brightness on the other...we feared the worst, but amazingly we were lucky again. The rain was actually a dusting of snow, and it had obviously been snowing overnight, but when we disembarked it was fine and remained bright for our hike to the Russian border.

    We were so glad to do this hike. Partly because it’s so nice to get off the ship to exercise, and also we now know the guides a bit, and they are funny, informative and friendly...and helpful if anyone needs it walking in the sometimes tricky conditions. The small amount of snow made it easier walking in a way - it firmed up what would have been sloshy mud, though there were many hazardous parts, but not any steep climb, just a bit of gradual uphill.

    We were taken by bus (about 15 of us this time) for a short distance, then walked along a mountain track to the border. But this was not the part of the border that another group who took a totally bus tour - they went where there are tourist shops and an official border area. We got to a high point, and there was a yellow post which marked the end of Norway, and another green and red post a metre or so further on, and if you went beyond that post you would get fined (better than shot!)...there was no barrier and nothing to stop you walking right into Russia. But they showed us a tower on the opposite mountain that has a camera and it watches the border, and people straying actually get identified and fined!! So that was lots of fun and we didn’t stray, and got back to the ship before it left at 12.30.

    There was something funny about the time as the photos I took (till my phone’s battery died, it is in a serious condition) had a time that was an hour ahead, and I think we strayed into the next time zone. The ship didn’t change time, and I find it hard that a small section of Norway would have a different time, but we are far East. In fact, after we left Kirkenes and started the return journey we stopped briefly at Vardø which is the easternmost town in Norway, and is further east than St Petersburg and Istanbul. Weird to think about.

    I am going to post a photo of the northern lights we saw last night (again - we have been so lucky, and they say tomorrow night is another good possibility). The photo was taken by someone else with a new iPhone with a better camera that you can adjust, and it shows the green that is hard to see with the naked eye. At least it confirmed that I was looking at the right thing, but it looked like a light part of the sky, not really colourful.

    So now cruising and relaxing till dinner, sipping a Portuguese wine. And I think it’s reindeer for dinner tonight!    Read more

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