2019 Nautical Explorations

After our self-drive trip around Ireland, we embarked Oceania's Nautica for 50 days. Our extended voyage consisted of multiple segments that took us to places around Europe ... both new- and old-to-us. Читать далее

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2019 Nautical Explorations
Solovetsky Patriarchal Monastery
15 июля 2019 г., Россия ⋅ ⛅ 52 °F
The name of the monastery is much longer than what I was able to fit into the title of the footprint — Spaso-Preobrazhenskiy Solovetsky Patriarchal Monastery.

Back in the main settlement after our tour around the northern portion of the island, members of our group all went their separate ways, exploring the monastery at our own pace. We could have easily spent all day here!

Inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List, the monastery was founded in 1429. The churches, such as the Transfiguration Cathedral, as well as the cell buildings, refectories, and more, are encircled by a stone wall, giving the monastery the look of a fortress ... except for the onion-domes that peek out above the fortifications.

The monastery served many functions throughout its history, including a period of time between 1923-1939 when it was used as a prison camp operated by the Russian GULAG. Today, it is once again a place of religion, and the most popular site to visit on Bolshoy Solovetsky Island.

After exploring the monastery, Mui and I took a roundabout way to walk back to the tender pier. Our reward? Reflection photos!

Next up: Arkhangelsk, Russia ... 133 NM away.Читать далее
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ПутешественникWish we could go there!
26.02.2021Ответить
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2019 Nautical Explorations
Solovetsky Island Photo Gallery
15 июля 2019 г., White Sea ⋅ ⛅ 50 °F
Images from today’s visit to Murmansk, Russia are at this link:
https://eenusa.smugmug.com/Cruises/NoGlow/Slvts…
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ПутешественникOh my. I had to reload some software and log in again and now I am hopelessly behind. Wish me luck on catching up on this great trip. If I can't manage to read, I can only imagine how much work it has been for you to write!
25.02.2021Ответить
Two to TravelWith nothing much to do during the pandemic — or so I thought — I was hoping I’d get more photos processed with blurbs for FP, but it is taking longer than expected. Oh well ... still fun to remember this trip.
25.02.2021Ответить
ПутешественникAmazing how little extra time we have in spite of the pandemic. Life still has it's small daily requirements that seem to eat up the hours. At least I am getting a chance to peruse your footprints and your galleries.
05.03.2021Ответить
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2019 Nautical Explorations
Welcome to Arkhangelsk (Russia)
16 июля 2019 г., Россия ⋅ ⛅ 57 °F
Our eighth port of call ... new-to-us Arkhangelsk, Russia ... Archangel, in English. A short overnight cruise from Solovetsky Island and up the Northern Dvina River brought us to our destination.

A snafu with the paperwork submitted by the operator of our private tour delayed our disembarkation from Nautica briefly. Apparently, the officials were expecting us to fly into the city, not cruise in! Turns out the travel agency had, in fact, submitted updated paperwork, but the correction had not filtered down to the port authorities.

Once the bureaucratic red tape was resolved, we got off the ship and got in a van to explore the area. The rest of the day went smoothly!

[The “welcome” image I am including with this post was taken later in the day, but I thought it was appropriate here despite the issues with the paperwork. Welcoming visitors with bread and salt is an ancient Russian tradition ... bread for good health ... salt for prosperity.]Читать далее
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2019 Nautical Explorations
Arkhangelsk: Monuments & Memorials
16 июля 2019 г., Россия ⋅ ⛅ 59 °F
On our way to the open-air museum we planned to visit, our guide stopped at a beach overlooking the Northern Dvina River. Huh! Sure, it was a warm, sunny day ... but not nearly warm enough for us to consider a swim.

Turns out that this spot is rich in monuments and memorials ... all dedicated to the WWII era.

Since photo-captions are character-limited, I’ll explain each monument here ...

Monument to the Participants of the Arctic Convoys ... memorializes the American, British and Icelandic navies that protected the merchant convoys that brought aid to the Soviet Union under the lend-lease program of WWII.

Monument to the Seal ... the hunting of which sustained the local people and helped them to survive through the war years.

Victory War Monument ... dedicated to the lives lost in defense of the USSR during WWII.

Monument to Peter the Great (a little further down the road from the beach) ... erected in 1914, it consists of a statue of the Czar on a pedestal. Ironic, as Mui later noted, since Peter the Great pretty much signed the economic death warrant for the city when he established Petrograd (now St Petersburg).Читать далее
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2019 Nautical Explorations
Arkhangelsk: Malye Korely
16 июля 2019 г., Россия ⋅ ☀️ 63 °F
Malye Korely, the state museum of wooden architecture and folk art of the northern regions of Russia, is said to be country’s largest museum of its kind. It consists of four sectors, with two more in the planning stages. Each sector is associated with one of the main rivers of the north.

We had barely enough time to visit one sector. It was a shame really as I could have easily spent the entire day at this fascinating place.

We were greeted at the museum entrance with the traditional welcome of bread and salt ... the former for health; the latter for prosperity. Olga, our guide, then took us around the Kargopol-Onega sector, which consists of a collection of structures from the southwestern part of Arkhangelsk Oblast [administrative region].Читать далее
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ПутешественникI would like spending a day here.
01.03.2021Ответить
ПутешественникSo much to learn
05.03.2021Ответить
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2019 Nautical Explorations
Arkhangelsk: Lunch Time
16 июля 2019 г., Россия ⋅ ☀️ 61 °F
I very much would have preferred to spend a little extra time at Malye Korely in lieu of the late lunch we had at Paratov, a floating restaurant back in the city. The food was uninspired IMHO.

The three-course meal consisted of a green salad; a fish soup — broth, really; and a main course that we had pre-ordered ... either beef stroganoff or fish.

It was a short drive from the restaurant back to Nautica where we had time for tea and relaxation before Nautica left its berth around 7:00p.

Next Port: Honningsvåg, Norway ... 595 NM away. But first a day at sea tomorrow.Читать далее
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2019 Nautical Explorations
Arkhangelsk Photo Gallery
16 июля 2019 г., White Sea ⋅ ☀️ 52 °F
Images from today’s visit to Murmansk, Russia are at this link:
https://eenusa.smugmug.com/Cruises/NoGlow/Arch0…
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2019 Nautical Explorations
At Sea
17 июля 2019 г., Barentsz Sea ⋅ 🌧 43 °F
Having made the turn out of the White Sea and around the Kola Peninsula early this morning, this was a day of sailing the Barents Sea back towards Norway. We are once again above the Arctic Circle.

A quiet 25-hour day at sea ... we’ve gained an hour as we make our way west. We didn’t do anything too exciting ... massages; a movie on the TV for me while Mui went to the Chef’s Challenge featuring some of the officers of Nautica; a presentation on the Northeast Passage; afternoon tea at Horizons ... the theme was Viennese this time; the Oceania Club Party and dinner in the Grand Dining Room with the Gelmans and the Sweets.

And now it’s time to get a goodnight’s rest before tomorrow’s port of call.Читать далее
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2019 Nautical Explorations
Welcome to Honningsvåg (Norway)
18 июля 2019 г., Норвегия ⋅ ☁️ 46 °F
Our ninth port of call ... new-to-us Honningsvåg, Norway ... where we were greeted not just by trolls, but also by Bamse, the Sailor Dog.

[The story of Bamse is at this link:https://dogs-in-history.blogspot.com/2017/02/ba….]

Like Hammerfest, which we visited on the northbound leg of our cruise, Honningsvåg claims to be the northernmost city in Europe. I looked up the latitudes and indeed Honningsvåg might have a slight edge ... thanks to a loophole that allows any place that has a population of at least 5,000 to consider itself to be a city.Читать далее
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ПутешественникFunny how cities and towns always want to claim the biggest, best, farthest, nearest....any claim to fame will do. I didn't realize that trolls were a particularly Norwegian thing until your stories.
05.03.2021Ответить
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2019 Nautical Explorations
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Honningsvåg: Nordkapp Tour ... Kamøyvær
18 июля 2019 г., Норвегия ⋅ ☁️ 46 °F
While Honningsvåg’s status as Europe’s northernmost city might be questioned, what can’t be disputed (sort of) is Europe’s northernmost point ... Nordkapp (North Cape in English).

On our way to Nordkapp, our private tour with Blue Puffin first stopped at the tiny fishing village of Kamøyvær ... also the hometown of our guide, Monica.

Despite the dreary overcast, we enjoyed a stroll around the picturesque village along Kamøyfjorden on the island of Magerøya. We also learned a bit about the fishing industry that is the bread and butter of the region and met Monica’s cute ‘lil son, Tony.Читать далее
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Путешественник Awwww, cutie!
04.03.2021Ответить
Путешественник ah back again to my favorite photo, no explanation why, I don't even know why. Just right color and reflections...or maybe it was the other one. LOL
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2019 Nautical Explorations
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Honningsvåg: Nordkapp Tour ... Skarsvåg
18 июля 2019 г., Норвегия ⋅ ☁️ 46 °F
Our second stop en route to Nordkapp was Skarsvåg ... which claims to be the northernmost fishing village in the world!

Monika took us to the king crab tanks here. Apparently, king crabs are not native to Norwegian waters. They were brought here from Murmansk initially ... and from Alaska later.

They have flourished to the point of being pests. In fact, in some areas, there are no crab fishing quotas. Regardless of the abundance of king crabs in these waters, however, they continue to fetch high prices due to their popularity around the world!Читать далее
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Путешественник Wow!
04.03.2021Ответить
Путешественник Of course they do! :-)
04.03.2021Ответить
Путешественник Yikes!
04.03.2021Ответить
ПутешественникDid you get to eat any of those king crab legs while in that area? I am not terribly excited about crab, except for those kings with lots of drawn butter. Yum.
05.03.2021Ответить
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2019 Nautical Explorations
Honningsvåg: Nordkapp ... Northernmost?
18 июля 2019 г., Норвегия ⋅ ☁️ 46 °F
Even the postcards I picked up at Nordkapp — North Cape in English — describe the massive rocky plateau that rises some 1,000 feet above the surface of the sea as the northernmost point of Europe.

And yet, the Knivskjellodden Peninsula, which is visible from the overlook at Nordkapp clearly reaches further north ... even to the naked eye.

Turns out there is a caveat to Nordkapp’s claim. Located at 71°10’21” North, it is the northernmost point in Europe reachable by car!Читать далее
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Путешественникah well, they put that part in the fine print, about reachable by car? Love that rocky cliff with you two looking happy.
05.03.2021Ответить
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2019 Nautical Explorations
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Honningsvåg: Here & There on Magerøya
18 июля 2019 г., Норвегия ⋅ ☁️ 48 °F
Our Nordkapp tour with Blue Puffin took us to places around Magerøya Island. In some places we spent quite a bit of time. Other stops were photo-ops that caught our eye.

We wrapped up our tour with a stroll in Honningsvåg, which translates as “Honey Bay.”Читать далее
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Путешественник Wow, big guy. But the big gut makes it look like a her, baby-on-board.
04.03.2021Ответить
Путешественник Looks like a lovely place to walk
05.03.2021Ответить
ПутешественникHow lovely to have good friends for sharing good times
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3 лайка
2019 Nautical Explorations
Farewell Honningsvåg!
18 июля 2019 г., Barentsz Sea ⋅ ☁️ 50 °F
Our last glimpse of Nordkapp was from the ship as Nautica rounded Magerøya Island to leave the Barents Sea behind and continue our cruise south.

Next Port: Kristiansund, Norway ... 684 NM away. But first a day at sea.Читать далее
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2019 Nautical Explorations
Honningsvåg Image Gallery
18 июля 2019 г., Norwegian Sea ⋅ ☁️ 46 °F
Images from today’s visit to Honningsvåg, Norway are at this link:
https://eenusa.smugmug.com/Cruises/NoGlow/Hnngs…
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ПутешественникI really enjoyed this gallery. The greens and blues and the color and reflections were so pleasing to the eyes.
05.03.2021Ответить
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2019 Nautical Explorations
Day @ Sea
19 июля 2019 г., Norwegian Sea ⋅ ☀️ 55 °F
We’ve left the Barents Sea behind and are now sailing the Norwegian Sea. We have received the “Currents” — the daily program — for tomorrow and once again sunrise and sunset times are being provided. That means that we are again below the Arctic Circle ... where we shall remain.

It was a quiet day of rest and relaxation. Breakfast at the Terrace Café; brunch service in the Main Dining Room in lieu of lunch; sunny and warm enough to sit outside on the pool deck for much of the day ... with a fleece blanket for a little extra coziness; a lecture or two ... one of which was on the “Golden Years of Apollo 11;” afternoon massages ... used up the “free” perk included with our O Club loyalty level ... which is “gold” until we reach “platinum” after the next leg of our cruise.Читать далее
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ПутешественникI do so much miss the gentleness of sea days...and massages...and just walking to meals instead of always trying to decide what to cook and then cooking it.
05.03.2021Ответить
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2019 Nautical Explorations
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Welcome to Kristiansund (Norway)
20 июля 2019 г., Норвегия ⋅ ⛅ 59 °F
Our tenth port-of-call ... new-to-us Kristiansund, Norway.

We were greeted with blue skies and sunshine as Nautica made its way to its berth on Kirkelandet, one of the four main islands on which Kristiansund is situatedЧитать далее
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Путешественник Pretty as a picture!
08.03.2021Ответить
ПутешественникHow wonderfully lucky to have such clear blue skies
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2019 Nautical Explorations
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Kristiansund: Grip Ruta
20 июля 2019 г., Норвегия ⋅ ☁️ 59 °F
Yes, we were lucky and managed to snag seats on the Hagbart Waage, the boat that takes visitors out to an archipelago of islands about 9 miles from Kristiansund.

A glorious day of blue skies and sunshine, comfy temps, calm sea conditions, and seats on the lower aft deck. It all made for a very pleasing ride out to the largest island in the archipelago ... home to the deserted fishing village of Grip.Читать далее
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Путешественник So colorful.
08.03.2021Ответить
Путешественник More colorful houses on green slopes with blue skies. Such a thing in Norway to enjoy.
08.03.2021Ответить
ПутешественникI wonder if these colorful buildings look as lovely during winter snow. Except it is no doubt dark most of the time so maybe it doesn't matter.
08.03.2021Ответить
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2019 Nautical Explorations
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Kristiansund: Grip Welcome Committee
20 июля 2019 г., Норвегия ⋅ ☁️ 59 °F
Our delightful day on Gripholmen began with an unexpected welcome committee.

As the Grip Ruta boat approached the pier we were so entranced by the colorful buildings lining the shore that we almost didn’t see the kittiwakes nesting in the bumper tires. Had we been on the upper deck, we definitely would have missed them.

In North America, these birds, which belong to the gull family, are known as black-legged kittiwakes to distinguish them from the red-legged species. In Europe, there is only the one species so no “color coding” is required.

The best part of our kittiwake encounter? The birds — be they adults, fledglings, or chicks — were so used to the twice-daily arrival of the boat that they showed no fear of humans. Thus, they were excellent photography subjects as we slowly made our way from the lower deck to the upper deck to disembark the boat.Читать далее
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Путешественник Oh!
08.03.2021Ответить
Путешественник Awww
08.03.2021Ответить
Путешественник Wonderful luck to see them (and holding still for you)!
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2019 Nautical Explorations
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Kristiansund: A-Wander in Grip
20 июля 2019 г., Норвегия ⋅ ⛅ 61 °F
Grip, which is located on Gripholmen, the largest of the 80+ islands and skerries, was first settled in the 9th century so that fishermen could be close to the best cod fishing grounds. For centuries, it was considered the smallest municipality in Norway. That changed in 1964 when the residents of the island were forced to relocate to the mainland because providing services to the small fishing community became prohibitively expensive.

The idyllic island, with its colorful buildings, has a stark landscape, with little vegetation except for private gardens. Apparently, the fishermen stripped what vegetation there used to be so as to have plenty of rocks on which to air-dry their catch.

We had about 1½ hours to wander around delightful Grip. The boat fare included a guided tour, which we took advantage of first, leaving us with about an hour to explore on our own before the boat’s whistle called us back for the return trip to Kristiansund.Читать далее
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Путешественник Reminds me of another island across the pond: Nova Scotia.
19.03.2021Ответить
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2019 Nautical Explorations
Kristiansund: A Stroll in the City
20 июля 2019 г., Норвегия ⋅ ⛅ 68 °F
Returning from Grip, we still had time to stroll around Kristiansund. Since our time in Kristiansund was growing short, however, we limited our explorations to Kirkelandet, the island where Nautica was berthed.

Together with Sonia & Boris, we wandered around with no set plan, finding ourselves climbing uphill to Kirkelandet Church and the nearby parks.

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Since photo captions are character-limited, a brief explanation of two of the attached photos:

“Clipfish Woman” Statue at the Piren Dock: Clipfish is typically salted cod. The statue honors the local women who at one time dried the fish on the rocks around the harbor.

The manhole covers around Kristiansund reflect some of the symbols of the city ... Clipfish Woman; Sundbåten, the ferry connecting the four islands on which the city is situated; Kirkelandet Church; and the date of 1742, which refers to when King Christian VI allowed the place to become a town with the name Christiansund, later changed to the Norwegian spelling Kristiansund.Читать далее
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2019 Nautical Explorations
Kristiansund Image Gallery
20 июля 2019 г., Norwegian Sea ⋅ ☁️ 59 °F
Images from today’s visit to Kristiansund, Norway are at this link:
https://eenusa.smugmug.com/Cruises/NoGlow/Kris0…
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2019 Nautical Explorations
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Sailing up Aurlandsfjorden to Flåm
21 июля 2019 г., Норвегия ⋅ 🌧 55 °F
Nautica was already sailing up the 127-mile long, UNESCO-listed Sognefjorden when we rolled out of bed to overcast skies and light rain. We bundled up and went for a wander around the outside decks to enjoy the scenery that makes the Norwegian fjords so amazing.

Before long, we had turned into one of the tributaries of this fjord system — Aurlandsfjorden ... at the head of which the last port of call of this segment of our cruise was awaiting us.

The “color of the day” was green ... in every possible shade one might imagine ... with pops of color from the buildings dotting the landscape. Low-lying clouds wreathing around the mountains and filling the valleys added a mystical ambiance.Читать далее
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Путешественник Your photo is beautiful.
19.03.2021Ответить
ПутешественникAbsolutely breathtaking pics.
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2019 Nautical Explorations
Welcome to Flåm (Norway)
21 июля 2019 г., Норвегия ⋅ 🌧 57 °F
Our 11th — and final — port-of-call ... Flåm, Norway ... which we first visited in 2017.

Since we were sharing this port with the much larger MSC Preziosa, that ship was given the privilege of docking and Nautica got to tender her passengers ashore.

By 10:30a, we were on land and ready to put our plans for the day into play.Читать далее
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2019 Nautical Explorations
Flåm: On the Way to Brekkefossen
21 июля 2019 г., Норвегия ⋅ 🌧 55 °F
The most popular activity for people visiting Flåm is riding the Flåmsbana (Flåm Railway). We have yet to do that.

When we called on Flåm in 2017, we hiked over to the Otternes Farm Open Air Museum. Our plan today was to do a bit of hiking again .... but this time to Brekkefossen (Break Waterfall). To get to the trailhead we had to walk a mile or so through rural areas, passing farms along the way.Читать далее
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