Day: May 22, 2014

The Plan

Spend a leisurely day on board the ms Eurodam and familiarise yourself with the ship’s extensive facilities of simply relax on deck. FB,L,D

How the Day Turned Out

Because we will be out of range of free Wifi and the ship’s internet connection is .75 per minute, the posts will not necessarily be posted daily from now on.

Getting on a cruise boat is just a little different in boarding an international flight. There is no luggage weight allowance and we have to receive keys to rooms. A declaration of our current health status is signed and our accounts are all confirmed for use on board. All the staff is friendly and happy to have us join them on the cruise.

The Eurodam is a Holland America ship and is in a fleet of 15 vessels. It was built in 2008, cost $447 million dollars and weights in at 87,000 tonnes. There are 929 crew serving 2104 passengers. Total number of meals each day is in the vicinity of 12,000 meals, yes, some have more than 3. Who wouldn’t? They are all included.

We set sail at 4:30pm, a little later than planned, as a group of people couldn’t leave the airport before declaring their lost baggage in transit. Those passengers have been fitting themselves out with clothing from the on-board shop to get them to the next port, Tallinn in Estonia, before their luggage catches up with them – they hope. On exiting Copenhagen, a wind-farm located in the ocean on our right, is spinning away creating electricity for the power grid.

Our first full day on board is a full day at sea. We are travelling along at just 12 knots in calm waters with blue sky. There are many ‘shows’ and learning experiences held today. Information about the coming ports is provided and what day excursions are available in Tallinn and St Petersburg. Lyn and I went to a Microsoft seminar on how to use the digital cameras; more for Lyn than myself but Lyn picked up some pointers. There is time on the sundeck although the temperature is a bit on the chilly side.

We take an afternoon nap before I take an acupuncture appointment to see if that type of treatment will help my Meniere’s disease. My therapist Brad, has treated ‘at least 10’ with Meniere’s saying that some had had no positive response at all. However, he inserted 18 needles around my body and I lay there for 30 minutes or so. Brad said that by being on holiday in a relaxed mood like on a cruise, acupuncture seems to have a higher success rate. So this will be an interesting exercise. I have the option of 2 or 3 further treatments to get them at a discounted ‘cruise’ rate.

It didn’t take long to realise that we had left Norway – the food, in presentation and in quality, hit the top of the scale at the first meal. The attendants are all friendly and welcoming and do take care of us very well.

Tomorrow, we berth at Tallinn in Estonia. Our plan is to get around on our own and hopefully get back to the ship early to enjoy the great lifestyle.

The Plan

Today join us for an Included city tour of Copenhagen.  This afternoon choose one of the following Included SCENIC FREE CHOICE tours: (1) enjoy a harbour cruise of Copenhagen’s romantic canals; or (2) visit the Carlsberg Brewery.  SENIC ENRICH: Tonight we enjoy a memorable dinner at the local restaurant in the Tivoli area. FB,HD

Some Information

Denmark’s population is 5.6 million.  Greater Copenhagen’s population is nearly 2 million.     Over the years, Copenhagen has been known to be a fishing, merchant, agriculture town.  It heads the gateway to the Baltic Sea.  There are over 94,000 students in its universities and they come from all over the world.  Known as a bicycle city, bicycles have right of way even over pedestrians. When you cross the street, watch out for fast moving silent bicycles that just may bowl you over.

Denmark is a constitutional monarchy and consequently has no president. There is a Danish Queen as head of royalty and her husband is French. A single chamber government governs the country. The government is made up of 179 members from 8 different political parties. Currently, a minority government is in power.

How the Day Turned Out

For us, the day starts out a bit embarrassing as the clock on our TV is running 10 minutes slow.  This means breakfast is rushed before the commencement of our tour of the city in our coach.  Our driver is John and our city guide is Anne.  Anne speaks very good English and at times I think of her as a storyteller to elementary school students telling the fables of Hans Christian Anderson.

A city tour is a time when you get to see the major attractions of the city and a little of the history of it.  Copenhagen’s fortress has literally been re-built three times after citywide fires.  The first fortress had wooden chimneystacks and burned down after 50 years. The new fortress also had wooden chimneystacks and burned down again after a further 50 years.

Denmark is well known as a maritime nation with 10% of ships at sea having been built here in Denmark and 20% of all ships have bits and pieces that were designed and created in Denmark. However, there is very little ship building in Denmark today. There will be 400 calls by cruise ships during this summer.

We visit the Rosenborg Castle to check out all the artifacts and wealth of past monarchs. We also visit the residences of the monarch and the next in line, and just as we arrive, the queen is on her way out for an engagement. The flag on the roof has come down but the flag on the roof of Prince Frederick is waving which indicates that he is home with his wife Princess Mary from Tasmania. The changing of the guard takes place while we are being told of the formalities of the residences.

We pass the stock exchange, the parliament and various other old buildings of note that enhance the history of Denmark. On the banks of the river, are some more modern buildings, a marked contrast indeed; one being called the black diamond because when the sun shines on the black glass windows, there is a twinkling similar to a diamond.

Lunch is a ‘buy at a café’ before we board a canal boat for a tour of the city from the water level. We pass lots of colorfully painted houses and houseboats along the way.

Our time is now free until 6:30pm so we choose to walk back to the hotel along the car free street in the direction of the hotel. It sure is a busy city, with many buskers doing their craft to enhance the visit to the city by the many tourists. Four of us stop at the best hotel in the world. It is called Hotel Chocolate. Mmmmm! Chili hot chocolate sounds interesting and, it is very nice.

The Tivoli Gardens is the chosen place for our Scenic Tours farewell dinner. The area of Tivoli Gardens is a fairytale experience for all ages taking up a very large section of the city. There are roller coaster rides and show-like games with many restaurants to enjoy. We take a stroll around the gardens before our evening meal arriving back at our hotel around 11:00pm.

Senior’s Moment of the Day

Bob was so kind. On our return from the canal excursion, we stopped but the Hotel Chocolate for a taste of Danish Hot Chocolate – would you believe, chili Hot Chocolate.  His benevolence exceeded his intentions as he went to pay for the experience.  What a pity  the cashier didn’t accept his room key as payment.

The Plan

We  farewell the west coast of Norway and travel through the highest mountain range in Norway.  We enjoy a visit to the beautifully maintained medieval stave church in Lom, before continuing to Lillehammer. FB,D Overnight Stay: Lillehammer

Some Information

The vest has been retrieved.

How the Day Turned Out

We are sad to leave Geiranger today, as it has been the highlight of the tour so far. As you have seen from the photos, Norway does have some beautiful scenery. You can click your camera every minute and you will have postcard type pictures to share and brag about.

It is raining as we depart the hotel and make our way up the many switchbacks out of the fjord that we now call ‘ours’. Once up the long climb we head out of the snow area into lush countryside again where the evidence of a great growing season can be enjoyed. We pass orchards and open farmland with the traditional red buildings for the animals and farm equipment and white buildings for human habitation.

We stop for a break at the town of Lom. Here is the first church we have entered for the whole tour. (Norway prides itself in the beauty of nature rather than the building set for worship.)

This church is a quaint ‘stave’ church, which means it is timber throughout but the foundations are stone. No part of the timber is against or in soil. This reduces rot and degradation of the timber. The church was built in 1158 and still stands. There are only 29 churches in the world known as ‘stave’ churches with all, except one in Poland, being in Norway.

Initially, the walls did not have windows so the cold did not affect the congregation too much and they all used to stand for the service period. Windows were installed in the 17^th century.

The entrance way was dark with the choir section the brightest part of the sanctuary, portraying the sinner in darkness being led into the light of God’s presence. The church service used to take 2 to 3 hours. The money collected was stored under the floor of the church.

Prior to 1537, the whole of Norway was Catholic and it was after the revolution that the country became Lutheran Christian. In 1634, pews were installed. The reason why the women sat on the right side of the church was because Christ put Mary on his right hand side. Of course, men had to sit on the left.

In the 19^th century, someone donated the organ, which is still used today. And the electric heating was installed in the floor in 1970. When the installation took place, the archaeologists were called in to identify the coins found in the foundation area and also to survey the remnants of an even older wooden church that was built into the ground below.

Well, back on the bus and have lunch down the road a bit. Our group finds some bits and pieces in the Kiwi Mini Mart. I notice a guy pushing a plastic bottle through a hole of a machine. We work out that he must have an account and a credit for recycling bottles returned, was given against his purchases for the day.

Then it is on to Lillehammer through some lush green meadows again. In Lillehammer we go direct to the out door museum called Maihaugen. It is a re-enactment of history and the guides take us into a few of the buildings. Yes, a second stave church for the day. This one has doors on the end of the pews to keep the congregation warm. (I thought it might be to keep the sinners in). We visit a schoolhouse and are given a ‘jovial’ time of going back in life and becoming students again. What a hard taskmaster our guide is, and would have been, had he been a teacher in the day.

From here we are guests in a farmhouse and shown various practices of the family; where the individuals would be sat at the table, and for what reason, and other little ‘family’ secrets were told.

Our accommodation is in a very unique hotel overlooking the city. Sadly, we are not shown anything of the goings on in the town during the Winter Olympics, just a few years ago. We notice the ski jump close to the town, but no mention of it is made.

Once in the room, I start to have another Meniere’s attack and so that is why this post is 24 hours late. I was in no fit state to eloquently write a post. Sorry for that. Each day, I try to have it posted by 10:00pm our time for it to be ready for those in Australia at 6:00am the next day their time.

Seniors Moment

While Lyn S was shopping for lunch in the supermarket, she thought she was buying butter. It turned out to be yeast.

We were in the farmhouse at Maihaugen and Lyn H asked why a door was larger than the doorway. the guide was a bit put off and appeared not to know the reason why. When the door was closed, it was able to fit into the doorway, no problem.

The Plan

Today’s Included excursion takes us on a cruise of the magnificent Geiranger Fjord.  Sail past the ‘Seven Sisters’, ‘The Suitor’, and ‘The Bridal Veil’ waterfalls.  This afternoon we travel the 11 hairpin turns of the famous Trollstigen, or Troll’s ladder road, for spectacular and unforgettable scenery.  Take the time to let yourself be embraced by the majestic landscape of this region.

Some Information

Norway has the highest cost of living in the world. Because Norway has some of the most beautiful scenery around, they believe they don’t have to provide any incentives for us to visit by building big-roomed five star resorts. And so, they only provide the bare necessities.  There are very few five star hotels or resorts in the country but there are many three star hotels with 10 star views and locations.

A new saying or two

Spruce is an energy vampire.

Jolly river is enjoying itself.

Savage mountains

How the Day Turned Out

I thought of just saying one word for this section but the word ‘magnificent’ is not the highest-ranked word in the dictionary for the day’s outing we had today, and I can’t find the right one.

A ferry is waiting close to our hotel this morning to take us along the Geiranger Fjord. There are seven waterfalls we view, the 7 sisters are showing off with a brilliant rainbow. We pass three cruise ships, the ‘Celebrity Infinity’ and the ‘MSC Magnifica’, and a smaller one ‘Berlin’, each bound for Geiranger to view the sights we had seen from the mountaintops yesterday.  This is such a beautiful Fjord.

From the arrival port of Hellesylt, our bus takes us through a few tunnels and climbs altitude to some breathtaking views. No matter where you look, you can see either high solid granite mountains or a fjord down below. We arrive at Stranda for another shorter ferry trip across a fjord to Liabygda. From here, we drive along the shore of the fjord passing orchards and strawberry gardens.  At Sylte we turn and head into some very nice territory; lush and rich in colour. A stop is made at a very ‘jolly’ waterfall for a rest and some photo shooting time.

Our destination today is to the Stigfossen Waterfall on The Trollstigen Road. A decision is made to drive down the switchbacks, take a photo stop and sing happy birthday and drink some Estonian snapps, to Alan. We then drive the many switchbacks back to the top to the visitors’ center to have lunch and take another photo stop. Alan says it’s the best birthday present he has ever received.

Our fearless Swedish driver says he has never driven the roads we are on, but one would never know.

Our return to Geiranger is back the same road to Sylte but join a different ferry to cross the fjord to Eidsdal. From here we travel towards Geiranger and take the 11 switchbacks into the town. Because there are 3 cruise ships in the village, there are many buses going up and down this portion of the road to various photo shot spots along the way. Nic does exceptionally well ‘missing’ other mirrors on the other buses without tipping us over the cliff.

 The Plan

This morning we travel alongside mountains that are home to Jostedalsbreen, the largest icefield in continental Europe covering 487 square kilometres. SCENIC ENRICH:  We will visit one of the most photographed and impressive arms of the icefield, Briksdalsbreen, where we will have a truly Norwegeian experience and be taken by ‘trollycar’ up the glacier for a spectacular view of the glacier and magnificent waterfall.  We will continue via Stryn to Dalsnibba for unforgettable views of Geiranger Fjord (weather permitting) before arriving at our hotel. FB,D Two Night Special Stay: Geiranger

Some Information

There are many years of oil ‘stored’ on the shelf of the North Sea with many more years of gas supplies available.  In 1959, the discovery of gas by Netherlands changed thinking towards oil finds in the North Sea. And so exploration in Norwegian territory, commenced with permission only given by the crown. The first ‘find’ was made in 1967 and the second in 1969.  The biggest find is 3192 meters below the sea bed. Pipelines were built direct to the UK and Germany. The output varies each year but roughly the output is 100-500 billion litres for each of the last 4 years.  The oil fields provide 3% of the national employment but provides 25% of the nations GDP.  There are 33 billion krone held in reserves and the country does not have a national debt.

How the Day Turned Out

We set out early and leave the lovely little village of Balestrand where whenever we woke during the night, you could take a photo and think it was around 7:00am in Australia during the winter. I said in my post yesterday, that I would be up at 2:00am to wander around taking photos. Well, that never happened.

After a short ferry ride with the bus aboard, our journey takes us through many tunnels. Each tunnel exit presents us with a dramatic scene, which we all clamour to take photos of. The reflections are spot on and at times unbelievable.

As we are travelling, I feel a menieres attack coming on. By the time we arrived at the Briksdalsbreen Glacier, I am in a full spin and can’t take the ride to view the glacier. Never mind, I managed to take a rest for an hour. However, today is a bad day for Lyn though, as her camera has decided not to work. It’s like a ‘death in the family’, as she enjoys using the camera to capture the brilliant scenes that we are enjoying.

Lunch is taken at Briksdalsbreen before a different episode of this tour commences. We climb up and around many switchbacks to new countryside. We are above the tree-line and all there is, is unmelted snow from the winter season. A lake that is over 800 meters deep still has a thick layer of ice on it. Our driver, Nick from Sweden, is doing a fantastic job as we wind up the switchbacks to a location we have probably all seen on postcards or movies. Before us is the majestic Geiranger Fjord. There are two cruise ships, the ‘Aurora’ and ‘Ocean Princess’, moored near the shore with tender boats ferrying passengers back to the ship for their onward journey this evening.

Our room is allocated to us on the 4^th floor with a “view to kill for”. The situation and view reminds us of Lake Louise and Milford Sound all wrapped up together.

Our evening meal is buffet with probably 5 coach loads of passengers arriving for the meat at the same time – meal-time bedlam. But the desserts are very special.

Tomorrow, we explore more of this majestic fjordland of Norway.

Seniors Moments – Door Matters

The other day, I came back to the room to brush my teeth and the door wouldn’t click open.  Suddenly, it opened. The lady wondered about my sanity, and I did too.  My room was two doors down the passage.

As we were coming back to the room from breakfast yesterday, I noticed this elderly lady having trouble getting into her room.  I thought it best to go help her.  Before trying to turn the key myself, I checked the number of the key tag.  It was 770 and she was trying to get into 670. “Bl…. hopeless me”, she said. I offered to help guide her to the lift.  She says, “Just don’t tell anyone, will you.” I hope she doesn’t mind that it is I who writes the daily post and I needed some more raw material.

The Plan

This morning, start your journey by train from Bergen to Myrdal where we change trains and continue on the world-famous Flam railway.  Amid spectacular scenery and roaring waterfalls we will descend 900 metres to the picturesque village of Flam.  From here we enjoy a gorgeous fjord cruise to Balestrand where our hotel is located waterside at the junction of the Sognefjord and Esefjord. FB,D Overnight Special Stay: Balestrand

How the Day Turned Out

Our itinerary says we have just done Day 5 of 10. Of the 5 days, 3 have been full of postcard pictures at almost every turn. Today is no exception as we board our electric train to Myrdal where we change trains to the famous Flam railway. There are lots of those Norge mountain scenes which we have all seen and wondered at in times past, but to be ‘in it’ is a real privilege.

Myrdal is situated on a mountain plateau, and we have been warned to have warm clothing ready as often the temperature is way below freezing point but fortunately, for us, not today. The Flam railway train is waiting for us. Our seats have been pre-registered which enables us to be in the one compartment on the train. There are 10 carriages, with a second engine on the back.

For all the technical buffs, here are a few facts about the railway:

Year of completion 1940

Length 20.20km

Altitude Difference 863.6 meters

Steepest Grade 1:18

Brake systems 5

Tunnels 20

Bridges 1

Water Tunnels 4

Stops and halts during the 1 hour ride – 8

Time to build it – 20 years

Cost – 20 Million Krone

Cost if built today – 20 billion Krone, per kilometer.

While travelling down the very steep slop towards Flam, the train brakes are continually on. For all my fellow menieres disease sufferers, I have found a temporary cure for tinnitus; ride the Flam and experience high screeching and so, for a short period, no tinnitus.There are many waterfalls along the way. If only we were here a month ago when the snow-melt was at its highest, the waterfalls would have been a real treat to behold.

The train meanders down from the high plateau through tunnels and makes a stop at the mighty Kjosfoss, a waterfall whose spray showers the train with its fine mist. We get out and take the “selfie” (that didn’t turn out ok at all) and get our camera lenses dampened from the waterfall mist. As the train gets close to Flam, we see orchards and meadows in the valley.

We are given free time in Flam to wander through the train museum, have lunch and just stand in awe at the high cliffs that go straight down into the water many many meters below. Large cruise ships can come into this fjord, it is so deep.

Our hydro-ferry is waiting to take us to Balestrand, just 90 minutes down the fjord. We check into the Kviknes Hotel and have the best buffet meal we have had on the tour so far. The view from the table is one you would die for as we look out over the water and up the fjord. After the meal, we wander along the quiet streets of the village looking for vantage spots to take photos and to remember them for tomorrow morning’s early, early morning photo shoot I plan to do on my own: would you believe it is light enough at 2:00am? Look for the next post to see the results.

Thank-you Scenic Tours, a great day for all of us.

The Plan

Today, we’ll explore Bergen and drive to Troldhaugen, now a museum; it was the former home of Edvard Grieg. Norway’s greatest composer.  Choose from following Included SCENIC FREE CHOICE options: (1) take a journey up the funicular railway 1,050 feet to Mt. Floien for a bird’s eye view of the city and fjord; or (2) enjoy an active walking tour of Bergen and its surrounds; your tour takes you through the mountain paths towards Mt Floien, along the way you will be able to admire spectacular scenery and see some traditional homes.  Included SCENIC FREE CHOICE Dining.  This evening, choose to dine at one of two superb local restaurants. FB, HD

Some Information

Bergen is on the west coast of Norway with a population of around 275,000. The city is an international centre for aquaculture, shipping, offshore petroleum industry and subsea technology, and a national centre for higher education, tourism and finance. The city will be host to over 300 cruise ships this summer season.

How the Day Turned Out

We get up early this morning for that regular walk that doesn’t always seem inviting when you are on holiday. As you can see from the photos, the fog is quite thick but it makes for superb reflections.

Walking around the little inlet, we pass the merchants getting the fish market ready for the day’s trade.  I don’t eat seafood and that’s mainly because I detest the smell. From the other side of the little harbour, we get some great photos and after breakfast head off for a tour of the town.

There are statutes along the way which just seem to be ‘put there’ for no reason. Streets are narrow and many are cobblestoned.

Stopping at Troldhaugen, we walk the 600 metres, down a beautiful avenue of trees, to the museum in honour of Norway’s great composer, Edvard Grieg. The location is magically placed on an impressive piece of land overlooking the fjord.  (I often wonder how a guy can find a fabulous piece of land, use it to make himself famous, and then leave a museum behind.  How do people become famous before they die?)  The piano concertos of his works are being played throughout the museum and gives a pleasant ambience about the place. His house is not painted or wallpapered inside, but boarded with unpainted timber at his request.  His piano is still useful today with it being continually kept in tune.

Our city tour continues and we see many interesting housing setups, probably to do with having the family living close by at some stage.  There are concert halls and museums and many little shops.

The foreshore, around the little harbour, is lined with magnificent old buildings that when you walk through, are a bit up and down.  Over the years, when they have had fires that burned many of the structures to the ground, the authorities demanded that they be rebuilt, but out of stone.  The owners didn’t want to and so most of the buildings in the town today are made of wood, and painted rustic colours.

After the city tour, we take a ride up the funicular railway 1,050 feet to Mt. Floien for a bird’s eye view of the city and fjord.  The weather has turned out perfect for this venture and the ride is awe-inspiring, to say the least. We take a short forest tour, learning about the vegetation and some of the animals that enjoy this great region.  There is a ‘grandstand’ strategically placed for people to sit and take in the vista extending way across the fjord.

The afternoon is free.  Interestingly, two parades have passed through the town while we have been wandering around enjoying the warm sunshine and checking out all the different types of people doing the same thing as us.  There are 3 cruise ships in town today, including the Eurodam which we will be joining in 7 more sleeps.

Fo tonights evening meal, we split for ‘chicken and vegetarians’ to one restaurant and ‘fish’ to a second. The company was great at our restaurant and the staff were efficient.  Norman was a tall guy with blonde hair who seemed to wooooo the ladies sufficiently for Chris to give him her card.

Seniors Moment 

Another Lyn thought she should join one of the colourful parades that made their way through town, and so walked a few hundred meters before realising that the parade walkers were waiving rainbow flags (gay pride march).  Not her thing at all, and left “the nice walk on a Saturday afternoon”.

The Plan

This morning we drive through the scenic and breathtaking Hardangervidda, Europe’s highest mountain plateau and home to Norway’s largest herd of wild reindeer. We will continue our journey to Norway’s second largest city, the Hanseatic fishing port of Bergen. One of the prettiest cities in Norway, Bergen dates back to the 12th century when the port was an important centre of European trade for the all-powerful German Hanseatic League.

Some Information

In the winter time, Norway is dark, dark, at 4:00pm until 9:00am.  On June 21 each year, Norway is dark for just one hour.  The languages of Scandinavia originate from an old German language.  There are 43 National Parks in Norway.

New Saying

Not the Sharpest pencil in the box.

How the Day Turned Out

After breakfast, we board a ‘new’ bus, which is from Sweden (must be cheaper from there), and head towards Norway’s second largest city, Bergen (pronounced ‘bargen’).  We travel to the west of Oslo and travel along the edges of many of the fjords found along the coast of Norway.  It doesn’t take long to get out into the countryside from our hotel.  The countryside is very green and the trees are mainly spruce and fir trees – great for making Christmas Card photos. It’s quite obvious that the Norwegians are expert tunnel builders for we travel through many, many tunnels.  In one, we come across two different round-a-bouts. It is an uncanny experience for us all, even having travelled through many tunnels around Europe.

The scenery is just ‘out of the box’ fantastic Nordic landscape.  The red farm barns and the white houses are very common and enhance the view on the green background.  Sorting out photos is one thing, but sorting out photos of beautiful scenery is quite a task. We have some great material to work with.

We stop for lunch at a large ski resort. There are many sales of ski and winter clothing but still the prices are above what we would pay in Australia, so not much money is left by us in those shops.  A little further on, a chasm was the destination for a couple of imposing waterfalls.  Many people have ventured a little too close to the edge of the chasm and have tragically died on the rocks below.

While travelling along the plateau, there is still snow that is melting to provide the waterfalls and some additional beauty to enhance the landscape. We stop for photos; some see snow for the first time. Our tour director sets up a cafe bar in the bus to offer tea, coffee or hot water, but no milo or hot chocolate.

When we come down from the plateau, the scenery changes quite a bit.  We are now deep in fjord territory with steep mountain sides going straight down into the water.  A large cruise vessel is in one town well up into the fjord.  The locals have requested only one cruise ship at a time as there are not enough people in the town to provide for the tourists that visit.

So, so many tunnels.  The longest I recall is 8 kilometres and it is bored straight into hard rock. Why can’t we have more tunnels in Australia – it makes sense to build a tunnel instead of a road that winds around many, many corners presenting a safety problem.

We arrive at Bergen at 5:45pm, given keys to our room, and venture out to see the lovely little town that Bergen is.  We pass shops that look very old, but quaint, positioned near the wharf where ‘silver sailors’ have moored their yachts and launches and are enjoying a before dinner drink.

Tomorrow, we investigate around Bergen so we can report on our findings then.

I must apologise that most of our photos have been taken from inside the bus and so some may have reflections shown from within the bus.  But the great scenery is just begging to be shared.

Seniors Moment

In an age of loosing things, it creeps up on most of us.  A certain leader of the pack, purchased an expensive squashable vest in Australia to christen it specifically in Norway.  Well, ‘the vest’ was left on the bus yesterday afternoon and won’t be with her until the last hotel we stay in in Norway.  Interestingly, in the morning, we found out the Tour Director left her sunnies on the bus too.  What a godsend as it was thought that the last had been seen of the vest, and now that the Tour Director wants her sunnies back, the vest will also be returned.

The Plan

Start your day with a sightseeing tour through beautiful Oslo seeing the National Theatre and Oslo’s City Hall before we make our way to the Bygdoy Peninsula, home to three famous museums we will visit, that honour the rich nautical heritage of the Norse race and its warrior ancestors; the Viking Ship Museum, the Kon-Tiki Museum and the Fram polar ship.  This evening you will enjoy dinner at Holmenkollen, home of Oslo’s ski jumping arena and the host of the 1952 Winter Olympics. FB,D

Some Information

Oslo is made up of 600,000 people.  Norway has a population of 5 million people where English is spoken by most. So having a conversation is usually no problem, in fact, many love to show off that they can converse in English very well.  The average wage is 50,000 Euros with 40% income tax paid by all.  This enables free education up through university, free health care, the pension, and most of a person’s medical expenses.  University students get a grant and a loan. The retirement age is 67 and everyone gets 5 weeks vacation. Unemployment runs at 3.5%.  The price of a 1,000 square meters of apartment starts at 400,000 euros. Norway’s cost of living is the highest in the world.

How the Day Turned Out

Our City Guide for today is Yahel. Yahel is from Israel and married to a norwegian. She has been a tour guide for over 10 years.

There are three ‘rings’ around the city of Oslo.  The green belt is the forest at the extremity of the city and the port and city itself is the inner ring. The centre ring is where you will find most of the inhabitants. Oslo was founded around BC1000 and since then, there have been 15 major fires that have affected the town.

Our first stop for photos is the Opera House which represents an iceberg emerging from the water.  The black areas on the white Italian marble are solar panels – they try to show themselves as being ‘green’ even though for much of the winter, there is no sign of sunshine.  Slowly as development takes place, the Opera House is becoming the meet-up place for people to hang out. The city of Oslo is at the northern reach of what was a fjord and is 100km to the North Sea.

History tells that the Swedes have been a problem to Norway and so the Akershus Fortress was built along the shoreline near the city.  It has been used as a fortress as well as a prison.

Parliament stands just near the city square.  There are 160 members made up of no less than 40% females, by law.  At present, the make up is 50/50.

We visit the City Hall where the Nobel Peace Prize Ceremony takes place each year.  This venue has been used since 1990 and has some enormous paintings on the walls, each telling a particular story.  The Norwegians are very proud that at least once a year, the world hears something out of Norway.

We pass a shop called The Ice Bar.  Everything there is ice: the chairs you sit on, the glasses you drink from, the plates – all ice.

The Fram is a polar museum dedicated to the story of Norwegian polar expeditions with the Framship used by Fridtjof Nansen as the main exhibit. The shape of the hull is that of an ‘egg’ so that when the forces of ice against the ship squash in, the ship rises and doesn’t sustain damage. We make a visit there and see a video of the Norwegian adventurers who are still well known around the world for their ventures to both the North and South Poles.  Large ships are displayed in the museum. Across from there is the Kon-Tiki Museum in which is stored the Kon-Tiki raft and the Rai I. Thor Heyerdahl sailed from Peru with a multi national crew to test if different races could put up with each other for a long time, and landed to the west in Tahiti suggesting that, in ancient times, the Pacific Islanders may have made the same voyage.

Vigeland Sculpture Park is the world’s largest sculpture park made by a single artist. There are more than 200 sculptures made from bronze, iron and granite. We visited the Monolith plateau and the Wheel of Life.

Seniors Moment

One guy was so enthused at taking photos of the Opera House that when he hopped on the bus, he didn’t recognise the lady that was sitting next to him.  He was on the wrong bus.  We wondered why our numbers were down. Who?  Rob.