28 Oct - Last Full Sea Day

From Norway

Last full day aboard involved more motoring time than usual. We awoke to the docking in the fjord-side community of Trondheim, Norway’s 3rd largest city. Jamie and I vigorously walked for almost two hours through the center, past the famous cathedral, and up the hill to the old fort. It was an enjoyable town with waterways, old colorful buildings, and boats docked on the waters. The streets were alive with walkers and bikers commuting to work. This is the first stop where the ship was not visible from the highest point around. In the past ports, the cruise ship has resembled a town construction project that lacked a building permit… oversized and out of place.

Despite the morning walk, we spent an hour doing laps on Deck 5 after the best lunch yet (smoked cod and some potatoes, green onions and cheese gently spiced with chili powder). The weather surpassed the previous days with endless sunshine and no wind, which made the walking and views worth every moment. Our eyes were peeled for wild life, however we missed it all, if there was any to be missed.

On a daily basis, we’ve been conducting our own private happy hours in the empty upper lounge. We fill up our plastic cup from our Malbec meritage wine box, and grab our books for an easy afternoon read. The sunsets are not to be missed during this time. The sky resembles a rainbow trout… pink, light greens, and blues. The time of the sunset continually changes. The sun set tonight was over 1.5 hours later than the time it set from our Northerly departure port. It’s quite amazing. Keep in mind, the sunrise is changing by just as much. Therefore, 4 hours of sunlight was gained by going roughly 5 degrees south in latitude. Keep in mind the sun already is setting earlier and earlier each day, yet we’re going south faster. Jamie mentioned it’d be a good problem for a Physics major to figure out how the sunset time due to boat’s change in latitude versus daily losing daylight factors affect each other. He quickly corrected himself with “physics student” before I could press the challenge to him!

Dinner tonight was pumpkin soup starter (it was disappointing), halibut entrée, and some sort of ice cream ladyfinger whipped cream cake that was brought out from the kitchen with sizzling sparklers. On the way out of the dining room, I stopped by the lonely old couple’s table. This couple has eaten by themselves at the same table for every meal. She is restricted to a wheelchair, so he waits on her hand and foot. They are very quiet, petite, and the sweet old couple that fairytales idealize. Observing their routines, my feelings towards them turned to a sort of shame or sorrow since they were being ignored by the rest of the passengers. Everyone else was having a boisterous good time and the lonely old couple sat by themselves, at a handicap reserved table. This evening I put a hand on her shoulder and complimented her on her Norwegian knit sweater. She looked up through her big glasses and offered her cold hand, which I met with my other hand. Her husband clarified the compliment while the old lady kissed my hand. It turns out they were from Holland and had done the cruise in 1996. They were staying in the same exact room they had slept in 13 years ago. That cruise was Polarlys’s second cruise and they said there were just 10 people onboard. Amazing! They were cheerful to have this small chat and if we see them in the cafeteria for lunch, perhaps we’ll join them tomorrow.

After the evening’s port stop, we met up with our London dining partners and split their bottle of sparkling wine, which came with their room suite. We came armed with a bottle of red and spent the rest of the evening (until 11pm) chatting it up.

Tomorrow afternoon we will arrive at our departure port of Bergen, Norway’s 2nd largest city. Almost a week of cruising is a perfect amount of time. Living in the small quarters, the limited yet endless quantities of food, and restricted exercise facilities is starting to wear on my body. We have a day and a half in Bergen and will likely grab a hotel in the town to make a home-base for two nights. Bergen was Norway’s capital for much of the country’s history and is still known today as the prettiest city of them all. It’s surrounded by seven peaks, all connected by a hiking trail that is accessible from a cable car up the mountain. There are a few key sites to see and activities to experience. I dare say we will skip the ferry tours.