Ny Alesund Norway
we arrived Ny Alesund Spitsbergen early morning into a misty day,but, when it lifted the scenery IS the highlight of this trip so far!! The snow covered mountains,the pristine ocean littered with icebergs that confronted us is AWESOME.We took the tender to shore and had a look around the scientific home for a few and was inspired by the setting !! I cannot imagine how harsh the winters must be here.Although the sun was shining the temperature got up to 3 %! and I have to say it was comfortable enough for us to take our top coats off !! The village also boasts the most northern Post Office & Pub in the world !! Just to get an official stamp we sent ourselves a post card .We said farewell to the isle in style by blasting out LOUD classical music at the blunt end of the ship.Evening pre dinner we were given a back stage talk by the kids who have been putting on excellent shows and 2 of the girls are from Blackpool.After dinner we went to the movies and watched Marigold Hotel (my second viewing) and we were in bed by 1 am with closed curtains !(the midnight sun isnt helping Annie to sleep !!)
At Sea today heading for Ny Alesund tomorrow
7 lazy day as we are Sea for the day..entered the Wii Bowling comp and was soundly beaten !! Ate lots of deliciuos food and went to a jewish Prayer meeting (our table friends invited us) I explained that I am atheist and that was OK by them.I like to see hoe others do their rituals and this was quite good and included a glass of wine and bread ! Into the ceremony the captain announced Whales had been spotted,so the ceremony was halted in order we could spot the whales ! (we didnt!) I even got to wear a skull cap !! We wandered around the deck and it was very fresh,very cold!! After another great dinner ( the waiter dropped a butter spoon on my jacket and immediately offered to have it dry cleaned !! cleaned off no problems tho,but I loved the service!) Early night tonight (11.20 and still daylight !!) as we are hoping to wander around Ny Alesund early tomorrow BUT that is another story !!
Day 6 Norway
6…We are at sea for 2 days and took advantage by rising at 10.30 am AND there is still plenty of food around !!The morning was very blustery and damp, we were treated to a rainbow spectacle that appeared right below us from the Sea! needless to say no one was prepared to dive in for the pot of gold !! We ventured into the Lords Tavern and played 10 pin bowling courtesy of the Wii Machine !! Pre dinner we went to watch a has been politician who was telling us how good she was (Edwina Curry/from the Thatcher years ) we walked out after 10 mins !! After dinner we watched a show revolving around musuc from the movies and the kids that performed were SO energetic and good.We are nearing the Arctic Circle and daylight is 24 hrs a day now !! Food is still amazing with the widest of choices imaginable.Having a window in our cabin is a bonus and I could sit and watch the ocean all day (and night !!)
Day 5 in Norway
Our 3rd Anniversary and Annie has done very well putting up with me !! awake early ready for the bus trip around Trondheim (we thought £35 was extravagent for a 90 minute boring bus ride that was advertised as a 2 hour trip !!) .Annie has complained and we await the outcome !) we used the cinema for the first time and the audience majority is my age and half way thru the movie 50% of the moviegoers were asleep !!Pre dinner show was a 45 minute concert by 2 young delightful violinist and it was surprisingly excellent! The last 2 numbers was the Hornpipe & Rule Brittania !! (99% audience are british !!) After dinner we were treated to a comedian/singer who has been around for a lot of years in the group Grumbleweeds and is now a solo artist also a great night (How are we going to settle when we get back home in Australia after this cruise?) Bed by daylight at midnight !We were also refunded 20% of the rip off trip !
Alesund Norway on the way to the Arctic Circle
.Today we rose around 9.30 am and had breakfast late,the people opposite us are 95 yr olds and married 73 !! Annie has wandered ashore by herself (my long walking days are over) and will no doubt walk miles! Had an afternoon nap then onto the The Pacific Lounge to watch some young dancers performing to ABBA music (and they were really good !) After another brilliant dinner we opted to go and see WILL MARTIN in concert (he is a KIWI !!) altho he sang very nicely it was nt for us (we like LIVELY music) bed at midnight and it is still LIGHT !!
Stavenger,Norway Day 3
We arrived Stavenger early and after a cooked breakfast we boarded a ferry in the pouring rain BUT the trip was well worth it! taking in magnificent Fjords and waterfalls .Along the way we encountered seals and wild long horned goats !!Although the weather was misty I felt the urge to shout O D I N because of the Viking heritage (so I did!) we were given a brief stop at a very picturesque cafe and treated to Waffles & Coffee (very yummy too!!) we did a little shopping on arrival back from the ferry trip and a short nap on the Oriana was in order>The Ship sailed around 16.30 and the crew entertained us with a farewell Stavenger Party and it was a blast.Most people on this voyage are my age and appropriate VERY LOUD music was played aft as we all waved goodbye to out first port of call !! After a short nanny Nap we changed into our ‘posh’ clothes and had Dinner in the Peninsular Restaurant with out (now) regular set of dinning companions and the Steak was perfect ! Done to my request (CHARRED !) We are on the late dinner list (our choice) from 8.30 pm,after dinner we ventured into the Lords Tavern (10.30pm) for a spot of Karaoke ,I volunteered to sing Dirty Old Town (which they told me it was in stock) Our names came up BUT the track was faulty and the crowd shouted for Geoff n Annie to sing another song! we declined and the host had a laugh with us asking if we like to sing something else,I again declined (It has taken me 3 years to teach Annie my original choice)and not knowing anything else we reluctantly sat back and watched the rest of the volunteers ! and they were excellent !! WE EVENTUALLY GOT TO BED AROUND 12.30 AM !!
Day 2 and its brilliant !!
2..Annie was feeling a tad tired so I ventured into the breakfast room on my own and joined a charming group of peers and the morning chat was quite cheery.Breakfast was delicious with a hoard of waiters providing excellent service .Weare now sat top floor,front of the ship in the appropriately named Crows Nest drinking orange juice and passing by Norfolk in the North Sea witk lots of Oil Rigs around………..We decided to go to a Bad Hair Seminar !! was bored after 10 minutes and left !! Lunch we found yet another restaurant and had Italian (Pizza,lasagne and a variety of delicious cakes!! We ventured later to the Tiffanys bar and entered the 20 question quiz 1 got THREE right) More food consumed in the Crows Nest and we are finding it absolutely necessary to eat every hour !! We are cordially invited (invitation only) to meet the captain,Champagne and other drinks provided FREE!) Dress up was the order of the day ,I had to wear a suit,white shirt and black tie.Annie looked gorgeous in her purple outfit and matching diamonds !! Dinner was a huge sucess with an amazing array of foods and once again the company was in good form.Tonight we put our clocks forward by ONE hour and decidd to retire 11 pm due to our first Land Tour when we arrive at Stavenger in the morning.Another food filled day ended with us being very relaxed BUT tired !
Norway and Beyond
Hard to blog regularly whilst at sea I have to wait until reception is good and that has taken 12 days !!
1..my youngest brothers 65 th and we are up early at 5 am,and having a quick check on our luggage we embarked on our Blackpool bus to take us to Mayflowerr docks in Southampton to board the Oriana for our trip to Norway.Getting onto the boat and into our cabin was done with minimum fuss and very quickly.On the way out of Southampton crowds were gathered onshore to view the Olympic Torch that was being escorted across the Solent via Ferry .We ventured around the boat and found our first (inclusive ) meal stop in the A La Fresco restaurant and sampled what they had on offer.Dinner was at a set time and we are 8.30.Our companions at the table included a couple from Yorkshire and the other couple from Israel.(The Israelis were very interesting as I know a little of their history) Dinner was rather posh BUT very tasteful and I managed to quaff a bottle of white.After dinner we were treated to a show based on MOTOWN and start time was 10.30 pm !! The cast were stationed at the exit and were delightful to chat too.Our first day ended around midnight and we fell into bed exhausted from the days fun ..
Morecambe the LAST stopover after Scotland
I wanted to stop here to help me remember days gone by when we had boozy bus trips from Blackpool here.Sadly Morecambe is a dying holiday town where the hoteliers are struggling to make ends meet.Our host is an ex policeman and the service was great (once again we had a 4 poster bed!!) The hotel was on the promenade with beach views that were fantastic.Across from our room was a gigantic “open” picture frame that provided a little light relief for us Morecambe was a thriving seaside resort in the mid-20th century. While the resort of Blackpool attracted holiday-makers predominantly from the Lancashire mill towns, Morecambe had more visitors from Yorkshire (due to its railway connection) and Scotland. Between 1956 and 1989 it was the home of the Miss Great Britain beauty contest.
Morecambe suffered from decline for a number of years after a series of incidents that affected its tourism and local economy.[4] Two piers were lost: West End Pier was washed away in a storm in 1978 while Central Pier, though struck by fire in 1933, survived until 1992. In 1994, The World of Crinkley Bottom attraction in Happy Mount Park closed only 13 weeks after opening and the ensuing ‘Blobbygate’ scandal led to a legal battle between Lancaster City Council and TV star Noel Edmonds. The closures of Bubbles, Morecambe’s swimming pool, and Frontierland, a fairground, soon followed.
Blogs may be delayed for a while as we are cruising the Norwegian Coast inspecting the Fjords for TWO weeks, SO hopefully my next blogs will be packed with Norwegian pics n facts
Final Stage of Scotland ending up in Gretna Green
The grand tour of Scotland is coming to and end,and with a terrific ending.After travelling thru some of the best country side in the World we left Stranraer and headed for Gretna.For £50 for the 2 of us we got the bridal suite (HUGE ROOM) which included a oversized king size four poster bed,a 3 piece suite,free wifi,Spa bath and full English breakfast !!The Garden House Hotel in Gretna was (is) magnificent,the service second to none and completed our Scottish tour that took in 2 Locks (Ness and Lomond) Annie was thrilled at all the sights that Scotland had to offer and the people were very friendly.Altho Im not a fan of Scottish fare Annie loved the haggis and I particularly enjoyed potato cakes at breakfast !!
Watch me play Didgeridoo
Geoffs Life After Work ! 