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Live from Emerald Princess - Norwegian Fjords and North Cape 6th August 2016

Frflatt

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Frflatt

Frflatt

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Hi All

 

Good to see she has made a break for freedom, seas look rough

 

expect outside decks will be closed off,

 

 

yours Shogun

 

Yes, as Geoff (Geoffa30) posted we are on our way - hurrah!

 

It's 18.43 and we have reached open seas and they are - to put it mildly - rather lumpy; it's rather like the Big Dipper in Blackpool! Captain Kent did advise those who suffer mal de mere should take their medication, lol! Oh well, glad to be off and en route to Olden.

 

Further updates later.

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easyboy

easyboy

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Yes, as Geoff (Geoffa30) posted we are on our way - hurrah!

 

It's 18.43 and we have reached open seas and they are - to put it mildly - rather lumpy; it's rather like the Big Dipper in Blackpool! Captain Kent did advise those who suffer mal de mere should take their medication, lol! Oh well, glad to be off and en route to Olden.

 

Further updates later.

Wishing you all well.

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Geoffa30

Geoffa30

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We survived. We are on Dolphin and the ship was slamming down hard last night generating spray as high as Aloha. Unsurprisingly the Promenade was closed! Some people were not looking too good with one lift being sanitised when we were on the way to dinner.

 

Now cruising along a fjord towards Olden. About 30-40 miles out. Misty and rainy out but sun is trying to break through. Looking forward to a glacier hike today.

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easyboy

easyboy

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We survived. We are on Dolphin and the ship was slamming down hard last night generating spray as high as Aloha. Unsurprisingly the Promenade was closed! Some people were not looking too good with one lift being sanitised when we were on the way to dinner.

 

Now cruising along a fjord towards Olden. About 30-40 miles out. Misty and rainy out but sun is trying to break through. Looking forward to a glacier hike today.

That was scary! Just glad it's over.

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Frflatt

Frflatt

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Wednesday 10th August 2016 - Olden

 

Well, that was an interesting night! After watching sail away from Skywalker's while enjoying the PES lounge offering of goats cheese and tomato bruschetta accompanied by a martini we went back to our stateroom to get ready for dinner. By this time the ship rocking and shaking and the spray from slamming down into the water was well beyond our balcony on deck 9 and, as Geoff remarked, was probably reaching as high as deck 12! I must say that it's the first time that I've had to have a shower holding onto the grab rail - an interesting experience. And, trying to get trousers and socks on standing on one leg defeated me, I had to sit to do it.

 

As we went out to dinner the effects of the ships motion were quite evident; a clean up operation was taking place in one of the lifts and a poor lady was having to use a paper bag to catch her stomach contents. Geoff was feeling slightly queasy so we went to dinner in the Da Vinci dinning room where we enjoyed corn and Italian sausage chowder - I couldn't detect any sausage - and slow cooked pork shoulder and pecan and butterscotch pie. It was a delicious dinner and really settled Geoff's stomach. For evening entertainment we went along to the final audition of Voice of the Ocean - I will say nothing more about it other than it was different!

 

When we climbed into bed there was a lot of banging and crashing but it didn't stop me falling straight to sleep - I find the motion to be quite soporific - and apart from when I got up to use the bathroom I wasn't aware of the storm! All was calm when we woke in the morning as we were entering protected waters of the Nordfjord. Captain Kent came on the tannoy just before 8am to say we would be about 2 hours late coming alongside in Olden as he had taken a cross country route to get there to avoid the worst of the weather!

 

The route along the fjord into Olden is very beautiful with lots of little waterfalls cascading down the sides of the rocky hills that make up the valley walls. The port itself is very quaint and as you dock you can see the little town just ahead. After enjoying our usual coffees and chatting with a fellow passenger, who was telling us that his whole family were in bed by 7.30pm the previous evening as they were all suffering the effects of the choppy seas, we went up top to watch the sail in.

 

Because of our late arrival there were a number of alterations to the scheduled times of excursions but ours was unaffected. At 10 am we went to the Wheelhouse and after getting our purple 1 sticker were sent to Princess Theatre to wait to be called. We had a short trip in a coach to the village of Loen when we boarded a motor boat on the lovely green blue lake Lovaten. Apparently the colour of the lake is something to do with the algae and the minerals washed down by the glacier - it is rather a beautiful colour. At the far end of the 11km lake we stopped for coffee and waffles with jam and sour cream (they seem to have these everywhere) before boarding a coach to travel the short distance to the viewpoint at the foot of the Kjenndalen glacier.

 

The weather on the trip on the lake had been dry and a little over cast but the low cloud didn't really spoil the view; however, by the time we reached the foot of the glacier the rain had really set in. The level of the cloud varied minute by minute and we did get some good views of the glacier, which is beautiful, spectacular and has a very blue green tinge in places. One of the big issues that we had with this trip was waiting a round for the coaches which were being used for several different groups; as we waited to be picked up from the glacier the rain was pouring and everyone was getting soaked as there was nowhere to shelter. It seemed like very bad planning - a fellow passenger mentioned organisation and brewery!

 

The drive back to Olden was along lovely, narrow, winding roads with a couple of stops along the way to take pictures - we stayed on the coach! Once back on board the Emerald Princess we got changed out of our wet things and stopped in the Wheelhouse for a quick beverage (buy one get one for a dollar) before heading for Explorers for the afternoon trivia - I got 14!

 

Next it was up to Skywalkers, where the PES offering was wheel of Stilton, to watch sail away. This is such a lovely location on the ship to be able sit and watch the world outside go by - pity that they didn't keep this on the Royal class ships.

 

Dinner tonight was in Da Vinci again where I enjoyed pate followed by cottage pie and Geoff had veal wagon wheel pasta followed by cottage pie - odd that the cottage pie doesn't come with any vegetables. For desert Geoff had the chocolate dream and I had creme brûlée. After dinner we went along to Explorers for the 'yes, no' game show which was rather fun. We sat next to a fellow cc'er who recognised me - what it is to be famous - and a young lass from his party did really well by achieving 2 minutes 24 seconds with saying yes or no. We left just before the end of the show to go to Princess Theatre to see 'I got the music' but left half way through - the singers aren't the best in the world and we were both falling asleep!

 

The boat is a little rocky tonight but nothing like last night. I'm sure we will get a goods night sleep in our luxurious bed and when we wake we will be approaching Trondheim. The weather forecast for tomorrow is rainy again but at least we are on vacation and we must make the best of it despite the weather!

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Frflatt

Frflatt

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Thursday 11th August 2016 - Trondheim

 

Another excellent nights sleep and another rainy morning! We watched the sail into Trondheim wit our usual coffee - macchiato for him and skinny latte for me - sitting in the International Cafe. Not sure why I'm still bothering with skinny latte because I'm already suffering from boat bloat - similar to what you get on a plane but caused by too much food rather than air pressure!

 

After a light - bacon, sausage, fried egg, hash brown, black pudding, tomatoes and 2 soft rolls - breakfast in Cafe Caribe (we find it less crowded than the Horizon Court side) we went back to our stateroom to prepare for going ashore.

 

We didn't have an excursion booked for today - the Northern European trips are very expensive - so just wanted to have a wander round the town. The ship docks right in the town and it is only a 10-15 minute stroll to reach the centre. Even though Trondheim is Norway's third largest city is still fairly compact and easy to navigate. It used to be the capital as it was the place that St. Olav died and is buried under the high alter of the cathedral. The rain was fairly light and once off the dock and in the more sheltered town it was quite bearable. Our first destination was the cathedral and after that the old town bridge leading to the old town.

 

The cathedral is situated at the top of the high street in lovely grounds which include the archbishops palace and the art gallery. The cost of admission to the cathedral is 90 NKO and 90 NKO for the archbishops palace and 90 NKO to see the Royal regalia or you can get a combined ticket for all three for 180 NKO - £1 = 10-11 NKO. We chose to see the cathedral only.

 

The cathedral is a solid dark building but is extremely beautiful; parts of it are clearly Norman in architecture but there are wonderful contemporary features such as the organ that was built in the 1990's and dominated the west end and a wonderful marble altar in the south transept chapel. We spent a happy time in the cathedral - there are guided tours in English at no extra cost and the guides appear to be very knowledgeable. There is also a stunning organ in the north transept that JS Bach composed music for. We would definitely recommend a visit to the cathedral if you ever find yourself in Trondheim. For an extra 40 NKO you can climb the cathedral tower and have views across the city but it is 172 steps up a narrow spiral staircase and not recommended for people who have claustrophobia or a heart condition - or, like me, too lazy!

 

When we left the cathedral it was raining somewhat harder and despite waiting a little while it didn't seem to be letting up. Next we headed for the old town bridge which was a two minute walk from the cathedral. The bridge is an interesting construction and worth a look at and it leads to the old town area with its colourfully painted buildings. The fort overlooks the old time but we decided not to climb up to it but instead to wander through the delightful streets of the old town. At the end of the old town area is what appears to be old docks now turned into trendy bars and shops - the Norwegians have some beautiful architecture and their blending of old and new is stunning. If the weather had been better it would have been lovely to sit at one of the bars, drinking a nice cold beer and watching the world go by but instead we decided to return to the relative warmth of the Emerald Princess.

 

After changing out of our wet clothes we stopped off for a warming soup and a sandwich at the International Cafe before going to happy hour at the Wheelhouse where we had a couple of Grolsch. Next off to club fusion for afternoon trivia - I got 18! At trivia we got chatting to a couple and their daughter who were first time cruisers who, despite being told that they would get the cruising bug, we're not really feeling it. I do hope for their sake that things improve over the next few days and that their experience gets better - I'm not sure that this is a cruise for first timers.

 

Next up to Skywalkers for the PES lounge and today's offering of assorted sushi - Geoff hates sushi but loves the pretzel buns and smoked cheeses. From this vantage point we enjoyed watching the sail away from Trondheim- but first I had to go back to the stateroom to get our jackets. Some of the public areas are decidedly chilly and our favourite spot on the port side of Skywalkers is like sitting in the arctic tundra!

 

After performing our evening ablutions and changing for dinner we headed down to the Wheelhouse Bar. Tonight we dined I'm the Salty Dog and enjoyed a really good and filling meal. The beer cheese fondue was really scrum my and I could have eaten it several times over. The prosciutto salad was good but the lemon dressing overpowering, the garlic chips had too much garlic but the sweet potato fries were delicious - the barbecue sauce was really good. For mains Geoff had the beef cheeks, short ribs poutine and Ernesto burger without kimchi and I had the spiced short ribs with honey and orange, the grilled cheese and white tomato soup and Ernesto burger with everything. Geoff enjoyed all of his mains and I loved the soup but found the grilled cheese too greasy. The spicy short ribs were too sweet with the orange and the burger was overpowered by the kimchi and my pork belly was all gristle. For desert I had the coffee and donuts - delicious but too filling - and Geoff had the bourbon chocolate pot de creme. All in all it was a good meal and excellent value for money; we would definitely go again but would choose different mains and not have the burger.

 

For evening entertainment we visited the Princess Theatre to hear comedy from Jeff Stevenson who was excellent. By the end of the show my eyes were drooping and so we went to the warm embrace of our luxurious bed. The sea is calm this evening and tomorrow is a sea day as we travel through the arctic circle towards Honninsvag.

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Frflatt

Frflatt

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Friday 12th August 2016 - Sea Day

 

Today is a day of doing nothing but simply relaxing. The day started off bright and sunny, the first real sun we have seen since reaching Norway. We started the day with 2 leisurely cups of coffee, siting in the piazza, watching the world go by. We prefer coffee at the International Cafe because 1) we can watch people as we drink and 2) we can get the coffee in proper cups and not those nasty plastic things. To accompany our coffee and so that it wasn't too wet I had a bran muffin and Geoff had a cinnamon whirl.

 

Next we headed up to look at the view - we were passing the Lofoten Islands - from Lido deck and decided that it was so lovely and warm that we would sit outside. We found a nice spot in the Calypso pool area on the comfortable loungers and set up camp. We spent the whole morning up on deck 15 and were entertained by Kung Fu Panda 3 on MUTS! It was lovely to be getting some sun and making some vitamin D.

 

At lunch time as the sun was being hidden behind some light cloud we visited the Horizon Court buffet. This is not a pleasant experience; the choice is not good, the layout is difficult and disjointed and there is never any seating available. Either that or the last seat is taken as you get stuck behind a group of slowcoaches wandering aimlessly.

 

After lunch we went to Princess Theatre where they were showing the movie The Jungle Book - I enjoyed it but Geoff said it reminded him of Babe with all the animals speaking - this is not a good thing so he instead had a nap. The slightly weird thing was that the background muzak continued to play under the movie.

 

A quick foray at the end of the movie to get supplies from happy hour at the Wheelhouse Bar and then back to the Theatre to hear Paul Chandler-Burns interview Captain Kent. The Captain is a good speaker and has many interesting stories to tell but when it came time for the audience to ask questions they came up with some bizarre ones. Why people feel the need to ask questions that no one else will be interested in knowing the answer to is beyond me. Unfortunately we never did find out what his favourite colour was!

 

It's formal night tonight so following the captain we returned to prepare for the evening. It's lovely having a bath tub but it is rather narrow! Following the relaxing bath and all our other preparations we set forth on our evening promenade. First we visited the Wheelhouse Bar for a libation; everywhere else was busy and crowded with various entertainments going on. After a couple of leisurely cocktails we wandered down to the Michelangelo dining room for a pleasant dinner - I had crayfish vol au vents, the pastry was raw; fettuccini Alfredo, don't know why people rave about it as its so so at best; chateaubriand, that was delicious and cheesecake. Geoff had prosciutto, not the best he had had commenting it was opaque in colour; gnocchi with mushrooms, it was nice; chateaubriand and vanilla soufflé with a lady Godiva sauce, delicious.

 

We decided to skip the production show tonight - What a Swell Party - as we are not enamoured with the current singers and dancers. (Hopefully theyp won't ruin Magic To Do which is still to be performed.) Instead we went to Explorers Lounge - standing room only - to hear the comedy of Jeff Stevenson for a second night. The lounges on Emerald Princess seem larger and better laid out than the ones on the Royal class ships but they do get very crowded especially when it is too cold to be outside.

 

After the entertainment we decided to call it a day - a very relaxed and enjoyable day - and retire to bed in preparation for our day at the North Cape and the port of Honningsvag.

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MawganTr

MawganTr

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We are loving this trip. As a family of 4 we are even enjoying our inside quad room and have settled into a lovely routine & habits! We are impressed with the amount that goes on around the ship even in port days. We had less on offer on P&O at Easter even with 3 sea days to the canaries! Looking forward to a trip the the north cape today.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

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Frflatt

Frflatt

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Saturday 13th August 2016 - Honningsvag

 

This is the most northern section of the cruise today with a visit to the North Cape. The day starts dry and there is a promise of good weather and clear views at the Cape - a welcome prospect.

 

Our tour was due to meet at 9.30 so we enjoyed our usual morning coffee in the piazza and a pastry to sustain us on our journey - Geoff particularly enjoyed a Chocolate Vanilla Breton and I had my usual bran muffin. Then back to our stateroom to get ready for our Princess excursion. (We like the easy life!)

 

Off to the Wheelhouse Bar to get our sticker - Silver 8 - and then into the Princess Theatre to wait to be called. The wait seemed interminable; however, we eventually got led to our charabanc and off we went. The drive to the Nordkapp takes about 40 minutes and is particularly beautiful; there was an avalanche of camera shutters during the journey as folk snapped the scenery and the many reindeer that we saw along the way. It felt as though we were being chased by Paparazzi!

 

The weather at the Cape was perfect, warm (relatively) and sunny with clear vision for miles. Before going into North Cape Hall we spent an hour or so walking along the cliffs and taking in the views. The whole area is stunningly beautiful in its stark barrenness. Many people were walking and enjoying the amazing weather and scenery. Geoff was taking pictures of the natural beauty and I was adding to the stone piles (they must have a proper name) as we walked along and marvelled in the world around us.

 

Eventually we returned to the North Cape Hall and spent 40 minutes inside. We visited the delightful St. John's Chapel - a lovely little gem and a brief stop in the Cave of Lights. Next we went to see the film that documented the seasons at the North Cape before heading back to the motor coach for the return journey to Honningsvag. It did rain briefly as we got back on the bus but the weather had otherwise been perfect.

 

On return to the port we had a wander through the streets of this quaint but obviously working harbour town. The highlights of Honningsvag are a Christmas shop, a king crab restaurant and an ice bar. There isn't a lot to do in Honningsvag but it is worth a wander through the streets particularly if you like old boats and jellyfish- there was a multitude of both. Geoff loves to photograph boats and so was in his element.

 

By this time it was late afternoon and we decided to return to the ship for a sandwich at the International Cafe and to change out of our outdoor clothes. Back down to the Wheelhouse Bar for a quick drink before afternoon trivia in Explorers Lounge - I got 13. Geoff and I tend not to join a team and therefore do not have the luxury of the shared knowledge of others hence the low score. At least that's our excuse!

 

After a quick visit to the PES lounge - guacamole and chips - we returned to our stateroom to prepare for our evening. We had reached a point in the cruise where we were tired of formal dining and decided this evening that we would forgo the MDR and dine in the buffet.

 

First we were off the Princess Theatre to see Jayne Middleton as Annie Lennox; she is extremely good and well worth seeing. The show was full of energy and she gave a very convincing performance but perhaps more Celine than Annie; we would happily see her again.

 

The buffet had a 'Mexican' themed dinner - our favourite cuisine - and I found the chicken mole to be excellent. A lady in the queue behind me thought that it was made with a moles until I persuaded her otherwise. It was an extremely pleasant and refreshing change to the formality of the MDR.

 

As we went back down to deck 7 the ship was approaching the North Cape and there were many people out on the promenade deck to record the passage on their camera, iPhones and iPads. After watching the event we proceeded to find space in Explorers Lounge to watch Mike McClean, comedy mind reader. He was funny and got the audience involved but he wasn't really to my taste. Slightly old school end of pier humour.

 

By the time this show ended it was 11.30pm and still relatively light outside. We briefly contemplated going to Skywalker's but instead opted to go to our bed! Tomorrow is the port of Tromso, the weather is predicted to be sunny and we plan on visiting the Arctic Cathedral.

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Frflatt

Frflatt

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Many thanks for your very comprehensive reports Frflatt, we are "doing" the same cruise next year. So will try to store your information in the ever ageing grey matter. Happy cruising and every blessing.:)

 

Thank you for your kind words - I'm doing this partly as a record to aid my terrible memory! Hope you have a fantastic cruise when it comes round.

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Frflatt

Frflatt

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We are loving this trip. As a family of 4 we are even enjoying our inside quad room and have settled into a lovely routine & habits! We are impressed with the amount that goes on around the ship even in port days. We had less on offer on P&O at Easter even with 3 sea days to the canaries! Looking forward to a trip the the north cape today.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

Glad your enjoying the cruise, we're having fun too. There is a lot going on and sometimes it's hard to Cooke what to see. Have been looking for you round the ship but not spotted you yet!

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Frflatt

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A great review. Interesting reading

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums mobile app

 

Thank you, I'm really enjoying writing it. It will be a great memory jogger in the future and it's fun taking people along with us now!

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