Live From the Sky Princess, 21-Day Norway-Baltic B2B, Jul 13 – Aug 3

[Ken the cruiser]

Day 20 - Aug 1 - Kristiansand, Norway

 

 

 

 

 

 
We also got our disembarkation information this evening. FWIW we are booked on a Princess transfer to LHR.

,

 

[Ken the cruiser]

Here are the details of our excursion tomorrow morning in Kristiansand.

 

[Ken the cruiser]

We have arrived at Kristiansand, Norway!

 

 

 

 

[Ken the cruiser]

Here are some photos from our 1-hour drive to the Setesdal Mineral Park.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
Then it was time to go into the cave to gaze at the tremendous array of different types of stones from around the world!

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

Then we walked around the amusement park that designed mostly for children for a few minutes before reboarding the bus. 

 

 

 
Edging Lobelia

 

 
Marmalade Hoverfly

 

 
Then it was time to head back to Kristiansand.

 

 

 

 
Fjord horses!

 

 
and some cows! 😂

 

 
The bus stopped near the town center before heading back to the ship. We got off there to walk around the town, as it was only a short walk back to the ship.

 

 

 

 

 
I was able to get this elusive Kristiansand pigeon to pose in front of these flowers. 😁

 

 
Western Honey Bee

 

 

Then it was time to head back to the ship, as we were getting hungry! 😁

 

 

 

Edited August 1 by Ken the cruiser

[Esprit]

1 hour ago, Ken the cruiser said:

Here are some photos from our 1-hour drive to the Setesdal Mineral Park.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
Then it was time to go into the cave to gaze at the tremendous array of different types of stones from around the world!

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

Then we walked around the amusement park that designed mostly for children for a few minutes before reboarding the bus. 

 

 

 
Edging Lobelia

 

 
Marmalade Hoverfly

 

 
Then it was time to head back to Kristiansand.

 

 

 

 
Fjord horses!

 

 
and some cows! 😂

 

 
The bus stopped near the town center before heading back to the ship. We got off there to walk around the town, as it was only a short walk back to the ship.

 

 

 

 

 
I was able to get this elusive Kristiansand pigeon to pose in front of these flowers. 😁

 

 

 

 

 
 

 

We get those Wood Pigeons in our garden daily. They make a right racket in the early morning too!😖

[Ken the cruiser]

20 minutes ago, Esprit said:

We get those Wood Pigeons in our garden daily. They make a right racket in the early morning too!😖

This one must have been on good behavior when I took the photo, as it was just quietly meandering around looking for something to eat between the grass blades!

[Ken the cruiser]

And we’re off! Next stop is Southampton, England, our final stop, day after tomorrow!

 

[Ken the cruiser]

After dinner we headed to the theater to listen to West End singer Daniel Koek.

 

 

 

 
Then it was time to head to the Vista Lounge to listen to a hilarious comedian Nick Page in the Laugh Lounge! 
 

 

Afterwards, when we got back to the cabin, we saw the final stages of this evening’s sunset.

 

 

Edited August 1 by Ken the cruiser

[Ken the cruiser]

Day 21 - Aug 2 - Sea Day

 

 

 

 

Here’s an interesting note about the Internet service provider this evening. It’s being provided by SES rather than Starlink, which has been providing the service our whole cruise (except for tonight). 🤔

 

[Ken the cruiser]

11 hours ago, Ken the cruiser said:

Here’s an interesting note about the Internet service provider this evening. It’s being provided by SES rather than Starlink, which has been providing the service our whole cruise (except for tonight). 🤔

 

Today after breakfast I was curious to see if the Sky’s satellite link was using the SpaceX Starlink service again, and it was. On the bright side it’s good to know if it does go down, Princess still is able to provide internet service using the SES satellite service. 😁

 

 
FWIW here’s our location in the North Sea with a clear sky and calm sea around 10 am on our last full day of the cruise.

 

[Ken the cruiser]

For you pigeon “hunters” out there, did you know there are at least 59 different types around the world?

 

https://birdhelpful.com/types-of-pigeons/

 

I know. Who knew! What got me thinking about this was when @Esprit earlier mentioned the Wood Pigeon by name. And no, I’m not going to research which “elusive” pigeons I take photos of as we cruise around. 😂

[Ken the cruiser]

After dinner since we still had to pack, we passed on the shows. This also gave us time to enjoy the final “sunsets” of the cruise. 
 

First sunset, or so we thought, shortly after we arrived back at the cabin.

 

 

Then the clouds started breaking up, and the sun started peaking out under them.

  

 

 

Second sunset, or so we thought, as there looked to be a solid bank of clouds below the sun now.

 

 

 

All of a sudden there was an opening in the clouds for a possible third sunset! 

 

 
Then, without missing a beat, a Herring Gull showed up having a good time just soaring along on the wind generated by the ship.

 

 

We all then watched the “final” sunset together! 😁

 

 
But then as we’ve learned from past experiences, there sometimes is a pretty after glow as well! 😁

 

[Ken the cruiser]

We have arrived back at the Queen Elizabeth terminal in Southampton! Sure glad we won’t be doing an outdoor excursion on our transit to the airport in a couple of hours. 😁

 

 
I have to say we have had an awesome time both on and off the ship on this B2B, and are definitely looking forward to future cruises going to various ports up and down the Norway coast in the next couple of years! Norway is definitely one beautiful country when it comes to scenic views and mild weather! 😁

[Malleykatt]

Have a safe journey back Ken. We have enjoyed the cruise and have seen some beautiful places. Never tracked you down in person though.

I will look out for your next travel review where ever it may be.

[Esprit]

Welcome back to my dreary homeland Ken.

You missed the heatwave we had here in SE England these last five days. That was our summer until next year😂.

Thoroughly enjoyed your thread and I’m looking forward to doing the same itinerary on Sky next year thanks to you.

Have a safe uneventful flight back home.

All the best

Peter

[joejoe 59]

Thank you for all your wonderful information @Ken the cruiser I've really enjoyed your adventures & can't wait to do it myself in 2026🦘

[Ken the cruiser]

Our PCL transfer to LHR left at 9 am sharp and arrived about 90 minutes later, with minimal traffic issues along the way. Here are some photos from the drive. 
 

The transfer bus to Terminal 3 was about 2/3 full. 
 

 

 

 

 
Even saw some horses and sheep along the way! 😁

 

 
When we got to the Terminal 3 drop off point, we saw this interesting sign we’ve never seen at any other airport. We’re guessing it was there to detour “private citizens” from using it, as all we saw was taxis and buses when we were there. 

 

 

We were able to check our bags and get through security in about a hour, thanks to a very organized process getting through the various security checkpoints. Now we wait for about 3 hours before boarding our Delta flight to Atlanta. 😁

[scubacruiserx2]

 Thanks for sharing your LIVE cruise .

[vickykay]

So very much enjoyed another live Ken review.   When and where is your next one?

[PATRLR]

Safe Travels Ken.  It was interesting to be "following" along the first part while also on the same cruise with you.  Sorry we weren't able to meet up.

And I agree Norway is beautiful, hoping I'll eventually get back there.

[Ken the cruiser]

@vickykay our next cruise will be a short 7-day cruise on the huge RC Wonder OTS in late September leaving out of Port Canaveral FL. I’ll post the link to my Live From thread here once I start it around mid-September. 
 

Edited August 3 by Ken the cruiser

[Mike A]

Thank you Ken for letting us join you on this wonderful trip. I look forward to following you on the next🙂

[Ken the cruiser]

4 hours ago, Esprit said:

Welcome back to my dreary homeland Ken.

You missed the heatwave we had here in SE England these last five days. That was our summer until next year😂.

Thoroughly enjoyed your thread and I’m looking forward to doing the same itinerary on Sky next year thanks to you.

Have a safe uneventful flight back home.

All the best

Peter

Thanks Peter for following along and keeping me straight when identifying wildlife! 😁

 

As far as the weather in your beautiful country, it definitely improved as we headed towards London. However, as far as summer goes back in Alabama, it doesn’t look like we’ve missed anything. When we left it was 34C and humid, and when we get home, it’s forecasted to be about the same! 😂

[Justpackingmybags]

Safe home @Ken the cruiser

I've enjoyed sharing your journey

[fenny7cats]

Thank you Ken for all of your posts and photos, as I am on the Sky in 3 weeks time it was very interesting for me to see the daily patter listings and hear what you got up to on your travels to help me plan my cruise.  Safe journey home and happy cruising!