Scotland, UK 8th port South Queensferry (Edinburgh) 5/29/24

So much for our great weather.  It was a little cool in the morning, mid-50s, warmed up in the afternoon, mid-60s, w/ some sun then...rain.  Luckily our resident weatherman (Tom) was watching the weather and we headed back to the ship before the front arrived in Edinburgh.

The ship used dynamic positioning to secure our position in the Firth of Fourth.  Wha...?.  A firth is an estuary and the river is the River Fourth.  Hence this crazy name Firth of Fourth.  There are some nice looking bridges.  The red one is the The Fourth Bridge built in 1890!  It is a cantilevered rail bridge and a UNESCO sight.  I can't believe it's 134 years old.  

The cable-stayed bridge is the Queensferry Crossing built 2017 and opened to road traffic.

The last of the three bridges is the Forth Road Bridge open to peds, cyclists and public transportation.  It looks like a mini white Golden Gate Bridge.  Completed in 1961.

Queensferry is about 9 miles from Edinburgh.  We started our day with a visit to the HMY Britannia.  It was a fun self-guided audio tour.  Especially fun for those of us who watched "The Crown" (historic fiction on Netflix).  

We started on the bridge (of the Britannia) level 3.  The captain's rooms, captain's kitchen, QE II usually took a car with them.  Sometimes the Land Rover and sometimes a Rolls.  Next was the sunroom at the aft (back) of the boat.  The Queen's bedroom which connects to the Prince's bedroom.  Various family photo are posted throughout the boat.  Across the hall is the queen bed for visitors.

Level 2:  The room with the glowing "fireplace" is the officer's room attached to the dining room. No one was allowed to touch the monkey, but somehow he moved around.  Kitchen, which is still used today for Tea.  Pantries for silver, dinnerware, etc.

The dining room, wow.  Further aft is the Queen's office on port side.  The Prince's office across from the Queen's on the starboard side.  Then grand room which can be closed off or opened to accommodate lots of people. 

Lower level is where the officer's can hang out.  The crew's quarters.  The Marine Band quarters, they were the main security for the royals and they played music!  Practice room, more quarters, mail room, doctor's office, sick bay & laundry room.

The boat used by the royal couple to go places off the ship.

Engine room & engineering.  The bathroom & shower room (9 showers for 220 yachtsmen aka yotties).

Once we finished we took the light rail into Edinburgh  and arrived near St Andrew Square.  I think that's who's on the top of the column.  There is so much to see here!!!

Scotts Monument (spiky) constructed for Sir Walter Scott.  I thought it was for the Scottish people. Nelson's Column (toilet paper roll-looking) atop Calton Hill in honor of for Horatio Nelson Navy Admiral 1805.  The Parthenon-looking structure on Calton Hill is National Monument of Scotland. It is an unfinished monument from 1829.  

Looking across to Arthur's Seat, the green hill.  Then looking across to Edinburgh Castle.  Some pretty Scotts broom (haha).

Then it was off to Edinburgh Castle.  Funny story, the night before we tried to get tickets and all were sold out.  We got off the ship pretty early so not many tourists about.  A wee man was handing out maps and asked if I wanted a map.  I told him we were headed to  Britannia then Edinburgh but could not get tickets to the Castle.  He drew some dots on the map where we'd get off the tram (light rail) in Edinburgh and put a wee dot on the map and says "go here and they may have tickets for the Castle".   I didn't have a name or direction, just a dot about where we should go.  So we went - and found tourist info devoid of tourists but a funny helpful man who got us tickets to the Castle.  Hurray.  

The Castle is huge swarming with tourists!  We got the audio tour which is well worth it but I'm not sure you can get through the whole thing in a week.  They were also setting up for the tattoo in June, (tattoo is a military exercise given by troops as entertainment) in front of the Castle.

We got on the bus just as the rain was starting.  It wasn't quite the bus we wanted but it took us close enough to Queensferry.  We toyed with crossing the bridge (to Fife) then coming back just to say we crossed the firth on the bridge. (I believe it would have been the Forth Road Bridge)

Link to pictures https://www.flickr.com/gp/8663407@N07/jE7482gu1e

Scotland, UK 7th port Kirkwall on Orkney Islands 5/28/24

It was a nice day but a bit cold, mid 50s.  We were at anchorage and so was another brand new ship, Cunard Queen Anne.

The Orkneys are comprised of ~70 islands, 20 of them inhabited.  Kirkwall is known as the mainland, the capital and it's the biggest.  There are many UNESCO sites here.

Standing Stones of Stenness is a small circle of standing stones dating from 3100 BCE.  They're not quite sure their purpose.  They're kind of a mini Stonehenge.

Ring of Brodgar from 2500 BCE.  Again big stones they're not quite sure their purpose.  They believe there were 60 stones but only 20 left.

Skara Brae is a prehistoric village uncovered in 1850 after a storm.  An amazing example of prehistoric life.  They have covered some of it back up to protect it because they have enough to study right now.

Yesnaby have some beautiful cliffs along the ocean.  The nazi's set up gun batteries here.

Italian Chapel was created by Italian POW during the war.  I read about it but it was amazing to see.  It has been restored because after the war it fell into ruin.  It is created by trompe l'oeil, a painting technique that looks 3-dimensional. 

Furry pigs are Peter & Brian.  There were 2 other tour vans there when we went by. 

Kirkwall we visited St Magnus Church built in 1064, then rebuilt 1764.

Link to pictures: https://www.flickr.com/gp/8663407@N07/SP1X0843h1

Scotland UK, 6th port Lerwick, Shetland Islands 5/27/24

Another great day!  (I just don't get tired of saying that)  It started a bit overcast, low 50s, but the sun did break through.  The highest temperature ever recorded in Lerwick was 74. It is often very windy here, but not today.

Sunset at 10:05 pm, sunrise 3:59 am

We were on a private tour and it was great.  Does anyone watch the BBC show Shetland?  We hadn't hear of it until a few day ago.  We saw some areas from the show, I'll point them out because everyone on the tour watches except us.

Lerwick is the largest town in the Shetlands, made up of over 100 islands.  It's a cute town as you can see.  Mainly fishing, gas and oil, but tourism has really increased, and it's a good thing.  In the old days people had to scratch out a living and can only grow root vegs.  Ruled over by mean governors sometimes.

Shetland show: the green house is where Duncan lives. Then view of below "Duncan's" house.  Houses are now built in the Scandinavian style & color (similar to the North Cape)

Scalloway - the castle ruins in the middle of the photo was the mean governors (built ~1600) who enslaved the people of the town.  Luckily he was so bad he got beheaded.  Scalloway is also known for the "Scalloway Bus".  The bus was small fishing boat that left (on the Atlantic side of the island) that went to Norway to smuggle Jews out of Norway and provide wireless, guns and other supplies for the Norway resistance.  The boat would leave at 3 pm and return at 9 am.  This means a small boat crossed the North Sea at night to hide from the Nazi!

We visited an old home site where the people eeking out a living.  It's a local's property who's ancestors lived here.

Then there's the Vikings! and sheep...

Near Bigton is St. Ninian's Isle where a 15-year archaeologist helper uncovered 28 pieces of silver comprised of bowls, jewelry & other pieces dating from 750 AD.  The beach (or trombolo) is also a scene from Shetland where a dead body turns up.  Afterwards we had a short back where I got a lovely cup of Scottish tea.

Then off the the southern tip of the island to Sumburgh Head Lighthouse where the Atlantic Ocean meets the North Sea.  There's a big fog horn and lots of seabirds including puffins.  This was built by Robert Stevenson, grandfather to Robert Louis Stevenson.

To get to the lighthouse you have to drive across the airport runway.

Shetland ponies don't do much anymore, they're just pets.  Pets with attitude according to our guide.

Back in Lerwick we visit Fort Charlotte, it appears they have their sites set on our ship.  We visited St. Margaret Catholic Church, Town Hall (from 1883) and the "police station" (from Shetland) that is really the courthouse.

Link to the pictures  https://www.flickr.com/gp/8663407@N07/92586h8805

 

Norway, 5th port Bodo 5/25/24

Today was Saturday so it was a relatively quiet day on shore.  We walked into town and encountered a town square that had a small car show of old cars and a steam engine exhibition.  Then we heard a band, it was a female percussion band.  A festive atmosphere.

After lunch we took a taxi to see the Saltstraumen Malstrom. It has the strongest tidal current in the world. It's similar to Deception Pass (on Whidbey Island) where the tide rushes in/out a small channel making the channel swirly.  We viewed the maelstrom from the bridge.  There were tours that took inflatable boats through the maelstrom.  It was pretty cool watching the swirls from above.  We talked to people who did the boat tour and they said it was quite calm, which we could tell from the bridge.

Flickr pictures and videos of the Salstraumen https://www.flickr.com/gp/8663407@N07/T82n1H4x15

Norway, 4th port Harstad 5/24/24

 I'm happy to say it was another beautiful day!  Temperature was about mid-50s

Our draw to this area was the military base where they have an Adolf gun.  As you may guess this is a big gun built in 1940 by the German's to help create their Atlantic wall to keep out the Allies.  The gun is huge! There were four guns installed but only one still is there.  It is a 16" gun is 66 feet long, that can fire a 1,300 lb. shell up to 35 miles. Our tour guide was a woman who has been giving tours to this gun for 40 years.  Her knowledge was pretty amazing to me.  She said the gun was operational except for the compressor needed to help with the recoil.  

On the way to see the gun we stop at Trondenes where we visited a museum, medieval farm and Trondenes Church which was built in 1200's.  

Flickr pictures https://www.flickr.com/gp/8663407@N07/FXattWpv68

Norway, 3rd port Honningsvag 5/23/24

Another beautiful day!  Honningsvag is on the island of Mageroda, mostly know for fishing and the North Cape (Nordkapp).  North Cape is the northern most point in Europe.  71 degrees north in the Arctic Circle.  In the Land of the Midnight Sun there really is no sunrise/sunset.  Hurray for blackout curtains.

FYI once you've been to the Arctic Circle you are known as a Blue Nose.  So we are Shell-back blue nosed adventurers.  (crossed the equator in Nov and now the Arctic Circle)

Honningsvag was burned to the ground after WW II.

We visited two fishing villages where we saw drying cod and king crabs.

The Sami are natives peoples who still live on Mageroda but are not nomads anymore as they used to be.  They would follow the reindeer.  Now most live in houses but still rely on reindeer for a living, meat, antlers, skins, etc. they use all parts.

There are no tree in the North Cape area, the weather is too harsh. The tree line is 150 km (about 93 miles) south. There are a few trees but that's because people work hard to help keep the trees alive.  This may mean covering up the trees for 6-9 months to protect them from the snow and harsh weather.

At the North Cape we got to look out at the sea and there's some art work including a steel open-construction globe.  We later saw the globe from the ship as we cruise south.

Flickr pictures https://www.flickr.com/gp/8663407@N07/1P047bH26v

Norway, 2nd port Trondheim 5/21/24

This is quite north, sunrise was 3:58 am, sunset was 10:15 pm.  We are getting close to The Land of the Midnight Sun, Norway above the Arctic Circle.  Once we go above the Arctic Circle we will be known as blue noses.  Temperature was high 50s/low 60s.

Trondheim is the 3rd largest city in Norway.  The amazing Nidaros Cathedral is here.  Coronations are held here. 

This was also a Catholic Church that became Lutheran.  St Olav was buried here, and pilgrims would come to visit his remains.  It fell into disuse and part of it was left open to the elements.  It has since been renovated extensively and they don't know what happened to St. Olav!?!

Inside the church are two very meaningful flags.  The white one is the British Battle flag from the ship that arrived to liberate the city after WW II.  The red flag is the royal flag which also came back to the city once the King and family returned.  For more info on the King and what happened at the beginning of WWII, watch the movie "The King's Choice."  (subtitled)

Flickr pictures https://www.flickr.com/gp/8663407@N07/z9Hy2p8hL5