Today we woke up in Norway! It’s 10 am and already 18C and the sun is shining.
There is a noise ordinance in Norway and no PA announcements will be made. The ship is not allowed to play music outdoors or hold parties on the pool deck while in port. This should be a law everywhere. Luckily there are large, poster size touchscreens all over the ship that tell you everything you need to know, from the nearest restroom, to how full the restaurants are, to where the gangplank is today and what time to be back on board.
We are in the town of Ålesund today, and I had booked us a Hop On-Hop Off tour (though Viatour) which runs frequently all day long (we are here until 10pm tonight, so no rush to get off the ship) We had breakfast at our “secret spot”, and every morning I cross my fingers in hopes of new & improved coffee, but alas, it was yet to be….
The buses are all parked right at the port, and I was quite surprised to find myself in the correct line as there is more than one company that does Hop On-Hop Off and the buses are almost identical. People were getting turned away by the dozens and I fully expected to be one of them, but we lucked out and got a nice seat up top level, on the correct bus! I have to say, there is a certain group of people who don’t seem to think line-ups are for them. Two separate families of about 6 people each both just walked in front of us, at two separate times. There was a time in my life when I would have said nothing and silently grumbled, but not anymore. I said “Ummm, excuse me, no, the end of the line is back there.” And gestured just in case they didn’t speak English. I was afraid of confrontation, but they just went to the end of the line. *whew* Anyhow, the route is about 70 minutes long, so we decided to take the full tour and see the sights with commentary and then stay on the bus and get off at the spots that appealed to us on the next circuit.
The bus first went up to an observatory, I think there were 11 tight switchbacks, and how those drivers maneuver them is incredible. There are mere inches of space sometimes. We had to stop for a few minutes as a big tractor apparatus was tearing down a cement wall in a fellow’s yard, and the road was too narrow to pass. When we got past, the road wound back down and through the city centre and out of town to an aquarium, where we decided to Hop Off.
It was a pretty impressive place, I’m not a huge aquarium person, not for any ethical reasons, (unless it’s a dolphin/whale enclosure 😡) but I’m just not that interested in fish, but this one was really interesting and very well set up; almost more like an interactive museum. We stayed about an hour, and then went out to wait for the bus, which arrives every 10 minutes or so. Of course the wrong one arrived first and I tried to get on it, luckily the driver was on the ball, and the a second one came and I tried to get on it and it was also the wrong company. Third time’s a charm though, and when it arrived we Hopped On and carried on. We passed by the place where the tractor had been, the job was finished, and we Hopped Off at the city centre.
The town streets are cobblestone and mostly pedestrian only which makes them fun to stroll through. The buildings are known for their art nouveau style and they are all so clean and elegant looking. We found a bakery and had a pastry and coffee. Nothing is more enjoyable to me than having a local bakery product a a good cup of coffee and just people-watching. You know, not having to use actual currency is both a blessing and a curse. It’s so quick and handy to just tap that credit card, but it’s also too easy to tap that credit card. 😊. Just make sure your card doesn’t charge foreign conversion fees. There seemed to be a lot of end-of-summer sales going on, and the prices for summer gear seemed really reasonable, but there was nothing I needed.
Parts of the city, as we left the actual city centre, seemed almost like being in Venice, lots of canals and homes with their doors opening just about right into the water. As we walked we saw an underpass that said “Cruise Port” and I instantly made myself remember where it was, since it was a simple way to get back to the ship. We walked a bit more and enjoyed the sun and the views, and then decided to head back to the aforementioned underpass. It was nowhere to be found. I heaved a sigh, but was not surprised. We wandered aimlessly until we spotted a street that ran towards the ship. We never did find the underpass again, but we did find a grocery store that was worth a wander-through. You know what’s weird though, I later Googled that underpass because I could not understand where it went, and we both saw it, it was large like a subway entrance and had “Cruise Ship” with an arrow pointing, in large letters. But Google says there is no underpass, so I don’t know….maybe a good thing we didn’t go that way?
This little city (population 58,000) was so pretty and so walkable, it’s a place I would love to return to. So far Norway is 10/10, highly recommend.
Back on the ship we rested up and went to The Price is Right show. We did not get to “Come on Down”, but honestly, the prizes were nothing exciting. The most exciting thing was the fact that the Big Wheel was one of the ones actually used when Bob Barker hosted the TV show, and honestly, that isn’t even that exciting is it?
We went for a late dinner, BBQ Korean pork. It was delicious. The live entertainment was a throwback 90’s party, and the music was really well done. I think a lot of the live performers on the ship are from that era, because all those performances were spot on and great to listen to.
It had been a great day, and Steven’s second European country, which he thoroughly enjoyed.
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