Day 6 - Seydisfjordur, Iceland

 I got up at 6:15 after a bumpy night and got dressed for the day. Our arrival was moved up due to low tides and went from 10:15 to 9:15. I went to breakfast at 7:20. After breakfast, I went to the library to get the daily crossword but it was not out yet, so I went back to the cabin and gathered my things and went to check in for  my Puffin tour.  We were called at 9:20 and went to the tender and arrived on shore at 10. We boarded the bus and left for a 110 minute drive to see the puffins. I tried to take some pictures from the bus, but most of them turned out blurry. The countryside was lovely with mountains, waterfalls and some snow.  I got to see a whole lot of puffins. After an hour, we went to a restaurant for some delicious bread and soup. I had the fish soup and it was great. We then rode back to the dock and caught the tender back to the ship and I got to my cabin at 3:50. I uploaded my photos and went back to the library to get the crossword. After returning to the cabin, I worked the crossword and I decided to go the Dive-in for dinner at 5:50.  Afterward, I went to the Billboard Onboard where the music trivia was going on followed be the 2 pianists doing music from the 50's.  I had a couple of drinks while I was there and then returned to the cabin to find my solar eclipse 2026 glasses.  I updated the blog and then went to bed and read until 9:30.

 

The church in Seydisfjordur

 

This is the walk down to the shop at the puffin area but I didn't get a picture of all of the stairs we had to climb to get there. It was misting and my camera lens kept getting wet. 

This is where we ate lunch with great bread and soups

I took this from my verandah after returning to my cabin

Day 5 - At Sea - My 84th Birthday

 I got up at the new 6:40 and didn't feel a day over 83.  I dressed and went to breakfast at 7:30.  After breakfast, I found 2 birthday cards, one from Tom Mullen and one from Cruise Specialists. I went down to pick up the crossword in the library but today's puzzle was not out yet so I returned to the cabin. Later, I went back to the library as my cabin attendants serviced my cabin and picked up the crossword. When I returned to the cabin, I found that Abdul and Fernando had built me a birthday display of towels with a couple of Stroopwafel caramels. I worked the crossword and got ready for the Cruise Specialists cocktail party at 12:30.  When I got to the cocktail party, Tom wished me a happy birthday and I sat with a couple from Canada in Ontario near the Michigan border. A woman and a couple joined us and the discussion  was taken over by them.  I had a couple of drinks and left at 1:15 and went  back to the cabin,  Later, a delivery of a cupcake  and a birthday card from Captain Werner Timmers and the crew arrived.  It was delicious and I ate it all.  I read for a while and then took a nap for about an hour and then read some more.  I cleaned up and got ready for dinner and possibly the Great Gatsby Night.  I went to dinner at 7 and had a table for 2 by myself. I decided to splurge and had the escargot, the halibut by Morimoto for an additional $25 and the cherry tart for dessert with coffee.  After dinner, I went to the Billboard Onboard for a drink during the music trivia and returned to the cabin at 9 before the Great Gatsby party started at 9:30. We set the clocks back another hour. I had another towel animal tonight. I went to bed and read for a while before I went to sleep. 

 

My gift from the cabin stewards
 

My gift from the Captain and Crew

My latest towel animal

Day 4 - Sandes(Stavanger), Norway

 I got up at 6:20 and readied a bag of laundry to go out.  We were scheduled to dock at 8, but we were early and were there at 7.  I dressed and went to breakfast at 7:30 and then went to the Library to pick up the daily crossword. I returned to the cabin to work the crossword and get ready for my 12 noon tour to Stavanger.  It was raining lightly and 62 degrees early, but expected to get up to almost 70 later on. I went to the dock to gather for my tour at 11:30 and boarded the bus at 11.40. We left at 12:05 and went to Stavanger to the Viking House for a virtual reality presentation on the first Viking king, Harald. Actually, half of us went on a tour of the old town full of wooden houses while the other half were in the VR program. After they left, we went in and saw the program. Next, we went to the oil exploration museum and had a small tour of the exhibits. Next we went to the Iron Age Museum where we saw a presentation by a girl in period clothing about life in the Iron Age while in one of the reconstructed long houses. We then went to see the 3 swords in the stone followed by a trip to see the recreation of the Domsteinane ( Norway's Stonehenge. We then drove through the farming land on our way back to the ship. We arrived at the dock at 5:35 as the all aboard time was 5:30. I went to the cabin and cleaned up for dinner. I went to the Billboard Onboard for a drink and then to dinner where I had a table for one next to two ladies at a table for 2 and we talked a bit.  After dinner, I returned to the cabin to update the blog and found out that tonight the clocks are to be set back one hour.  

 

Photos taken from my verandah 

We had to walk up this steep incline on the tour of the old city wooden houses

 

Horse watering trough 

The architect who helped preserve the wooden houses 
 

Concert Hall in Stavanger

The oil museum

The oldest cathedral in Norway in continuous use

The Iron Age Village

The three swords in stone

Domsteinane