Shamrock Report #14

On Wednesday, we were in Geiranger, Norway where the steep fjords blocked all Internet most of the day. Since 2005, the Geirangerfjord has been listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and we were told it is a popular wedding and honeymoon spot for Europeans.

After tendering from the ship, we boarded a bus at the pier for the ride up Mt. Dalsnibba. We passed mountain farms, water falls, lakes and streams--though it has been colder than usual so one of the major lakes we passed was frozen over (see photo of Lake Djupvatn). We made our way up the hairpin road to the summit of Mount Dalsnibba at 4,900 feet. It was snowing fairly steadily and the road itself had walls of snow on either side that were deeper and deeper as we reached the summit. Gail loved the snow, Eugene didn't. We didn't stay long as the visibility was very poor.

From there, we headed back down with a stop a the Djupvasshytta Lodge on Lake Djupvatn for coffee or tea and Danish pastries. They were pretty good, and it was nice to warm up a bit. We then re-boarded the bus for our trip back down to Geiranger. We made one stop on the way down from the Lodge for a photo stop at the Flydal Viewpoint, which is where the group photo that I previously posted was taken. Actually, Ken H knew a slightly better place than the exact place the bus had stopped, and we made our way down to there for our photos.

We didn't win at Trivia, and then there was a special event for "frequent cruisers," which was a behind the scenes view of the "Cirque Voyager Acrobats" Hana and Alexander. It was actually quite interesting and included some videos of award-winning performances of Alexander with his brother Dimitri and also one of Alexander in solo competition. We also saw some live entertainment with Hana performing and even some audience participation on the elevated ring. Even the Cruise Director got in the act on the elevated rope. It was fun to watch.

We then went to dinner with Bert and Mitch and ended up in Prime 7 because Compass Rose was full and there was an empty table. The food was very good, and Mitch ordered a special wine that was excellent. The sun was very bright as we exited the restaurant well after 10:00 PM.

Some photos:

Arriving in Geiranger


Old bridge along the way to Mt. Dalsnibba


More of the scenery along the way


At the summit (Ken Simpson bundled up)


Djupvasshytta Lodge where we had coffee and Danish


Old abandoned settlement