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Aboard ship, relaxation ran rampant. Some cruisers napped,
others cozied up with paperbacks or Kindles – but most of us
gathered in the upper deck glass-walled Panorama Lounge,
where we stretched out on sofas and soaked up magnificent
coastal scenery. The driven among us attended a handful of
talks about Norwegian culture and phenomena – including the
Aurora Borealis.
“We don’t like fancy,” said Carole Bonass from Lancashire,
England. “But we love exploring a different side of nature – and
appreciate that we don’t have to dress for dinner or be subject-
ed to nonstop entertainment or hard-sell retail in the process.
That’s why this is the third time we’ve done this cruise.”
Exploring ashore – whether in tiny fishing villages or storybook
towns that date to the Viking era – left lingering images:
When I think of Bergen, my mind’s eye immediately re-
calls the colorful wooden buildings in the old merchant quar-
ter along the wharf (Bryggen.) I see salt cod hung to dry on
rafters at the fish market, steaming bowls of creamy fish soup
(of which I became a connoisseur) – and public art everywhere,
even a sculpture of a homeless man slouched against a down- Clockwise from opposite page. Hurtigruten’s Finnmarken is a
town building. 455-foot-long working freighter. Passengers enjoy the sunshine,
Bergen is also where I got my first lesson in surviving Arctic heated pool, hot tub and small but efficient cabins.
Winter. It’s where I bought ice cleats to clip onto the soles of
my hiking boots. They’re a staple of Norwegian winters – for
sale everywhere, even in drugstores. Though the Gulf Stream
warms the waters off the Norwegian Coast (there are no ice-
bergs here), there’s still plenty of ice and snow.
Alesund, known for its art nouveau architecture, is a fairy-
tale town of turrets, spires and colorful wooden fishing boats.

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