Our center cabin room is arranged with our feet pointing toward the bow as we lie in bed. The TV makes the perfect portal giving us a forward view when we set it to the bow camera; which we do before turning in (setting the elevator music accompanying this view to “mute” of course). We were still in port when we went to bed. Around midnight we seemed to still be in port, our forward Warnemunde port view had not changed, the lights of other boats docked in port had not moved. Still later, it seemed that we had not moved, and were still in port. We were supposed to be underway by 10:00 pm for sure; because, the casino was scheduled to open at midnight The next morning we awoke, having set our clocks ahead ... read more

We went up to the Lido for breakfast, and today I chose two sandwiches, and this really seemed to irritate Sharon. They’re quite good, nice crunchy baguette roll, roast beef, some lettuce… yummm! Maybe it’s the crunch roll that’s bothering her because she can’t handle it! Still she chided, “Sandwiches are lunch.” But they can be pretty good at breakfast too. Sharon had a waffle. We were on the “Best of Copenhagen” tour which first stopped at “The Little Mermaid”. This is a bronze statue coated in a blue-green weathered patina and seated on a rock in the water, near the edge. Most people were commenting, “I never realized that she was sooo small.” Our guide told us that she was a life-size mermaid. We got on the bus after our ten minute photo stop; only ... read more

It was an early morning breakfast in the Lido. Over the PA it was announced that our arrival would be a bit later than planned this morning, due to the overnight helicopter “air rescue” expediting a patient’s transfer to shore during the night. We met some people who were awakened by the helicopter; so, I guess that that is one benefit of having an interior cabin! There are 450 fellow passengers continuing on into the Baltic; but, for most of those that we’ve shared this past week voyage with, they are disembarking today. Their suitcases are all ashore by now, and departing groups are being announced over the PA. There is a lot about the Koningsdam to like as I reflect over our first week on board. The rooms are very well designed and seem to ... read more

We’re falling into a pattern with a simple quick breakfast in the Lido, and we showed up in the Showroom for our fairly early departure for a fairly long tour: A seven and one-half hour driving marathon by bus, through tunnels, across fjords by ferry, where we would explore parts of the Hardanger Fjord farther from a couple of our ports of call earlier this week. We got on our Number 4 bus and we began our journey to the Hardanger Fjord. Our guide pointed out something that I guess that we hadn’t really noticed before, about the color of many of the houses and farms and buildings in the fjord, and the reason for it. Originally, wood would be treated with tar to preserve it during the harsh winters and rainy damp weather. This naturally ... read more

We seem to be getting into our groove, starting with breakfast in the Lido. I got two of the demitasse cups of Swiss Muesli and some rolls, cold cuts and cheese for my “Continental Breakfast”. Sharon is sticking with French Toast because it’s not a “Waffle Day”. Alesund is the main island of a group comprising a region of islands. James Arness has grandparents who emigrated from this area, and during his hey-day on Gunsmoke visited Alesund a couple of times. Since the 1980’s, following the discovery of North Sea Oil, tunnels began connecting many of the islands. The seabed and terrain encasing the tunnels is solid rock. A few bridges also connect some islands; but, this can limit access through the waterways for ships like the Koningsdam. The longest undersea tunnel that we went through ... read more