TO SAY I AM IMPRESSED WITH HURTIGRUTEN IS AN UNDERSTATEMENT:

 TO SAY I AM IMPRESSED WITH HURTIGRUTEN IS AN UNDERSTATEMENT:

We have had our final breakfast on the MS Maud and bid our farewells to Staff and Crew. 

For me Hurtigruten has set a new standard for me. I will say Hurtigruten is on par with Lindblad Nat Geo in the experience and service they offer.

The MS Maud is well equipped for expedition cruising. There is a nice library, a Science Center and History Corner. These locations provided many great conversations and learning experiences. 



The Lecture Hall was where very informative lectures were presented. The topics were from Science, History, and Cultural. 

The Expedition Staff were able to present some rather detailed and in-depth topics in a manner for all to understand. They were always available and rather engaging and their joy of sharing the experience was superior.

 

The tender and Zodiac operations were very safe and well organized. 



The ships photographer was very talented and captured many amazing images. 

The Crew and Staff were super friendly, efficient, and most accommodating. Always received a warm welcome on and off the ship. 



All excursions were well organized and excellent experiences. I will say Hurtigruten could do a better job in their pre cruise excursion information. 



Simply put Hurtigruten is my new Expedition Cruise go to as well as my go to cruise line. 

 

A DAY IN THE PORT OF HARLINGEN NETHERLANDS:

 A DAY IN THE PORT OF HARLINGEN NETHERLANDS: 

 



I must jump ahead on our day here. We had separated from our walking tour to make our way to a local grocery store. As we wandered the streets we came across five Stolpersteine (in English: “stumbling stones”). Scattered throughout Europe, planted in city streets and sidewalks, commemorative brass plaques eternalize the lives that were lost in the Holocaust. Called the Stolpersteine (in English: “stumbling stones”), the plaques commemorate the victims of the Nazi regime. These memorials are always sobering to me, we should learn from history and never forget.


Harlingen is a municipality and a city in the northern Netherlands, in the province of Friesland on the coast of Wadden Sea. Harlingen is a town with a long history of fishing and shipping. 

We started with a walking tour where we learned of the reclamation of the land. I was enthralled with the architecture of the little houses and the waterways. 



We wandered the streets and found a local grocery store before returning to the ship. Cookies are great. 



Sailing towards the English Channel we spotted some seals in the distance.

A DAY SAILING SOUTH INTO THE NORTH SEA:

 A DAY SAILING SOUTH INTO THE NORTH SEA:

Standard day thus far, early coffee, breakfast, download/backup photos. Lecture on World Heritage Sections etc. 
There was a nice video on the building of Clinker Boats. 



Lynn went to an exercise class and I did a ship walkabout taking photos of the ships nooks and crannies. The MS Maud is a very nice ship.

Attended a great lecture on Isben and Gregg and found it very enlightening. When we get home I will have to dig through our CD’s and find Peer Gynt. 



We then enjoyed a nice lunch. 



After lunch there was a general emergency drill where guests were allowed to participate. Actually, the guests were encouraged to participate to add to the training experience for the crew.

Then afternoon tea and coffee. The skies are darkening and there are squalls around us.

We swung by the knot tying class on our way back to the cabin. 



Then we watched a lecture on the Norwegian Mountain Code. The Norwegian Mountain Code is the outdoor safety precautions one should take. One of the expedition crew retold a story of her misadventures snowmobiling in Svalbard. 



We continue sailing to Harlingen, Netherlands and a rocking a bit.







TROLL WEATHER IN KALVAG:

 TROLL WEATHER IN KALVAG: 

 

This is the first time Hurtigruten MS Maud has visited this port.



Today we docked in Kalvag, Norway. The weather is what we call Troll Weather, foggy misty rain kinda day. We did a walking tour into town to a restaurant for a sample of herring. 



Kalvag processes 10% of the herring fished in Norway, we docked right n ext to the processing plant. This is also a village where many offshore platform workers live. The tourist business is starting to take hold. My understanding is Kalvag is accessed by ferry from Bergen, Norway. 

 



While here in port the ships Remote Underwater Vehicle was deployed to give us a view of the ocean floor. The ROV is named "DORY".

Back on board, we had lunch and then went to a lecture on the various UNESCO sites in Norway. 



While using our onboard credit in the shop it was confirmed PLAN B would be in effect. Evidently one of the ships domes needs repair and we are headed to BERGEN!! 


Next was a lecture covering the evolution of whales and dolphins.

We docked in Bergen to make repairs etc. We were told of  a gingerbread house display near the Christmas Market. It was about 1.5 miles from where we docked and we had just 3 hours in port. 

The herring is loaded into these barrels for shipping and the boys took a break to send us off. 

 

 

Leaving Kalvag

 

 Off we flew and passed through the Christmas Market and found the Pepperkakeby Village. It was 150NOK to visit and well worth the cost of admission. 



The Christmas Market was nice, a lot of food that would have been nice to try. I did expect more handicraft and the market to be larger. 

Then we made our way back to the ship with time to spare. I was tired and crashed right away with the rocking of the ship as we sailed south.