Ferry Bus Boat Day Here we go!!

 11/13 Sail Away Day from Bergen:

Breakfast started at 0700 and I must say the breakfast here is rather good. The Bacon is crispy. 

After breakfast we made our way to the ferry dock for an early morning ferry ride. The route from Bergen Center to Kleppesto is a commuter ferry that runs every 30 mins. The route is across the fjord and is the only ferry included with our Bergen card. 

It was an enjoyable ride and yes it was still dark. We did not even disembark and just stayed onboard for the return. We think we may have spotted our next ship the MS Trollfjord, a Hurtigruten vessel.

After we got off the ferry, we went to the Rema 1000 (a grocery store) picking up some items for the trip. I  forgot to pack a pad of paper for note taking during the lectures, so a quest was at hand.

We walked about waiting for a bookstore to open and I found a nice note pad to fill the need. 

We are now back in our room awaiting our appointed departure time of 1100. We are to be in the lobby at 1045 with bags etc. From here we go to the Hurtigruten Terminal to check in and board the ship. Interesting thing is we have been told we watch a video for our safety muster drill. 

We are ready to go and get this sailing underway.

Interestingly, the mandatory safety drill was a video shown in the terminal. After which we boarded the ship. This was a rather smooth process that flowed rather well.

At reception we learned an upgrade to a mini suite was available for us. We were escorted to the mini suite on Deck 6 aft and when the door was opened we said YES THANK YOU!!!

Here we have a good bit more room to spread out. We also get an endless mini bar, speciality drinks at the lounge, upgraded dining, and a clothing package. 


We were able to drop our carry on bags in the room and return to reception to get new keys. Then off to one of the lounges to get our clothing package. Upon arrival we were offered a glass of sparkling wine, Lynn had a ginger beer. 

The clothing package includes a wool sweater from Dales of Norway, a parka and a wool hat. In pricing these items in the ships store I figured the value to be a bit over $600 for each of us. The quality of the wool is very nice as Lynn says it does not make her itch. 



We the had lunch at Rost, the upscale restaurant where we can take all our meals. 

Lunch was three courses. The first course was a Steak Tartar; with sunflower seeds , a fennel mayonnaise topped with thin strands of potato. This was paired with a Havets Bobler Cuve’e. This was beyond excellent. This wine is aged at the bottom of the Arctic Ocean. The main course was a baked salmon on a bed of peas, topped with fennel and a white wine bubble sauce. I am not a fish fan, but when in Norway one must eat the Norwegian way. Beyond excellent as it was paired with a nice white wine. Dessert was a chocolate mouse topped with a white chocolate crumble and edible flowers pared with a nice red dessert wine. 

 It was an amazing dining experience. 

Back at the room we started unpacking and then went to Deck 9 for sail away meeting other passengers. 

Next was a welcome presentation, here we learned how to set the ship’s intercom system to receive announcements in our room. The will announce when the Aurora is visible. Info about guest laundry, dining options, ports o call, and an overview of the ships features and deck plan. 



We stopped by reception to let them know our room safe had been left locked by the previous guests. This may not be remedied as early as we think. We also had our room keys punched so they will fit  the lanyards we brought. 



Off to Deck 5 where we checked out the other restaurants and the ships gift shop. This is where I got our clothing package prices. The shop is well appointed and has necessary incidentals and other items. 

Back to the room, Lynn is off to start a couple loads of laundry and I am here typing away. 

Dinner tonight is at 1900. I will simply say fantastic. Servers are exceptionally knowledgable and rather engaging. If I continued to write about the meals I would be forever. Yet the pork belly with carrots cooked three ways was AMAZING. I was fading fast and ready to sleep.