2019 July Cruising #Norwegian Fjords

2019 July Cruising Norwegian Fjords

I set sail from Rosyth (near Edinburgh, Scotland) on Thursday 25th July, the Balmoral (Fred Olsen line) gliding gracefully under the three bridges which cross the River Forth. This is my third cruise out of Rosyth but I am still in awe of the respective feats of engineering it took to build them. On a boiling-hot day, I sat sipping chardonnay in the ‘Lido’ bar at the rear of the ship and at around 5 p.m. we left the port of Rosyth. The ship first went under the newest Queensferry Crossing Bridge, followed by the Forth Road Bridge and then the Victorian built Railway Bridge.  I guess the ‘newbie thrill’ must be gone since I only took a couple of photographs this time, my collection already quite extensive.

It’s so very easy to segue into the cruising life and even easier since my last trip was also on the Balmoral. Familiarity means exploring the ship isn’t so necessary and once my ‘unpacking’ desire was satisfied it was time to relax and enjoy. This time, I’m in a very spacious junior suite which has loads of wardrobe space. No need to squash my formal evening wear and my OH’s tartan trews outfit in along with the rest of our smart-casual clothes.

Friday 26th July was a cruising at sea day and compared to the previous cruises to Greenland and to the Baltic Sea it was like sailing on a millpond. I only went to one of the ‘shore trips’ talks but I could have been entertained all day. The food on board in the various restaurants is excellent and it’s possible to eat as much or as little as is wanted. Though my main dining will be in the largest main restaurant – the Ballindalloch – I have been determined to sample all the different restaurant possibilities during this trip. The rules of the ship are that all restaurants are available to all passengers during breakfast and lunch sittings (those serving, that is) but dinner is generally partaken at a personally assigned restaurant with a fixed evening meal table and a personal waiter with an assistant. Should cruisers not wish to attend their assigned evening meal table, especially on the ‘formal’ evenings when a dress code applies, then it’s possible for them to eat in the Palms Café which serves a buffet meal. So far, my husband and I have donned formal wear and have thoroughly enjoyed choosing from the special menu.

Dinner on Friday 26th July was particularly good since the Balmoral had just begun to cruise the very long Lysefjorden, a little to the east of Stavanger in south-west Norway. After my excellent meal of an Oslo platter; Chateaubriand; and varied cheeses we decided to abandon our norm of spending the rest of the evening up in the Observatory Lounge sipping red wine and admiring the views. Instead we sipped a bottle of fine red wine on our balcony as the ship glided up to the head and back down the Lysefjorden. The temperature was still an incredible 25 deg C (at least) and the sky as blue as can be. The views were truly awesome and I use that word in its true sense. So, now I do have many, many photos of this amazing fjord.

What I also found incredible was that it is so much easier to understand the ‘Viking’ mentality when those hardy men left their homes centuries ago to venture to new lands which would give them the farming space they so desired. On the Lysefjord there is absolutely no coastal farmland, except perhaps on the top of the impressive cliffs that weren’t visible from the boat.

Those early men going a ‘Viking’ must have been so amazed to land their boats on the beautiful beaches of east coast Scotland and England so easily, within sight of prospective farm fields close to the shore.

Roll on the next port of call which is Bergen.

ps i eve managed to add a tiny bit to my current WIP - Beathan the Brigante. 

Slainthe!