Where do we go and what do we see on this sea voyage???

WOW, A QUICK PEEK AT MANY SPOTS! NOW DOES THIS ALLOW US TO SEE ANYTHING??? WE SHALL SEE!!!

Looking at the schedule for our Hurtigruten voyage...tells me there are things we don't yet know. 

I understand there are ports that we just drop off the mail and ferry passengers but in some of the major towns they offer excursions that last long hours...hmmmm...wonder if they jump back on the ship in another town??? Interesting!

Port	Arrival	Departure	Notes
Bergen	-	20:00	departing at 8:00pm on board by 6:00pm
Florø	02:00	02:15
Måløy	04:15	04:30
Torvik	07:15	07:30
Ålesund	08:45	09:30
Geiranger	13:25	13:30
Ålesund	18:15	19:00	yea a 45 min stop at 6:00pm
Molde	21:45	22:15	yea a 45 min stop at 9:00pm
Kristiansund	01:45	02:00
Trondheim	08:30	12:00	A REAL STOP a 3.5 hour stop!!!!!YEA
Rørvik	20:45	21:15	30 min does not count late at night
Brønnøysund	00:45	01:00
Sandnessjøen	03:45	04:15	too early
Nesna	05:25	05:30	oh good 5 min...
Ørnes	09:15	09:30
Bodø	12:30	15:00	2.5 hour now we are talking!!! Inger/Vikki join us
Stamsund	19:00	19:30	7:00pm we are still in daylight lets go see
Svolvær	21:00	22:00
Stokmarknes	01:00	01:15
Sortland	02:45	03:00
Risøyhamn	04:15	04:30
Harstad	06:45	08:00	Another great morning over an hour stop!!!!
Finnsnes	11:15	11:45
Tromsø	14:30	18:30	get off and see something 2:30 - 6:30pm YEA!
Skjervøy	22:30	22:45
Øksfjord	02:00	02:15
Hammerfest	05:15	06:00
Havøysund	08:45	09:15
Honningsvåg	11:15	14:45	YEA 3 hours of fun!!!
Kjøllefjord	17:00	18:00
Berlevåg	21:45	22:00
Båtsfjord	23:45	00:15
Vardø	03:15	03:30
Vadsø	06:45	07:15
Kirkenes	09:00	-	We arrive at night? It better be daylight!!!!

You Don't Really Wanna Know

The total trip cost is on the credit card. . .well sort of.

Maria took the totals, subtracted what we had already paid in deposits, added the extra for the train.  Then she called someone who takes credit card numbers and creates the charge for our accounts. 

Of course there is a service fee.

And we have not yet paid for the hotels that Inger booked for us in the north country.

. . .or the food along the way;
. . .or our share of the car rental and gas;
. . .or the special bath powders from the spa in Reykjavik;
. . .or the limo to and from Seatac airport;
. . .or the incredible Norwegian sweater we will find and want;
. . .or

You don't really wanna know.


Factoid:
Norwegians are huge coffee lovers. In Norway coffee is usually served black. On Sundays a lot of locals come down to the port to have a coffee on board Hurtigruten.

Not the Seychelles

Well, not for Becky at least, who is in rainy Washington State, USA.

Meanwhile, Miss Bethie is basking in sun and adulation at consul meetings in the Seychelles.

I am sure when she reads this Beth will add a picture which will attest to the veracity of her locale.  Becky chooses not to highlight yet another day of squalls, rain, sideways rain, rained out baseball games, rain soaked everything, and volatile rain clouds on every horizon.

We are about 70 days from the adventure as this post finds its way to immortality on the net.

Stay dry and prosper . . .and of course show envy of the lovely lovely Seychelles islands. Warm to hot, damp to humid, lush to jungle, lovely to Wowser!! Enjoy!

Magnificent Maria

Nuttin' better than a woman who can read our minds!!!!

Maria is our talented travel consultant.  In my book, what sets her apart are her listening skills.  She shares our enthusiasm for a new adventure while also hearing and responding to the nuances of our finances.  (Now THAT'S a title for another post!)

Above is a photo of Maria, her baby Faith and the rest of her marvelous family. Next, I will give you a few words about Maria's approach.

She doesn't ask the usual questions, tho somehow she discovers when we want to travel.  In this case she worked backward and forward around a date and location where we wanted to meet up with Vikki and Inger (VI) in Norway.

And with a glint in her eye -- while helping us find the best route home -- she says, " Think Reykjavik . Iceland Air owns the northern direct routes in and out of Seattle!"  

What a gal!  Did I mention she saved us money?  Well, "save" may be too dramatic a word.  What she did was help us find a trip within our budget so we could actually say, "Book it, Maria!"

We did, she did, and we are definitely headed to Norway. So the itinerary has changed, the goodies are still there, but we do have to actually do a few things on our own...ick! We love being taken care of.......... however, The BEST is left and we are thrilled as to how it worked out and we did not lose any days.   

AND now Maria can return to tending to darlin' Faith...our precious blessing.