Notes from Home: On Seasons, Weather & Timing Our Travels

September 25, 2023Notes from Home

“Live in each season as it passes; breathe the air, drink the drink, taste the fruit, and resign yourself to the influence of the earth.” ~Henry David Thoreau, Walden It was a warm June evening as the Seabourn Ovation began its voyage northward from Copenhagen, sailing  toward the west coast of Norway. Herb and I … Read More

Skagen, Denmark: Shifting Sands, Seaside Splendor & All that Art

August 14, 2023Denmark

The red and blue tractor-pulled trolley was bumping along the Grenen sandbar at Skagen Odde, a peninsula that marks the northernmost point in Denmark. We had swapped our coach bus for the trolley at the Grenen Visitor Center, where the road begins its transition to gravel and sand. The trolley, officially known as the Sandormen … Read More

Skjolden, Norway: Walking With Llamas Down by the River

August 4, 2023Norway

“In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous.” ~Aristotle Llamas in Norway? I had no idea. Then again, I hadn’t heard of Skjolden, Norway, either. It turns out that the village of Skjolden (the “k” is pronounced like an “h”), with 300 people spread out along Norway’s longest fjord, also has a … Read More

Playing Favorites in Nordfjord: Possibly the Most Beautiful Fjord in Norway

August 2, 2023Norway

“It’s the dream we carry in secret that something miraculous will happen… that one morning we will glide into some little harbour we didn’t know was there.” ~Olav H. Hauge, It’s the Dream (translated from Norwegian by Robin Fulton) In Norway, it seems, everyone has a favorite fjord. Whether it’s a “do not miss!” recommendation … Read More

Nordkapp, Norway: Taking It All In at the Top of the World

July 31, 2023Norway

“Here I am at Nordkapp, at the edge of Finnmark, and I dare say the very edge of the world, since there are no other places further north inhabited by man.” ~Francesco Negri, Viaggio Settentrionale (published posthumously), 1700 Nordkapp, Norway. I had been anticipating standing at the proverbial top of the world ever since seeing … Read More

Tromsø, Norway: Gateway to the Arctic

July 28, 2023Norway

In Tromsø, Norway, the phrase world’s northernmost gets quite a workout. There’s the world’s northernmost brewery (Mack Brewery), world’s northernmost university (Arctic University of Norway), world’s northernmost Protestant cathedral (Tromsø Cathedral) and the world’s northernmost botanical garden (Arctic-Alpine Botanic Garden). Add to that Tromsø’s designation as the “world’s northernmost city of more than 50,000 people,” … Read More

Norway’s Lofoten Islands: A Moody Day Above the Arctic Circle

July 26, 2023Norway

“Behind the clouds, the sky is always blue.” ~Norwegian Proverb Distant red buildings were peeking through a fog-shrouded sky as the Seabourn Ovation made its way toward Norway’s Lofoten Islands. Our ship would be anchoring off the shores of Svolvaer, Lofoten’s largest town, and tenders would be needed to take us ashore. The misty morning … Read More