We had an early breakfast, saying goodbye to as many of our fellow passengers as we could. We both felt very sad at leaving the Explorer, especially the many crew members who have become friends - Anna, Dax, Resti, Simone, Danilo and Armario, to name a few.
As we left the ship, we said a final goodbye to Gordon, Victoria, Luke, Kara and Kate. We took a taxi from the quay to Flesland Airport. Our driver was originally from Kosovo but had lived in Norway for 25 years.
It was an uneventful journey back to Heathrow, arriving about 40 minutes late. Several of our friends from the cruise were on the flight - Olive and John, Jack and Anne from Texas, and Roy and Sue.
We were lucky as, having paid for designated seats, we were upgraded to business class!
Audley met us at Heathrow and we arrived home at 2.30pm. Our sixth Explorer trip is over!
Bergen
By the time the screening finished, we were approaching the coast of Norway in beautiful sunshine. We sailed into the fjord, going under several graceful suspension bridges. Four large bridges connect Bergen to its suburbs.
During the time the ship took to moor and clear customs, we had lunch on the aft deck with Barry and Michelle. We drank Champagne to celebrate a very enjoyable and successful cruise.
As we disembarked to take a coach tour of Bergen, one of several tankers was already refuelling the ship.
Our tour guide was Jan-Bernhard, a German/Norwegian. We started the tour at the Bryggen, home to the Hanseatic League from the 13th Century. The members of the League were tradesmen from Germany and were housed in men-only quarters. The street behind was where the ladies of ill-repute were to be found. This old wharf area is now a UNESCO World Cultural Heritage Site.
We walked through the wooden buildings of the Bryggen to the Hanseatic Museum, which was quite interesting, but very hot inside. I decided to leave the visit early, but Wendy stayed on and nearly expired from the heat! She listened to Jan-Bernhard's talk about the stockfish industry, then the whole group made their way up 2 narrow, quite dark staircases to the rooms above. There were too many people in each room and, by the second floor, Wendy needed to go back downstairs for some much-needed fresh air!
We met outside and discovered our rather dilapidated bus had been swapped for a more modern one. This was good, until we realised the drivers had transferred all our belongings we had left on the old bus, but they had failed to notice Tim's camera case! Luckily, it was traced and sent over to us by taxi later on. We boarded the buses and drove out of the city passing the Royal Family's summer palace. The royal flag was flying from the palace mast, indicating they were in residence.
Our destination was Fantoft, where we saw the Stavkirke or Stave Church, a 12th century wooden church that was moved from its original location in Sognefjord in 1883. It was burned down by a deranged man in 1992, but then rebuilt exactly as it had stood in the Middle Ages. It is an impressive-looking church in a lovely woodland setting. It is called a stave church, because of the wooden staves or long planks used in its construction in 1150 in Fortun, Sognefjord. There is a small window at the side, through which lepers and pregnant women used to take part in the service!
We spent about an hour at the Stavkirke, then drove back to the ship, returning at around 6pm. It didn't give us much time to pack, as we were having 'Hot Rocks' on the aft deck. We had tried several times to make a reservation, but a combination of bad weather and not booking early enough meant we had been unsuccessful. We were very pleased when Declan and Anne invited us to join them! We had a lovely dinner in a wonderful setting, as the sun set and tall ships sailed past us. What a way to end the cruise!
Lerwick and Noss
It was raining and windy as we boarded the bus for the morning tour of the island. We had a local guide, Jim, and a young man, Jack, driving the coach. Our first stop was in the village of Hoswick where, in the visitor centre, there was an exhibition of early radio and telephone communications equipment.
There was also a display of weaving and Shetland wool. Many local products were for sale and Wendy bought a red scarf.
These three Shetland ponies, startled by the coach, caught my eye and Wendy managed to capture the moment.
We reached Sumburgh and crossed the runway, making sure no planes were taking off or landing!
Sumburgh Airport, a reminder of the last time we were here, when we flew into the Shetlands from Aberdeen.
By the time we reached our next stop at the Sumburgh Hotel, the weather was awful! We had decided to skip the visit to Jarlshof, as we had been there before, and take a taxi to Sumburgh Head to see if we could see any of the puffins that nest on the cliffs below the lighthouse.
Our taxi came quite quickly, driven by Robbie, who told us that Princess Anne was coming to formally open the refurbished lighthouse this afternoon! It is a pity we won't be here to see her.
Relieved to find the road hadn't yet been closed in preparation for the royal visit, we drove the short distance to the top of the cliffs, where the strong winds made it difficult as I tried to peer over the edge at the few remaining nesting puffins.
We spent about half an hour at the cliffs, looking at the sea birds, but the puffins were nearly all at sea or in their burrows. It was blowing a gale, so we took the taxi back down to the hotel, where Wendy took this photo of a Shetland Pony foal. We went into the hotel and had coffee and cake before we boarded the coaches for the drive back north to the ship.
It was a bleak ride back to Lerwick and the ship, where we had lunch with Digby and Elizabeth. In the afternoon, we were meant to take the Zodiacs out to look at the bird cliffs on Noss but, because of the weather conditions, this was being scrapped. Instead, we sailed down to Mousa to look at Mousa Broch, an Iron Age drystone tower. Captain Alex steered the ship so that everyone could get a good view of the broch from both the port and starboard sides.
As we sailed towards the Isle of Noss, we saw this small yacht battling against the wind and high seas.
We reached Noss and then proceeded to sail up and down in front of the cliffs. The Captain came in very close, and we could all see thousands of sea birds - mainly gannets, but also fulmars and guillemots nesting on the cliffs. The sky was filled with birds - a most impressive sight.
After spending a good hour at the cliffs, we set sail for Bergen. Looking back at Noss, I took this photo through our cabin window as we sailed out into the North Sea.
As the sea became very rough, Wendy went to have a manicure done by Adrijana from Montenegro. She had won it in a prize draw on the first day of the cruise.
We had tea in the Panorama Lounge and then went down to get ready for the Captain's Farewell Cocktail Party. For dinner, we had been invited to sit with Kara, as were Declan, Anne, Barry and Michelle. We had a very enjoyable evening.
Tomorrow we reach Norway and the end of the cruise.
There was also a display of weaving and Shetland wool. Many local products were for sale and Wendy bought a red scarf.
We left the centre and continued our drive south towards Sumburgh, pausing to look at Spiggie Beach and St. Ninian's Isle and the beautiful sandy beaches close by. We watched 2 seals going in and out of the water.
I was able to get one long-range photo of a lone seal on the edge of one of the beaches.
These three Shetland ponies, startled by the coach, caught my eye and Wendy managed to capture the moment.
Sumburgh Airport, a reminder of the last time we were here, when we flew into the Shetlands from Aberdeen.
By the time we reached our next stop at the Sumburgh Hotel, the weather was awful! We had decided to skip the visit to Jarlshof, as we had been there before, and take a taxi to Sumburgh Head to see if we could see any of the puffins that nest on the cliffs below the lighthouse.
Our taxi came quite quickly, driven by Robbie, who told us that Princess Anne was coming to formally open the refurbished lighthouse this afternoon! It is a pity we won't be here to see her.
Relieved to find the road hadn't yet been closed in preparation for the royal visit, we drove the short distance to the top of the cliffs, where the strong winds made it difficult as I tried to peer over the edge at the few remaining nesting puffins.
We spent about half an hour at the cliffs, looking at the sea birds, but the puffins were nearly all at sea or in their burrows. It was blowing a gale, so we took the taxi back down to the hotel, where Wendy took this photo of a Shetland Pony foal. We went into the hotel and had coffee and cake before we boarded the coaches for the drive back north to the ship.
It was a bleak ride back to Lerwick and the ship, where we had lunch with Digby and Elizabeth. In the afternoon, we were meant to take the Zodiacs out to look at the bird cliffs on Noss but, because of the weather conditions, this was being scrapped. Instead, we sailed down to Mousa to look at Mousa Broch, an Iron Age drystone tower. Captain Alex steered the ship so that everyone could get a good view of the broch from both the port and starboard sides.
As we sailed towards the Isle of Noss, we saw this small yacht battling against the wind and high seas.
We reached Noss and then proceeded to sail up and down in front of the cliffs. The Captain came in very close, and we could all see thousands of sea birds - mainly gannets, but also fulmars and guillemots nesting on the cliffs. The sky was filled with birds - a most impressive sight.
After spending a good hour at the cliffs, we set sail for Bergen. Looking back at Noss, I took this photo through our cabin window as we sailed out into the North Sea.
As the sea became very rough, Wendy went to have a manicure done by Adrijana from Montenegro. She had won it in a prize draw on the first day of the cruise.
We had tea in the Panorama Lounge and then went down to get ready for the Captain's Farewell Cocktail Party. For dinner, we had been invited to sit with Kara, as were Declan, Anne, Barry and Michelle. We had a very enjoyable evening.
Tomorrow we reach Norway and the end of the cruise.
Fair Isle and Lerwick
Passing the lighthouse on Fair Isle, and then trying to find shelter from the wind.
We spent about an hour sailing close to Fair Isle before we headed off on the short crossing to Lerwick. Sadly, it was too rough to cruise past the fantastic bird cliffs we had seen before on the western side of the island. On arrival at Lerwick, there was a large ship occupying the quay where we wanted to berth, so we had to tie up near the ferry terminal. It wasn't ideal, but the town centre was not too far away. We didn't have a very picturesque view from this position.
When we arrived, we called Rob Wrate, who is working here at the moment, and arranged to meet him this evening at Monty's Bistro. It was raining and quite cool as we left the ship to walk into the town. It certainly didn't feel like June! Berthed near to the Queens Hotel was this Dutch accommodation ship being used by North Sea oil workers involved in the development of a large gas field to the west of the Shetland Islands.
There were Arctic Terns flying around the harbour and this one obliged us by landing on a railing close to us. What a great picture Wendy took!
We walked to Commercial Street and went into the Visitor Centre and the bookshop to get warm! Back at the harbour was this 'tame' gull, scavenging for food. Luckily for me, I didn't have a prawn sandwich in my hand, as I had a bad experience one summer's day in Broadstairs when I was eating lunch near the beach. Out of nowhere, a large seagull swooped down and stole an entire baguette filled with prawns and proceeded to devour it on the sand in front of me, with other gulls trying to snatch it away.
On the harbour quay we stopped at the memorial to the whaling ship, Diana. She came from Hull and was on a whaling expedition to the Arctic in 1866, when she became stuck in the ice. The captain and eight crew died, before the whaler managed to reach Shetland on her return journey.
We returned to the ship via the excellent Shetland Museum. We were hoping to get a cup of tea but the museum was closing in a few minutes, so all we could do was go into the shop and spend some money! We ended up buying two Lewis chess pieces, the King and the Queen, a good reminder of our time on the Isle of Lewis. We were pleased to discover that profit from the sale goes to the Museums of Scotland.
In the evening we walked to Monty's Bistro and met Rob there for a lovely dinner. We all ate and drank exceedingly well!
Afterwards we walked part of the way back with Rob, before he headed off to his hotel. He has patients tomorrow from 8am to 8pm!
Tomorrow we have a coach tour of the southern part of Shetland visiting many of the places we have seen on our previous visit to the island.
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