World Travel with Bob

Iceland, Norway and Isle of Mann

Iceland

Reykjavik: Continuing on to Iceland, we stopped in Reykjavik, Husavik, Seydisfjordur and Gundisfjorder. This was about our fifth time in Reykjavik, so we had a leisurely morning before heading out for the first of a two day port visit. Our time in Reykjavik was primarily spent walking in town, browsing in the many downtown shops and bookstores and stopping for a terrific cinnamon roll from Braud & Company Bakery. A few years ago, there was only one Braud & Company Bakery in Reykjavik but now there are eight - so fresh pastries and bread can be found all over town. We also had dinner at our favorite Reykjavik restaurant, The Fish Market.

Haarpa Concert Hall & Conference Center

Hallgrímstorm Lutheran Church

Bæjarins Beztu Hot Dog Stand

Braud & Company
A Great Stop for a Cinnamon Roll

Seydisfjordur: We participated in a ship excursion to hike up the Vestdalur Valley from the abandoned Vestdalsery whaling town. From the valley, we hiked uphill to Vestdalsfosser, enjoying wonderful views of green hills, basalt mountains, creeks and small waterfalls. Despite the recent rains in Seydisfjordur, the trail wasn't very wet and I didn't step into any mud holes...

View from Seydisfjordur Hike

Taking a Hike Break

Grundarfjordur: We walked on our own at this port. We stopped to view Church Spire Mountain and then walked about 1.5 miles over a gravel path to a nearby waterfall. Thinking I was taking a short-cut, I proceeded to take a full step into a bog, with a resulting fully mud covered shoe and wet socks. This really dampened my enthusiasm for the 1.5 mile walk back to town.

Kirkjufell Mountain (Church Spire) , Grundisfjordur

Grundisfjordur Waterfalls
About 1.5 Miles from Port

Grundisfjordur Market
A Great Store to Purchase a
Brush for Shoe Cleaning (post walk)!

Husavik: This was another "on our own" port stop. We walked through town from the tender drop-off location. We stopped for a morning coffee and delicious home-baked cinnamon rolls at Herna. This charming cafe serves breakfast and lunch dishes from 11am to 5pm.

We then walked to the nearby Husavik Museum. This musuem, which also contains the town library, includes informative cultural and interpretive displays focusing on Husavik vicinity life from 1850 to 1950. The museum also has a maritime exhibit. The exhibit displays share the evolution of boating, fishing and shipping in Husavik. Overall, the museum was a well-worth stop to enhance our understanding of life in Iceland.

Herna Cafe, Husavik
Great Stop for Coffee and Cinnamon Roll

Husavik Rainbow Road
A celebration of love, diversity, and inclusion,
particularly in support of the LGBTQ+ community

Display in Husavik Museum

A Maritime Display

Húsavíkurkirkja Church, Built in 1907

Norway

Eidfjord: This was our only stop in Norway. We boarded a ship excursion to the Voss Gondola. The gondola brings riders to the top of Hangurstoppen Mountain. The bus ride provided views of farmland and small villages. The weather was rainy and foggy, so the excursion kept us dry, but overall there wasn't much to see on this excursion. One interesting experience was driving through large tunnels that included wide roundabouts. We'll be at this port next year and will focus on visiting Vøringsfossen, with its 600 foot waterfall drop.

Roundabout in Tunnel!

Eidfjord Cablecar

View From Eidfjord Cablecar

Isle of Mann

Douglas: Isle of Mann is a self-governing British crown dependency. The island has its own Parliament but the UK government is responsible for military protection and international representation. At this port, we again declined the ship excursions and boarded the local steam train from Douglas to Castletown. At Castletown, we walked to the medieval Castle of Rushen, established by an early Viking king. The self-guided castle tour allows visitors to explore each the four castle levels. There are displays that describe castle use for protection, as a residence and as a prison.

After our castle tour, we stopped at the nextdoor cafe for scones and coffee. Returning by train to Douglas, we stopped by the statue of the Bee Gees. The brothers were born on the Isle of Mann, before leaving for England and, later, Australia.

Isle of Mann Train Station, Port Erin

Nice Stop for Coffee and Scones

I'm finally getting back to my blog after several months away. With six weeks of travel, there are many photos and lots of possible content to share. I'll try to be succinct. This cruise, roundtrip from Boston to Europe, included stops in both directions while crossing the North Atlantic.

In case you're wondering how I'm recalling port details almost three months after returning home, I maintain a daily journal during our trips. This journal is essential as it is too easy for me to forget travel details.

Source: Holland America

Boston and Portland

We embarked and disembarked on this cruise on Holland America's Zuiderdam in Boston. We arrived in Boston at the beginning of our trip two days before embarkation. We stayed at the Seaport Hyatt Place, located about a ten minute walk from the hotel to Flynn Cruiseport. Other than location, the hotel amenities were limited and rooms just adequate - nothing fancy.

This is an older cruise terminal and, for our sailing, was not very organized. The confusion was more apparent when we disembarked at the end of our cruise. Taxis were in short supply and terminal staff gave conflicting instructions on the location of taxi lines. Adding to the confusion, some terminal baggage handlers simply ignored the taxi lines and allowed some departing guests to jump the line. We ended up walking two blocks away from the cruise terminal and arranged for an Uber pickup to Logan Airport. Recent news about the port include criminal arrests of 87 crew members for child exploitation and continuing disruptive renovations. This was not our favorite cruise port.

We had dinner at Moxie's on our first night in Boston and Ocean Prime for our second-night dinner. The Lobster Bisque was delicious at Ocean Prime.

Our only port stop before leaving the US was in Portland, Maine. We took a ship excursion that took us through downtown Portland and to Kennebunk. We stopped at HolyDonuts in Portland and tried a maple donut and maple-bacon gourmet donut. Both were made with potato flour, which resulted in a rather dense donut.

In Kennebunk, we drove by the Bush compound and stopped for lunch at the Crab Shack. We shared a lobster roll, stuffed with lobster, and served with fries for $45. After lunch, we had time to stroll the downtown area and visit the many small shops.

Cape Elizabeth, Maine

Kennebunk Crab Shack

Our port stops in Canada included Sydney, Corner Brook, St.Johns and St.Anthony and Halifax. With the exception of St.Anthony, we've visited these ports during previous cruises.

Sydney: We enjoyed an independent walk at this port. We stopped to visit several homes and a church from the late 1700s, The Cosset House, Jost House and St.Patrick's Church.

Corner Brook: We walked from the port to Glynmill Inn. From the Inn, there is a nice Corner Brook Stream walk along ponds, marsh and brooks. The property is owned and maintained by the local paper and pulp mill and open to the public.

St.Anthony: From the pier, we walked to the Grenfell House Museum (note - cash only entry). This is the residence of Sir Winston Grenfell, a physician that served the local community in the early 1900s. He worked to improve life in St.Anthony and was a philanthropist. From the Museum, we walked two miles to Lighthouse Point. In addition to the terrific views, the former house of the light keeper is now a cafe. We stopped for lunch and the seafood chowder was excellent (the fish and chips were ok).

St.Johns: We enjoyed a ship arranged residential walking tour that provided views and information about the "rainbow colored" houses, Government House, Colonial House, and Bannerman Park. We also learned about the 1842 fire that destroyed much of the downtown area and left 11,000 residents homeless.

Halifax: This was our last port stop on the six-week itinerary. The Canadian Museum of Immigration, located near the cruise terminal, was a highlight for us. The excellent displays and images provided an understanding of immigration issues, displacement of indigenous people, racial discrimination, travel challenges and immigrant success stories.

We were told that Nova Scotia has wonderful blueberries. We missed having blueberries with breakfast, as our Holland America ship had run out at this point of our trip. In the afternoon, we walked 1.5 miles in very warm sunny weather to a local organic food store that offered the feresh berries. We decided to Uber back to avoid the walk back to the cruise terminal. It was a long walk and a pint of berries was more than needed to last two breakfasts.

Corner Brook Walk

Sydney Fiddle

Grenfell House, St.Anthony

St.Anthony Lighthouse

St.Anthony Cemetery Overlooking the Sea

Walk from Grenfell House to Lighthouse

Government House, St.Johns

Colorful Houses, St.Johns

Bannerman Park Bench

Final Canadian Port Stop in Halifax

Greenland

This trip provided a return visit to Greenland. A few years ago, we explored Greenland's Scoresbysund, a 200 mile long fjord, on an expedition ship. The itinerary on this trip included stops at Paamiut, Nanortalik, and Qaqortoq. As these were small villages, we needed to tender from the ship to shore.

The population of each village ranged from 1,000 to 2,500 inhabitants. We participated in ship arranged walking tours, led by a local resident. In my perspective, Greenland villages are not tourist destinations but rather a way to learn about Greenland culture, history, communities and life. Each of our walks passed through small houses, churches, markets, community centers and recreational areas.

As our ship sailed to each stop and through Prince Christian Sound, we were rewarded with spectacular views of towering mountains, waterfalls, small icebergs and glaciers. Observing these views from a 1,900 guest cruise ship was a rare opportunity but I couldn't help wondering about the environmental issues raised by such cruises. Greenland's government has recently asked for voluntary compliance by cruise operators to avoid sailing through sensitive fjords and narrow waterways to protect wildlife and local communities.

Our ship made a brief stop in the middle of Prince Christian Sound. Tenders were loaded with 2 tons of fresh produce and food to share with a small village of 80. This was certainly a feel-good moment for all.