Baltic Cruise, Part 5: Skagen and farewell

The last port of call for our cruise was Skagen (pronounced without the G like "Skain") in Denmark.  It is a small town of 9,000 people and everything was relatively close by, but there weren't many transportation options.

We got some typical Danish weather (cold, rainy, and windy), which probably dissuaded many cruise passengers from getting off the ship, but we braved it ("THERE'S NO SUCH THING AS BAD WEATHER, ONLY BAD CLOTHING AND BAD ATTITUDES!" I kept repeating).

We rode a bus to Grenen, the northernmost tip of the peninsula of Jutland which includes the town of Skagen.  The last couple of kilometers included a ride on the Sandormen ("Sandworm") sand tractor. 

The attraction of "Grenen" is that one can put a foot in each of the two seas (Where the North and Baltic seas meet- Skagerrak and Kattegat).  The waves actually appeared to collide from two different directions! 

The other main attraction in Skagen (the town of "Skagen yellow" houses and red roofs and inspiration for many artists) is Den Tilsandede Kirke (or The Buried Church), a 14th-century church which was gradually buried by drifting sand dunes between the 14th and 19th centuries. Only the church's solitary white bell tower remains visible today.  

Danish snail enjoying the air's moisture.

The cruise had a pretty busy itinerary, and we got to see some amazing places. Nevertheless, with most afternoons and evenings on the boat, the kids found a ton to do on their own.   We all had cruise "medallions," which was our tracking system to get on and off the ship, but also served as door keys, and as "trackers" for shipmates, so the kids could go off on their own and we could figure out where on the ship they were!

We enjoyed "fancy" multi-course dinners with my parents at the international dining room, served by the incredible wait staff of Renz and Cuthbert (we hit the buffet at other times for ease with the kids).

Dinner parade with Baked Alaska on our last night (Iver was the only guest invited to join the procession!). 

We had wonderful food and a generous drink package allowed us to enjoy some delicious treats including a couple of premium desserts.

This kid loves cruising!

The top deck of the ship included a pickleball court and we spent quite a bit of time up there (except when there were private events) playing with other guests, who were quite impressed with both kids’ skills.

 

Iver also got very good at ping pong, competing in a couple of tournaments on ship (he can consistently beat Kelvin now!).

The kids even got Grandma to play!

Comparing Wordle tactics

The kids enjoyed the pools and hot tubs...

...including for movies and World Cup-watching under the stars!  (I'm so glad Spain beat Argentina!)

We enjoyed some trivia in some of the bars, watched several World Cup matches, and caught some good musical performances (tribute to Whitney Houston, sea shanties, dancing, and more) at the Princess Theater. While the rest of us retired fairly early, Kelvin enjoyed some late-night comedy. 

Our room was super cozy for resting and movie-watching when we had downtime.

Where's Niall?

Unfortunately, my mom, Iver, and I are prone to seasickness. While my mom wore a scopolamine patch (and I risked it), Iver had one vomiting incident on the Wheelhouse floor on one rocky night at sea. Fortunately, it was just the one time, and he didn't really need dramamine again. The scene of the incident was cleaned up quickly!

Cruising is a great way to see a different part of the world with efficient transportation but a central "hotel" room, and is great for multigenerational families! Although I miss “getting to know” countries well with such short port days, I appreciated all the new places we got to see.  After this cruise, I'm up to 70 countries visited (Kelvin = 50, Iver = 21, Niall = 18)!

Formal photos to celebrate the occasion. 

We all had a great time on the cruise seeing some beautiful European cities and hanging out as a family. Cheers to 50 years! 

Baltic Cruise, Part 4: Gdansk and Oslo

The cruise next sailed to the Polish port of Gdynia. Kelvin and I had visited  Poland back in 2013 as I very much had wanted to see Auschwitz (which was vetoed for our honeymoon).

Gdynia is about 25 km away from the more interesting city, Gdansk, which we accessed by taxi since we couldn't get our internet working to navigate the public transportation system.

The Old town was heavily bombed in WW2, which started when the Germans invaded Poland in 1939 in Westerplatte, but has been restored.

The Royal Route took us through colorful merchant houses and shops.

Neptune's Fountain

Mariacka Street is home to many Amber galleries and shops (this is Amber Central!). 

We rode on a pirate ship "Galleon Lew" on the Motlawa river, but it was pretty underwhelming, taking us by shipyards (instead, my parents went on a "Solidarity" tour which explained the movement which upended Soviet rule around 1990).

We finished our day at the impressive Amber Museum, which told the story of the region's density of "Baltic Gold," fossilized (30-50 million year old!) tree resin, found on seashores, and had some lovely specimens to ogle.

The most interesting blocks had preserved creatures within!

 

"Queen of Gdansk" sculpture

Jesus' face, carved in amber

Amber chess set

After a sea day, we traveled to Norway and docked in the capital Oslo, which is a beautiful capital on the head of the Oslofjord.   

We took the train to Holmenkollen, home to a gigantic Ski jump and museum featuring Norway's skiing traditions (we even saw some people "training" for cross-country skiing on short, ski-like platforms on wheels now that it's summer!). We are hugely impressed by the public transportation options (and apps) in Europe— a day pass cost us each $10 (less for kids!). 

Pulling their weight!

Nordic skiing race!

Norwegian Explorer Roald Amundsen was the first to reach the South Pole in 1911 (on skis). We didn't make it to the Fram museum but some did. 

MOOSE! 

Past ski champions included men named "Iver" (or Ivar and Njal), and we reminded the kids that they're each one quarter Norwegian by ancestry.  We were reminded of the dominant men's cross country skiing champion Johannes Høsflot Klæbo as we visited the exhibits. 

We waited in a long line to take the elevator to the top of the ski jump. Most people were there to Zipline over the ski jump with some impressive views. You could also try simulated ski-jumping, which we skipped. 

The views at the top over the city of Oslo were stunning!

Norge!

We headed back to the central part of Oslo and visited Frogner/Vigeland Sculpture park, which was a lovely place for an afternoon stroll and home to over 200 naked bronze and granite sculptures.

We took the metro back to Oslo's harbor, where we viewed and walked on the Oslo Opera House, which resembles a glacier.

The grounds of nearby Akershus Fortress  includes a medieval castle which started construction in the 1290s by King Haakon V.  It was captured by the Germans in WW2.  

The kids thought Oslo "The Viking Capital" was their favorite port of the cruise and I agree! We were there on a rare sunny day (it rains 249 days a year there!) and the outdoor spaces, including kids' parks, are unmatched.  Despite the weather and costs, we can understand why Scandinavians are the happiest people in the world!  While I had previously visited Oslo in around 2003 (I believe I visited the sculpture park and the Nobel museum), I saw and appreciated it with new eyes this time around. Having Norwegian roots (my Arness side) makes it easy to love the beautiful country of Norway.  Having watched a lot of FIFA World Cup this year, an Erling Haaland jersey may be in our kids' futures.