Tonight's the Night (Amsterdam to Narvik, Norway)

And so, dear reader, we sat at port in Amsterdam. We could have spent the entire time at the Rijksmuseum had we known. The benefit was we had the ship to ourselves, almost, while everyone was off touristing. The afternoon was a lazy one, lunch, drinks and time in the cabin reading.

The coast outside the sheltered harbour where we waited for spare parts is lined with wind turbines. The kind that Dutton said will kill the whales if we install them off the coast of Australia. There are turbines a plenty but not one dead whale that I can see. Another piece of scaremongering from the naysayer. As I tap away at the keys, we are now on the move, as is the weather. Heavy rain is coming in from the North Sea.

Turbines are everywhere off the coast of The Netherlands and Norway.

The Restaurant

There are four restaurants on board, three of which have a dress code. The Restaurant is one of those, so not wishing to break the rules like I did on a previous cruise when I wore shorts to the dining room, I changed my joggers and jeans for chinos and shoes. While there were people dressed far more formally than I (wankers), there was a lot of denim as well as sneakers from the aged American crowd.

First sunset at sea (first visible sunset since leaving home).

We eat early. By way of explanation, Jayne is from the country. We arrived at the restaurant around 6:15pm and it was already quite well populated. The window tables were all gone. Not that there was much to see anyway. Rain and the North Sea swell. The tables were situated much closer together than they were in the The World Café.

The food was very good and the menu changes daily. The level of noise made it difficult for me to hear Jayne across the table, although I could have easily joined in the conversation four tables away. It was that sort of loud. Perhaps given the age of the clientele, it was a case of hard of hearing, speak louder. Or not. Some nationalities are just loud, as was explained to me in China. They added thoughtfully, it might be accepted but it is still unnecessary.

The pool deck. The roof retracts - in good weather.

There was a table of four women next to us. Loud, denim clad, sneaker wearing women. Next to them, as Jayne later told me, was a table of four men. So quiet I didn't even know they were there. The women's partners. The men at one table, the women at another. "It's like an Aussie BBQ," quipped Jayne. As the cruise continues, perhaps they'll opt for separate restaurants.

Following dinner, we adjourned to the Explorers' Lounge for a nightcap before being rocked to sleep by the rolling swell.

Saturday

The time lost in Amsterdam, waiting for the parts to arrive, has been made up over night and we are back on schedule. The rain is coming in bursts and the swell is around 2 metres but it is choppy. There is quite a bit of lateral movement which can facilitate unexpected meetings with fixed objects like walls.

The clouds has cleared long enough to allow a post-breakfast wander around the deck. The infinity pool at the back of the ship is heated, of course, but it is no less inviting. The indoor pool has continuous wave motion, courtesy of the sea swell.

The Wintergarden.

We attended a lecture in the afternoon on seabirds. As a bird nerd, I was excited. As someone who desperately longs to see a Puffin, I was beyond excitement. There is a real possibility that we will see an Atlantic Puffin. That would be another box ticked.

We dined at The Restaurant again. Same story, the food was very good but the tables being so close is not an enjoyable experience if you have a loud group nearby. I smashed the dress code, jeans, joggers and long sleeved T without a collar. And I was not alone.

The swell was unchanged through most of the day and sea sick bags suddenly appeared, placed discreetly all over the ship. We weren't even remotely uncomfortable. The wind had begun to abate late in the day which reduced the chop and the movement of the ship a little. Another night of being rocked to sleep.

The first sight of Norway.

Sunday

Sometimes in the early hours of the morning the rocking motion of the ship disappeared. I'm sure this made many people happy. We had reached Norway's inside passage. The water was calm and the cloud had gone. It was the best weather we'd had since leaving home. I went out onto the balcony to take a couple of shots of Norway. It was about 4° but it didn't feel that cold.

It looks like a toy boat.

The Inside Passage is created by a vast archipelago stretching along the coast of the mainland. Some of the islands are large enough to support habitation, many are not and are barren. Although this is where the sea birds breed. Some of the more distant islands are populated by wind turbines. The Australian LNP would be apoplectic about all this coal free power being generated.

The coastal villages are all so colourful

Several of the islands are breeding grounds for the Atlantic Puffin. Sadly, they are too remote for us to get to once the cruise is over. But, if I see one, you'll certainly read about it. This morning before breakfast, I spotted Kittiwake and Fulmar, pelagic birds of this area, flying alongside the ship.

The Inside Passage is dotted with islands.

Port Talk

We ditched the afternoon lecture and watched a movie in our cabin, sorry stateroom. Barbie. Yep. Jayne has been hoping to see it and to date, it hasn't been available on any planes we've been on. Sadly. I could have lived without it. (Patriarchal perspective clearly on display here... editor's note).

The steeple caught my eye.

Following Barbie was Ken. Actually, it was a Spanish rosé as we whiled away the time before the port talk. If ever, dear reader, you wanted a defining difference between generations, the port talk captured it. There are 900 people on board the ship and most of them will be disembarking at Narvik for a shore excursion. Or at least to walk on solid ground after 3 days at sea. 

A lighthouse.

The talk would be crowded. It was to commence at 4:30pm. We walked into the theatre at 4:15pm and it was already packed. There were very few seats - and that is a generational difference. I could make jokes about lack of mobility and people needing to get seated early, or suggest hearing issues were the cause of over-punctuality, wanting a seat near the speaker. Or, as you age, just that mentality that develops to be early to ensure the best seat or being first. Whatever.

Environmentally farmed fish. Hey Tasmania check it out.

The Cruise Director and his assistant provided almost 90 minutes of information on the excursions scheduled in Narvik tomorrow as well as a brief history of the area. It was quite a significant port early on in WWII and was home to a sea battle between German and Allied ships, a number of which ended up on the bottom of the harbour.

We were told the possibility of seeing the lights commences tonight as we cross the line into the Arctic Circle. This will occur around 2:30am when we are, hopefully, sleeping soundly. Clothes and cameras need to be at the ready when we go to bed this evening. There will not be an announcement if the lights are sighted, but those fools, like me, who want to see them, no matter what the time, have a cabin call arranged.

The ship John West rejected. We opted for Viking.

Which brings us inexorably to today's title, a Rod Stewart hit from 1977, remember? No. Well, have a listen. Unlike the lyrics direct, I won't stay away from the window because I want to see the lights and tonight is the night we cross into the Arctic Circle.

Until next time.