We had an early morning start for the Svartisen glacier and it looked like our weather luck had changed. Up to this point we had been unbelievably lucky with blue sky and sun. This was now replaced by drizzle and fog. Due to very early morning grumpiness I questioned the point of climbing up a mountain in this weather but went along anyway. Lucky I did as by the time we had driven and ferried, the fog had lifted. Then came the "walk" as described by our leader. I would call it more of a hike sometimes veering into the realm of rock climbing. We finally rounded a bend and there it was, absolutely huge and beautiful.

I had made Emmett promise he wouldn't go further than the signs that said "Danger do not pass, unstable ground". My job has made me a little more careful than I used to be. Of course he ignored this and rushed off with a couple of the boys. Being a loyal girlfriend I felt I best be there if he was swallowed by the ice so headed off with Kate, our favorite Scandy sidekick (for those of you who know my faux sister in law Alex Kidd, it's her in 5 years). Funnily enough the glacier was freezing to touch and the colors even more beautiful up close. The groaning sounds it made were slightly worrying though.

On the same day we made it into the Arctic Circle. This area is defined by at least one day in summer when the sun never sets and one day in winter when it never rises. The midnight sun finished late july but that said it doesn't really get overly dark and the sun comes rising again about 3am. From this area you can also see the Northern lights, we are a little early in the year but you never know!

Such big days call for a good nights sleep which brings me to one of the challenges of group tours. Due to topdecks single sex policy on cabin tours Emmett and i were usually split up. I have no problem with this in itself just the issue it brings with it. Snoring. When your not used to it sleeping is quite a challenge. I know it's no ones fault but a night spent staring at the roof listening to a freight train baring down on you can lead to extreme grumpiness. Quite the test being I'm such a morning person as it is ;). Someone should invent some earplugs that actually 1) block out more than a whisper and 2) don't fall out. I'd pay top dollar.

From here we were constantly driving next to fjords in mountainous regions, not amazing for those who get car sick but stunning for the rest of us. Towns get smaller and smaller until they are just super cute fishing villages. On one of the drive days we were lucky enough to see a pod of Orca's crusing along not far off shore. A magical moment for me. Sadly I did think to myself, "let's free Willy".

A stop at the Polar Zoo in seemingly the middle of nowhere was a highlight, even though there's not much there. I had a mission to see reindeer, moose (elk), bear and Orca. Unfortunately the big moose were out grazing for winter so we couldn't see them (though we tried to get zoo staff to make them appear), but we did get to pat a baby orphaned one. He was gorgeous. Salt and pepper, brother and sister (an albino) bears looked very cuddly. I'm sure they would be at home in the front paddock. Finally we saw a reindeer with the biggest antlers you've ever seen. Arctic foxes, wolves, lynx and wolverines (not Hugh Jackman sadly) were all present and accounted for.

Surprisingly to me there is also a lot of history in the area beyond that of the Vikings. The town of Narvik is a cute little town nestled by a fjord. This was an important city for both sides of world war two and has seen lots of action. Looked so quite and quaint it was hard to imagine the place being overrun by Nazis.

After an amazing day, the beginning of the evening was not so magical. It was time for something I'd been dreading, the polar plunge. It basically involves jumping off a 3 meter bridge into the icy cold (we're above the artic circle remember!) river below. I have no problem with the jumping, just the icy water part. A shot of vodka later I was standing on the bridge. Not sure anything could prepare you for hitting the water. It was beyond freezing and completely took my breath away. Silliness. Thank God for the waiting sauna.

Much later that evening I was rewarded for my bravery. It was a really cold clear night so we all had our fingers crossed for the northern lights. Being it was mid August and they don't usually start until late September we didn't hold much hope. With no action we trudged to bed at midnight with an alarm set for 1am, just to check. About 10 minutes later the fabulous Luke came knocking; "quick the lights!!". We thought it was a joke but just incase.....for the next hour we watched the most beautiful green lights dance across the sky. Amazing doesn't even describe it.

Further north on the push towards Nordkapp, Europe's most northern point, mountains and fjords turned to tundra. From here its very much reindeer country. Strangely even though they are wandering seemingly wild they are all owned by the native Sami who herd them. Took us a while to see one, then they were everywhere. Much like antelopes in Africa we got a little bored of them. That said I still refused to eat them though everyone raved about the taste. I can't eat Rudolph.

Arriving at camp it was time to get ready to head to Nordkapp. Plan was to leave at 8pm, arrive at 11pm and have 4 hours to look around, have a few drinks and hopefully see the lights again. Getting dressed was a challenge, the weather had turned drizzly and miserable. Basically as many layers as I could physically fit went on. The cold wouldn't get me like the night before!

The drive was sensational. Again winding around, and through mountains right next to the ocean. Emmett and I had been baffled by randomly placed housed for days, what on earth do these people do?!? This area was even more remote and wild, nothing but water and reindeers and still every now and then little wooden houses were scattered about. I figured most of the inhabitants must be fishermen, Deadliest Catch style.

We reached Nordkapp and I did not want to get out of the bus. To set the scene it's basically the top of a huge cliff that looks out to sea on three sides. There is an information centre, some randomly placed monuments and birds. That's it. It was absolutely freezing, the wind was so strong it was a struggle to stay grounded and ice water lashed us the whole time. We couldn't see out to ocean, the hundreds of Puffins on the cliff face or the lights (too much cloud). Not the experience we had been hoping for or expected but that said it was one of my favorites. We had only really seen good weather, this gave a glimpse of just how harsh life must be for the people of the North. To me it's what the end of the world should be; desolate, rugged, isolated.

Unfortunately there were only a few of us brave/stupid enough to be outside exploring, the rest were drinking inside. Until they got kicked out. Then our Nordkapp experience was cut short much to Emmett's disgust, but probably saved us a bout of pneumonia. Here's where the real 'fun' began driving back down the windy roads in driving rain, dodging reindeer in a bus full of drunks. The squealing/singing/screaming was as painful as I've heard. Vomit was involved. The longest 3 hours of my life. Bet you're sorry you missed it.

From here we had basically reached our destination so a rest day was in order. Throughout the trip we had mostly kept it classy with a couple of civilized drinks at dinner. It was decided a punch party was in order. As some of you know first hand, i should steer clear of punch. Needless to say a hangover, 3 hours sleep and a long windy bus ride into Finland on a super hot coach do not mix well. There were consequences, don't worry mum I was very discreet.

After mountainous Norway, Finland was really flat meaning we could quickly shoot down to get the ferry from Helsinki to Tallinn. On the way we stopped for nights in Rovaniemi, where we popped into the home of Santa and met the big jolly guy, Jvaskyla and Helsinki. We were in prime Moose country but still no luck. Personally after seeing them on every menu I think they have been over hunted and no longer exist in the wild. Just my opinion. To be honest the main things we saw in Finland were the insides of various bars and clubs.

A quick ferry had us in Tallinn, and more importantly back on the Euro and to 2 Euro ciders! Tallinn is the best preserved medieval city in Europe and it really is stunning, like a fairytale. About 5 years ago I'd spent sometime here with one of my all time favorites, Tania, so I acted as guide. My services were free.

Our final night on tour was a little random. We had dinner at a ye olde beer hall and then along with most of the group, headed off to see Lady Gaga. The show itself was at the outdoor song ground where the singing revolution (for independence from the soviets) occurred, so a pretty important place for Estonia. Not being the biggest Gaga fan, expectations were low but it was actually pretty great. The weather was beautiful, concert super entertaining and excellent company. What more can a girl ask for? A tour of Tallinn's bars followed fueled by cheap alcohol, dancing and McDonald's. An excellent end to a great trip!

And that was Topdeck's Scenic Scandy, our first ever coach tour. Definitely had its highs and lows but it really was an excellent way to see a more remote, very expensive, part of the world. We had some great experiences and met some people who we would never get to know in 'normal' life, (in some cases there is definitely a reason for that) and others who I really hope to see in the future. Most of all we got to see a completely breathtaking country, Norway, from top to bottom.