We rose at 7am and started the day with an eclectic breakfast. Kayla, as usual, picked things like sausage and scrambled egg she didn't like the taste of so settled for croissants with extra nutella. Ed wolfed down lots of bacon and half ate a boiled egg (including much of the shell). We left the hotel at 8.30am and as it was the second day of driving we stopped frequently though not for long each time, that coupled with bad traffic started to eat up our time quickly. At one stop Ed FaceTimed Uncle John and at another he rang Gran & Granddad (not sure why he feels the need to speak to anyone but us but we'll put it down to excitement rather than the fact he prefers them!) The traffic around Bremen and Hamburg was pretty crazy and we took a few off Autobahn detours which led us through pretty towns and countryside. It was during a traffic queue in the very industrial Hamburg that we first though 'we're not going to make the ferry!' With around 2hrs predicted on the sat nav and 2hrs 30mins until last boarding time it looked pretty dicey and we began thinking about plans B & C. For those 2hrs the planned time kept decreasing (yay!) and increasing (argh!) on a permanent loop, it was like when you're losing 0-2 and there's no chance then a super sub scores 2 goals in 5mins to give you hope only for the other team to get a third - years of supporting City was good practise for the rollercoaster feeling. For the last 30minutes it looked as though we would make it and our luck held out as we reached the port with 15mins to spare. Kiel was surprisingly easy to navigate and it was almost harder to avoid the ship than find it which made a massive difference to us. We boarded with 3 minutes left until the final call, though cars seemed to continue boarding right up until our 5.45pm departure time. Once on board we took our belongings up to our cabin on deck 8. The cabin was great with 2 high up singles (claimed instantly by the kids), a floor level single and double bed. There was a desk area, toilet and shower plus the best sea view ever :) We didn't waste time in the room and instead headed straight for the sun deck where we got a beer (slush for the kids) and watched the departure. It was a fun atmosphere on the sun deck with a bar, barbecue and the sound system playing tunes like Hey Jude as we started to move. The kids were really excited, spinning round and singing - though partly that was to keep warm and partly due to the additives in the slush. We stayed on the deck until we hit open sea. It was really interesting to pass the other ferries (one very big posh one in particular) and to see the navy ships in the German Naval Yard. There were lovely villages with beaches dotted along and on one we could see a wedding taking place. The seagulls were hovering closely over us waiting for scraps then diving down to catch whatever the ship turned up in its path. Once open sea came we decided to head in to deck 7 (the entertainment deck) to warm up. Deck 7 has many bars and restaurants but it was busy so we instead went to the shop and let the kids spend their holiday euros. They bought some toys and sweets so we headed to the cabin for a picnic followed by sweet fest and a good giggle. Before bed we had one last trip around the ship, this time we went right up to the top and along the deck to the bridge. It was super windy in parts so we found a sheltered seating area and the kids danced away as we watched land disappear into the distance. It was easy to get to sleep, we'd had a stressful day with an amazing experience and a lot of laughter at the end. The beds were comfy and the hum of the ship helped everyone slip into sleep quickly, good preparation for our short trip from Goteborg to Rygge tomorrow.