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Location Date Asia 1688425200 Europe 
1466290800 Oceania 1461798000 South America 1355011200 North America 1354147200 Africa 1315090800 Antarctica 1291248000 -
Location Date Norway
1466290800 Svalbard And Jan Mayen 1465772400 UK 1464735600 France 1315695600 Slovenia 1314140400 Italy 1313535600 Malta 1312153200 Ireland 1311634800 Iceland 1310598000 Finland 1309820400 Estonia 1309302000 Sweden 1309042800 Denmark 1308956400 Lithuania 1308265200 Poland 1308006000 Latvia 1307055600 Turkey 1306969200 Bulgaria 1306882800 Serbia 1306710000 Bosnia 1306537200 Croatia 1306450800 Montenegro 1306364400 Albania 1306278000 Greece 1306191600 Russia 1304895600 Liechtenstein 1129071600 Luxembourg 1128985200 Gibraltar 1128380400 Spain 1127343600 Portugal 1126911600 Andorra 1126047600 Germany 1124233200 Slovakia 1123974000 Austria 1123887600 Hungary 1123714800 Czech Republic 1123455600 Netherlands 1122418800 Monaco 936572400 Vatican 935967600 Switzerland 935362800 Belgium 934930800 -
The deep, perfectly still peaceful fjord rippled gently as the MS Expedition glided through. The calmness was a balm to the overworked senses of balance and seasickness. Crossing the North Sea had meant lots of rocking and rolling and discreet use of those concertina paper bags that nestle in airline seat pockets and aboard ships. You know the ones? Enough said. Now the stillness was soothing and suddenly we were hungry for food again and for exploring the beauty of Norway.
Our first glimpse was stunning.
Anchoring near the town of Olden in Nordfjord, we were transferred to town in zodiacs then buses took us up to the Birksdal Glacier for a hike past stunning waterfalls to the base of the glacier.
Over the next night, we sailed into the very long and deep UNESCO World Heritage Listed Geiranger Fjord, Waking to find ourselves right at the end in the little village of Geiranger surrounded by snow- capped mountains was a highlight so far. Buses were again waiting, this time to take us to the top of Mt. Dalsnibba ( 1,500 metres above sea level) via the scariest hairpin bends, scenic view point stops and icy roads. We passed a still solidly frozen lake even though it is well into Summer. Clouds rolled in and our view to the Geiranger Valley below slipped in and out but it was an amazing introduction to ice and snow for this trip.
After coming down from the mountain we stopped off at the Visitor Centre and from there had the choice to walk down a series of wooden steps and pathways next to a roaring waterfall to take us back to the ship. Well of course we chose to walk!
Once all were back on board and had enjoyed a fabulous lunch (every meal was fabulous aboard the MS Expedition!) we spent the afternoon sailing back slowly through the fjord marveling at the many waterfalls and snow covered peaks. While we have included a selection of photographs, the grandeur and beauty is beyond our "point and shoot" photos. We were ever so slowly and gently sailing through 360 degrees of outlandish and extravagant beauty.
NOTE: The West Norwegian Fjords are UNESCO World Heritage Listed.
- comments
Rob Interesting, we were told NOT to build them on Svalbard, still did sort of, it was only 6 inches high but looked the real deal in a photo
Rob Awesome!
heatheravan You are right, our tour was also advised it was not allowed in Svalbard. However Svalbard law differs from Norway. Svalbard is governed under the Svalbard Treaty which dates back to the original signatories up to 1925 of Norway, USA, Denmark, France, Italy, Holland, Sweden and Britain (which included Australia, Canada, India and South Africa) in 1925 Japan, Russia, Germany and China joined. Since then another 26 countries have signed. Under their guidance the islands are demilitarised, are a visa free zone and have equal rights to commercial activities, however recognise Norway's Sovereignty. The wash up is that you can mine coal (Russia and Norway) but not build stone cairns.
heatheravan Agreed, one of our favourite spots on the trip.