Tuesday, May 23, 2023 - Travel Day Home

For anyone posting comments on the blog, they come to us as “anonymous”. Please add at least your name and maybe email, and I may be able to respond. THANKS

 

Tuesday, May 23, 2023 – Bergen, Norway to Oro Valley, Arizona 

Not one photo was take on this day. 

Our flight departs at 6:00 a.m. We are assigned to a group that meets in the Atrium at 3:00 a.m. When our group is called, we disembark into the cruise terminal where we have a face-to-face meeting with an immigration officer. Our luggage has been off-loaded for us and is organized by group. We find the luggage easily and are thankful that there is a porter that assists us in getting it to the bus that will take us to the airport. A very nice young man. 

Arrival at the airport was a bit chaotic and for a long time the line didn’t move at all. Finally, we got checked in and headed for our gate. It was a long walk. 

We are supposed to be in First Class so board early expecting wide comfortable seats. This plane must get used for flights that do not have a First-Class cabin as the seating was standard (3 and 3), but the middle seat wasn’t sold. It is a short flight to Amsterdam, and they do serve us a breakfast – of sorts. We did request a Bloody Mary and that was quite tasty. 

We arrive in Amsterdam and taxi and taxi and taxi. We must have taxied for over 20 minutes to get to our gate. We had requested a wheelchair for Russ only to discover he wasn’t in their system. A bit of pushing and calls were made. We should have a cart any minute. We were about to start walking when a cart arrived. A very nice young lady was our driver and whisked us through the airport and a special passport control and dropped us at our gate. We were very grateful that we did not have to walk. 

The flight from Amsterdam to Salt Lake City is Business Class and this plane is fitted with the pods in which you can even lay flat. The pillow was comfy and the blanket was more like a duvet. They offered champagne or orange juice before taking off and we spent a bit of time getting our cubbies situated for the flight. 

After take-off, we were offered drinks and received small bowls of heated mixed nuts. This was followed a bit later by a meal. We had each pre-selected our choice and enjoyed the food. We entertained ourselves for a bit, then napped for a couple of hours. A couple of hours before landing there was another meal/snack. That offering turned out to be not very good. But we certainly are not in need of a lot of food. 

We landed in Salt Lake City and a wheelchair was waiting. However, we were parked in the hallway just off the plane until every passenger was off the plane. Another flight had landed at about the same time and right next to us. So the same thing was true for that flight. As it turned out, they didn’t have enough people staffed to handle passengers needing assistance from two international flights at the same time. I thought I was going to be pushing Russ, but one of the helpers said he could handle two at one time. And he was very adept. A great help. I got our luggage off the carousel and onto a cart with the help of a kind bystander. Not a single question about the luggage, we just dropped it off to be checked in and then headed to immigration. Although we had TSA Pre-check, all electronic devices had to come out of our carry ons. Russ’s backpack got special treatment and testing, but finally we were through security. 

And it was a very long walk to get to our next gate. We are on a smaller plane from Salt Lake to Tucson, so we’ll be bussed from the terminal to the plane for loading. We get out to the plane are not allowed to board. The plane is being worked on. After about 20 minutes, it is determined that the plane cannot be fixed quickly, so we are taken back to the terminal. About an hour later, a new plane is finally ready for us, so back to the bus and to the plane. 

We have a very nice hostess, and she offers a drink before take-off. We take her up on the offer, but can’t savor it as we have to finish it before they close the door. Once in the air, she comes back with a variety of snacky things and that is perfect. 

The very kind people that took us to the airport in December have offered to pick us up. We’ve kept in touch with them throughout the afternoon about the delays and they seem to be fine with it. They were also following our flight online so didn’t have to wait too long for us to get to baggage claim. 45 minutes later we are home. Luggage is off-loaded quickly but will sit in the living room tonight. 

It has been a long day. Tomorrow we will have to begin our return to reality.

Monday, May 22, 2023 - Bergen, Norway

For anyone posting comments on the blog, they come to us as “anonymous”. Please add at least your name and maybe email, and I may be able to respond. THANKS

 

Monday, May 22, 2023 – Bergen, Norway 

We’ve been to Bergen a couple of times before. The first in 2016 at the end of our first Ocean Cruise with Viking when we spent two weeks in the Baltic. That started in Stockholm and finished in Bergen. We enjoyed the experience so much that in 2018 we booked another 2-week cruise with Viking. This time from Bergen to Barcelona. Both of these cruises were in the fall. We don’t remember a lot of specifics about the first time but do remember the rain in 2018. And as we sailed away on our way to Amsterdam, we sailed into a storm that really rocked the boat. 

It gets light early this time of year in Norway, so our sail-in was beautiful and we could not believe how glassy the sea was. It’s a beautiful day.

A island of Stolmen with its lighthouse.

Gorgeous sunrise as we head into the fjords

 

Today is packing day. Our luggage must be in the hall before 10:00 p.m. You would think packing would be easy as there are really no decisions to make. But figuring out how to get all the clothes as well as the souvenirs (such as a liter bottle of Benedictine) into the allotted space was a bit of a challenge. But we did it!

We took numerous breaks during the day and although we did not go ashore and wander around, we did snap a few photos of Bergen from good vantage points on the ship.

 

We enjoyed one last dinner at the Chef’s Table and got to bed fairly early as the alarm is set for 2:15 a.m. 

I’ll do some sort of a recap in a separate blog.

Sunday, May 21, 2023 - Shetland Islands, Scotland

For anyone posting comments on the blog, they come to us as “anonymous”. Please add at least your name and maybe email, and I may be able to respond. THANKS

 

Sunday, May 21, 2023 – Shetland Islands, Scotland 

We are in the Shetland Islands today. About halfway from mainland Scotland to Bergen, Norway. As we near our port there is a beautiful sunrise, and we are hopeful it is an indicator for the rest of the day. 

 

We have selected an optional excursion today. It is named “Rural Shetland”, and will include seeing Shetland sheep, Shetland ponies, and see a demonstration of sheep dogs. 

We had a nice little drive around the countryside on our way to the farm where we will be hosted by a man and wife team. They have been working this land for a long time. The headsets for them to use our QuietVox devices were missing so our hostess said she would just have to shout. Her voice carried very nicely. 

We started with the sheep. Two ewes with new lambs just 2 weeks old. There were also a small group of one-year olds that appeared to be full grown and in need of being fleeced. The Shetland sheep have wool in a variety of shades. I think they said there were 64 different colors that have been identified. And yes, the sheep were just about due for their annual shearing. Our hosts said they used to do the shearing themselves, but it is back breaking work and now they hire it out. They have about 300 head. The team that they hire will shear a sheep in about 2 minutes. If they were to do it themselves, it would be about 10 minutes per sheep.

Notice all the different colors of sheep in this pen.
 

We were then introduced to a couple of Shetland ponies. They’ve only been on this farm for a couple of years. They are 24 and 26 years old. We were also told that none of the Shetland ponies are working ponies anymore unless for a kiddie ride or something like that. They are mostly pets.

 

Now it is time for the sheepdog portion. There are a few sheep in a pen and are specifically for demonstrating what the dogs can do. They started with a 4-month-old pup that appears to be a natural. The dogs pick up on what the humans want pretty quickly. When they do something right, they are praised for it and get a treat, when it’s not quite right, the dog is simply ignored. "If you have to yell at your dog, you are doing something wrong."

This pup got treats from both.
 

The next one was 10 months old, and although not fully trained, did great. But wait! Next, we have a one-year-old, fully trained. For this, the sheep are let out of their corral and are allowed to head for the hills. Then the master (using whistle commands) sent the dog to bring them back. My stars, that dog could run so fast and within a few minutes, the sheep were back at the corral. And the dog acted so happy. 

Finally, a fully trained adult and champion. The dog was directed (again by whistle) to herd the sheep right and left between some of the guests that had been stationed on the hillside. Amazing. When that demonstration was done and the sheep were back in the corral, the dog literally leaped into his owner’s arms. Such love between human and animal.

Not many photos as the action was a bit away from us. And both sheep and dog were moving very quickly.

This dog doesn't need treats. His reward is the love of his human.

 

The dogs were allowed to mingle with the passengers and a couple of new puppies were brought out to be cuddled. Our hosts have 12 dogs they are training. One of the dogs immediately found its way over to the pen where the Shetland Sheep were. He just sat and stared at them from just a couple of feet away. Or stood and stared and the sheep didn’t particularly like it. No commands, the dog knows what its job is.

One of our fellow passengers probably wondered why we were taking his picture.

See the dog behind him.

 

After the demonstrations, we piled back on the bus and headed for a nearby inn where we were served mutton soup for our lunch. It was excellent! Homemade bread to go with it. Then shortbread and another sweet along with tea or coffee. This excursion will be one that we remember the specifics of for a long time. So glad we got to do this. I just wish I could remember the names of our hosts. 

Tomorrow morning we’ll be in Bergen. It will be packing day.

Saturday, May 20, 2023 - Invergordon, Scotland

For anyone posting comments on the blog, they come to us as “anonymous”. Please add at least your name and maybe email, and I may be able to respond. THANKS

 

Saturday, May 20, 2023 – Invergordon, Scotland 

Invergordon is the closest deep harbor to Inverness. So, any ship calling on Inverness docks at Invergordon. It is a natural deep-water harbor and well developed.

On our way up the Cromarty Firth

 

We have lined up a private tour today but anticipate there will be more than just us. Once we meet with our guide at the appropriate location, we find that there are 4 others joining us. A couple that we shared a tour with in Belfast and 2 sisters. There are a number of things on the agenda today, so we are quickly away. 

Our first stop will be the battlefield at Culloden. There is a modern visitor’s center which includes a museum, gift shop, cafeteria, and bathrooms. First our guide escorts us to a cottage that was witness to the battle. The walls are rock with a peak end area made out of sod or peat, and the roof is thatched with heather.

The red flag in the background denotes the British line.

Blue flags show where the Scots were.

The thatch of heather plants and the wall made out of bricks of sod.
 

 

The field today is flat and grassy. In 1746 it was moorland and would have been very uneven and difficult to move across. The Park wants to bring it back to the way it was at the time of the battle. The battle lasted just one hour. 1,500 Jacobites were killed. Only 100 British soldiers were killed. Bonnie Prince Charlie led the Jacobites (but probably not on the battlefield) and the Duke of Cumberland commanded the British.

 

 

We took advantage of the restrooms and also enjoyed a cup of coffee before it was time to move on to the next stop. 

Balnuaran of Clava is a site where there are three cairns built in the Bronze Age. (37^th century to 11^th century BC). There are also a number of standing stones at this site. It is believed that all three were built at the same time and that their positions and relationship to the others is intentional. The site sits in some woods that were just leafing out and cast a green light on the area. Very cool.

 

 

From there, we moved on to Cawdor Castle. It has been in one family since the 1600s. And is still lived in by that family. The tour is supported by an audioguide and is a one-way route through various rooms. It is amazingly homey. But also has wonderful antiques and decorations. I found it a bit interesting that there were potted plants in many of the rooms and those plants looked really happy. I checked, they were real, not fakes.

Note the date: 1672

Interesting display of rifles.

A very happy plant.

Ceiling embellishment

Steep stairs. But at least they had a handrail.

 

 

The gardens here are also amazing. There are two walled gardens, one of which contains a maze. The other one is more traditional plantings. It is a bit early in this climate for the beds to be in bloom yet, but you could see the gardeners had been busy getting things ready. A gateway in the wall led to a wilder natural area with a stream at the bottom of the hill and beautiful azaleas and other plants.

A very fun bird feeder

A view of the castle from the gardens

This fishy was burping water into a bucket

Would love to see this in bloom.

In the wild section

The stream at the base of the hill

Wow

Another view

A cute little fellow enjoying a snack

I can't imagine how old these trees are.
 

 

From Cawdor Castle we headed for Inverness. We had been advised that Inverness Castle was under renovation and would not be available for touring. What we learned is that there used to be a castle on this site, but in the mid-1800s, the current building was built (designed to look like a castle, but anything but) and has been local government buildings, the courts, a jail and meeting rooms for the county council. All of that was moved in 2020 and the building is now being renovated and will reopen to the public in 2025. 

We parked near Inverness Cathedral and were given free time to find some lunch or just wander. Immediately across the street from the Cathedral were a cluster of food trucks. We checked them all out and settled on some loaded fries (perfectly cooked French fries with pulled pork on top and a spicy cheesy sauce of some kind) and a local soft drink. The fries were great and hit the spot for us and the soft drink was interesting and very nice.

Inverness Cathedral

Detail over the door of the cathedral

Scottish soda pop.

I liked it

Lunch - surprisingly good.

This beggar came along and scored the last of our fries.

A cricket match

There was a wedding at the Cathedral, so we were not allowed to go in. Listening to the bagpipes being played for the wedding was fun. 

Once everyone was back at the meeting spot, we headed up Loch Ness to see if we could spot Nessie. The rain had started by this time, but it was still a lovely drive along the Loch. We circled around and went to the community of Beauly. We had a brief comfort stop in Beauly and I checked out the ruins of the Priory. The Priory was probably founded in the early 13^th century.

Loch Ness

Nessie was hiding today.

Beauly Priory

 

 

All the items on the agenda have been ticked off and we had a lovely day with our guide and her husband who was along as our driver today. We got back to the ship just before “back on board” time.