SLSD

Some of the excursions may be sold out, but you can be put on the wait list and most likely, you will have a spot on the excursion. After you book your cruise, call the excursion desk at Seabourn. They will be more than happy to go through the excursions with you and help you book. While some of the excursions may be sold out, others will not be. On our current current, we were waitlisted on several excursions. By the time we boarded, we had confirmed spots on these excursions.

It's a really lovely day at sea with great weather. Mr SLSD and I enjoyed lunch on the patio as we are not fans of the Galley Lunch. I had a delicious fish of the day (Red Snapper) with a crisp green salad, while he had pizza and fruit. We both enjoyed the soup of the day which was cream of asparagus. The desserts were peach cake. I realize we are outliers among Seabourn cruisers when it comes to the Galley Lunch. We've done it! It was fun! But after doing it several times, we began choosing lunch elsewhere.

We do love Earth and Ocean, but take mostly cold weather cruises (lately). Of course Earth and Ocean is limited by weather conditions--and is also not open when there is something going on around the pool deck. For example, it is closed tonight which is the last night of this particular segment of the trip. Many will be disembarking in Dover tomorrow. Hopefully, we will be back at Earth and Ocean tomorrow night!

There were four additional stops on our Best of the Golden Circle excursion. They included the Gulfoss (Golden Waterfall), a Geysir Center, a crater lake, and a geothermal powerplant. This was an eight hour excursion and included a lunch. The lunch was a buffet with many offerings--including great salmon, lamb meatballs, a tomato soup, salad and various vegetables. Wine and/or beer was served for those who wished to have it. It was very windy at the waterfall! Most of us donned our stocking caps and even struggled to stand still at some points. At the Geysir Center, there was a geysir which erupted every five to ten minutes. We were fortunate to get to view two eruptions. The crater lake is at the site of a sunken volcanic crater. The geothermal powerplant is owned by a company called ON and situated right next to an active volcano.

Today, I am backtracking to cover our day at the port in Reykjavik. Since this was our first visit to Iceland, we elected to take an excursion called The Best of the Golden Circle. We began our tour with a visit to Pingvellir National Park. The area this park covers is significant for several reasons. First, it is a place where you can see geological forces at work as it is situated to include a rift walk between the tectonic plates of both North America and Eurasia. Second, within the national park is the site where Iceland's Parliament met since its inception in the 900s. In the photos below, you will see the Icelandic flag at that location. Walking through the rift is an easy walk for anyone who does not have mobility issues. While it is a rather long walk , the path is quite well maintained and doesn't have any significant inclines, holes, or dips. We had several in our group walking with canes and/or a walker and they did not seem to be having difficulty. At least one passenger stayed on the bus.

We are still talking about our experiences yesterday in the area around Kirkwall in the Orkney Islands. We saw burial mounds dating from Neolithic times. We saw sheep and cattle grazing. We saw many beautiful stone walls and crops growing in the fields--barley among them. We saw beautiful beaches, one of them right next to the Skara Brae Neolithic stone homes. Here are a few more photos to give you a view of the Orkney Islands we experienced. First, a small guidebook we purchased which has filled in a lot of gaps for us in terms of background information. The upshot is that we definitely recommend choosing a cruising itinerary with the Orkney Islands as part of the journey.

I am behind three days in my reporting. I plan to backtrack tomorrow (a sea day) and cover three other great days we have experienced aboard Sojourn.

We capped off a wonderful day with dinner tonight at Earth and Ocean, which is our favorite restaurant on the ship. I've included tonight's menu in the photos below. I was over enthusiastic with the Tempura shrimp and almost forgot to take a photo until it was almost all gone. My dessert, the rum cake was beyond compare. Mr. SLSD loved his BBQed duck. Each element was wonderful and the service was top notch as always. We hope to dine at Earth and Ocean often over the next two weeks.

The weather today was as good as we could expect. There was a bit of rain, but it stopped in time for us to explore and enjoy these sites. We'll be thinking about these places for a long long tme. The area around the Ring of Brodgar is truly special even in modern times.

Our third site today was on the same grounds as the Neolithic Skara Brae homes. This site was the Skaill House which dates back to the 1600s. It is a home purchased by a bishop and then held for several generations of his family. It is not a grand home, but a substantial edifice which served as a family home in a fairly remote place. After we left the home, our guide told us that it is the considered to be the most haunted house in the Orkney Islands. Note in the photo below, some artifacts from the Neolithic Skara Brae stone homes--items that were found by the owners of Skaill House and added to their "cabinet of curiousties"--such a Victorian concept.

Our next stop on today's excursion was Skara Brae, the name which has been given to the Neolithic stone homes discovered by the Bay on Skail in around 1850. These homes are very well preserved and now well ;protected. These stone homes, built with stacked stone, included furniture and carvings and probably housed 50 to 100 people for a time period of 300 years. The homes are connected with pathways that our guide told us makes them unique.

Today we had an experience which exemplifies what we cruise for! We had an excursion at Kirkwall on the Orkney Islands to some exceptional sites. It was the best day ever! We went to places we would never likely see but on a cruise. We signed up for an excursion called Ring of Brodgar, Skara Brae, and Skaill House. What an excursion! This trip was so in sync with our interests and if you like archaeology, history, etc., it might be of interest to you as well. Our guide was an archaeologist who was very clear on her mission. She wanted us to understand what was important in the sites we were going to see. She is a landscape archaeologist by education (I did not know about that field). Our first stop was The Ring of Brodgar, a neolithic site from c.2400BC. Our guide explained that this site is a henge (think Stonehenge, but more important she said). While the Ring of Brodgar is a ring of stones surrounded by the "henge" which is a ditch dug into bedrock around the area of the stone ring, our guide maintained that the stones are not nearly as important as the henge. This whole site is on an island within an island. If you look at the surrounds, it is a special place, surrounded by a landscape which affected the neolithic people in such a way that they were drawn to create this ring and its henge. There is a lot more to contemplate, but these are the essentials to know.

Last night was formal night following a sea day. We received an invitation to dine with Captain Kyriakos Karras in The Restaurant. There were seven of us at dinner and the menu was Seabourn's "Signature Dinner". Our waiter (Simba) told us that it was basically a tasting menu with an entree. I've attached photos of the menu. I've posted the vegetarian options followed the regular offerings. I especially liked the white plum tomato cappucino with tarragon foam. The menu items were delicious--every single one of them. Both Captain Karras and his wife Maria are charming and hospitable. We had lively conversations and thoroughly enjoyed our meal. The captain is friendly and sincere and is happy to talk about all kinds of topics. I found out how he met his wife for example and we talked about the best times to cruise the Greek Islands (April and October according to the captain). While walking through the dining room, I noticed a fair number of men wearing tuxes--more than I have noticed in the past. Mr. SLSD did not bring a tux, but wore a navy blazer with bow tie and gray dress pants. The other gentleman at our table was wearing a dark blue suit with tie. Women's attire was all over the map--ranging from strapless sequin encrusted gorgeous gowns to dressy slacks and tops.

I'm sure there are many onboard who would test positive for Covid if they were tested--much coughing heard on the ship and in buses. Seabourn does have a protocol---they are treating Covid just like they treat any other virus or illness. When you have no fever and no symptoms, your quarantine is over. Neither of us had fever and Mr. SLSD had the mildest of symptoms and I had no symptoms at all. We were officially released from isolation yesterday afternoon. Shortly after that, Guest Services called and asked if we would like to reclaim our invitation to dine with the Captain last night--and we did. We both feel 100% well. The nurse onboard told us that the latest cases of Covid onboard have been very mild. So--there you have it. We isolated for around 36 hours. We felt like it was the right thing to do to report our positive tests to the ship. Most people do not report. It is quite probable that some have Covid and do not know it.

Some of my hangers have disappeared and we are on until August 24th! One of our bathrobes disappeared! I had to ask for another one. We had only worn one of them!

Economies of scale most likely in ingredients and labor.

I brought Paxlovid and started it immediately.

Thank you John. We hope to recover quickly. I'm a bit behind in my reporting. I should have plenty of time to catch up!

I don't know what your itinerary is--but if it is Iceland or Norway, I think a waterproof (not just water resistant) jacket is a very good idea. Also, bring layers. I have a quilted vest, a down sweater, and then my waterproof jacket. I also have a stocking cap and a pair of gloves. We've had some very cold days (in certain locations) and these layers have served me well. I can't suggest excursions without knowing your ports. We have not seen any mosquitos in Iceland. I think one of our guides said that some places have them. The excursions have been good, but there have been too many people on the buses and many have been coughing. Unfortunately, both Mr. SLSD and I tested positive for Covid late this afternoon. We have very very mild symptoms, but we self tested (and reported to the ship) before meeting friends for dinner. Mr. SLSD had fatigue today, so I insisted that he test. Then, I tested and was positive also. We did not want to expose our friends. We wish others cared enough not to expose others. The nurse has come by our suite. Neither of us has fever. The nurse says she will release us from quarantine if we have no fever and are feeling ok. We have some sea days coming up--so the timing is good.

Yes, you are correct. I don't care where the food comes from if it is served instead of in a buffet and if the surroundings are serene and pleasant. The MDR lunch menu has been very good--for us.

I've thought of that...

One more photo from Akureyri, Iceland before I move to yesterday. This is a photo of a traffic light in the city of 20,000. All red lights are in the shape of hearts. This design for red lights was chosen during a particularly difficult time when there was financial hardship and a dark winter. Our guide told us that it is thought that the heart shaped light have made a difference for the citizens of Akureyri.

And finally, our lunch on Sojourn outside the Colonnade today. Luxury dining at its best. The inside area was crowded and the dining room was not open for lunch. There were about eight tables of diners. Others came out but turned back as they thought it was too cold outside---and it was! We still maintain that the dining room should be open for lunch on cold weather cruises. Others may disagree. That's the lovely town of Akureyri in the background.

Our last stop in the Akureyri area today was the Godafoss Waterfall. The name in English would be the Waterfall of the Gods. Legend has it that when Iceland converted to Christianity from paganism, statues of the gods were thrown into this waterfall. It is a magnificent sight!

Our next stop in the area of Akureyri, Iceland was Laufas, an ancient manor farm. The earliest records show that there was a church in this vicinity in 1047! The current church in the area was built in the 1860s. The very large turf house here was built from 1866-1870 and has 17 rooms. It housed a large wealthy family and at times, the workers they employed. Most of the house is quite primitive. And, it's important to understand that a good part of the house is underground with tunnels connected the various additions. A very few rooms had wooden floors and were furnished in a more comfortable way. We had docents dressed in clothing in the 1800s style.