Live from the NCL Star July 23-August 15, 2023. Will I survive 23 days without the beverage package?

[YVRteacher]

Based on recommendations from Cruise Critic I booked a tour with Blue Puffin thinking it would be a small group tour.   Nope. Big full bus. Yesterday the air conditioning on the bus broke. The sun is glorious today and it is hot! Honningsvåg gets about three days that are this hot each summer. I dressed in layers so quickly took off everything that could come off and settled in to enjoy a spectacular day in Honningsvåg.

 

Come with me on this excellent shore excursion.

 

Stop 1

Scenic Viewpoint

Reindeer sighting 

 

Stop 2

Skarsvåg Fishing Village

Reindeer sighting

 

At this point on the tour the microphone on the bus broke and our guide said, “I wonder what does work on this bus?!”🤣

 

Stop 3

North Cape

The monumental moments on this trip do not end! The North Cape is the most northerly point in continental Europe.

I had no idea how awe-inspiring it would be here. There are paths by the freakishly high cliffs, monuments, photo spots, artwork

a massive visitor centre that includes a museum, gift shop, cinema, chapel, King’s viewpoint, Thai Museum, grotto, cafe and restaurant. Apparently most days are foggy. Not today. Our views are breathtaking.  Exhilarating. Beautiful.

When I came inside and saw the cafe I thought a cake experience may not happen in Honningsvåg.

After a brief detour to photograph a troll

I found the main restaurant and something special. Was it cake?

No.

It was a waffle!

A magnificent, freshly cooked  Norwegian waffle served with strawberry jam and sour cream. Every bite was tastiness on a fork. I ate slowly, savouring the hot waffle with a crunchy exterior and delicate middle, making sure each bite had sweet jam and a touch of tangy sour cream. The world needs more Norwegian waffles.

After the eating of the waffle I visited the gift shop.

Yes, I bought that waffle card. It’s going in a frame in my kitchen when I get home. 

Museums in Norway have excellent gift shops.

 

Stop 4

Sami family camp

 

Sadly, our time at the Sami camp had to come to an end.

See what I did there?

 

Stop 5

Kamoyvær Fishing Village

 

Reindeer sightings

Stop 6

East of the Sun art gallery.

Please look up artist Eva Schmutterer.

I am enamoured by her work and bought this print 

[YVRteacher]

Hmmm. There’s a bonus reindeer photo in that post.

[YVRteacher]

I loved the tour with Blue Puffin so much I booked a tour in Tromsø with the same company and the same guide.  The owners are Sebastian and Monika and they live in the fishing village, Kamøyvær. Our guide today was Michael (he lives in Tromsø) and he is OUTSTANDING. Intelligent, funny, personable, professional. I can not say enough about Blue Puffin. If you come to Honningsvåg, book with Blue Puffin then post  about your experiences so I can relive the day!

[YVRteacher]

In addition to the day time tour through Blue Puffin I booked an evening shore excursion in Honningsvåg through NCL. A couple with whom I  connected on the Arctic Wilderness Evening in Longyearbyen were booked on this excursion and I wanted to join them.

 

I had a quick snack at O’Sheehan’s in between tours then headed out again on a different bus. We visited some of the same stops and some new locations.

 

I loved going back to the art gallery and meeting the artist this time.

 

At the stop where there was a Christmas Village I went for a walk. Christmas ornament stores are not my thing.

 

Just when I thought I was having the best life experiences ever, things got even better.

 

I heard a reindeer sneeze!

 

I call this collage “Nine Photos of the Same Reindeer After He Sneezed.”

 

 

[www3traveler]

WOW!!!  You are having a wonderful adventure.

Thank you for the beautiful pictures and taking the time to share them.

BIG BIG BIG BIG HUG

Love and prayers

[YVRteacher]

19 hours ago, Seas2mountains said:

I’m loving  your live review and we are all so lucky we get to read about your adventures for two more weeks!  I hope you do see a polar bear and more reindeer.  It’s wonderful to hear you are having a great time. The photos of the Midnight Sun are stunning. 
 

Before I lived in Germany many years ago, I didn’t care for wine until I tried Riesling which was grown and made in the town where I lived.  It is very tasty as long as it isn’t too sweet. 
Do you have any desire to add the drink package for the second half so you can drink more glasses of Riesling and have a Matador? 

 

 

I do miss Froilan’s Matadors! For the next cruise we only have one sea day. It is port-intensive with long hours in each port. I am loving these ports so much I’m spending every moment possible exploring and taking photos (and eating cake.) There’s not enough time to enjoy the beverage package. I’m enjoying the drinks when I have them (Dinner with the Officers, Latitudes Party, Sail and Sustain, free bottle of wine with one meal) so won’t add the beverage package next cruise. 
 

For how long did you live in Germany and which city?

[YVRteacher]

On 7/27/2023 at 9:45 PM, djasinsk said:

@YVRteacher if in one of your posts you could tell us or inquire with others aboard on the improvement in food quality (and service?) to be expected if one pays for cagneys or le bistro each night?  It works out to 75 bucks a day for a couple to eat there every night so would want to know it is meaningfully better in quality.  

Hi @djasinsk 

I wanted to come back to this. At the time you asked I hadn’t eaten in many specialty restaurants on this cruise. I wanted to let you know I’m not ignoring you.

 

In my opinion, yes, the specialty restaurants are way, way better than the main dining rooms. Avoid the Garden Cafe. Trust me on that!

 

Are you thinking of booking the Star for a northern cruise? 

[djasinsk]

10 minutes ago, YVRteacher said:

Hi @djasinsk 

 

Are you thinking of booking the Star for a northern cruise? 

Doing the Lisbon Rio cruise later in fall.  I don’t expect gourmet, but know if I am in mdr and the food is mediocre it would sour my mood.  I am fine paying as long as we get a worthwhile bump in quality.  Appreciate your getting back to me. 

[bluesea777]

1 hour ago, YVRteacher said:

I heard a reindeer sneeze!

 

I call this collage “Nine Photos of the Same Reindeer After He Sneezed.”

 

That is one beautiful looking guy!!

 

 

[Turtles06]

2 hours ago, YVRteacher said:

Based on recommendations from Cruise Critic I booked a tour with Blue Puffin

I was really looking forward to your write up and photos of your time in Honningsvag and at the North Cape. You really lucked out on the weather. Spectacular scenery and blue skies. Love your photos.
 

Blue Puffin definitely has fantastic recommendations here on Cruise Critic. Obviously well-deserved. 

[JoeTec]

3 hours ago, YVRteacher said:

Based on recommendations from Cruise Critic I booked a tour with Blue Puffin thinking it would be a small group tour.   Nope. Big full bus. Yesterday the air conditioning on the bus broke. The sun is glorious today and it is hot! Honningsvåg gets about three days that are this hot each summer. I dressed in layers so quickly took off everything that could come off and settled in to enjoy a spectacular day in Honningsvåg.

 

Come with me on this excellent shore excursion.

 

Stop 1

Scenic Viewpoint

Reindeer sighting 

 

Stop 2

Skarsvåg Fishing Village

Reindeer sighting

 

At this point on the tour the microphone on the bus broke and our guide said, “I wonder what does work on this bus?!”🤣

 

Stop 3

North Cape

The monumental moments on this trip do not end! The North Cape is the most northerly point in continental Europe.

I had no idea how awe-inspiring it would be here. There are paths by the freakishly high cliffs, monuments, photo spots, artwork

a massive visitor centre that includes a museum, gift shop, cinema, chapel, King’s viewpoint, Thai Museum, grotto, cafe and restaurant. Apparently most days are foggy. Not today. Our views are breathtaking.  Exhilarating. Beautiful.

When I came inside and saw the cafe I thought a cake experience may not happen in Honningsvåg.

After a brief detour to photograph a troll

I found the main restaurant and something special. Was it cake?

No.

It was a waffle!

A magnificent, freshly cooked  Norwegian waffle served with strawberry jam and sour cream. Every bite was tastiness on a fork. I ate slowly, savouring the hot waffle with a crunchy exterior and delicate middle, making sure each bite had sweet jam and a touch of tangy sour cream. The world needs more Norwegian waffles.

After the eating of the waffle I visited the gift shop.

Yes, I bought that waffle card. It’s going in a frame in my kitchen when I get home. 

Museums in Norway have excellent gift shops.

 

Stop 4

Sami family camp

 

Sadly, our time at the Sami camp had to come to an end.

See what I did there?

 

Stop 5

Kamoyvær Fishing Village

 

Reindeer sightings

Stop 6

East of the Sun art gallery.

Please look up artist Eva Schmutterer.

I am enamoured by her work and bought this print 

I really don't understand why you are buying pictures to hang in your house. You have taken such beautiful pictures there is at least 10 that I would frame for my walls

[YVRteacher]

It is 7:20am. I am still in bed and have a tour that meets in Stardust Theatre at 7:45am.

[QuattroRomeo]

💤🫢😲

[TrumpyNor]

12 hours ago, YVRteacher said:

Things are much, much better! I love the Moderno salad bar and there’s enough there for a lovely meal (for me.) The chef at Moderno did come and offer to make something else. I told him how much I enjoy the salad bar. He said “but everything is cold.” That didn’t matter to me!

I had Moderno booked again for tonight (August 2) but then booked an evening shore excursion so had to cancel the reservation.

I eat meat, but one of my favorites at Moderno is actually the grilled pineapple with cinnamon - it is simply delicious (plus it is warm....). 

[TrumpyNor]

@YVRteacher Did you notice that the Svalbard reindeers looked very different from the reindeers you saw in Honningsvåg? They are more "adapted to their climate" in Svalbard, with shorter legs and thicker fur... 

[YVRteacher]

10 hours ago, bluesea777 said:

That is one beautiful looking guy!!

 

 

Aren’t his antlers incredible? So big! I thought reindeer antlers were symmetrical but I was wrong.

[YVRteacher]

15 minutes ago, TrumpyNor said:

I eat meat, but one of my favorites at Moderno is actually the grilled pineapple with cinnamon - it is simply delicious (plus it is warm....). 

Oh yes! That pineapple is a must!

[YVRteacher]

9 minutes ago, TrumpyNor said:

@YVRteacher Did you notice that the Svalbard reindeers looked very different from the reindeers you saw in Honningsvåg? They are more "adapted to their climate" in Svalbard, with shorter legs and thicker fur... 

Oh, that’s interesting! The reindeer I saw in Svalbard was so far in the distance and there was long-ish grass in the way so I could barely see him.

[YVRteacher]

August 3, 2023

Hammerfest 1

 

If you created a Venn Diagram with me and Elvis Presley, there would be one commonality in the middle: neither of us have a membership to the Royal and Ancient Polar Bear Society! He wrote to this auspicious organization with hopes of becoming an esteemed member (my words, not his) but was refused because he was not there in person.  What does this membership include? Why, an invitation to the annual meeting in January. One also receives a sticker, a pin and a certificate of membership.

 

When I was young (like 25) I took myself on an expedition across the frozen tundra to Churchill, Manitoba: polar bear capital of the world.  I was on a Tundra Buggy shooting with film and a polar bear jumped right up in my face.  I pressed click and took a great photo of a polar bear nose (after that I moved out of the way.) I have since shifted my animal kingdom obsession to octopus but I still like polar bears and planned on joining The Royal and Ancient Polar Bear Society.  Sadly, it was crowded, somewhat disorganized and full of taxidermied mammals and birds. 

 

Hammerfest means “mooring place.” This is not a tiny village with one pub and 42 boats. Rather it is a city of 12000 in the centre and 70000 in the surrounding area.  

 

The main industry is liquified natural gas and the construction site where the gas is mined? prepared? siphoned? is the most expensive project in the history of northern Norway. The author Bill Bryson said of Hammerfest, it’s “an agreeable enough town in a thank-you-God-for-not-making-me-live-here sort of way.” When the gas export project at Snøhvit opened it brought a population boom and both soot and smoke pollution.

 

My excursion today became available on NCL’s app 32 days before the cruise.  I thought it was a typo when I saw the price: $21.92.  For this bargain I don’t even care if the driver gets lost.  I was less than thrilled when I saw the 7:45am meeting time and definitely had a hard time getting out of bed this morning. I change cabins for the next cruise and hope the bed is just as cozy comfy.

 

[TrumpyNor]

7 minutes ago, YVRteacher said:

Oh, that’s interesting! The reindeer I saw in Svalbard was so far in the distance and there was long-ish grass in the way so I could barely see him.

They are a "subspecie" of the regular reindeer.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Svalbard_reindeer

 

[DCGuy64]

1 hour ago, YVRteacher said:

Snøhvit

Reminds me of a fairy tale. 😉

[Travelicious]

You are having quite a summer, what with whale's breath and a reindeer's sneeze!  And your Richard Chancellor story incorporating Cruise Critic complaints - brilliant!  Thanks so much for the entertainment.

[www3traveler]

Hi Sweetie,

As always, I pray that things are getting better for you.

 

Inspite of all your food issues, it sounds like you are having a wonderful adventure.

 

Before, I make a mistake and book the wrong cruise, what are the dates for your Jewel adventure next May?

 

BIG BIG BIG BIG HUG

 

Love and prayers,

 

[ceilidh1]

You can't come home until we have a polar bear sighting. That's the rule. Everyone knows it...

[YVRteacher]

1 hour ago, www3traveler said:

Hi Sweetie,

As always, I pray that things are getting better for you.

 

Inspite of all your food issues, it sounds like you are having a wonderful adventure.

 

Before, I make a mistake and book the wrong cruise, what are the dates for your Jewel adventure next May?

 

BIG BIG BIG BIG HUG

 

Love and prayers,

 

April 29-May 13

😀