The weather today is not much better - still overcast with a biting wind. The highlight of the morning is the stop in Trondheim. While we are having our breakfast, the ship docks in Trondheim. After finishing our breakfast, we decide to walk into this former capital city of Norway. From where the ship docks, it is about a 20 minute walk into town. So we will not have too much time to check things out. But we do get to check out all the main highlights.
We are very impressed by the old wooden Bryggen (warehouses) that line both sides of the River Nid. They are in great conditions and the double line of buildings is very impressive, with their reflections in the still waters of the river. We walk down to one of the small floating piers in order to get a good view of the buildings from the level of the river.
From here, we turn into the old town and make our way to Mary's Church. But this small stone church is closed, so we have no chance to check out the interior. Then we head into the center of the town, with it's large square. And then we make our way to the crown jewel of Trondheim - the Nidaros Cathedral.
This is one of the most important buildings in Norway, being built on the site of St. Olav's grave. St. Olav was the man who introduced Christianity to Norway and he died at the battle of Stiklestad in 1030. The cathedral fell into disrepair after the reformation, but restoration work began in 1869 and continues to this day. It is an impressive church that contains many different styles of construction. As the head of the cathedral was introduced to new styles during his travels, he would introduce these new styles during each successive expansion of the building. We were just in time to get an English speaking tour, so we were able to get an informative overview of the building and it's history.
But due to the lengthy tour, once it was finished, we did not have much time to see anything else other than sights along the walk back. We decide to walk back along the river, this time crossing over the river on the old Bybrua bridge. We walked along the backside of the old wooden warehouses, crossing back over at the Bakke bridge.
We get back to the ship about 20 minutes before it leaves. After a short break, we decide to go and have lunch. The rest of the afternoon is spent hanging out up in the Panorama Lounge, taking in the views as we cruise north. This is a very interesting stretch to travel through. We are cruising along slowly as these are quite treacherous waters with lots of islands, shoals and hidden rocks.
We pass by the Åsenvågøy lighthouse, a tall bright red building just jutting out of the sea. It stands as a lonely sentinel, protecting the ships from the many dangers that lurk in these waters.
About 30 minutes later we are passing through a series of narrow channels - it is a rocky landscape with countless islands of all shapes and sizes. The stony land is covered with only sparse vegetation. We pass through Stokksund and by the many lonely hamlets and farms that are scattered around the islands and along the main land. What a beautiful, but harsh and isolated place, to live.
Shortly after 4 PM we pass through the narrowest channel on the voyage - it is only 43 meters wide. We have about ten meters to spare on each side of the channel. And it is not even a straight course, part way through we need to take a sharp left hand turn and then we cross under a bridge that forms a high arch above the channel.
Two hours later we pass by Ellingsråsa lighthouse, another lonely building in the rough seas. And at this point, the seas do get a bit rougher. Not too bad, but we can feel the swells. At 7 PM we retire to our cabin to get ready for dinner. We are slowly getting into our routine aboard this ship. Showers before dinner when we change into nicer (but not formal) clothes.
Over dinner, we dock in Rorvik. For some reason, we are greeted by a band that plays a range of songs for us. Lars runs down to take a look (and a picture). It is raining now, so it is just as well we are having dinner while in the port.
After dinner, we relax in the forward lounge - the Nordkapp salon. We bring along our books and our hipflask so we can have a wee dram while relaxing. The colors outside are very interesting - it is dark with the white-capped sea breaking up the horizon. What is interesting is the range of grays that fill the sky and sea. Other than the white tips of the waves, everything is gray, but yet different shades of gray. It is quite a sight and impossible to describe the beauty.