Viking Sky, Day 12 (Stavanger, Norway)

Arrived in Stavanger, Norway, c. 10 a.m., about the time that I got up, and I got some coffee and then worked in my cabin, mostly on updating my TravelBlogue, until going to lunch at noon. Went back to the room after that and worked for an hour before going ashore for a two-hour walking tour of the city, which included a visit to the surprisingly interest Oil Museum (below top), the cathedral, and the old historic district.

Stavanger is the third-largest city in Norway and is widely referred to as the "Oil Capital" of the country because of its booming offshore oil industry, which remains a pillar of the local economy. It is located on the Stavanger Peninsula in Southwest Norway and was established officially in 1125, the year that Stavanger Cathedral was completed (shown at right). Much of its heart is dominated by 18th- and 19th-century wooden houses, some of which can be seen in the image at bottom, which are considered to be an important part of the Stavanger's cultural heritage and contributes to its prevailing small-town ambiance.

Breakfast: Black coffee. 

Lunch: Small piece of marinated and grilled Arctic chard, pureed cauliflower, stewed mushrooms, five sauteed shrimp, some green pasta with crab meat, one glass of red wine, and a scoop of chai gelato in a cone.

Bottom: A glimpse of Stavanger from my stateroom aboard Viking Sky while in port that shows the monument to Admiral Thore Horve, who led the Royal Norwegian Navy from 1946-49 and in 1951. 

Viking Sky, Day 10 (Copenhagen, Denmark)

Monday we arrived in Copenhagen, Denmark, and took a tour of the city that started with a visit to the beloved Little Mermaid statue! We also made stops at a fountain dedicated to the Norse goddess Gefjon, believed to have created the main island of Denmark; the residence of the royal family; and Tivoli Gardens, one of the oldest still-operating amusement parks in the world. 


A statue in Copenhagen of the Norse goddess Gefjon, who is credited with creating the main Danish island of Zealand by plowing up a vast area of land in Sweden, thereby creating a lake there. Her team of bulls are her four sons, who she transformed for these purposes. 

Viking Sky, Day 9 (Warnemünde/Berlin, Germany)

Sunday, September 3 we made port at Warnemünde, Germany, and took a train that the cruise line had chartered into Berlin, about two hours away. This was a special treat for me, as the train was very similar to the ones I had ridden around Germany and France while living in Europe in the 1980s. 

While in Berlin we took a tour of the city and then visited the famous Brandenburg Gate, Holocaust Memorial, and Checkpoint Charlie, and had lunch at a traditional German restaurant with our friends David and Candida from the U.K., who just happened to be visiting there at the time.