March 4: Stavanger
Day 3 (March 3) was spent crossing the North Sea. We arrived in Stavanger, Norway on March 4. Stavanger is the primary location of North Sea oil operations in Norway. The city consists of an "old town", dating from the 1700's, near the port, and the newer section, away from the port. We had booked one of the ship's free excursions, an "overview" tour around Stavanger.
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| View of the Old Town from the ship |
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| View of a typical house on our tour |
Our first stop on the tour was the "Swords in Rock" monument, where King Harald Harfagre fought a battle that united Norway into one kingdom in 872 AD. The monument was constructed in the 1980's.
Next we passed by the
Sola Ruinchurch, which was built on the foundations of a 12th century Roman Stone church.
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| Modern suburbs of Stavanger, on the way back into town |
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| A lake in the center of town |
Back in the center of Stavanger, we visited
Stavanger Cathedral, which dates from 1125 AD.
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| Exterior of Stavanger Cathedral |
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| Interior of the Cathedral |
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| A tombstone from the 1600's in the Cathedral |
From the Cathedral, we walked around the harbor and then took a walk in the Old Town
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| Buildings along the harbor |
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| More buildings along the harbor |
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| View of the harbor from the ship |
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| Old Town, viewed from the ship |
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| Houses in Old Town |
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| Sardine Canning Museum |
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| About $12.00 for a Whopper meal |
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| Our ship in Stavanger Harbor |
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| Part of the more modern part of central Stavanger |
March 5: At Sea
A few shots of the Norwegian coast:
March 6: At sea (again)
Today, we were supposed to stop at the town of Bodo, but due to rough seas (that I didn't notice), the port was canceled, so we proceeded to our next stop, Tromso.
Meanwhile, here are a few shots from the ship:
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| The obligatory "Tribute to ABBA" in the ship's theater |
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| Brenda and Sue Brown, our neighbor, in one of the lounges |
And, a few more shots between Bodo and Tromso.
Next: Days 7 and 8: Tromso and the Northern Lights
