Alta

The sail in and out of Alta is beautiful – classic fjord scenery with mountains, waterfalls and cliffs. On the way in, a Tai Chi session received applause from passing guests. On the way out, Diva saw black shapes emerging from the water, which could have been seals, dolphins or whales. Lunch on deck, including beer and burgers, was very rushed as TSH and Diva had misread the schedule and thought they were going out at 14:30 rather than the actual 12:30. Diva also managed to mislay her camera, missing the chance to photograph during the excursion, although it was found later on.

There were three destinations. The cathedral was modern inside and out – like an updated and smaller version of the RC cathedral in Liverpool. The theme is the Northern lights, whose general shape is represented both inside and out. The rock carvings (on the UNESCO list) were extensive and easy to pick out, if not always to interpret. They appear to represent a hunting community, depicting their homes, boats and prey, including whales, fish and reindeer.  The third visit was to a slate quarry, with a demonstration of splitting cutting and trimming a large slab of stone. The demonstrator said that the day was so hot that he would remember it throughout the long dark winter (about 9 months of the year at this latitude which is still above the Arctic Circle).

Oh, yes, the weather. The temperature was about 29 degrees C and the Norwegian buses did not have air conditioning which could cope. There was a lot of complaining, mostly from the US guests, and one group were given a new bus. TSH and Diva were in the group for which no other bus was available and the journey, although short, was uncomfortable. The rock carvings were on a hill-side with no shade and there was a requirement to walk what seemed like a considerable distance in the heat. The quarry was home to swarms of insects, including wasps, so vigilance was needed at all times. Some guests though the wasps were a threat to life, others that they were bees and the bringers of life. The shower on return to the ship was the most welcome yet, followed by champagne on deck.