ATW Day 109 - A Return to Isafjordur

Today we were docked in Isafjordur, Iceland, a port we have been to several times.  Isafjordur is a nice little town of about 2600 people.  Today there were 3 cruise ships here including a Princess ship which can carry over 4000 passengers.  So, between the 3 ships we easily doubled the population!

Our Plan A for the day was to hike over an hour to a waterfall that we have visited in the past.  But, when we received an invitation for a special lunch on board the ship, we had to go to Plan B.  I'll describe the lunch later in the post.  Plan B was to just walk around the town for a couple of hours before lunch.  The day started off cold and drizzly.  Fortunately, the drizzle had stopped by the time we left the ship.  Unfortunately, it never warmed up.  The temperature remains in the mid 40's.  We were prepared for that.  And the wind was calm as you can see inn the photos.

We walked until we came to a playground.  Linda wanted to bounce on the pad but she was unwilling to take her shoes off!

I was willing to swing and Linda braved the zipline.

We continued our walk, enjoying the waterfront views and the colorful houses.

Then it was time to head back to the ship for our lunch date.  The idea for this lunch started when we heard that GM Gabby enjoys a baguette with cottage cheese for lunch.  We'd been asking him when we were going to enjoy that lunch together.  Yesterday, he told Linda that the lunch was planned for today with the Executive Chef, Justin, in the specialty restaurant, Red Ginger, which is closed for lunch.  And, he told her that there would be a surprise.  Well, it turned out that there were a few surprises.  When we sat down, there were plates of 3 kinds of crostini including 1 with prosciutto and a simple salad.  I have to admit that I broke down and ate ham for the first time in over 5 years!  It was all so good.

Then came surprise number one - an amazing ravioli filled with spinach and ricotta and with an egg that burst when you cut into the ravioli. Amazing, crusty sourdough bread from the French restaurant onboard was the perfect accompaniment.

We had hoped that they would be buying some fresh fish in port today and that became surprise number 2.  They had bought over 200 pounds of very fresh salmon and Justin had it prepared perfectly.

And, now for the final surprise.  If you remember, there was a tres leches cake for our anniversary dinner.  While it was beautiful and good, the consensus was that it was too dry for tres leches.  So, Justin told us that he had to redeem himself and redeem himself he did.  Today's was deliciously moist!

By the time we walked out of that lunch we were totally stuffed.  I'm pretty sure that there will be no dinner for us.  After I had a nap, still feeling bloated, we went for a short walk off of the ship.  It helped in relieving the bloating.

                                        

 

And now, as we do another beautiful sail away, of course the sun is coming out.

Until tomorrow from Reykjavik, peace and blessings,

Linda and Larry

ATW Day 108 - A Return to Akureyri

Before we get to Akureyri, Iceland, let's talk about last night.  We had a wonderful anniversary dinner with GM Gabby and Destinations Manager Ali in our Red Ginger Chamber.

Since we were above the Arctic Circle, the sun never set.  The following photos were taken at 10pm, midnight, and 3am, respectivley.

Today marked a return to Akureyri, Iceland and it was a great return.  When we were here in 2024, Linda's hip prevented her from walking without a walker and so her walking was very limited.  In 2024, we did a short walk together in the morning and I went for a much longer walk in the afternoon.  What a difference 2 years and 1 hip surgery make.  Check this comparison out:

This year, we basically repeated my longer walk but it was much better since we did it together.  Akureyri is a beautiful place which provided nice views even before we left for our walk.

We were prepared for cold weather with temps in the 50's but the sun partially came out and the wind was light.  It didn't take long for Linda to unbundle and for me to remove my jacket.  We started walking along the waterfront to arrive at the square where a historic walking route I had downloaded began.

Walking along the main pedestrian street, we came to this playground.

When I posted a photo like this 2 years ago, our son, David, asked if I had tried the slide which I hadn't.  I could not resist this time.

We continued our walk through town, eventually making it to the lovely botanical garden.

The route we took led us to a rather steep climb up to the area of the garden.  Linda was again triumphant when we got to the top.

  I took way too many photos in the garden so I'll try to limit the number that I post here.

In the garden there was a cat that the birds did not appreciate.  They kept swooping down at it to protect their turf.  Linda managed to get a photo of the action.  The bird was quite fast so it is a bit blurry.

From the garden we continued our walk further out from town before looping back in.

At one point, we passed a spot that I remembered taking a photo from last time and here are the two.  This year's is on the bottom.  Something like the more things change, the more they stay the same?

It was then time for lunch.  Those of you who follow my blog know that I am a lover of Norwegian fish soup.  I found a restaurant on Google Maps at the art museum that had rave reviews for their fish soup.  Sadly, when we got there we were told that they had no fish soup  today!  So, it was time for plan B.  I identified another restaurant near the playground and they had seafood soup.  It was excellent and Linda enjoyed her mushroom soup.

Walking around Akureyri we noticed several of these interesting trash receptacles.

On the way back to the ship, we passed these common eiders.  I have to say that the males were far from common and the females were quite bland.  I guess the females have to spend all of their time caring for the young and don't have time to properly groom.

That concluded our joyous day in Akureyri.  I say joyous because it was so special to be able to enjoy it with Linda rather than on my own.  Yes, after 57 years we still enjoy being together.  That said, I'd like to thank everyone for their happy anniversary wishes.  And, the weather really cooperated.  As I am writing this and they are preparing to sail away, it's drizzling!

Tomorrow we return to Isafjordur,

Peace and blessings,

Linda and Larry