Day 10 Flam, Norway

What a beautiful place to wake up and have breakfast looking out over. 

Flam sits eight hours inland through the breathtaking Aurlandsfjord. It is world renowned as one of the world’s most spectacularly scenic places and the gateway to sprawling green valleys dwarfed by towering peaks. These primeval mountains, glacial lakes and glorious waterfalls were sculpted during the Ice Age. The landscape around Flam is so dramatically steep that roads are inaccessible in winter, isolating farms from the rest of the world for up to eight months. The introduction of tunnels burrowed into the mountain changed all that.  Flam is also starting point of the world-renowned Flam Railway, which chugs through the magnificent scenery of Norway, past roaring waterfalls and breathtaking vistas.   

We had breakfast and got off the ship to shop a bit before our 4 hr half day train ride. Michael and I had another tour at 2:15 so we knew if we wanted to shop we had to now. Okay so maybe that wasn’t Michael’s thought but it was mine. 😉

It started out ok then the dark clouds came in and boy did it rain. We made it back to ship to check in for the train ride. The train ride was fun and we saw all the beautiful waterfalls and scenery. Hard from inside the train to get really great pictures but I have some to share. 

The guide said they hadn’t gotten this much rain in a while and that we were fortunate to be able to see the waterfalls. So I guess I am happy it rained. 🤷‍♀️ 

We stopped at this one and it was huge. Michael took some pictures but I stayed in where it was dry and warm. 😉

We started to see snow on top of the mountains. The guide said  that came in last night. 



We stopped here at a hotel for a Norwegian waffle and tea/coffee for about an hour and a half. See the snow below 👇🏻 

Vatnahalsen Høyfjellshotell

At the head of the famous Flåm Railway in Myrdal, this hotel is only accessible by train and sits high above Aurlandsfjord. The hotel offers free WiFi, a traditional restaurant, and a lounge bar with pool table and fireplace. 

At Vatnahalsen Høyfjellshotell guests are surrounded by a wild mountain landscape. 

There is direct access to hiking routes and fishing is possible on Reinungavatnet lake. 

Hotel rooms overlook the lake and mountains, and Vatnahalsen Høyfjellshotell has a breakfast buffet each morning. 

The Flåm Railway stops at the Vatnahalsen station just 50 m from the hotel. From Flåm, 12 mi down the valley, fjord cruise routes run to the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Nærøyfjord. 

The popular Rallarvegen Navvies' Road passes through Vatnahalsen. This spectacular cycling route crosses over the Hardangervidda mountain plateau and ends on the shores of Aurlandsfjord.

One of the rooms at the hotel…not thinking I  will book a room here what do you think? 😆


We returned to ship and decided to not do the next excursion since we would miss lunch because we had to pretty much get on a bus and go. We heard those that went said it was a great excursion and lots to see and take pictures of.  But we wanted some soup and hot tea. While we were eating the sun came out for a bit and  Heidi shared this picture. Double rainbows. ❤️

After lunch I did a little more shopping and came back to the ship to get dry because the sun was gone and the rain although light had returned. 

No tea time today we have been busy packing for our departure tomorrow morning.  

Dinner tonight was the Chef’s Table. The theme was Asian so it was just five of us. But it was really a neat experience. 

Forgot  a picture of the Amuse Bouche 🤦‍♀️

Palate cleanser 








All packed up and ready to go home this has been an amazing trip. So happy that we got to come and see a bit of Belgium and Norway with friends. ❤️ 

Just a little side note… Norwegian Waffles vs Belgium Waffles is I prefer the crispy Belgium waffle.   

Day 9 Stavanger, Norway

Stavanger (/stəˈvæŋər/, UK also /stæˈ-/, US usually /stɑːˈvɑːŋər, stəˈ-/,^[3][4][5]Norwegian: [stɑˈvɑ̀ŋːər] (listen)) is a city and municipality in Norway. It is the fourth largest city^[6] and third largest metropolitan area^[7] in Norway (through conurbation with neighboring Sandnes) and the administrative center of Rogalandcounty. The municipality is the fourth most populous in Norway. Located on the Stavanger Peninsula in southwest Norway, Stavanger counts its official founding year as 1125, the year the Stavanger Cathedral was completed. Stavanger's core is to a large degree 18th- and 19th-century wooden houses^[8]that are protected and considered part of the city's cultural heritage. This has caused the town center and inner city to retain a small-town character with an unusually high ratio of detached houses,^[9] and has contributed significantly to spreading the city's population growth to outlying parts of Greater Stavanger.

Most of our  group had a boat ride excursion today to see the Puplit Rock by Cabin Cruiser. 

We all had a walking tour of Stavanger & Oil Museum tour. However the group doing the boat ride had a later start than booked originally so the didn’t do the walking tour. 

The Hall’s and Brown’s went out after breakfast for a walk to gift shops and to see some of the town since it wasn’t raining yet. 

Ice cream anyone? 


A knit shop we found and Mark went in to check it out. 





Susan and Michael in charge of the guns. 

Bed & Breakfast 

Fall is definitely here  in Norway 🍁 

Beautiful flowers everywhere 


McDonalds 

Beaver 🦫 


We came back to the ship for a bite of lunch before our walking tour. We decided to try a new spot called Mamsen’s famous for their version of the waffle…

We headed back to cabin to get ready for our tour in the rain this time. 🙃

Earlier his umbrella flipped inside out and he and Susan were fighting it to get it back to normal. It was video worthy but Mark not I thought about it until afterwards. 🤣





Our guide 



Gossip mirror so while the women peeled potatoes they kept up with all the goings and comings on their street. 🤣


Up the hill we go! I have recorded 38 flights of stairs today. It is that hilly. 😊


This house is so pretty with its blue door and flowers. 










We found a cat so Michael could have a cat moment. 😉 Poor thing was trying to stay dry.


Our ship 


Michael and I bailed on the tour and headed back to the ship.  Mark and Susan persevered and did the whole tour. Sounds like we were not the only dropouts. 🤷‍♀️ 

We caught up with most of our group at tea and heard all about their fun morning. From the pictures and conversations it sounded great. Our ship started sailing towards Flam Norway while we were at tea. 

The seas are rolling  our ship is moving on. Next up is dinner. We all say it “we are so full” yet we show up and eat again  so we can all catch up. 

Beautiful sunset pictures 

We have had great waitstaff each night and a table that sits all of us. 

"Find a group of people who challenge and inspire you; spend a lot of time with them, and it will change your life."

Tomorrow is our last day of  fun and adventure. We pack up tomorrow night but don’t fear we have a full day of  exciting excursions tomorrow so stay tuned.