Viking Cruises

ere was nuance in the shapes, the birds that clustered on and around them, the sparse flora and fauna nestling in nooks and clinging to crannies, the way the sunlight reflected in the deep, dark water made every second thrillingly different and created a hunger for the next moment of magic. I think I finally fell asleep at about 3.30am. e midnight sun is one of those things people can tell you about until they, or you, are blue in the face. You need to see it to believe it and I can pretty much guarantee you'll be as surprised and seduced as I was. After that the surprises came thick and fast. So thick and fast in fact, I nearly missed the second one. Breakfast, 7.30am, Day Two. e important bit here is 'Day Two'. Late night island spotting is exhausting, but nothing comes in the way of breakfast, and breakfast in the Viking World Café is just the best. I was steaming full speed ahead past reception and heading for the eggs benedict when I realised the smiling Maitre d' had said 'Good Morning Miss Cotter Craig'. Hang on a minute, I had only been on board for just over 24 hours, there were 900 people on the Viking Sea, and yet he was able to greet me, and every passenger who came in to breakfast by name. As the cruise continued I discovered this was standard with so many of the staff – the stateroom stewards, the security team who waved us on and off the ship, the shore staff, the waiters and waitresses, the ladies in the spa – everywhere. Now that's a surprise like a warm hug. Next, Geirangerord. To be honest I had been a bit sceptical about the ord part of this cruise, I'm Scottish, I live on the shores of Loch Linnhe, have swum in Loch Ness and have even taken a boat out on Loch Lomond, so what on earth could a ord offer that my beloved Scottish lochs didn't? Quite a lot it turned out. Clockwise, from left: Lupins growing in the Nordic countryside; the picturesque fishing village of Honningsvåg; Fi was surprised to discover apricots grow so close to the Arctic Circle e first thing that took my breath away were the farm houses precariously positioned hundreds of metres atop fortress-like walls rising from who knows what depths, and accessible only by narrow vertical tracks. at's bad enough, but if you were a small child or animal there was a pulley and basket combo to hoist you from sea level to the top. Extraordinary. However if anyone had asked me what sort of things I'd expect to find growing there (unlikely, but stick with me) I would have said; carrots, potatoes, peas, beans, maybe the odd turnip, but almost certainly not apricots. But grow there they do. Geirangerord is 62 degrees north and only a few hundred miles south of the Arctic Circle, and here the most delicious and northerly apricots in the world thrive and grow. Arctic apricots? Yes please. I really did need a little lie down after all this overwhelm and it still wasn't 9.00am. en we got off the ship and went for a very Norwegian hike, I say very Norwegian because it involved walking up some incredibly steep hills quite fast. ere was just something so intriguing about Geiranger that a bit like the adventurous schoolgirls in Picnic at Hanging Rock we felt the urge to walk higher and higher, but mercifully without the disastrous consequences that befell them. You need to see the midnight sun to believe it and I can guarantee you'll be as surprised and seduced as I was viking.com 13

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