Last lingering, remaining moment on this trip....we fly by our lovely Mauna Kea volcano on the descent into Kailua Kona.

So, thanks for following our fun, ladies & gents. We have another pretty exciting trip planned for Dec/Jan, and I don't want to spill the beans too early, but it may or may not rhyme with Schmafrica. Stay tuned!

So, now that I'm back in SoCal (grrrrrrr), I have decent enough wifi to be able to post a couple of short videos....they follow.

Just a glimpse of what it's like out in the zodiacs, here we're heading back to the ship after a few hours of zooming around.

The cable car ride up Mt. Loen in Nordfjord.

The waterfall in Trollfjord

Trollfjord, which is surely one of the most stunningly beautiful places on the planet.

Flying over the west coast of Greenland, on the long trek home.

Various and sundry.

In the late 19th century, there was a thriving artist colony in Skagen. Artists such as Peder Severin Krøyer and Anna Ancher painted wonderful stuff (it's pretty obvious they were not unaware of Monet & the French impressionists). I like the first two paintings considerably more than the third.

Skagen. At the northernmost point of Denmark, the North Sea meets the Baltic. One might think that's largely a rhetorical judgment, but the Google maps image shows a distinct disruption in the water, at the point at top-right. It is apparently this experience which draws locals and tourists to wade out in the frigid water. No comment.

Danish fish & chips. Yes, the brown stuff is a dill sauce. My British buddy Rob just woke up in the middle of the night in a cold sweat. Which, I think, is not unusual for him.

If there was one thing about Scandinavia that was a shock (although hardly an unexpected one), it was just how expensive everything is. Routine dinners edge close to $200. If you want to buy a $40,000 car, the tax rate is 180%, meaning the taxes alone are $72,000, thus making a $40,000 car actually cost $112,000. Ah well, I guess they've gotta figure out ways to pay for all that.......well, you know. 😱

Nyhavn, the quintessential Scandinavian "look".

For the foodies out there....our reindeer carpaccio with juniper berries & Jerusalem artichoke chips.

The new(ish) opera house, and a look down a typical canal.

Rosenborg Castle, along with some trinkets in the Crown Jewels.

...and from the other direction.

Obligatory, of course....and the accompanying commercialism.

We'll be in Copenhagen for a couple of days, before our long slog back. My usual end-of-trip depression has arrived in full force.

So. We have disembarked our wonderful ship, and are now knee-deep in sackcloth and ashes. 😰

I opted not to buy this book.

"Giant Norwegian gull eats houses, waits by breakfast table for scraps."

The helicopter gave us fabulous views of the Stavanger area, including circling above our ship.

We took a helicopter flight from Stavanger this morning. Gorgeous views....in the middle photo, the flat-top rock just below center-right ("Pulpit Rock") is dotted with hikers.

They keep the ship in beautiful shape - here I noticed them touching up the paint on the anchor!

The percussion section of the Kona Philharmonic is in town.

Mt. Floyen, Edvard Grieg (Bergen's favorite son).....and some king crab legs and, well ....(ahem) whale meat.

We took a funicular up to the top of Mt Floyen, the view was wonderful and contemplative. The spinning class at the top, to the strains of blasting heavy disco-rock, was considerably less serene.

Our next port of call is Bergen. We've been sailing through some of the most gorgeous natural scenery imaginable, but when it comes to more urban settings, Bergen is quite picturesque.

Various & sundry.

A 4th of July concoction aboard ship. They explained to me what was in it (*shudder*), which made me less interested in trying it.

Sitting on our balcony, enjoying the sights.

A restaurant at the top has floor to ceiling windows, for obvious reasons.

More exploration by zodiac today. Then after that tour, we ride an amazing cable car to the top of Mt. Hoven.