Back in the USofA

Tuesday, August 8

Port of call - Boston.  Our day started with an Uber to the Boston Museum of Fine Arts.  What a great museum!  We spent about 3 hours there and I feel that we just scratched the surface.  Then it was time to meet Linda's cousin Susan for lunch.  It had been 7 years since they'd seen each other.  We had a nice seafood lunch in the Back Bay.  After lunch Linda and I walked through the Boston Public Gardens and the Boston Commons before heading back to the ship.

We had a nice sailing out of Boston accompanied by hungry gulls.  We obliged and fed them a few grapes.  At dinner we were rewarded with another stunning sunset, this time with the Boston skyline on the horizon.  We also sailed though the Cape Cod Canal later that evening.

Wednesday, August 9

Port of call - New York, New York

We had a beautiful sail in to New York - past Coney Island, under the Verrazano Narrows Bridge, past the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island and past the Manhattan skyline.

After docking we went for a walk through Times Square and then up to Central Park for a coffee at the Tavern on the Green.  That evening we had dinner in "the city" and saw Groundhog Day, the musical.  We didn't know it at the time but Bill Murray was in attendance at the show.  After the show we had to stop at Juniors for cheesecake.

It was a great ending to a wonderful adventure.

If only it really was the ending.  We're now in the United Airlines lounge at Newark Airport and it's 24 hours since we were supposed to be flying home.  Let's just say that it started with an aircraft maintenance issue (understandable) and has escalated into system failures, incompetence and rudeness.  Thanks United.  At least I've had the time to write a pointed letter - and to complete the blog!

Oh Canada!

Thursday, August 3

Sailing away from Greenland on our way to Canada we walked out of dinner to find the most stunning of all of the sunsets we've had on this cruise. The colors were simply amazing.

Saturday, August 5

After another 2 calm days at sea we arrived in Sydney, Nova Scotia, Canada.  I had reserved a rental car for the day with the plan of driving up to Cape Breton Highlands National Park for a little hiking and a little lunch.  We invited a couple (Betsey and Gary) whom we have sailed with previously to join us.  Unfortunately, we were tendering since a big Holland America ship had taken the dock.  With the delay in getting cleared by the Canadian authorities and the chaos of the tendering we were delayed in getting on shore.  When we were finally on the tender I called Avis to tell them that we were on our way.  That’s when I got a good dose of fine Canadian customer service.  The woman at Avis told me that I had reserved the car at the wrong Sydney office.  She suggested that I call the correct one to see if they could transfer the reservation.  By the time I finally got through to the other office, the woman from the first office had already called the Sydney office and it was all taken care of.  She even told me that she would have a van waiting for us at the pier to bring us to the rental car office.  Wow, I was impressed.  Nevertheless, we were late getting started so we wound up taking the scenic drive up the Cabot Trail to Ingonish.  For Canada’s 150th anniversary, admission to all of their national parks is free for the year, another nice surprise.  After visiting the Cape Breton Highlands information center we continued up the coast and found a great little restaurant for lobster rolls overlooking the sea.

 After lunch we just took the scenic drive back to Sydney.  It was fine day that convinced us this was an area we’d like to come back to and spend more time.

Sunday, August 6

Another port in Nova Scotia (Halifax) and another rental car.  Today we could approach things in a more leisurely manner.  First off, we were docked, not tendering.  Second, the ship was in port until midnight so there was no rush to get back.  When I planned for the day I had picked a wilderness area to drive to, making for what looked like a nice loop drive.  When we got off the ship we stopped at the information desk to see if they had other suggestions.  The woman there was quite helpful and suggested a totally different plan which we opted for and then modified later.  She suggested driving up to Grand Pre and Wolfville which lie in the valley between the coast of the Bay of Fundy and the center of the peninsula.  We decided to take her suggestion.  The day started out with a rain shower and then it poured even harder as we started driving.  The shower passed and the rest of the day was mostly fine and sunny.  Our first stop was at Grand Pre, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.  It is a site that features the dykelands created by the Acadians who settled there and also remembers the hardship of the Acadians who were expelled from the land in the 1700’s.  An interesting history that is the subject of Longfellow’s Evangeline.  

We drove out to Evangeline Beach and were greeted by hundreds or maybe a thousand sandpipers flying in unison over Minas Basin.  The basin is part of the Bay of Fundy which has the greatest tidal variation in the world.  We were there at high tide, low tide would come in the evening and be 20 feet lower.

Look carefully for the Sandpipers

 We then drove on through Wolfville with it’s many B&B’s and found a cute little cafe for lunch.  At lunch we looked over the map and modified our plan.  It looked like we could drive out to Cape Split for a little walk and then maybe stop at a winery.  It was foggy driving over the mountain and it was still a bit foggy when we got to the trailhead.  Then we found out that the hike to Cape Split was way longer than we thought so we just took a short walk through the woods which were beautiful.  Our reward came as an owl flew over our heads and landed in a tree near the trail.  

The view thru the fog

Spot the owl

The view after the fog cleared

Our next stop was at the Blomidan Estate Winery.  I had never had wine from Nova Scotia so I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to do a tasting.  Hey, it’s been over 2 weeks since our last tasting!  Their white wines were really nice, the reds too young.  So we bought a couple of bottles of white - we always like to support the local wine industry.  

The next part of our modified plan was to drive across the peninsula to the South Shore with the goal being to visit Peggy’s Cove.  Peggy’s Cove is a highlight of the area and many cruise passengers take an excursion there.  It was another beautiful drive along the shore and just before Peggy’s Cove there is a memorial to the Swissair flight which crashed off the coast in 1998.  When we got to Peggy’s Cove we understood why everyone says you have to go there.  Fortunately we were there late in the day so the tour buses were gone and sun angle was dramatic.

Fascinating Greenland

Saturday and Sunday, July 29 and 30

We have spent 2 quiet and relaxing days at sea.  For us one of the highlights of a sea day is a cooking demo by the executive chef.  This time they did pastries.  As you can see not all of the guests found it exciting.

The big disappointment came on the second sea day.  We were supposed to sail through the Prince Kristian Sound in Greenland on our way to Qaqortoq.  Unfortunately the sound was blocked with ice so we weren’t able to go through.  It really wasn’t a surprise since we had heard that they could not go through when the ship came over from Greenland on the cruise before ours.  I guess we missed some beautiful scenery but we’ve seen plenty including great sunsets and a glowing Linda.

Monday, July 31

Port of call - Qaqortoq, Greenland.  Qaqortoq is a small village of about 3000 people set in a beautiful fjord.  When we arrived this morning it was completely fogged in.  I’d say the visibility wasn’t more that 50 feet.  The fog slowly cleared and the visibility was somewhat better when we took the tender in.  We walked around the town which has many colorful little houses and rock art.  We walked up to get some views and then went over to the tannery where they make sealskin products.  It was interesting reading about the history and controversy surrounding sealing but you have to realize that the Inuit people have been “harvesting” seals for generations.

Seal skins waiting for processing

After lunch we went ashore again to take a walk along the Great Lake.  By then the fog had burned off and the sun was shining brilliantly.  The temperature got into the upper 50’s and the walking was quite pleasant.  By the end all I was down to was just a shirt and still felt warm.  It was interesting seeing all of the local people out and enjoying the warm day.  The town square was crowded and we even saw kids swimming in the lake.  We stuck our hand in the water and it didn’t feel that cold. You can be sure that we didn’t jump in.  We did get into the hot tub on board the ship after the walk - it was hard to believe that we could be doing that in Greenland.

Sailing out of Qaqortoq was fun as we made our way through waters scattered with icebergs.  Eating dinner was a treat as we watched the icebergs go by.  And then the day ended with another colorful sunset.

Tuesday, August 1

Port of call - Paamiut, Greenland.  If Qaqortoq was small, Paamiut was tiny.  Its population is about 1500.  It has the same type of colored houses and a nice location at the entrance to a fjord although we couldn’t see much of it due to fog.  Much like yesterday morning, we were all fogged in when we arrived but, unlike yesterday, the fog didn’t clear quickly.  Because of the fog and the tiny harbor, the ship was limited to operating 1 tender with only 60 people on board for much of the morning.  By the time we felt that it had cleared enough and finally made it on a tender it was about 12:30 when we got to town.  The fog had mostly cleared in town so we walked around a bit and identified 2 spots that we wanted to walk to.  The first was a viewpoint high on a hill over the town but we thought the spotty fog would clear more later so we opted for number 2.  That was a hiking trail a bit out of town where there are supposed to be Giants Pots formed in the rocks.  The sky was mostly clear here and with the sun the temperature was pleasant though about 10 degrees cooler than yesterday.  The trail was a bit boggy in places so we never made it to the pots.  We found a nice spot for a snack and then headed back into town.  

We miscalculated.  By the time we got back the fog had started rolling back in.  We climbed to the view point and got some limited views.

 By then it was time to get a tender back so Linda could make it to her massage appointment.  Paamiut is definitely a quaint little town and we enjoyed our short visit.  By the time we got back to the ship the fog had engulfed us again.  Looking out we could not see much but what we could see of the water was astounding -  it was as smooth as glass, maybe the smoothest I’ve ever seen cruising the seas.  I’m not sure if we’ll see many icebergs tonight and, hopefully, we won’t hit one!

Wednesday, August 2

It’s my birthday so this must be Nuuk, Greenland.  This is the capital of Greenland and the big city with a population of 17,000.  It was, of course, foggy when we sailed in.  We were able to get on an early tender with a goal of walking around town and having a birthday lunch.  The first stop was a hilltop overlooking the city with a statue of Hans Edege.  With the fog we got a view of the city but could not see much beyond.  Later in the day we discovered what surrounded it.  There was also a school group on a field trip at the top.

We then walked north of town until we got to a place where we could get views of the fjord and icebergs.  As we headed back to town the fog finally started lifting, the sun came out and the temperature rose.  And then we started seeing the mountains surrounding Nuuk.

When we got back to beautiful downtown Nuuk we stopped for lunch.  It was time for a Greenlandic lunch.  I opted for the tapas plate - shrimp, gravlax, scallops, dried cod, a musk ox hot dog and a whale steak.  The dried cod was awful - barely edible.  The musk ox hot dog was good and tasty.  The whale steak had a liver-like flavor.  I know some people might not feel right about eating whale but I thought of it as a cultural experience.  The Inuit people have been eating whale for thousands of years.  It was a large part of their sustenance.

After lunch we climbed back up the hill in the sunshine and were rewarded with the views we had missed in the morning.

Before and after the fog

Before and after the fog

Birthday dinner was in Polo Grill with, of course, a special 7-layer chocolate cake for dessert.  When we got back to our cabin it was decked out in balloons, another nice surprise.

I’ve celebrated birthdays in many interesting places - the Grand Canyon, Montreal, twice in Valdez, Alaska, Arhus, Denmark and now Nuuk, Greenland.  Nuuk has to be the most unique.