​I woke up early and peaked out the balcony to see a wall of mountains.  We were in the fjord.  I couldn’t go out because our night owl was sleeping on her bed and I did not want to disturb her.  I waited until I dressed and went to breakfast to see the beauty of this area.

We all went to breakfast together and sat outside to enjoy the views.  Next to us was a table of officers so Chris had his chance to solve the Arctic Circle mystery.  He asked if one was the navigator and one replied he was the captain!  He first said we did not pass it but the other officer said when the passed it last time he took a picture with his phone.  He showed Chris and it was almost the same picture Chris took.  The captain then said “well I guess we did cross it” and something about going a little more north for environmental reasons.  Glad to know I can check this box off but still disappointed in the answers we had be given by others. 

​We had a boat tour of the fjords at 11 so we walked around the port area prior to our tour.  The boat tour was very nice.  The Geiranger fjords has some of the most majestic scenery I have ever seen.  It is reminiscent of Tracy Arm in Alaska but on a bigger scale!  We saw so many waterfalls with the highlights being the 7 Sisters and the Suitor.  There was an audio tour you could listen to during the trip.  I would highly recommend this tour.  
After the tour, we popped into the bakery for some Norwegian pastries and coffee.  We had skoolbread and another similar style pastry.  I enjoyed this dessert and Epcot so I wanted to try the real deal.  It did not disappoint.  So good! 

​Chris and Veronica had an  Electric car rental at 2:30 so I returned to the ship  The car is a small 2 seater so I decided to let them have fun.  I was ready for some alone relaxation.  It was quite warm so I put on my bathing suit and jumped in the hot tub.  I had the tub to myself soaking my muscles while soaking in the fjords.  I was watching a small waterfall enjoying the warm waters.  I was comfortable enough to lay out in the sun for bit.  George was working the pool bar so I had him make me a painkiller.  I sipped my drink enjoying views that definitely did not suck.  
I returned to the cabin to change to grab a little lunch.  I ate my lunch outside because how could you not!  I went back to the cabin and enjoyed the balcony view with the most amazing glittering water I have ever seen.  It looked like pure glitter on the surface sparkling.  I decided to do some writing up by the pool.  I had a few days to catch up on.  I was just about caught up when Chris showed up.  I think I will let him write about his adventure. 

Electric Car Aventure:

We had rented an electric car from https://www.geirangerfjord.no/electric-car-tours-2 and chose the 1 hour option which was around $100.  The rental is a Renault Twizzy which is very small and has manual steering and brakes.  Although I am used to driving an electric car, this was a much different experience than my Tesla Model 3!  The pickup and orientation to the car was a breeze and Veronica and I were soon on our way to the scenic overlook.

We were soon out of the congestion of "Downtown Gerainger" and quickly headed to the Eagle Landing road which was our route to the scenic lookout at the top of the mountain.  Eagle Landing road is a course with 11 hairpin turns that is used by automakers to test vehicle handling in winter driving conditions.  The Twizzy had enough pep to get us safely up to our pitstop and the voice guidance on the GPS unit narrated our drive up.  We parked and enjoyed the vistas and waterfalls at the scenic overlook. We even spotted a Tesla in the wild!

After spending a few minutes at the overlook, and helping some fellow cruisers who had mistakenly entered a Twizzy and couldn't figure out how to get it started (turns out they were in someone else's car!), We made our way back toward port and the final leg of the 1 hour journey to the heritage center and waterfall hike.  We shared a Norwegian Waffle and local microbrew and hiked back to the ship.  I would highly recommend the Twizzy experience as it gives you a self guided option to see more of the area and contributes to a green tourism experience, which Norway has made a priority.

​Since we went to bed early, Chris and I woke up earlier.  I went for a short lap around the deck but it was the coldest day so far and since we were moving it was windy.  The forecast was a balmy 41 F.  Not a great pool day!  
We had coffee and a light breakfast before early riser trivia.  We walked inside the ship for some exercise.  After lunch, we went to the International Cha Cha class with Katia and Zenia.   We went to Galaxy for Castles and Palaces trivia.  We teamed up with a great family and did OK.  It was probably the most challenging trivia so far.  We stayed chatting and watched the salsa class while sipping Campari cocktails.

​We had coffee and a light breakfast before early riser trivia.  We walked inside the ship for some exercise.  After lunch, we went to the International Cha Cha class with Katia and Zenia.   We went to Galaxy for Castles and Palaces trivia.  We teamed up with a great family and did OK.  It was probably the most challenging trivia so far.  We stayed chatting and watched the salsa class while sipping Campari cocktails.  
I think one of the best parts of small ship sailing is meeting people.  I enjoy having conversations and then being able to see them again later in the trip.  The other great thing is meeting the crew.  We love chatting with them and hearing their stories.    This is a part of why we like cruises so much.  
We had to return to the cabin to change for the evening.  We had a repeat cruiser party at seven so we wanted to fix ourselves up a bit.  We returned after showers just in time for trivia and found our teammates, the Falkland Phillies.  The announced the lounge was closing to prepare for the party so we headed to the buffet for a light dinner.  
We returned for the Latitudes Party.  We saw a few staff members near the doors and it was very crowded.  We found seats with another couple and enjoyed a nice conversation.  The dance band, Sonata was performing so we enjoyed a few spins around the dance floor. We were waiting for the members of the officer team to be announced.  It didn’t happen.  The cruise director just thanked us for coming and acknowledged one couple who had done the equivalent of three years of cruising on NCL.  It wasn’t much fanfare for them just a little clapping.  I think they should’ve gotten a small token for all those cruises!  
Chris did speak with Lorena the cruise director about our obsession, the Arctic Circle.  She claimed we did not go past it.  She said it was further north and moves each year.  She said she announced in the show that we did not cross it.  Hmmm..I’m not buying it.

After the party, we stayed in the lounge and watched the Perfect Couple gameshow which is always good for a laugh.  Tonight was the Neon Dance party but we chose to stay in the Galaxy.  Veronica attended with her friends and said it was fun.  She said everyone painted their faces unlike the larger ships were it can be more chaotic.  We danced to the music of C-Notes first set and stayed for their Lionel Ritchie tribute.  The first song was Easy and we did a pretty nice rumba to it.  After that, the music was more upbeat and the dance floor had a nice crowd.  We were a bit peckish so we made our way to the 24 hour quick food spot, the Blue Lagoon.

Although we were tired, we waited until midnight to join our friend Heather in the Maharini night club.  Her son, Ellis was turning 21 and she was planning some fun.  She bought a bottle of Jack Daniels and poured shots for everyone.  We all toasted his birthday at midnight.  We watched the twenty somethings dance but decided to return to our cabin since we were losing an hour tonight and tomorrow was our first Norway port!

​Today, we docked in Akureyri, Iceland at 8:00am and we had an early tour scheduled.  We booked this tour independent from NCL and was a much better value.  We found our guide easily and waited for the others.
As we started driving, this area of Iceland was even different from the various landscapes we saw two days ago.  The first unusual thing was a very long tunnel through the mountain.  It seemed never-ending.  We timed it on the way back and it took 6.5 minutes to go through the tunnel.  
The first stop was Godafoss waterfall or the waterfall of the gods.  It was a breathtaking display of nature.  Seeing the rainbow the falls made was so gorgeous.  It was back to the bus to head to the next stop the pseudo craters. 

​The pseudo craters were created by a volcanic explosion many years ago.  We took a few photos but found this stop to be the least interesting.  I was more excited for what was coming next.
We stopped at a photo point on Lake Myvatin for a few moments.  This area was used in Game of Thrones. It was the site of the Wildling camp in I believe season 3.  I could picture John Snow trekking though the rocks here.
Off we went to the Dark Castle.  This area was either created by volcanos or by trolls who were having a party and forgot the sun was rising.  When the sun came up, they turned to stone.  Some of the formations do look like faces and one is two trolls kissing.  The other interesting lore of the area is how Icelanders believe in a few Santas.  These Santas spend their winters in these caves.  We climbed up to look into this Santa den.  We saw pacifiers hanging on a rope.  We wondered if Santa stole these from babies so we asked our guide.  She said these were just placed there and shouldn’t be.  I’m sure there’s a story to go with them.  
Back to the bus and off to the mud pits.  You could definitely smell the boiling mud pits as we arrived and it was amazingly strong outside.  I have never seen bubbling mud and the landscape with steam vents made us feel like we were on another planet.  The view was worth the odor but a younger member of the group was not enjoying it.  He ran up to us covering his mouth and nose saying it was like “rotten eggs and a men’s bathroom times one hundred”  What a great description!

​Our final stop was the nature bath Myvatin.  We were very excited to experience a geothermal bath.  The surrounding area was desolate with just the building and the bath.  We paid an entrance fee, showered and changed to our suits.  We had one hour to enjoy this spot.  The water was the perfect temperature.  It was a stunning, milky, light blue.  The water has minerals that make it very slippery.  It was quite strange but so relaxing.  I could have stayed in the water much longer.  We showered and changed back into our clothes with enough time to grab a snack.  Chris wanted to try the Icelandic speciality of smoked trout on rye.  I gave it a taste but couldn’t eat more than a bite.  It was very smokey with a fatty texture.  The bread was super dense and sweet.  Veronica chose a salad and I ate a delicious pastry.  Chris also tried a Viking beer that was only 2.5% alcohol.  We all remarked how relaxed we felt and if the bus was more comfortable I am sure we would have napped.  We did not get back to the ship until 3:00pm.  It was a very fun, busy day.  We had walked quite a bit at each stop and were tired.

​We all wanted to take a shower before the evening.  Chris ran up the buffet for some chips and salsa for us to snack on in the cabin.  We went for drinks and trivia before dinner and Veronica left us once again for her friends.  Chris and I enjoyed an early dinner in the buffet.  We met our new Falkland friends for trivia in the pub after dinner.  We are creatures of habit so we ended our night in the Galaxy having a few dances and watching the Yes or No gameshow which gave us a few laughs.  The ballroom duo was having another show but we both felt the bed calling us.  We called it a night early even though tomorrow is a sea day.  A busy day in Akureyri took us down! 

​We were leaving Iceland at 12:00 today but felt we had seen plenty the day before and decided to make it a full “sea day” for us.  We slept in and relaxed.  Chris and I are pretty nerdy when it comes to travel and cruising and had studied the maps prior to our trip.  We both were very excited to learn we would be above the Arctic Circle for a short period of time.  Chris went to Guest Services to ask about what time this would happen.  The staff member did not know but said she would call to the bridge after sail away to ask.  She asked him to return in an hour or so.  We went to CruiseNext trivia to kill time.  It was mostly propaganda to buy a CruiseNext reward but we did win, flexing our cruise port knowledge!  In addition to signatures, we also won two lanyards that we had to pick up at their office.  Hmmm…a way to get us to buy that reward??  Chris popped over to Guest Services to find out the time we would be passing.  We thought it would be fun to jump in the pool or at least the hot tub at that time.  He was told we would not be passing through.  When he returned with this information, I did not believe him.  But how could the bridge be wrong?  Chris went to get our prize at CruiseNext, the lanyards I mentioned earlier.  Since they are the itinerary experts,  he decided to inquire about the Arctic Circle.  They said we wouldn’t pass through but showed him future cruises that would be above the Arctic Circle. 

We went to our usual trivia at cocktail time.  Then, it was the buffet for dinner and to Henry’s Pub for pub trivia.  I know this is not a food centric report compared my last trip but the main dining has not intrigued us much this voyage.  We joked with some delightful people at trivia from Stanley in the Falkland Islands and said we would team up with them tomorrow.  They are also keen to know about crossing the circle since one of them has piloted zodiacs on a cruise to Antartica, so for him to now be at the other end of the globe is a true feat for him.  Their home is definitely on our bucket list! It is still quite chilly and dreary, which is typical of the weather in the North Atlantic.

​We returned to our favorite spot, Galaxy of the Stars to finish our night.  The bartenders who work there have been outstanding.  We did a little dancing and then entered the Ultimate Dance Clash.  This is the event that they pair you with a crew member to find out who has the best moves to a variety of styles.  Unlike Caribbean itineraries, very few entered.  So shocker, we both got picked.  I was paired with a dancer while Chris got his first choice pick, a member of the cruise staff from Croatia.  We danced our hearts out and I scared the British judges with my East Coast vibe but alas we made it to finals only to lose to the older lady.  We realize we can’t the old men or woman who have the joie de vivre to enter a contest in front of tons of people and that will be shown on cruise tv.  Some day, we both hope to be that passenger multiple times over!  
After our public workout, we had another drink and Chris watched the monitors displaying the ship’s position.  We were steadily heading north right for the Arctic Circle.  The Arctic Circle is located at 66 degrees 33 minutes.  We were getting close.  No way we were not watching this monitor.  Then we noticed we passed it!  Success!  We crossed the Arctic Circle.  Warm after dancing, we ran to cabin and changed into our suits only to find hot tubs drained and pool covered.  Oh well, at least we crossed it.  I am however a bit upset that either Guest Services never called the bridge or that the bridge has no idea where we are going.  The latter is the most troublesome! 

​Arrival to Iceland was at noon, so we had a leisurely morning on the ship getting ready for our day.  We had a quick snack at the buffet and then joined the line to disembark.  What a line!  They only had one gangway open and the line was not moving.  we didn’t get though the line until 12:45.  The rental cars were right at the port which was great.  There were no cars available if you did not reserve one so plan ahead.  We hopped in the car and off we went.
Our plan was to drive the Golden Circle.  Our first stop was the Ferid crater.  It was a quick stop but worth it to see the gorgeous blue water inside the deep crater.  We then went to the Fridheimar greenhouse for lunch.  It is a very unusual restaurant as you eat right inside a working greenhouse filled mostly with tomato plants.  The menu is highly tomato based with the specialty being tomato soup and fresh baked breads.  They offer bloody Marys, tomato beer, tomato coffee and tomato and apple pie as well.  We chose the soup and bread lunch.  The soup was amazing.  They have basil plants on each table to cut it fresh for your soup.  Also on the table is sour cream for the soup and a cucumber salsa for the bread.  The bread was phenomenal.  Truly perfection and great with the sweet cucumber salsa.  Lunch was pricey at $70 but honestly worth it.    We walked a little in the greenhouse and saw the bees that pollinate their plants.  What is very interesting was how you do not see a single bee in the area where you are dining.  I guess these bees were serious about their job!  We walked past the horses and could see a horse show going on as we passed.  Two women were riding along holding mugs of beer and not spilling  a drop.

​Our next stop was Geysir.  There we got to see the geyser erupt four times.  Fascinating!  The water bubbled up the most beautiful light blue and then exploded into the sky.  I could have watched it four more times but we wanted to go to the next stop on the tour which was the Gulfoss waterfall.

​We parked and had a little walk to see a stunning waterfall.  You could see it from a distance or walk down a few flights of stairs and a path to get closer.  We walked about half way to get some pictures.

The landscape on the Golden Circle is very diverse.  Most of the landscape is very desolate.  At times, it is rocky and mountainous.  Other times, it is very green with sheep and cows grazing.  My husband did very well driving but a few sheep did scare him.  I saw the one sheep’s eyes and it was just as scared!  
Our final stop was the tectonic plates at Thingvellir.  Here you can walk between the plates that separate Europe and North America.  You can even stand on each continent, which of course we each did!  The formation of the rock was extremely interesting.

​I cannot pick a favorite stop along the Golden Circle.  Each was so very different and unlike anything I have ever seen.  We made our way back to Reykjavik to fill up the tank.  We used a quarter of a tank on our journey and it cost us $25 to fill up.  Iceland isn’t cheap but it certainly is beautiful.  It was very easy to drop the car off right at the port and place the keys in the drop box.  
We were back around 8:00pm and hungry.  We stopped off at the buffet for some food and then went to Galaxy for a drink.  We enjoyed cocktails while Veronica met up with her friends.  Later, she joined us and since we were overnighting in Reykjavik we felt a trip to the Blue Lagoon was in order.  It is so relaxing having chicken wings brought to us!  For those not familiar with the Spirit, Blue Lagoon is the name of their “O’Sheehan’s” late night restaurant.  But it made a great joke so we had to do it.