Day 12, Geiranger, Norway.

​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.