Day 7 of 35 - On the North Sea in the Queen Mary 2

Monday was a very quiet day on the ship. We are sailing on a calm North Sea toward Kristiansand - Norway. We will dock there Tuesday from 7 am to 12 noon. It is a city of about 120,000 people - along the southern coast of Norway. It is in the sunniest region of Norway. It was occupied by a troop of 800 Nazis in 1940 - without resistance.

Railroads that go north all over Norway - they terminate in this city. 

We plan to do a little shopping and see some historic sites. It is 58 degrees north latitude - way farther north than Tamaqua PA at 41 degrees. Its climate is influenced by being along the coast and also receiving warmer winds from the North Atlantic Gyre. 

We doubt we will see the Northern Lights in July. 

The Queen Mary 2. I am learning more about the ship every day. I am happy we did not spend 7 days crossing over from New York City to England. I think 7 days of nothing but sailing would not be my idea of fun. It is an opulent ship. They pride their tradition and service. A vast majority of the passengers are old Brits sailing just to get away from home. The medium is the message. The travel seems more important than the destination. These are just my opinions from my 24 hours on board. England has a history of being the naval power of the world. They can't seem to get over their ships being taken over by jets. It took us 7 hours to get to London - versus 7 days on the ship. 

We look forward to seeing Norway - the people - the history - the buildings - the stores - and the cars. After that our 3 weeks in Paris with the family and Olympics is our reason for traveling. 

 

I love the art work all over the ship

Lulu was lovely on dress up night. 

It looks like a big window - this is our balcony

Our balcony is mostly closed. This is because
the ship was designed to cross the cold North Atlantic.
It goes 35 mph - that generates cold breezes. 
This protects you a bit.