Torvik - Typical Norwegian Coastal Town

Not such a good start for me today, as we had to cross our first stretch of open sea called the Stadhavet and I discovered the hard way what a lousy sailor I am:( However, I'd brought the anti-sickness pills and I was soon feeling much better! I never had a problem again, as I just took a pill when open water was forecast.

The views from the ship were fantastic and the picture is of a little fishing town called Torvik, where we stopped for just 15 minutes to load some cargo. I just love the wooden houses and the shore setting. The light is beginning to change and can be quite strange at times, so camera settings are a bit hit and miss.

We had our first excursion this afternoon, with a visit to the charming town of Alesund, which has a delightful Art Nouveau style of buildings in the centre. The first stop was at the Aquarium, which I thought might be a bit boring but which was actually fascinating and we watched a diver dressed as Santa Claus feed a huge tank of fish!

The coach then took us up Mount Aksla, passing the most beautiful houses on the way, each one different from its neighbour but all gorgeous. There was snow about three feet deep at the top and the view over the harbour (and our ship) was spectacular. So many photos and so little space!!

We returned to the ship in time to watch a lovely film about the Northern Lights, which everyone is hoping we'll be lucky enough to see and then it was off again to, first, Molde and then across some more open sea for 2 hours (no problem - took a pill) and arrived at Kristiansund late at night, so just saw the pretty lights of the town.

We slept like babies after a busy day:)