After sailing almost the length of Norway from south to north, and only visiting small and often isolated settlements, it is with wide eyes we look out over Tromsø this morning. This is our first big city stop since embarking in Bergen: 75,000 people live here. In fact it is the fourth largest city in Norway and by far the largest in the northern territories of the country. Tromsø has been called many things over the years--“the Paris of the North” was a nickname for many years since it was the only harbour in the far north where you could get fancy European clothing and food. In the era of exploration the city was given the nickname “The Gateway to the Arctic”. From here, trappers, whalers, and explorers went out towards the frozen north. It was the perfect starting point for such expeditions as the harbour will never freeze in winter. Tromsø is perhaps most famous as being the place that Roald Amundsen ventured out with his plane in an attempt to assist an Italian expedition in dire need of rescue in the pack ice north of Svalbard. This was to be Amundsen’s final expedition, but the world never again saw this great explorer and the wreckage of his plane was never found.
This morning Tromsø wasn’t showing us its best side. Rain and heavy clouds were masking the mountaintops. The rain meant that most of us chose to join the bus tour that encompassed three of the city’s most important features: the Arctic cathedral “Ishavs Katedralen”, the city museum, and the polar museum. Being indoors away from the rain while being able to learn more about life above the Arctic Circle is a great combination, and with informative local guides we returned to the ship with a much better understanding of this fascinating city than we had before.
A few of us did choose to brave the rain and went on the nature walk. The walk took us to a small freshwater lake with rich bird life and also to the botanical garden in the city centre. Red-throated divers and tufted duck were highlights.
Back on board most of us realised that two guests had enjoyed a day a bit out of the ordinary. Flo and Su had the mayor of Tromsø on board as their guest to show her the vessel. This was in order to give a bit back to the mayor for her excellent hosting from earlier today. Flo and Su had been private guests of the mayor and got a private trip around town and to the town hall, because Flo had donated a painting of Tromsø from 1922 to the city. Today this painting has a prominent spot in the town hall and the mayor wanted to show her gratitude by showing her the city.
In the afternoon we set sail toward the north and Svalbard, passing by Fugleøya on the way. Here we saw a massive amount of puffins and even a few white-tailed eagles. A wonderful end to our time in mainland Norway.
