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Tuesday 13th October 2026 We made good progress northwards and our principal purpose today was to use our stopover in Trondheim to find the remains of the German U-boat Bunkers (Pens) of WW2. Largely intact, because they were built of virtually indestructible 5m thick concrete, they have been integrated into an industrial estate. One of

The first major town on today’s journey was Alesund, the headquarters of today’s fishing industry. Evidence of the past importance of cod is to be found in the remains of the Bryggen on the waterfront. This was only a brief visit and we returned later in the day to enable us to leave the ship. 

During the morning we toured the old town with remnants of the time of the Hanseatic League when the Bryggen was the centre of the fishing industry. As a transshipment hub fish from the fishing grounds of the far north and Lofoten Islands was forwarded to mainland Europe and England. A Hop on Hop off

We arrived in Bergen in the early evening after two flights, delays and lengthy EU Immigration queues. Following dinner we ambled around the harbour with views of the Bryggen.

Today saw the start of the journey home. At 16:10 we caught the first of two flights over the next 24 hours to get us initially, to Singapore. The first flight was on board a Singapore Airlines A380 Jumbo, brought out of retirement to service this busy route. We departed northwards and therefore had great

More good progress was made overnight on a flat, calm sea. At 12:30 a.m. we rendezvoused with the pilot at South Head, the outer entrance to Sydney Harbour. By 01:00 we were on approach and slowly passed Potts Point, the Opera House and under the Harbour Bridge at what was then low tide. At 07:00

Today is our final day at sea. Overnight we made good progress on a flat calm sea, towards Sydney. All morning were 10 miles off the southeast coast of Australia. Linear developments of small towns along the narrow coastal strip, backed by low mountains, were visible from our cabin. Later, we passed large cliff-like deposits

We arrived in Melbourne (Wominjeka) at sunrise, docking at the Cruise Terminal at Port Melbourne, southwest of the city centre and visible after opening the curtains. We went ‘walkabout’ in the area around the massive Flinders Street Railway Station. We discovered the most amazing Art Nouveau and Deco buildings, preserved and still used amongst the

Today was a getting there day. At breakfast time we were making good progress with a push from the southwesterly winds and a moderate sea, with Tasmania off the port side. Later in the morning we passed through a channel between Flinders Island and the mainland. The wind was now Force 7 as we passed

Tasmania is another product of the breakup of the ancient Gondwanaland continent. We saw the evidence of the breakaway of New Zealand from Australia but here in Tasmania the island broke away along with Antarctica as individual landmasses, which is why the island has more in common geologically with Antarctica. Glaciation has been a major