Live/Silver Cloud: Norway Coast/Fjords July 1-16 Reports

[TLCOhio]

Originally Posted by jgrahamiii

The Macallan is a fine whiskey, though I'm guessing they only had the 12 year old on board based on what I see in Terry's great picture. The Aberlour is the 15, which IMHO is an excellent though still reasonably priced scotch. Much richer, smoother and fuller of flavor than the 12 YO Glens and Macs. In fact, I prefer it to and of their 15s as well. Now the 18YO Macallan puts the rest to shame, but that's a wee bit more money! Actually, I'm assuming that this 15 is the one that is finished off in sherry casks. Greg, do you know if that's the case? It's right on the front of the label, but I can't quite tell from the picture.... I'm not that into Champagne, so I was hoping to ask for a bottle of Aberlour for the room when I saw the picture. In any event, it seems like there are plenty of spirits to keep us busy... -John

Greg: Regarding the Whiskies: I personally killed the last bottle of MacCallen on board. If I understood what the bartender told me correctly, SS used to have MacCallen but changed to the three Glens plus Aberloue as their single malts. After Mac was dead I found the Aberloue 15 quite satisfactory (though I don't pretend to be a single malt conniseur).

THANKS for added follow-up comments/questions! It's good to know that Greg was working so very, very hard on his detailed research about the Scotches during our cruise. Below is a little closer picture that shows the Aberlour to say "15" on the label. Agree that there were plenty of spirits to keep everyone busy and happy. Rest assured that Greg, duct tape and me did not drain the Silver Cloud dry. There's plenty left for future cruisers. Enjoy! Terry in Ohio


Here's a close up of that top row of Scotches on the Silver Cloud on July 6.:

[batecher]

jgrahamiii,

Yes, the bottle in TLCOhio's closeup above reads "Sherry Wood Finish". I think, though, that that this is a discontinued bottling that will likely be replaced soon with Aberlour 12- or 16-year-old double-casked single malts.

Bob.

[jgrahamiii]

Originally Posted by batecher

jgrahamiii,

Yes, the bottle in TLCOhio's closeup above reads "Sherry Wood Finish". I think, though, that that this is a discontinued bottling that will likely be replaced soon with Aberlour 12- or 16-year-old double-casked single malts.

Bob.

Ooh, I hope not. I really like the 15 - and it is hard to find around me. Thakns for the info everyone!

[sweep]

Thanks for your helpful reply, Terry. Pleased you enjoyed Windsor Castle. They have done it up nicely since the fire haven't they? As residents we can get free entry anytime but we rarely make use of it which is a shame. We always attend the Christmas Eve Midnight Mass in St George's Chapel though which is really special.

We have just got our cruise documents and have suite 504. This is the very front cabin on deck 5. Does anyone know what it is like? Are the Vista cabins on Deck 5 the same as the Vista cabins on deck 4?

Did your wife use the hairdressing salon? If so can you please give me an indication of prices?

Best wishes
Sweep

[TLCOhio]

Originally Posted by sweep

Thanks for your helpful reply, Terry. Pleased you enjoyed Windsor Castle. They have done it up nicely since the fire haven't they? As residents we can get free entry anytime but we rarely make use of it which is a shame. We always attend the Christmas Eve Midnight Mass in St George's Chapel though which is really special. We have just got our cruise documents and have suite 504. This is the very front cabin on deck 5. Does anyone know what it is like? Are the Vista cabins on Deck 5 the same as the Vista cabins on deck 4? Did your wife use the hairdressing salon? If so can you please give me an indication of prices? Best wishes Sweep

THANKS for the nice comments and your lovely hometown of Windsor! That's a truly world-class site for history, art and architecture. BUT, what you're close to, sometimes it doesn't get visited enough.

My wife didn't have them do any hair treatments. Our friend got the foot treatment and loved it. You can see her happy smile. The staff seemed very nice and upbeat there when I visited and took this picture below.

I have not been inside suite 504. I assume it is pretty much, on the inside, exactly or about the same as the other Vista and balcony suites. The only downside is that you are at a farther walk away from the central elevators on the ship, taking a little extra time and effort. You might get a little anchor-dropping noise at a few times from what people have told me on the 4th level at that far front part of the ship. Enjoy! Terry in Ohio


The Spa is popular on a sea day and here our friend, Janet, is treated like a “QUEEN”, loving it so very much!:

[gdlamberth]

sweep,
Only other issue about "front" is motion. We started out in 609 (well to the front) but after our leak we were moved to 626 (pretty much amidship). While I don't typically have any sensitivity to motion; both my wife and cousin do and they said there was a significant difference. In fact I've been directed not to book a forward suite on any future cruise.

[CaseyB2]

Terry, Sorry to be slow getting to you. Your trip narratives and pictures were great. keep up the good work.

Ken

[TLCOhio]

Originally Posted by CaseyB2

Terry, Sorry to be slow getting to you. Your trip narratives and pictures were great. keep up the good work. Ken

Appreciate Ken's nice comments. I am now polishing up a separate and final “review” or report on the Silver Cloud to be posted on Cruise Critic. It will pull together lots of details that might be of interest to those considering the Silver Cloud for their future bookings/sailings.

I also had this one other area of items that I wanted to post on this question: “What did we learn about Norway and its economy during this visit?” This is one of the areas I had not touched on that much in the earlier reports.

Norway is very, very costly. That's one of the key advantages for doing a cruise there to lessen some of those higher lodging, food and local transportation costs when attempting a land tour. Plus, in this area of the world, the rail and road options can be a little limited due to the geographic of this country.

From my research, there are three main factors for these higher costs in Norway. First, that 25% VAT tax hidden in the cost of all products and services does really add up. Second, their taxes are very high and those costs all get added into things and drive up labor, etc., costs. Third, since so many of their goods need to be imported (with decent tariffs added on), it all makes these costs higher and higher. Without all of the oil wealth since 1969, Norway would have a fiscal mess. Thanks to that oil money, it has driven up labor costs and demand in many parts of their country. That wealth, however, means they have no national debt, have enjoyed lots of infrastructure improvements and have a "sovereign fund" equaling about $100K per person. It's an interesting country and financial situation. Before doing this trip, I had also talked with a fellow Ohioan who had been the US Ambassador to Norway 2001-2005 and he had given me added background and history on this country.

Despite these high costs, there is the beauty of this spectacular coast with their expected fjords, plus the mountains, green fields, islands, etc.

What might things cost in Norway? Here are a range of examples. At a 7-11 (yes they have those there) in Alesund, a Snickers candy bar would be $4. A beer in front of the historic warehouses in Bergen was $13.25 (I did say it was $12 earlier, but my math was bad in converting its 85 NOK cost to dollars). Lunch for two with a small pizza, hamburger and two drinks was $65 in Tromso. You get the idea? Not cheap. Sorry! Far from it. A Toyota RAV4 that costs around $23,000 here would have been $62K at the showroom in Leknes on the Lofoten Island.

Our guide in Bergen also explained that there are serious labor and people “imbalances” in Norway. Women are in larger numbers (compared to men) in the cities, while in the more rural/country and more northern areas, it is the men in much larger proportion. The country also needs more people as its population is aging, quickly. About 8% of the population is immigrants. Our guide said there is a phrase of “we need more hands” to reflect the future question/challenge of who will do the work and services in the future for Norway as its population gets older.

BEST SHOPPING: We liked Bergen best with it various woolen items. The prices were fairly reasonable and provided nice and enjoyable item to give and share as memories of our trip to Norway. You can see a couple of pictures below on that fun of shopping in the heart of charming Bergen.

PICTURES: Several have been kind of enough to mention the quality of my photos. This might have been mentioned earlier, but I wanted to share that you can check this posting from my 2008 Baltics trip. This includes my detailed suggestions and “secrets” to getting better travel pictures. Comment on that earlier posting and let me know your reactions.
TERRY’S PHOTO TIPS:
http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=977864

THANKS to all who have spent any time on these postings! Now we are over 14,500 views, which is a huge number. Appreciate that interest and all of the comments and questions. Keep it coming! Don’t be shy or a stranger.

Enjoy! Terry in Ohio


Where do you shop in Norway? Here are a couple of examples in Bergen in looking for woolen items in the charming area right near the Fish Market. As you can tell by the friendly smiles, both my wife and Sharon were enjoying themselves. :

[tonyballoons]

hello terry,
We (bart and ann-sophie) had a lovely cruise on the Cloud last april. loved it so much that we are booked on the TA barcelona-barbados next november. every day we are talking about our next cruise with the Cloud last week, sunday morning, before going to the bakery for croissants, I took my laptop in bed and we have read your very nice review of the cloud. having a great morningnice to see that your captain is smiling, we had captain Peter ,,,,, and saw him never with a smile and the only crewmember that wasn't friendly(but hey, we survived); sad to read yestereday that captain pontillo has debarked, I hoped to have him as captain for the crossing.
can you remember if Rodger, the poolboy, was still on the cloud? hey really was very attentive for us.
Your photos are amezing, can I use the photo from the Cloud in the sognerfjord as my personal wallpaper?

many thanks for the review and nice photos, it reads like a book

greetings

[TLCOhio]

Originally Posted by tonyballoons

hello terry, We (bart and ann-sophie) had a lovely cruise on the Cloud last april. loved it so much that we are booked on the TA barcelona-barbados next november. every day we are talking about our next cruise with the Cloud last week, sunday morning, before going to the bakery for croissants, I took my laptop in bed and we have read your very nice review of the cloud. having a great morningnice to see that your captain is smiling, we had captain Peter ,,,,, and saw him never with a smile and the only crewmember that wasn't friendly(but hey, we survived); sad to read yestereday that captain pontillo has debarked, I hoped to have him as captain for the crossing.
can you remember if Rodger, the poolboy, was still on the cloud? hey really was very attentive for us. Your photos are amezing, can I use the photo from the Cloud in the sognerfjord as my personal wallpaper? many thanks for the review and nice photos, it reads like a book. greetings

THANKS, Bart and Ann-Sophie, for the kind comments on the Silver Cloud report and the pictures! Of course, I would be honored if you want to use that Sognerfjord picture as your personal wallpaper. Roll with it!! On Rodger, I do not know if he was our cruise. We spent some time around the pool, but not a huge amount of time, given the cooler weather in this area. His name does not immediately come to mind. Let me know any other questions or comments. Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

[joanne59]

Terry--just enjoyed your cruise photos/blog and must say that by far, you are the best photo poster/blogger on CC I have had the pleasure of finding. I've never posted a live blog before, and was having issues uploading photos, but a tip in your other thread helped me to realize an important step I had overlooked. Finding an iPad app to store/upload the photos was the first step, then cut and paste the direct link, and it worked.

Thanks again for all your hard work and dedication to making a cruise photo journal for all of us to enjoy.

Happy cruising....Joanne

[duct tape]

tonyballoons, I have passed on your greetings to Rodger. He was tickled!

[tonyballoons]

Originally Posted by duct tape

tonyballoons, I have passed on your greetings to Rodger. He was tickled!

live from the voyager off the seas,
thanks duct tape, looking foreward to meet the nice crew on the cloud again,
saw today the clouds twins, the silver Winds, looks shes in great shape too. thats all for now, internet on sea isn't cheap,
one again thanks duct tape,

[TLCOhio]

Originally Posted by joanne59

Terry--just enjoyed your cruise photos/blog and must say that by far, you are the best photo poster/blogger on CC I have had the pleasure of finding. I've never posted a live blog before, and was having issues uploading photos, but a tip in your other thread helped me to realize an important step I had overlooked. Finding an iPad app to store/upload the photos was the first step, then cut and paste the direct link, and it worked. Thanks again for all your hard work and dedication to making a cruise photo journal for all of us to enjoy. Happy cruising....Joanne

From Cruise Critic Editor in chief: Question for you: I'm writing an intro today or tomorrow for the blog and would love to include a few of your photos. If that's okay, send a few of your favorites. Also major thanks to TLCOhio; Terry your info is superb and your photos magical....Carolyn

THANKS, Joanne, for the nice comments on the cruise postings! Also appreciate folks for "tuning in" and checking out this posting. It is now over 18,000 views! Wow, that's a great response and interest.

As noted above, the Cruise Critic Editor, Carolyn Spencer Brown, is now on a Norway Coast cruise. It's on the Seabourn Sojourn and she is writing about this cruise (www.cruisecritic.co.uk/blog). She's visiting Flam, Alesund, Olden, Molde, Bergen and Stavanger. It's a Copenhagen to Amsterdam itinerary. September is late in the season and the weather might be a little iffy. If interested, check out her blog posting. She's included several pictures that I took on our cruise as a preview for Norway on this blog of what she will be seeing and doing. On Sept. 22, she'll be in wonderful Bergen. Right now, that weather forecast from AccuWeather is saying wonderful sunshine and a high of 55F for this town on that date. Loved Bergen! And we saw this new Seabourn Sojourn ship in Bergen on July 14 when both the Silver Cloud and this other luxury liner were there together in the port with a couple of larger 2500-2700 passenger ships.

For memory fun, here's a Silver Cloud picture of it in the fjord. Don't think I had previously posted this picture. Enjoy! Terry in Ohio


This is the Silver Cloud in the top-rated and super scenic Sognerfjord. We are getting ready to depart from nearby Gudvangen after our morning visit to Flam, riding the railroad there, etc.:

[ricki]

Hi Terry,

Your photos are absolutely fantastic and are such a wonderful addition to every board on which you post!

My husband asked me to ask you which type of camera and lens you use. Any special tips? Your shots are so incredible!

Thanks!

Ricki

[TLCOhio]

Originally Posted by ricki

Hi Terry, Your photos are absolutely fantastic and are such a wonderful addition to every board on which you post! My husband asked me to ask you which type of camera and lens you use. Any special tips? Your shots are so incredible! Thanks! Ricki

THANKS to Ricki for the interest from you and your husband! Part of the "secret" is to have great weather and go to wonderful places with nice people. We got that in doing the Norway Coast, fjords and the Land of the Midnight Sun on the Silver Cloud July 1-16, 2010. It is nice that the postings as we traveled worked so well and have received so many views and nice comments.

Photo secrets? It's a little more than just the "camera". It's a Nikon D50 SLR. Good, but not at the super pro level. Lots of people have cameras at and near that quality or comparable. These days, the digital technology has improved so much that nearly everyone can take good to great pictures. Here are some of my tips, secrets and suggestions to share. I found taking cruise and travel pictures is fun, plus much, much cheaper than shopping for souvenirs.

1. ZOOM/FRAMING: Fill the frame and make it interesting. Use your feet. Move closer. Zoom in or out. Make it tighter in the picture frame, etc. People don't want to be bored with a key subject or highlight being only in the middle 15% of the picture frame.

2. LENS: Many of the nice pictures in certain famed palaces and churches in Russia, etc., were taken with a 10-20 mm lens that gives a wider angle view than average. That really helped create some picture "drama" without being too wide and distorted as can happen with a fish-eye lens. There are cases where that longer lens (have a 70-300 mm zoom) can really help. In many cases, my basic 18-55 mm zoom covers the middle range. It's nice to have one lens that covers all needs, but then you lose some in the desired picture quality.

3. LOTS OF PICTURES: With digital, it is much easier and cheaper to take lots of pictures, see what you have, take more pictures, try different angles, etc. In the old 35 mm film days, you could not take as many different pictures and you were always guessing and hoping on exposure, what you really captured, etc. Then you need to be checking as you go on what you just shot, blow off the duds, etc. It's great instant feed-back on what's working and what's not. As you are riding on a bus, waiting in line, that picture checking is a good way to both pass the time and monitor your picture progress/success (or failure).

4. STEADY HOLD: I mostly use the eyepiece viewer, not the back of camera viewing screen. That keeps the camera closer to my body and makes it more stable. Use your elbows against your body to brace the camera. I'll lean against walls or door frames when taking certain inside pictures in low light situations to improve . . . stability! You don't want blurred and shaky pictures. Set the camera on walls, chairs, etc. Stability! Some think that if they push the button faster to take the picture, then it will be better. WRONG! Gently S-Q-U-E-E-Z-E that shutter button, slowly! It makes a major difference in picture quality.

5. PEOPLE: Having people as a part of the picture gives it context, interest, etc. Lots of "just the place" pictures are nice, but I have found that the ones with some human involvement and/or connection look and work better.

Do you download your pictures to your computer? Today's technology makes it easier to straighten pictures, adjust the cropping, fix color balance, improving your crops, etc. I usually take my MackBook Pro laptop along, downloading and checking the pictures as I travel, etc. That helps to know what I'm getting and improve my "focus" as I travel in such great, scenic places. Playing with the pictures on the flight back while I listen to the "tunes" on my computer also helps pass the time quicker. Many laptops also have great programs to put these pictures into nice “slide shows” with various great visuals tools to add titles, do dissolves, etc.

Reactions to this summary? What's missing? Appreciate the interest and comments. Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

[JaneBP]

This thread with your narrative and wonderful pictures has done more to pique my interest in silverseas and this itinerary than any cruise specialist could. Wow!

[TLCOhio]

Originally Posted by JaneBP

This thread with your narrative and wonderful pictures has done more to pique my interest in silverseas and this itinerary than any cruise specialist could. Wow!

THANKS, Jane, for the nice comments on the summary and visuals I posted! YES, we were impressed with the quality of the service, food, etc., on Silversea. Hope you come along and give them a try. Be sure to tell them to send me a "commission" check.

Appreciate the fact that this posting is now over 19,000 views. When we got back on July 19, this was at 206 posts and 8,879 views. Glad there is continued interest. It was fun, BOTH . . . being on this great cruise and to do the postings as we traveled. Keep up the comments and sharing. Don't be shy if you have any questions.

Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

[mfantasia]

Terry, thank you very much for this report. We are tempted to take a Baltic cruise, so we are looking for the offers. Your report has giving the incentive that I needed, those pictures were awesome. I'm also tempted with the Silver Cloud, as we would like a more customized cruise, the only problem is that we have a 5 years old daughter that always travel with us and even if she is used to cruise, in the last one (Disney) she preferred to stay on board while we were to ports, which it worked fine for us, I don't think that we can compete with Mickey (we have to bribe her with the monkeys in Gibraltar in order to get her to the Rock). Anyway, I saw only one little girl in your pictures and I'm conscious that this is a cruise that is not marketed for families with little ones, so I might take another cruise line, but wanted to tell you that I was amazed with your pictures and trip recount.

[duct tape]

Unless it is the holidays or school vacations, SS does not tend to draw children. There are no programs or provisions for their care.