A very uneventful sea day. Despite the rough sea at night, we were able to get some sleep. The boat was originally scheduled to get to Bodø by noon, but with all of yesterday's problems along with the weather issues, we did not arrive at Bodø until 3 pm. At about 11 am, they announced that we were crossing into the Arctic Circle. There was a postmaster on board who would stamp a postcard or paper with an official "Crossed the Arctic Circle" stamp. Since we would not be getting off the boat, we decided to use the fitness room, not a popular spot on the boat. I used the elliptical while Mark rode a bike. I have to get my steps in! There were some nice views from the exercise room as well. On of the things we did see was the mountain range called the 7 sisters.
After lunch, we read some more and then they announced that the boat was docking in Bodø for just an hour. Mark and I decided to get off and explore the town. Bodø receives rain almost all year and is one of the windiest places in Norway. We didn't find it to be a very pretty city with large tanks and boat containers near the dock. We walked up to the town center (10 minutes), looked around and took pictures, and then returned to the ship before it sailed off. We saw some salmon farms off the boat and tried to get some photos as we sailed by.
We still had a couple of hours before dinner (late seating at 8:30 pm), but we couldn't find any open seats anywhere. Since the boat also acts as a water taxi, people get on at one city and travel to the next stop. When we stopped at Bodø, there were quite of few people getting on. They might not be spending the night on the boat, but they still needed a place to wait until we got to their port.
Dinner was potato and broccoli gnocchi, mushroom and oat cake, and flourless chocolate cake with vanilla gelato. I could not have the mushroom and oat cake due to flour, so I was given beef instead. It was not a very good cut of beef. I gave some to Mark and he agreed.
Each night, the Expedition team discusses the upcoming port and excursions. The crew member also told us about Theodor Kittelsen (1857 - 1914) who drew the first pictures of trolls. We also learned about the word "skål" for toast in Norwegian. It is from the viking word for bowl and the vikings were asking for more beer from the bowl as the shouted skål to each other.
There was an unscheduled stop at Svolvær in the Lofoten Islands. (Last picture, a night picture). This worked out good for the passengers who were heading to the islands. It was a calm evening as we sailed between the islands.
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