Kirkehamn, Hidra - Norway, 6/21/2017, National Geographic Orion
Aboard the
National Geographic Orion
Europe aboard NG Orion
We woke up to another absolutely beautiful day cruising up a fjord called Listajorden and had breakfast while the ship anchored near Kirkehamn on the island of Hidra. We chose between a kayaking tour of the islands, a hike to Hogasen, or a bus ride to a walking tour of a Flekkefjord. On the walking tour we saw the historic parts of the old town known as Hollenderbyen. The kayakers had local guides to show them around the island. After kayaking they went to the historical Hidra Church. Then a presentation at Isbua Restaurant where they enjoyed coffee and cakes. The hikers enjoyed a steep hike up to the top of Hogasen where they could enjoy a fantastic view of Hidra and the National Geographic Orion. After the ship set sail again we explored a few spectacular fjords and Lucho (our expedition leader) was feeling a bit thirsty. So Captain Martin Graser gave him a drink by sticking the bow of the National Geographic Orion into a waterfall.
R. Aaron Raymond started his career as an underwater photographer, which blossomed from his love for the ocean. He grew up on a sailboat diving for abalone off the coast of California. He loves to photograph landscapes, nature, and wildlife - anythin...
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The Faroe Islands are an extremely wild, open smattering of land in the North Atlantic Ocean. They sit about halfway between Norway and Iceland, 200 miles northwest of Scotland. These rugged lands are home to roughly 50,000 people and a subpolar oceanic climate. The National Geographic Orion arrived in Torshavn after a delicious lunch to explore the main center of the Faroe Islands. About 25,000 of the islands’ population lives in this relatively large city, which has a very modern feel.
When you pull back the layers in the Shetland Islands, you never know what treasures you might unearth. Dig through the peat that blankets the rugged landscape and you may come across ancient ruins, such as those at the impressive archeological site of Jarlshof. Peel open the layers of paper surrounding the meal you just ordered at Lerwick's best chip shop, and you may uncover haggis, black pudding or hamburger, deep fried and dripping with grease...a guilty pleasure if ever there was one. Given the rough tight we experienced the night before as we traveled from Norway to the Shetlands, it’s a wonder our stomachs could handle such a daunting task. But never ones to avoid a challenge, we devoured our fried delicacies with gusto and washed them down with ample amounts of Irn Bru, Scotland's infamous bubble gum flavored soda. It was a slightly overcast day in Lerwick, and that, combined with the old stone buildings that line its streets, gave the town a grey pallor. A young girl dressed in a bright blue kilt provided a spark of color as she performed Highland dances in a square along to a recording of bagpipes. While neither this style of competitive dance nor the Highland bagpipes are typical to Shetland, both have become recognized expressions of Scottish culture around the world. In Shetland, country dances are more common. A relative of American square dances, groups spin and change partners to standard steps. The folk music of the Shetland Islands is usually played on fiddles with a Nordic style that reflects the Norwegian heritage of these islands. While some of our group explored the town, including a visit to the recently built Shetland Museum, others took buses across the countryside to some of the island's archeological sites. Jarlshof offers a fascinating, multi-layered vision of Shetland's history as successive communities were built from the ruins of their forgotten predecessors. Primitive bronze-age stone houses provided the foundations for a Viking village, which was in turn built over by a 17th century mansion. It wasn't until the 1800s when the ocean washed away a sea wall and revealed the hidden ruins that the complexity of this site was discovered. Our brief visit to Scotland ended, appropriately enough, with a whiskey tasting in the lounge, accompanied by a playlist of Scottish folk music. The rich flavors of the different whiskeys, ranging from sweet to smoky, embodied the complex layers of history and heritage that make up this fascinating part of the world.
