October 4, 2018 - Bodo

Day 7 - October 4, 2018 - Bodo

Last night there was a contest to see who could guess the time we cross the Arctic Circle. I guessed 7/11/12 - I was wrong thank God.  Jackie guessed 7:26:27. The actual time was 7:26:39. No one guessed exactly and she was the closest so she won the contest, although after hearing what would happen, I’m not sure it was a win for her. Her prize was a flag that had been flown on the ship, signed by the captain AND the not so fun part was that she was the first to receive the Arctic Circle Christening, which was have ice and water poured over your head and down your back and then them rubbing it in. She survived it - but we found ice cubes later in the day, even though she changed clothes..  She then got a drink of a liquor to warm her up. After Jackie, then anyone who wanted to be christened was able to have a scoop of ice and water poured over them.  I passed on that little bit of fun.  

Waiting to pass the arctic circle....it's early....

This is the marker

A close up view

Announcing the winner

I thought I had one of the ice going down her back - but maybe not....  Hard to see - but Nord is behind her getting ready to douse her with very cold water.

At about 12:30, we docked in Bodo.  Bodo is the second largest town in northern Norway. Bodo has 50,000 inhabitants and lies just north of the Arctic Circle. We chose not to go on an excursion with the ship, but took a city walking tour with our Gate 1 guide, Birgette. Cathy and I walked into town - saw the local cathedral, and walked around the shops.  There was a fancy chocolate shop Birgette pointed out - so I picked up some lovely bars to take to my friends in the UK and some Macaroons for Jackie - because she didn’t join us and I knew they were her favorite.

We found a fabric shop there in town and I picked up a little bit of fabric and a couple of patterns.  Good memory.

Funny story:  Jackie’s back was bothering her, so she stopped at a cafe for coffee that Birgette had pointed out and I told her about.  Problem was, I hadn’t heard the whole story - it was actually a cafe that catered to people who were homeless and down on their luck.

Poor Jackie, she said it was a nice cafe, but something didn’t feel right. she got her coffee and sat down. A lady that works there came up and started talking. She told me they cater to the homeless, people with drug problems and those down on their luck. She felt like maybe she should leave but we talked about how they are funded and the area. Then a man asked if he could join us and shortly thereafter another woman. she said she felt really out of place but everyone was so nice. She finished her coffee, thanked the people for their conversation and tried to pay. She was told it was on the house and enjoy the rest of my trip. What started out as a little uncomfortable turned out to be a nice time chatting with the locals.

We had another stop at 9 pm in Svolvaer. We only had an hour, but they are famous for their Magic Ice Bar. So, of course, we had to go. It was a short walk. We paid 155 kroner, which is about $20 and it included admission and a glass of wine. We were given heavy coats to wear to go in as the temperature was -6 degrees. They had many beautiful ice sculptures. We stayed about 30 minutes and then it was back to the ship.

This was a very long day. We were up early so we could see the crossing of the Arctic Circle which is marked by a monument, and at 11 pm, we stopped at the narrow opening to the Trollfjord. I skipped the Trollfjord, but Jackie and Cathy got some good pictures.  We also listened to a story told by one of the expedition crew about the battle of the Trollfjord, which is depicted on the wall on the 4th floor of the ship.