Above the Arctic Circle in Narvik

All day yesterday we cruised the Norwegian Inside Passage heading north. At some point we crossed into the Arctic Circle and this morning we docked in Narvik at around 9:00am. Last night I woke up around 3:00am and looked out our balcony door and it was snowing. It was coming down hard and fast but since we were on the water nothing was sticking so I couldn't tell how long it had been snowing or how much had fallen. But is was beautiful to watch. This morning we woke up around 7:00am and it had stopped snowing and we were getting nearer our destination. At 8:00am we went up to the World Café for some breakfast and coffee. The place wasn't too busy and we had a nice relaxing morning as we ate and watch as the ship docked in Narvik.

After eating we returned to our cabin and got our things. Then we went down to Deck 1 to disembark so we could take a shuttle into town. The shuttle was less than a five minute ride into the city. We wandered around a bit and really didn't see much. We thought there may be an old part of town with shops and restaurants but we didn't find anything like that. So after about an hour we decided to walk back to the ship. It was a pleasant morning, it snowed a little and it wasn't too cold to be walking and it was beautiful.

Once back on the ship we had some coffee in the Explorer's Lounge and relaxed for an hour or so. Then we returned to the room where I edited photos and blogged while Thomas read. Around 3:00pm we headed down to the Star Theater for our 3:15pm excursion. This was a bus and walking tour of Narvik. Once we were loaded onto the bus we drove around the town while our tour guide gave us history about Narvik and the area. We made stops at a few locations around town - Narvik Marina, Narvik Church, the Arctic Train and Ankenes Church. It snowed most of the time we were out but it wasn't bad. The snow actually made the town beautiful and serene. The tour lasted about two hours and then we were taken back to the ship. Thomas and I changed and then went down to dinner in the World Café. Tonight they had seafood and some traditional Norwegian dishes. It was all very good.

After dinner we were in our cabin - Thomas was reading and I was editing photos when they made an announcement that there was aurora borealis action. We just went out on our balcony and got to see it from there. It wasn't very bright or big but now I can say I saw the Northern Lights. I took a few pictures - they didn't come out great but you can see the lights. The trip is fulfilled now that we have seen the lights, everything from here on out is all icing on the cake.

Sometime tomorrow we will arrive in Alta where we will be for a couple of days. I am enjoying this trip tremedously.