Final day in the Fjords – Haugensund. To be blunt, an anticlimax.
We decide to go for breakfast in the restaurant for a change. Veggie breakfasts in the buffet tended to be beans, mushrooms, pancakes, cheese and croissant all on one plate. In the restaurant we get served a traditional breakfast, which makes far more sense.
We head into town.
The interweb states: Haugesund, homeland of the Viking kings and birthplace of Norway, is a place where you can inhale the Viking spirit. Surrounded by beautiful coastline, spectacular waterfalls and majestic fjords it’s no wonder the kings called this extraordinary setting home. Populated for thousands of years, you can walk in the footsteps of the great kings at the Nordvegen History Centre and travel back over 3,500 years. St Olav’s Church, dating from 1250 AD, is a monument to the former days of glory, and next to the church stands one of Norway’s tallest pillars, Virgin Mary’s Sewing Needle. Not only is Haugesund filled with charming markets it’s also home to Norway’s longest pedestrian street.
The trouble is, today it is pissing down, so it is difficult to see any of these spectacular sights.
Again, we had no trips booked, expecting this town to have enough to offer. It was raining, so once again we hop on a hop on and hop off bus. The windows of the bus are steamed up because of the rain, so we don’t really get to see much, but every time I wipe the windows, I am underwhelmed. The bus makes a five-minute stop at the Virgin Mary’s Sewing Needle for people to take photographs. I would imagine on a nice day it would be quite spectacular, but we choose to stay on the bus.
I recall something on the multilingual audio guide about a law being passed that every tenth house had to be made of brick, as a firebreak for when the wooden houses catch fire. This is the most memorable thing that I absorbed from that trip.
Eventually we decant from the bus and explore on foot.
This is a large urban area and doesn’t feel in the slightest bit fjordy. It is not too different from Pontypridd or Newport, although it is mostly indigenous shops, with the likes of McDonalds, Greggs and Primark that have been known to make appearances in other European cities thin on the ground. I’m not sure where these charming markets are hiding though.
We wander in search of one of those Norwegian Jackets I fancied at the beginning of the trip, in the right size and colour. Again, plenty my size, but none in the colour I wanted. I briefly consider opting for something other than black. But only briefly. The search involved two coffee stops. One in a nice local café, the other in a multistorey shopping precinct thing.
The best thing I can say is, of all the cities I have ever visited, Haugesund is one of them.
We head back to the comfort of the ship.
After a siesta we go for a drink. Tonight, is Black Tie night again, so we opt to give the restaurant a miss and eat with the proles in the buffet. It is curry night, and we have no complaints. More gin, cider and wine is consumed.
We find ourselves spending the whole evening in the buffet, mostly drinking and chatting, and occasionally grazing. Conversations are struck up with complete strangers, some we have nothing in common with, some that live a few miles from us in the valleys and have loads of mutual acquaintances.
Come 11pm the hordes once again arrive for the late-night snacking. Many in black tie who have presumably already eaten in the restaurant, but still rock up for a three-course meal to top the night off. During one brief wander Posh discovers Sticky Toffee Pudding flavour cheese, which is irresistible, so we have to sample it. And sample again. Then just before we go back to our bunks, sample some more.
