Alesund

Tuesday 5 August

Good and bad news to start the day! !! The good - another very pleasant day of weather as we docked in the centre of Alesund.  The bad - overnight sms' from CBA advising of 4 attempts on my credit card, totalling just on $5000 (it seems the smallest, of around $320, has got through).  So ........... cancelled card and dealing with Mastercard International re issue of emergency card (not so easy as we head toward arctic circle!!!!). May get through without one, so I will sit on it for a few days.

Off the ship and onto the Hop On Hop Off bus for a lap of town.  WiFi on board provided opportunity to publish blogs of last few days.

Alesund is beautiful town surrounded by water and islands.  While it has a long early history, its modern history derives from the establishment of its port in the early 19th century. It is the most important fishing harbour in Norway due to its central location and the discovery of oil in the North Sea in the 70's. Need to check this further,  but the suggestion is that if all Norway's North Sea oil and gas royalties were cashed out,  every Norwegian would be a millionaire.

After a full lap on the Hop On Hop Off bus we got off at the top of Mt Aksla which sits high above the town, and from which there are stunning views. Norway is very expensive - $6.50 for a serve yourself cappachino from a machine and then $2 for the toilet!!!  418 steps down to the town below (and they are about to close for a rebuild,  so it is fairly tough even going down).

Walked around the beautiful town harbour with colouful buildings - all brick in town centre and rebuilt in early 1900's following a fire which wiped out the town.  Building in wood is now only allowed outside a defined distance of the centre.

After lunch, a visit to the fishing museum to see what has been so much of this town's history, and the centre of so much innovation in fishing technology - from fishing boats, to netting and capture, and to processing.  Rolls Royce has a plant here expressly for the fishing industry.

Brilliant clear sky and flat sea as we departed,  Elton John tribute show after dinner and back to cabin - still some twilight at 10.30pm.