Silversea
Cruises' Silver Shadow
Cruise
Diva's Cruise Diary
A Swedish Sojourn
At
Sea, July 19, 2007
With four port-intensive days behind us, a sea day on
Silver Shadow offers an ideal opportunity to relax and recharge for
our final port--an overnight in Stockholm. Once again, we look
forward to activities on board, highlighted by Dr. Atkins' final
lecture, "Does Islam Menace European Civilizations?" His
insights help us to understand the changing world demographic.
 |
|
The
world's richest Birthday Cake |
From serious contemplation of
current events, we were happy to move on to fun stuff, like a
shuffleboard tournament, Martini tasting, and the Galley Lunch--a
Silversea tradition. I love the opportunity to meet the chefs behind
the scenes and "raiding" the galley is a gastronomic
delight. While we were heaping our plates with shrimp, crab legs,
and other treats, Mel noticed one of the confectioners' delights--a
chocolate cake. He asked what it was (a birthday cake) and how to
get a slice. The response was, "If it's your birthday, or you
simply ask." So he asked and we were rewarded with one of the
most exceptional desserts at sea. Trust me, it tasted as good as it
looks!
Before getting down to the business
of some pre-debarkation packing, we kicked back at the pool as the
"games" began. Yes, there are fun things to do poolside
besides warm a barstool or chow down on a fantastic freshly-grilled
hamburger. While at sea, there was water volleyball and a table
tennis tournament. For the more more sedate and cerebral, there are
needlepoint lessons, Bingo, and spirited sessions of team trivia
during tea.
While we still have another night
onboard, our sea day ended in another formal evening, beginning with
the captain's farewell reception, followed by dinner (with more
lobster!), and another show starring Emma Sinclair.
Stockholm,
Sweden, July 20-21, 2007
What a glorious day! There
isn't a more beautiful city in the world than Stockholm when the sun
is shining. Mel hadn't visited the Vasa Museum, one of Stockholm's
main attractions, and we briefly considered grabbing a taxi to go
there until the lure of a day in the sunshine changed our minds. I'd
seen the museum (my report is here)
and we decided instead to take the complimentary Silversea shuttle
bus to the town center and explore Gamla Stan, the old city.
 |
|
Pomp
& pageantry at the Royal Palace |
As it turned out, we had plenty of
time to wander up and down the cobbled streets, shop a bit, and even
stop for coffee before heading to the Royal Palace to claim a spot
to see the changing of the guard at 12:15. This was a first-time
treat for Mel and even more glorious than I remembered from my
previous visit, when it was unusually hot and the horses were not
part of the ceremony. By arriving a little before noon, we were
front row center.
Afterwards, we headed back to the
waterfront to try a Swedish beer at the lobby bar of the Grand
Hotel... $20 for two beers! At least they were icy cold and we were
served peanuts and pretzels with them. I found nearly everything in
the ports we called on to be far more expensive than when I visited
some of them just a few years
ago.
Back aboard Silver Shadow, once our
packing was done we relaxed with friends by the pool until dinner
(lobster ravioli and a final order of Isabella Rossellini's
signature pasta). It's always a sad sight to see luggage lining the
passageways, but it's good to be home with wonderful memories of
unique ports of call and a very fulfilling cruise.
Back to the Swedish
Sojourn Index
Back to Arrival & Embarkation in
Stockholm
Back to Ornskoldsvik,
& Lulea,
Sweden
Back to Vaasa
& Turku, Finland & a Day At Sea
Back to Oslo,
Norway; Gothenburg, Sweden; Copenhagen, Denmark; and Lubeck, Germany
Photos
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