Portugal Oporto Port

This morning we arrived around 8 o 'clock in the harbour of Lexious, which is part of the town Matosinhos. Matosinhos lies around 10 km's from the city Oporto. When entering the harbour we could enjoy a beautiful sunrise. It is always exiting to stand on deck when entering a new harbour, today we were passing several fishing boats surrounded with numerous birds. From the pier two excursions were leaving strait away. One whole day excursion with destination Douro valley and one shorter excursion to the city Oporto. Both excursions had as central themes the river Douro and Port wine. Port wine is produced exclusively in the Douro valley in the Northern provinces of Portugal. The scenery is spectacular in this region. Part of the excursion was a wonderful lunch in the winery of Quinta da Pacheca. During the city tour of Oporto we got to know a lot of facts about the people living there. Did you know that the Portugees eat twice the amount of fish then the average European! They catch a lot of fish also! After Japan and Iceland Portugal is the biggest fishing nation. In the centre of town we visited the cathedral and the Sao Bento Railway Station. After that we had a nice cruise on the river Douro with a Rabelo boat, once used to transport the barrels of wine from the Douro region down to the wine cellars in Gaia. We sailed under the numerous bridges crossing this river, and we had fantastic views on both sides. We ended our tour with a visit to a port wine cellar. Here we tasted two different kinds of port wine. First we tried the white port wine, made from white grapes and then we tried a glass of ruby port wine, made from red grapes. Both very tasty! Unfortunately we didn't get the opportunity to try the tawny port which is also made from red grapes and are aged in wooden barrels. At 16 o'clock we left Oporto and we are sailing South towards the capital of Portugal, Lissabon!

Oh, A Coruña...!

Or is it "La" Coruna…? Or "O" Coruña??
Never mind, you'd only be supposed to know about these things if you apply for an administration job here in Galicia. Then you have to pass a test in their local language, Gallego, which is a mix of Portuguese spelling and Spanish pronunciation. So, the right answer has to be "A" Coruña. Traditions are living up again here in the north-western corner of the Iberian peninsula, even the kids at school are being brought up with their ancestors language. The reason is only partly romantic, but has also a political and economical side: The general crisis forced quite a number of citizens, who couldn't compete with the tighter market, out in the countryside again where they still had fields and a house to take up old-fashioned, but self-sustained work again. That brings back the old times alright. And there's elections coming up and of course the swing to the old values is a great wave to surf upon, at least in the eyes of the candidates. 

History is strong here, has been for a long, long time. Certainly the most spectacular and - by function - most visible monument for that is the Hercules Tower, the oldest lighthouse in the world. Built by the Romans already around the year AD 180, its structure is still standing, be it with a few outside reparations in the 19th century. And it is still in use, still showing ships the way in the dangerous waters near Cap Finisterre, now equipped with a modern LED, replacing the oil lantern of the old, very old days.
The Celts were here, the Maures, Napoleonic Wars were fought, only the second World War somehow left this spot out, so most of the beautiful houses with their characteristic glass verandas are still there. They were built from surplus material of the shipyards and proved to be very useful to keep the humidity out of the apartments. And moist it is, here, on this spit in the sea, warm and mellow. 

In finest weather conditions the excursions leave to various places, top address obviously being Santiago de Compostela, destination of millions of pilgrims from all around the world, who come to see the place where the bones of St. James are buried. Not millions, but thousands seem to be here today, now imagine the throng in summertime…! However, the magic of this place doesn't fail to enchant all who saw it, and the - very rare! - swinging of the huge incense bowl is a big event.

Quite a bit more peaceful the village of Betanzos, where flowers bloom and the soft autumn light is perfect for getting a shot of the Franciscan's church, where the odd relation between cross and pigs, or rather wild boars, is reflected in many a stone mason's work.

Seems we have spent the best part of the day ashore, as soon as we leave port clouds are closing in, and toward the evening the familiar pitching of the ship sets in; today, however, most of us have already earned their sea legs and don't care so much.
The dolphins out there have fun, too, frolicking around FRAM and jumping in great numbers. Dusk comes early here in the South, so the ship calms down after dinner.
Tomorrow: Next port, next country - Portugal, here we come...

Dancing on the Bay

In many religions the Sea is very often connoted with a female Goddess, and it sure has to do with beauty and fascination. However, on a day like this one could remark ironically that things like "change of mood", or "wicked temper" also spring to mind: Whereas this morning saw a mild ocean all around, us being the centre of a vast expanse of grey, our brave ship is riding bigger and bigger waves now like a cowboy on a rodeo horse that gets more and more angry by the minute.

It all started so peacefully, with morning lectures, breakfast at a mild 18 degrees and ample time to read, have a coffee upstairs (or a Sverre, which is a Norwegian waffle speciality, the equivalent to the French Gaufre). Time also to take a little sneak peak behind the scenes, into the tally for example, where every day the huge task is tackled to keep 231 guests well fed and happily digesting. A sea day is also the occasion for the crew to practice the necessary procedures for emergency situation, so a fire drill was carried out, of course curiously ogled by many. The glance into one of the lifeboats, however, is not one you get very often, so here you go, this is how these things look like from inside.

After lunch there was a slight change in the ship's movements, people in the lecture theatres were sitting with their legs more apart in order to have a better hold. Hm. Maybe just a short stretch.
That was three hours ago. Now we are in the middle of big (and beautiful!) waves that shake the floors and move the plates on the table. The Bay of Biskay shows its (her?) angry face, we have to cancel the program in the Observation lounge tonight - the higher you're up, the stronger the shakes (if you spill your drink up there - right, would be a Shakes-Beer… ok,ok - not funny!) The ship got quieter, the appetite is sinking, the galley staff is fighting with pots and pans.
That is what makes the sea so unpredictable. And so beautiful...

The great elephant of Nantes

At 8 o'clock this morning we moored at the pier of the island of Nantes. It is fair to say that the main attraction on this island is the museum "Les Machines de l'ile". This museum is built on the location of the former shipyards and it shows mechanical creations where Jules Verne's "invented worlds" are combined with Leonardo da Vinci's mechanical universe. The main attraction of this museum is the great elephant. After 30 months of construction it was ready in 2007. The elephant is 12 m high, 21 m long, exists out of 48 tons of steel and wood and costed around 2,5 million euro to build. But it was worth effort and the money!!  People can actually sit (max 49 passengers) on this humongous elephant and have a ride for half an hour. In the first four years the elephant carried already 250.000 passengers. It's really amazing, it walks like a real elephant, majestic and it even flaps its ears and can spray water if spectators are coming too close. But the city of Nantes has much more to offer. Especially on a day as today, mild temperatures and sun! Nantes is located on the Loire River 50 kilometer from the Atlantic coast. By the way, the Loire river is the longest river of France with a length of 1012 km. One of its main tributaries is the Erdre River and on this lovely river we could join a river cruise in the morning. This excursion was combined with a visit to the St. Pierre Cathedral and the castle of Dukes of Brittany, which both lie in the centre of Nantes. Also the surroundings of Nantes are very beautiful. In the afternoon we had two excursion possibilities, either to the town Guerande or to the Chateau Goulaine & Clisson. At 20.30 we left the pier and made our way west to sail down the Loire towards the Bay of Biscay.

A sunny day at sea!

Yesterday's evening ended with the M/V Fram fasion show where the officers and the expedition team were very exited to show their new range of clothes and hairstyles. Since we had quiet seas most of us were up in the Observation Lounge to see them walking up and down the "runway". This morning it was nice to take it easy and to study the daily program. We had the choice of many interesting lectures, bridge visits, waffels on deck 7 and Bjørn playing the piano in the evening. And furthermore, the entire day was perfect to be on one of the outer decks. The temperatures were mild enough (15 degrees) to lie in one of the lazy chairs on deck 7 while enjoying the ocean or to take a nap. Just before the last lecture session a pod of common dolfins gathered around the ship. They were very playful and showed us some nice jumps. Can it get any better? Tomorrow early in the morning we will enter the river Loire where we will pick up a local pilot to arrive safely in the harbour of Nantes. We are looking forward to explore this city!

Paris by night!

Yesterday afternoon we took the bus to 'the city of lights', 'the city of love', Paris! We were lucky to miss the traffic leaving Rouen and too late to have any conflicts driving into Paris. So 1,5 hour later we drove around the l'Arc de Triomphe and shortly after down the Champs-Élyseés. There was still an hour of daylight left, so we could enjoy all the main hightlights with good light. From our high bus seats we could enjoy all the choas around us. We were all glad we had a good chauffeur who was used to the Parisian traffic, and that we were not driving ourselves! At 20 o'clock we were at the bottem of the Eiffel tower where we boarded our restaurant boat! It was like stepping into another world, with all the glass windows around us we could enjoy the amazing views of the Eiffel tower, the Notre-Dame cathedral and the numerous

bridges. 

All this while eating a delicous french dinner, listening to the romantic live music and moving gently down the stream of the river Seine. A success! 

Today we had the entire morning to explore the city of Rouen. Either by taking the shuttle bus or by the offered guided tour. Another excursion possibility was to Giverny, to visit Monet's museum: the house and gardens formerly owned by Monet. In the afternoon the Fram turned around and we made our way westagain, down the river Seine towards the Atlantic.

Paris by night?

What? Did we abandon ship and continue by train…?
Far from it. But as soon as we make fast in Rouen this afternoon we are actually around the corner from France's capital, the city of Lovers. Only we cannot travel further up the river Seine, low bridges and the forces of the tide here, in the Normandy, where we have some of the strongest tidal differences on the planet, creating midlands here and salt marshes there. So the scent of ocean and meadows mix up with the smell of cows and forests and fields. A rural scene with a marine touch to it. Already in the morning it is warm enough to go out in only a shirt. Well, almost, the winds carry a slight chill; let's not be fooled by the sun, this is the autumn voyage.

Little by little the charming landscape makes way for industrial complexes; mainly reloading sites for grain, covering the surroundings with a fine layer of cereal dust.
After half a day of surfing the tidal wave toward Rouen (it really reaches that far), we arrive at the pier even a bit early. So there is time to choose the right clothing for the excursions that start a little later, one to the scenic little pirate-and-cider town of Honfleur - and the other to Paris! From that trip you will hear by tomorrow, as it comes back only in the night. Sure you will get an enthusiastic report.

But why not take a simple stroll? Speaking of enthusiasm, the walk through the narrow alleys and along the numerous huge cathedrals and churches of Rouen will not fail to enchant you, the houses with their intricate woodworks are so charmingly bent by age that they have almost personality, you can imagine them exchanging gossip when nobody's looking. The ecclesiastical architecture is a stark contrast to this, gargantuan towers loom over squares and backstreets, high walls are witnesses to the unrivalled power of the church during the long period of the (un)holy inquisition. But these times are over, today the old town centre is a wonderful collection of excellent art, antiques and handicraft shops. From handmade soap to ancient tools to violins, made like in old times - here you will find it. And every corner without a store features a café or a brasserie. You want to spent days here!
Well, at least we have one overnight, so time aplenty!

Shakin' Sleeve

There's two good things about a river cruising. First there is the proximity to both banks, which offers views to starboard and portside alike. OK, we have been sailing into the night, so we rather focused on the bright lights of the pilot boats that came and went like floating candelabras to change the pilot on FRAM. (There is a whole series of them, depending on where on the long river Elbe you are.)
But the other advantage not so much visible as rather tangible. It's the calmness of the waters, which - or rather the absence of which - we only feel next morning as we enter the English Channel, La Manche in French, which means The Sleeve, a description also used in German (Ärmelkanal), Spanish (Canal de la Mancha), or Italian (La Manica). Only England doesn't want to play game - The Channel is their laconic way of naming it, although The Sleeve wouldn't sound too bad, would it?
Whatever the name, this is surely a sleeve with creases and crinkles today, strong winds and a swell that is caught between the two countries makes the ship hop and dance a bit. Never mind! This is a sea day, grey skies on top of it, so there is little distraction from all the lectures that are given, preparing us for the destinations that are coming up. What about some time in the Sauna with ocean view? Or some waffles upstairs, while pianist Bjørn is sharing his music? Or sit there, enjoying a book and a nap in the comfy chairs? Or watch the other ships go by, take a look at the occasional oil rig?
Your choice - it's holiday, isn't it?
Hard to believe in this greyness that in a short while we will be in exotic places like Morocco or the picturesque Canary Islands. But the temperatures are rising already. We are moving to warmer latitudes, all right. Towards the evening the "sleeve" shakes less and less,we even get a cosy evening with a mighty fine sunset! So, during the night we expect not more than a gentle rocking that will make us sleep even better.