Janet and I just returned from an extremely well documented trip to Scandinavia and the Baltic Sea region. Our respective social media accounts are saturated with an abundance of photos, selected from the over 1,200 bits of digital evidence we collected along the way. In addition to excursions at each port of call, we attended most of the lectures offered by three on-board historians who expounded on culture, politics, and all things Viking. We also heard a lot about the subject of war, both regional and global. Today, Scandanavia might set the standard for peace-loving, prosperous and socially democratic nation states (with a dash of monarchy thrown in), but this belies centuries of conflict and domination. The Danes, as featured in the Netflix series The Vikings, had a particularly bad reputation for bullying their neighbors throughout a tumultuous past. A light bulb moment for me was the realization that the USA’s “young” 250 years of independent nationhood is longer than you might think (Norway: 1905; Finland: 1917; Denmark: 1849). Only Sweden achieved independence before the US (i.e., 1523).
The voyage also illuminated major constrasts in the region. The seemingly happy, shiny ports in the Nordic countries stood out from more dour and historically scarred stops in Tallinn, Estonia, Gdansk, Poland and Berlin, Germany. In these places, World War II took a huge toll as did the occupations by the Nazis and Russians. The bloodshed, devastating destruction and persecution of minority groups still casts a pall and memories of the depravations are vivid in the minds of tour guides now several generations removed from the actual fighting. We still enjoyed the old historic centers of Tallinn and Gdansk, as well as the reconstructed city center in Berlin, but came away with a heaviness of spirit that wasn’t present in Stockholm, Copenhagen and Oslo. In Berlin, our tour bus dropped us off at the site of Checkpoint Charlie, unremarkable aside from a gigantic souvenir shop (I mean who can resist snagging a JFK “Ich bin ein Berliner” refrigerator magnet), where a childhood memory surfaced. My dad served in the US Army for three years during the Vietnam War and was stationed in Bremerhaven, Germany. I remember him talking about the Berlin Wall and the famous crossing between East and West Berlin. Military personnel could cross through the checkpoint into the Soviet zone if they were in uniform and carried their ID, but, as a kid, I was struck by the notion that soldiers on both sides of the wall had guns and might shoot you.
Aside from feeling like we unintentionally set out to pursue an advanced certificate in history by taking this trip, it’s important to remember that this was a cruise after all. And, our first Viking ocean journey did not lack for amenities of any kind. From a comfortable stateroom with a veranda, to twice daily room service, a fully stocked mini-bar replenished every day, a heated floor in the bathroom, robes, slippers, king-size bed with a poofy duvet and espresso machine to get things started in the morning, we felt pampered. All these perks reminded us every minute that we had stepped outside the reality of our day to day lives into a luxurious, if temporary, idyll. Judging by the ship’s company, an experience like this is largely reserved for seniors with discretionary funds tucked into their retirement accounts. At 65 and 66, I would say that Janet and I were some of the younger passengers with the majority being in their seventies. A number of spry octogenarians were also sprinkled in our midst. The afternoon we set out to kayak in Eidfjord, I was humbled by the athleticism of the other 10-12 couples who propelled their two-person crafts through the swells with much more dexterity and upper body strength than I was able to emulate. Unfortunately, one couple took a spill into the frigid water and triggered the formation of an emergency platform of kayaks, a technique that we had only learned minutes before. They were hoisted out of the water onto the kayaks assembled side to side and then taken in the motorized support boat back to the warmth of the ship.
For me, the ultimate measure of any vacation is the quality of the overall dining experience, and this cruise set the highest threshold of any of our trips to date. Being a larger vessel, the Viking Vela offered a buffet style venue called the World Cafe, a formal sit down restaurant with table service and two speciality, reservation-only eateries, one Italian and the other built around a tasting menu with wine pairings for each course. We tried them all, but the World Cafe turned out to be my favorite. From dedicated bread, pizza, Asian, main entree, seafood, salad bar and dessert stations, featuring eight rotating flavors of gelato, there was always a dizzying array of choices for breakfast, lunch and dinner. An avowed shellfish connoisseur, I felt almost giddy trying to make selections between the assorted king crab legs, shrimp, crab claws, lobster tails and clams. The Lobster Tower and Surf & Turf nights sent my taste buds into blissful overdrive. The biscuits and sausage gravy with scrambled eggs for breakfast are also memorable. Dining with our friends, Rod and Mitzi, who were also taking their first ocean going cruise, we established a delightful tradition of scooping up a fresh chocolate chip or raisin cookie on our way out of the Cafe.
All this being said, will we take another cruise in the future? Funny that I should mention that for you, the answer being yes and yes. We were told several times during the voyage that 72% of the passengers were repeat customers, and this is in no small part due to Viking’s outstanding product and promotional acumen. Booking another trip with the resident Travel Consultant while onboard provides additional discounts, on-board credit, lengthier payment options and exact choice of stateroom. Of course, Viking understands that you are in the right frame of mind to consider future travel while in the midst of enjoying a great experience. So, we booked two more cruises for 2028: one ocean and one river. We’ll embark on the British Isles Explorer ocean cruise in June and then head to the continent for a Christmas Market river cruise that December. We booked both of these with our friends and will look forward to traveling with them again … and again. :-).
We feel very fortunate and blessed to be able to do these trips together in retirement. The aging process is such that we need to get out there while we can and have the energy and enthusiasm to do so. It’s not hard to see a point in time when braving the indignities of the Frankfurt, Amsterdam and Chicago mega-airports and the 9+ hours flights will no longer be things that I want to endure. It’s either now or soon … not sometime in the future!