Fjords and Family - A Week in Norway

We are back on dry land after a week on a cruise with Joann's family from Amsterdam to the Norwegian fjords. It was a week of stunning landscapes, SO much food and countless hours with family. We couldn't have asked for more.

To give a quick cast of characters, traveling with us on the cruise were Joann's mom and dad; Joann's sister, brother-in-law and nephew; Joann's brother and his girlfriend and Joann's grandmother.

We ranged from 22 months old to 81 years old, which basically meant that we usually didn't go more than 30 minutes without someone needing to pee. :) We're a loud, boisterous family, and at any given moment, about a third of us is in a huge hurry and another third is dragging behind. All to say, it was a week of hilarity and wonderful memories, as a week with Joann's family always is.

With this crazy crew in town, we sailed out of Amsterdam and headed off for a full day at sea.

Our lovely home for the week: the Koningdam on Holland America Line.

 Over the course of the week at sea, we made four stops in Norway:

• Eidfjord: A small town in a beautiful fjord where we kayaked and road a train up a mountain to see the views
• Alesund: A town situated on a fjord with breathtaking views from its famous Mt. Aksla
• Gerainger: Pretty much everyone's favorite stop - absolutely breathtaking scenery of Geraingerfjord, the nearby mountains, a glacial lake and houses precariously perched amidst it all
• Bergen: The second-largest town in Norway and a chance for us to try Norway's marvelous seafood and shop the works of its local artisans while taking in the gorgeous scenery of the mountains and water

We were blown away by the peacefulness and beauty of each stop, and our walks through these towns helped us work off at least a bit of the copious amounts of food we were eating on the ship between stops.

With that, we are back in Amsterdam for a couple more days before we head to Kenya. We'll post again shortly about our time in Amsterdam before and after the cruise!

We'll end the post with a HUGE thank you to Joann's parents for bringing us on this wonderful family cruise and to Joann's brother-in-law, Albert, for planning the whole thing!