Today is Day 5 of our Baltic cruise…Few more Copenhagen photos…Today, we’ll tour Tallinn, Estonia…

“The Gefion Fountain is a large fountain on the harbor front in Copenhagen, Denmark. It features a large-scale group of animal figures being driven by the Norse goddess Gefjon. It is located in Nordre Toldbod area next to Kastellet and immediately south of Langelinie.”

The WiFi signal is so poor that it takes three times longer to prepare and upload photos. We’re doing the best we can in the time we’ve allotted to present our daily activities.

Typical residential building in Copenhagen.

I must admit I am not as diligent as usual when there’s such a flurry of activity around us with many distractions. No sooner I get started, and other passengers join us at our little corner near electrical outlets in the Park Café. To avoid being rude, I closed my laptop to participate in the lively chatter.

 
We’re having a perfect time, better than I’d expected when I felt so awful only a few weeks ago. I never imagined I’d be able to be up and about from early morning, often up until midnight, without a daytime nap or rest.
The uncomplicated style of buildings in Copenhagen seemed to be universal.

Yesterday was more fun than I can describe. At breakfast in the main dining room by 8:00 am, we met more new people as the conversation flowed at our table for 10.

For midday on a Wednesday, there were few crowds.

By 10:30 am, we headed to this exact spot at the coffee shop. At the same time, I enthusiastically worked on the post, hoping to upload a decent story with photos of Copenhagen taken during the rainy four-hour bus ride. 

I hadn’t finished having yet to caption the photos and move them into their appropriate spots in the post, but we dropped off the equipment back at the cabin to make the 1:00 pm movie in the intimate theatre, the Cinema. “Aquaman” was the movie of the day.
Bicycle parking lots are everywhere.

Tom, not necessarily a fan of fantasy-type movies, stayed awake during the entire movie while I sat on the edge of my seat in the sheer wonder of watching such a good movie. I loved every moment!  Tom surprised me and also enjoyed it but not as much as me. (We’re out of touch with movies made in the US after being away for so long).

With energy conservation the order of the day, there were minimal vehicles on the road.
After the movie ended at 3:10, we headed back to the cabin, where I finished the post and the photo captions.  We showered and dressed to be ready for “happy hour(s)” in the Diamond Club lounge on the 13th floor. It starts at 5:00 pm and ends at 8:30 pm.
 
The long, happy hour period requires me to drink my two glasses of Cabernet Sauvignon very slowly, trying to save a little in the second glass to take to the dining room to savor during dinner. 
An ice cream shop.

When he saw how little was left in my glass, Tom ordered me a third glass of wine but was concerned about overdoing it. I never drank it. In the dining room, we sat with a delightful couple, Fred and Larry from the US, and once again, the conversation was fantastic. We plan to meet up with them in Phoenix for dinner while staying in Apache Junction in January.

Statues are commonly seen in Copenhagen.

It always amazes us how easy it is to make friends on cruises. There is no environment we’ve ever experienced where it was so easy. We all have a commonality of a love of travel, and that’s always an easy place to start the conversation. We seldom encounter passengers who aren’t enjoying themselves.

After dinner, we looked for seats overlooking the Centrum area, one level below where we could watch the upcoming “disco” music and 70s show. We lucked out and found two comfy chairs directly at the railing, where we stayed watching a memorable heart-pounding show.
Taking photos through the rain-covered windows was challenging.

The dance floor was packed with enthusiastic passengers dancing the night away. Some time ago, we would have been included in that excited flurry of arms and legs flailing to the music. Instead, we watched with equal enthusiasm. Maybe someday I’ll be able to dance with Tom, but time will tell.

The stage presented a variety of staff dancers who “worked” the crowd into a frenzy. After about an hour, a show started we’d seen on many cruises; the songs from the Village People, In The Navy, and of course, Y-M-C-A. 

A gilded spire atop the train station.

The crew was wearing similar costumes to the Village People, and the place rocked beyond belief. The energy was indeed electric, not only enjoying the familiar songs but also remembering our youth when those were first introduced. We had such fun as we danced in our chairs, grateful and happy to be together, sharing yet another memorable day and evening.

A fountain near the canal.

Finally, by 12:30 am, we dozed off with smiles on our faces over a day well-spent. Today, we’re off on a shuttle bus soon to head to Tallinn, Estonia, a quaint walled town with supposedly lots of charm and appeal.

We’ll be back tomorrow with photos from our tour of this most unusual place to visit (for us anyway). See you then!

Photo from one year ago today, August 15, 2018:
They were looking in one direction, waiting to decide their next move. What could they possibly be waiting for? For more photos, please click here.

Its good to be posting again!…No post yesterday because…

There are many colorful buildings in Copenhagen. 

Yesterday, we were disappointed we were unable to post. It wasn’t that we didn’t try. In the morning at the pier, we took the Copenhagen, Denmark “Hop-On, Hop-Off bus thinking this would allow me to decide if I could walk and if not, we’d stay on the bus and yet see the highlights of the city of Copenhagen.

Many large buildings such as this are converted former estates.

Our expectations were high. We climbed the precarious steps to the second level for better views, only to be unable to see anything due to the pouring rain that continued for the over four-hour tour on three different routes.

There weren’t as many cars as one might expect.  Copenhagen is energy conscientious, and many of its people ride bikes.

We’d never utilized a “Hop-On, Hop-Off” bus in any country, preferring to take a taxi to be able to get out and take photos at our leisure. The heavy rain, the dirty windows on the bus, and the inability to open a window made photo-taking a near impossibility. I doubt we’ll ever make this choice in the future.

A street scene from the bus.

The only good part? I could sit when walking is still a struggle (but improving daily) as I wean myself off of this last awful drug, Bisoprolol. I’ve only reduced the dose by 50% thus far. 

No longer than the first bus took off, it began raining.  Taking photos was tough, especially when the windows didn’t open.

It may take a month or more to wean off of it entirely with the dangerous effects during the weaning process such as high and irregular blood pressure, afib (irregular pulse), and dangerously high pulse. I’ve had a few instances of these, but they resolved quickly, with everything returning to normal.

‘Historic building.

Of course, whatever I do and wherever we go, I am aware that these symptoms can occur, but I try not to think about it, only exacerbating the situation. As each day passes, I can walk a little better, leaving us both hopeful.

Residents bundled up in raingear, continuing to get around on bikes.

In any case, the only time we had to get off the bus was to change buses to travel another route. There were three routes in total. Fortunately, the bus company had a staff member at each transfer point, making the process relatively easy except for standing in the pouring rain while waiting to board the next bus.

The architecture throughout the city was less ornate than in many cities we’ve visited in the past.

When we couldn’t see out the foggy windows and past the rain, I dozed from time to time, tired from not getting enough sleep due to late nights of having fun. And fun, it is!  

We were surprised to see so few cars on the roads. There was traffic in certain areas but much than one would expect: “As of July 2018, the city has a population of 777,218 (616,098 in Copenhagen Municipality, 103,914 in Frederiksberg Municipality, 43,005 in Tårnby Municipality, and 14,201 in Dragør Municipality).”

We continue to meet more and more fabulous people at every turn. Thus, when we returned from the pointless bus tour, after returning to the ship and parking ourselves near an electric outlet in the Park Cafe, we met a couple from Australia, Vicki and John. We had such a good time. I couldn’t break away to do the post.

Beer is trendy in Copenhagen, and there are many bars and pubs.

The time passed quickly, and before we knew it, it was time to freshen up for the evening and head to the Diamond Club to meet up with new friends JoAnn and Fran, with whom we’ve been enjoying happy hour in the Diamond Lounge each evening before heading to dinner.

The four of us joined a table for ten and had a pleasant dinner, minus a few glitches regarding my food. I won’t get into that. It happens all the time. Lack of communication among the kitchen staff is ultimately responsible for the errors. 

We were intrigued by the large cement balls bordering this government building.

They have my detailed food list, and all they have to do is follow it. Hopefully, this will be resolved after last night. After all, my diet is pretty easy; a piece of grilled fish or seafood, steamed vegetables (no carrots, no starchy veggies), and a side salad (no croutons). It can’t be that complicated.

There are numerous war hero statues located throughout the city.

With a one-hour time change, we didn’t get to sleep until 12:30 or 1:00 am, awakening at 6:00 am, not quite enough sleep, but we can always take a 20-minute nap later in the day.

The VOOM wireless provides a poor signal at most times. Yesterday, when I attempted to notice that there would not be a post, it took an hour to get online for the short blurb. The previous day, we couldn’t upload photos.  

“The Little Mermaid is a bronze statue by Edvard Eriksen, depicting a mermaid becoming human. The sculpture is displayed on a rock by the waterside at the Langelinie promenade in Copenhagen, Denmark. It is 1.25 meters tall and weighs 175 kilograms.” Tom exited the bus to take a photo when it stopped for photos.

If you don’t see a post over the next nine days, please check back later in the day or the following day.  Combined with the fact that we have many ports of call to visit, the poor WiFi signal, and many social interactions, we could easily miss another day while on the cruise. From there, we’ll be in England, and all should be fine with included WiFi at each of the four properties.

“The Maritime Monument, located at Langelinie, close to Langelinie Marina, is a maritime memorial in Copenhagen, Denmark, commemorating civilian Danish sailors who lost their lives during the First World War.”

Should we miss an opportunity to post photos of the various countries, we can always include them once we’re in the UK. We’ll be touring Tallinn, Estonia, by taxi, hoping for clear skies and many photo ops tomorrow.

Thanks for your patience and understanding.

Be well. Be happy.
Photo from one year ago today, August 14, 2018:
Mom and baby love in Marloth Park. For more, please click here.