Getting Scuba Certified
February 10, 2025
A day in the land of Sprunglii – 24 hours in Zurich
February 10, 2025My 10-day cruise aboard the expedition ship, SH Diana, one of Swan Hellenic cruise lines’ three luxurious but small ships was nothing short of awesome.
The Arctic Circle, that mystical place, home to the North Pole, Santa Clause and his elves. A place where magic happens, but where ordinary people rarely seem to venture. Well, earlier this year, I sailed into the land of the midnight sun and explored the untouched North.
Okay, that all sounds a bit dramatic, specially since the last few years have seen Arctic cruises, adventures to Finnish and Swedish Lapland and chasing the elusive Northern Lights become a growing trend, but for me, my 10-day cruise aboard the expedition ship, SH Diana, one of Swan Hellenic cruise lines’ three luxurious but small ships was nothing short of awesome.
My trip, at the beginning of July started with a very early morning flight to Oslo, Norway aboard Indigo Airlines’ codeshare flight with Turkish Airlines. Now, for those of you, who like me, prefer to fly in slightly more comfort on longer flights, this codeshare flight is a money-saving hack. I was able to buy a business class ticket from Mumbai to Oslo and back for a fraction of the price of the what the same route cost on a Turkish Airlines coded flight, and the service did not disappoint!
I landed in Oslo at around 5pm and took a convenient coach that cost 80NKR (about 7.20 USD) to the nearby Comfort Hotel Runway, a cute and extremely friendly hotel close to the airport. Check-in was smooth and my room on the first floor was spacious and clean, complete with en-suite bathroom, toiletries and closet space. As I was only there for the night, with a flight to Tromso early the next morning, I didn’t need to hang up any clothes, but there was plenty of place.
Wrapped up warmly, with a cup of coffee in hand I set off from the hotel, and as is my favourite thing to do in a new place I wandered around with no plan in mind.
True to form, after grabbing a cup of coffee from the 24-hour complimentary machine in the lobby restaurant, I made my way to the gym to run off my flight fatigue. A quick shower, and I was ready to read for a while and call it a night. After a workout the next morning, I made my way to breakfast, which was included in the room rate and offered a wonderful spread. A selection of fruit, juices, yogurts, cereal, cold cuts, breads and pastries accompanied a hot selection of eggs, beans and even some Norwegian specialties as well as a large gluten free selection. After I ate, I took the same coach, that runs every 30 minutes at 10 and 40 minutes past the hour back to the airport to catch my SAS flight to Tromso.
After the comfortably quick 2-hour flight, where I was offered a free cup of coffee (rare for a low-cost flight), I was met at the small Tromso airport by the team from Swan Hellenic and transported to my hotel for the night. The cruise was scheduled to start the next day, and the hotel for the night was included in the cost of the cruise.
After a briefing on where to deposit our bags the next morning so the cruise staff could take it safely to our staterooms on board, I decided to take a walk and explore the area around the hotel, which was located right next to the dock from where our ship would depart.
Wrapped up warmly, with a cup of coffee in hand I set off from the hotel, and as is my favourite thing to do in a new place I wandered around with no plan in mind. I strolled past cute souvenir shops and bigger boutiques, restaurants, bars and even a Troll Museum that told the history and legends of the infamous trolls of Norway. I also walked past the wooden structure of Tromso Cathedral, possibly the northernmost Protestant Cathedral in the world and known for hosting beautiful midnight concerts, which might be something to go back for.
There was a small playground in a square near the hotel and a stall selling handmade sweaters, hats and gloves which I enjoyed looking at before making my way to the ice bar at the dock to take a look. After speaking to the concierge at the hotel, I decided to visit the Tromso Astrological Centre the next morning before boarding the ship.
After a sweaty workout and a delicious breakfast at the hotel, I set my bags in the specified spot for the cruise, grabbed a map (and set my Google Maps to the Astrological Centre) and set off. The walk took about 90 minutes, with a lot of uphill portions, but the air was crisp, the sun was out and the route was extremely picturesque and lined with colourful flowers. For those who don’t like walking, there is a bus that takes you straight to the Astrological Centre from near the port and that’s what I used on the way back so I could make it to the ship on time!
The Astrological Centre is full of fun science and technology based games and experiments that visitors can try their hand at including running in a giant hamster wheel to power a lightbulb, understanding Arctic tides and winds, the movement of icebergs, and much much more. There is also a room where you can simulate the journey through space to any of the planets, see the working of magnets to demonstrate the Earth’s magnetic field and even pose in an astronaut suit. The highlight for me, however, was undoubtedly the 30-minute film about the Aurora Borealis or the breathtaking Northern Lights. Filmed over an extended period of time, the movie explains the elusive phenomena and displays images and film clips taken from various observation locations around the Northern Hemisphere. Since I was in the Arctic in summer, with no chance of an Aurora sighting, and the fact that a previous trip to Iceland to spot them had been unsuccessful (read about Iceland here), I had to satisfy myself with the beautiful film.
Once the film ended, I took a bus back to the centre of town near the dock in time to board my cruise ship, the SH Diana, my floating home for the next 10 days of adventure.
SHARE ARTICLE
Disha
Disha is a former corporate lawyer with a flair for writing. As an avid traveller, she is always seeking new adventures and loves telling stories about her globe trotting.
