I forgot to mention yesterday, that there is a little spot called Mamsen’s on deck 5, where you can get some delicious Norwegian deli items. They serve lovely open-faced sandwiches on home-made bread, featuring Atlantic shrimp and pickled cucumber, or roasted beets with hard boiled egg, gravlax cured salmon and red onions, and roast beef and fried onions. Each sandwich comes with a sauce. Warm sandwiches like crab cake with smashed avocado or beef carbonnade with onion confit are offered, as well as some hearty and hot soups. There is a nice selection of cake and cookies, and it is perfect for a little afternoon pick me up. They also serve breakfast – waffles, oatmeal, cinnamon rolls, and sweet rolls with almond paste. It’s not open all the time, but you can check the Viking app to see what the hours of operation are.
The Viking app is very helpful while on the ship, as it tells you your schedule for the day and also sends you notices in the event an excursion is canceled.
We are now on Danco Island with huge mountains all around us. Our zodiac ride took us on shore for the first time, to set foot on Antarctica, which was pretty awesome. The day is perfect…34 degrees, no wind with slight peeks of sunshine through the clouds. The zodiac took us up to the rocks and then we had to swing our feet over and into the water and then walk onto shore. One would think it’s an easy feat to get in and out of the zodiac, but the boots are very heavy and cumbersome, and with your legs down, you really have to give them a good boost to get them up and over. The guides are always there to help you. You use the fireman‘s grip with them while entering and exiting.

The scenery is breathtaking. The mountains are huge and we asked how tall they actually are. One officer said to guess how tall you think they are…and then double it!!

And then…penguins, penguins, penguins…hundreds of them! They were walking up and down their highways, strutting along. They basically ignored us because they are intent on getting back to their nests up the mountain, after feeding in the waters. The smell of the penguin poop was a little overwhelming at first, but we soon got used to it.

Allan climbed up to where the nests were, tucked in the rocks. He did a great job getting back down as well. I got halfway up and saw people slipping and sliding on their butts on their way down, and I also realized the ice was preventing my poles from getting a good hold, so I turned around and waited by the water, content to watch the penguins. It was just a fabulous excursion.
Allan was very happy that we canceled our kayak adventure, and today after talking with a lady that had just come back from kayaking, I was happy we canceled as well. She said while paddling all around, some whales decided to swim under the kayaks. They were concerned the whales would overturn the kayaks, so the guide had each kayak go back to the ship individually. Pretty scary stuff. And the other day, a penguin jumped into one of the zodiacs and slid down into the front of the boat and the guide had to give him a boost from underneath to get him back into the sea. Wish we could have been there for that!
Had a delicious lunch at Mamsen’s and then it was off to the submarine dive. They gave us special boots to wear and they took us out to the sub via a zodiac.
Transferring from the zodiac to the sub wasn’t too bad. The problem is, you are very restricted with all the under layers and the life jacket. Bending your legs is pretty tricky, but before we knew it, we were descending by a ladder, thru a rather small hatch, and taking our designated seats inside the sub. We were assigned seats so that the weight was balanced so the sub wouldn’t dip forward or backwards. We had to practically crawl to our seats because the space was very small. Our yellow submarine was named Paul, (who actually was my favorite Beatle).
After a safety check, we began our dive, going down to about 270 feet. We saw lots of sunstars, coral, sponges, and krill. At one point a whale swam over, but we weren’t able to see him. Our pilot said we are the first to see that part of the ocean floor in the area he piloted to and actually, there have only been about 2,000 people who have had the opportunity to explore the Antarctic sea by submarine. It was an amazing opportunity and we are so glad we finally took the plunge!

This port was not on the original itinerary, but we are so happy it was added. Majestic, awe-inspiring, beautiful, breathtaking…God.

What an amazing day.