Hello from Azura!
We’re coming to the end of our wonderful Baltic voyage and I have to say, apart from the torrential rain we had in St Petersburg, we’ve had better weather in the Baltic cities this week than on any of our previous cruises to the Canary Islands and Mediterranean.
There are lots of happy and sun-tanned faces onboard the ship today which is always a lovely sight.
Just 2 days at sea now and we’ll be back in Southampton turning the ship around and preparing for our next Mediterranean cruise – I don’t know where the last 14 days have gone!
The last 2 ports of call in this fabulous Baltic itinerary were Oslo and Copenhagen – both very expensive (1 small beer and a cup of coffee cost me approx £15!) , but wonderful cities.
Copenhagen is always a delight to explore, especially on foot (once you’ve got out of the port area). The quayside in Copenhagen is exceptionally thin and a public main road runs along the edge of it. We arrived along with another large ship on a boiling hot, sunny Saturday which meant that traffic was extremely heavy. Not only did we have our excursion buses lining the single carriage main road, but we had the other ship’s excursion buses squeezing past us, we had large lorries and small trucks delivering stores to both ships, and all of the local people’s cars were slowly driving back and forth full of people who’d come down to the port area to look at the cruise ships.
We’re coming to the end of our wonderful Baltic voyage and I have to say, apart from the torrential rain we had in St Petersburg, we’ve had better weather in the Baltic cities this week than on any of our previous cruises to the Canary Islands and Mediterranean.
There are lots of happy and sun-tanned faces onboard the ship today which is always a lovely sight.
Just 2 days at sea now and we’ll be back in Southampton turning the ship around and preparing for our next Mediterranean cruise – I don’t know where the last 14 days have gone!
The last 2 ports of call in this fabulous Baltic itinerary were Oslo and Copenhagen – both very expensive (1 small beer and a cup of coffee cost me approx £15!) , but wonderful cities.
Copenhagen is always a delight to explore, especially on foot (once you’ve got out of the port area). The quayside in Copenhagen is exceptionally thin and a public main road runs along the edge of it. We arrived along with another large ship on a boiling hot, sunny Saturday which meant that traffic was extremely heavy. Not only did we have our excursion buses lining the single carriage main road, but we had the other ship’s excursion buses squeezing past us, we had large lorries and small trucks delivering stores to both ships, and all of the local people’s cars were slowly driving back and forth full of people who’d come down to the port area to look at the cruise ships.
(A picture of Arcadia in port at the pier to give you an idea of the tiny quayside between the ship and the fence, and the main road that runs along the length of it).
It was hot, it was busy, car fumes filled the air, and it was stressful to be standing in front of moving buses to let our passengers cross the road safely.
It was hot, it was busy, car fumes filled the air, and it was stressful to be standing in front of moving buses to let our passengers cross the road safely.
Saying all of this, once you get out of the little quayside area, Copenhagen is just wonderful (exactly as the famous song suggests!).
It’s quite a compact city but it’s vibrant and colourful, and is full of canals, palaces, museums and gardens. As Denmark's capital, Copenhagen is the only large city in the kingdom of Denmark. Despite its size though, it’s actually the liveliest city in the whole of Scandinavia with a real mix of people, styles, cultures, and atmospheres. It’s an easy-going and stylish city with lots of attractions and this all seems to make it a really popular place for long weekend visits and short city breaks (as well as obviously, a great port of call for cruise ships).
It’s quite an appealing place to look at as well, because it’s void of any enormous high rise, unsightly buildings. (In fact, in an entire city where ornate church steeples punctuate the skyline, only a couple of modern hotels seem to spoil the view).
Anybody who’s been to Copenhagen, or who knows anything about the city, will know that the most famous historical era (after the time of the Vikings), were the glory years had by the city’s most famous resident. Hans Christian Anderson was known primarily for his children’s fairy tales (published between 1835 and 1872), but he was also a playwright and a travel writer.
Probably the most famous landmark usually found in the city, and known worldwide as the icon of Copenhagen, is the bronze statue of the little mermaid, (which was inspired by one of Hans Christian Anderson’s most famous fairy tales).
It’s quite an appealing place to look at as well, because it’s void of any enormous high rise, unsightly buildings. (In fact, in an entire city where ornate church steeples punctuate the skyline, only a couple of modern hotels seem to spoil the view).
Anybody who’s been to Copenhagen, or who knows anything about the city, will know that the most famous historical era (after the time of the Vikings), were the glory years had by the city’s most famous resident. Hans Christian Anderson was known primarily for his children’s fairy tales (published between 1835 and 1872), but he was also a playwright and a travel writer.
Probably the most famous landmark usually found in the city, and known worldwide as the icon of Copenhagen, is the bronze statue of the little mermaid, (which was inspired by one of Hans Christian Anderson’s most famous fairy tales).
The little mermaid, despite being a children’s story, was a really pessimistic and unhappy tale, and it’s believed that a lot of Anderson’s sadder stories have a strong autobiographical element running through them.
The statue itself was designed and sculpted by Advard Eriksen in 1913 and it usually has pride of place along the waterfront (just a stroll away from where our ships dock on Langelinje pier).
Despite being beheaded twice and also having her arm cut off, The Little Mermaid statue has never before left her waterside spot. Until now, that is! - and I think it’s a real shame.
The Copenhagen City Council (for the first time ever) have packed her up and sent her around the world to Shanghai (to be a part of the 2010 world Expo - which is running from April through to November).
The statue itself was designed and sculpted by Advard Eriksen in 1913 and it usually has pride of place along the waterfront (just a stroll away from where our ships dock on Langelinje pier).
Despite being beheaded twice and also having her arm cut off, The Little Mermaid statue has never before left her waterside spot. Until now, that is! - and I think it’s a real shame.
The Copenhagen City Council (for the first time ever) have packed her up and sent her around the world to Shanghai (to be a part of the 2010 world Expo - which is running from April through to November).
The original Little Mermaid will sit on a rock in her own lonely pool in the world exposition’s Danish pavilion. 70 million visitors are expected to go and see her, and they can ride around the solitary statue on a city bike (to give the experience of feeling like a true Copenhagener).
China have offered Denmark a replacement to temporarily fill the Mermaid’s void, and it’s prompted a hugely mixed reaction.
Here are a couple of photos to help you make your own mind up as to whether or not you like or approve of it....
Basically, a Chinese artist has created a multimedia sculpture, which features a movie about the Little Mermaid’s travel to China, and whether you like it or not I guess is a matter of personal taste.
I went to the Carlsberg brewery while we were docked in Copenhagen to see why it’s renowned for producing ‘probably the best lager in the world’. It was really interesting to look around. The entrance itself is an enormous stone arch gate supported by 4 elephants (which represent 4 sons of the founder of the Carlsberg brand), and the visitor centre is fascinating.
It’s a little wordy at the start of the tour because you follow a timeline of the product’s historical events, but as you follow the marked route, you find a room full of thousands of bottled Carlsberg beers, the malting basement, the stables where the powerful horses are kept that pull the Carlsberg carts, the blending rooms, and a lovely garden and courtyard too.
The tour that operates for P&O Cruises includes a voucher for 2 pints of any Carlsberg beer (so if the sun’s shining you can sit in the courtyard and sample a couple of different varieties of lager), and also a scenic tour of the city and a stop at the Amalienborg Royal palace as well. I thoroughly enjoyed it and so did the passengers who were with me. I think because it was something a little bit different. here's some pictures for you to see...
I've been asked to judge a fancy dress competition in the Manhattan showlounge today for the Youth Director, so I’m going to finish up and will update you with more Azura tales soon.
In response to some of your recent comments:
Gary, Jane and Victoria – Unfortunately I won’t be here for Azura’s next Baltic cruise. I’m leaving this lovely ship on 25th June and I’m going home to hopefully spend 6 sunny weeks with lots of my favourite people in the UK. You won’t be disappointed with your cruise though. Azura is a very happy and friendly ship and she’s perfectly suited to Baltic cruising.
Bethany – How lovely that you’re going to spend your honeymoon onboard Azura! You’re going to love her. Plus, if you’ve never been to the Norwegian Fjords before, you’re going to be totally blown away by the scenery. It’s absolutely staggering. Unfortunately Oslo and Kristiansand are the only Norwegian ports I’m going to visit this year (as part of Baltic cruises on Azura and Aurora).
In response to some of your recent comments:
Gary, Jane and Victoria – Unfortunately I won’t be here for Azura’s next Baltic cruise. I’m leaving this lovely ship on 25th June and I’m going home to hopefully spend 6 sunny weeks with lots of my favourite people in the UK. You won’t be disappointed with your cruise though. Azura is a very happy and friendly ship and she’s perfectly suited to Baltic cruising.
Bethany – How lovely that you’re going to spend your honeymoon onboard Azura! You’re going to love her. Plus, if you’ve never been to the Norwegian Fjords before, you’re going to be totally blown away by the scenery. It’s absolutely staggering. Unfortunately Oslo and Kristiansand are the only Norwegian ports I’m going to visit this year (as part of Baltic cruises on Azura and Aurora).
Last year I sailed on a big Norwegian adventure right up as far as Spitsbergen on Svalbard (in the arctic circle) and you just can’t describe the natural beauty that you’re presented with - on a daily basis. I stood on the ice one day watching a wild reindeer drink from a pool that was reflecting snow capped peaks, and an arctic fox ran past me. Hopefully one day I’ll get a chance to repeat a cruise like that, because it’s days like that that really offer the most wonderful memories. Any Norwegian cruise is a perfect ‘couples’ cruise so you couldn’t have chosen any better for your honeymoon!
Chris & Yvonne – Great to hear from you! I look forward to seeing you on Arcadia’s World Voyage. You must be counting down the days already.....
Jacqui – Thanks for your message. Hope you manage to get yourself booked onto a cruise soon. I think you’ll love it. Plus, anyone who’s been lucky enough to see or sail on Azura will tell you that the single occupancy cabins are fabulous. I’ll try to get some photographs posted on the blog next week for anyone who’d like to see what they look like.
Sarah – You’re going to be spoilt for choice on Azura if you like a bit of dancing. I’ve got a few sea days coming up as we sail down to the Mediterranean, so over the next week I’ll fill you in with what sort of events happen onboard that might interest you.
Chris & Yvonne – Great to hear from you! I look forward to seeing you on Arcadia’s World Voyage. You must be counting down the days already.....
Jacqui – Thanks for your message. Hope you manage to get yourself booked onto a cruise soon. I think you’ll love it. Plus, anyone who’s been lucky enough to see or sail on Azura will tell you that the single occupancy cabins are fabulous. I’ll try to get some photographs posted on the blog next week for anyone who’d like to see what they look like.
Sarah – You’re going to be spoilt for choice on Azura if you like a bit of dancing. I’ve got a few sea days coming up as we sail down to the Mediterranean, so over the next week I’ll fill you in with what sort of events happen onboard that might interest you.
Bye for now!
Jo
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3 comments:
Hi Jo
Great article, i do like Copenhagen, especially Tivoli Gardens, Europe this time of the year is beautiful. Here in Perth over the next couple of days we are expecting tops around 23c, which is good seeing it is winter here.
Looking forward to more updates to come,
Geoff Witts Perth
Hi Jo
Great to hear your update on the Baltic cruise. You certainly make everything sound really interesting. Sorry you won't be there when we join Azura on the 2nd July but home you enjoy your well deserved break. Maybe we'll meet up some other year. The tour including the Carlsberg brewery sounds like our type of tour but I can't find it online or in the holiday information booklet. Do you have to book that one on board?
Have a great trip home.
Gary Jane and Victoria.
There is no doubt that your ships are impressive but what none of you refer to is the regular overcrowding of the ports of call by an ever increasing number of large liners depositing their clients at the same place and the same time. In so doing you are actually spoiling the places that you call at, but you dont appear to want to address or even admit the problem. However, A growing number of regular cruisers are aware it and now shun the big ships in favour of the smaller more select operators.
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