Træna, Norway
June 5, 2025
The second stop on the cruise was in Træna. (The 'æ' letter is pronounced like our 'a' in "cat.") There was much scenic beauty as we sailed along the coast, including the "Seven Sisters." Ship announcements alerted us to upcoming vistas and a cooking demostration on the top deck. Mary Jane and I did not book an excursion, but chose to check out the village on our own.
We got to sample the mussels after the cooking demonstration.
Four or five of the Seven Sisters
One of the villages along the coast
There were whole yards of dandelions. They apparently treat them as wildflowers rather than weeds.
The current Træna parish church was built in a cruciform style in 1773, replacing an older structure they deemed beyond repair.
I did not take note of the builder’s name of the eight-rank tracker organ.
Many churches in Scandinavia have model ships hanging from the ceiling as a kind of prayer for protection of loved ones on the sea. They are sometimes called "votive ships."
We spent a bit of time exploring their hymnal. I looked in the index for “Charles Wesley,” and wound up singing “Hark! the Herald Angels Sing” in Norwegian. Luckily there were no other visitors in the church at the time.
We then walked down to the museum where they have items from everyday use to whale vertebrae.
Behind the museum was a shop where people apparently did crafts, including making bird houses.
In Træna we were just a bit south of the Arctic Circle.
The sky at 9:30 pm
The globe marks the Arctic Circle. We crossed it about 10 pm.
There was a ceremony for crossing the Arctic Circle where a guy was dressed as the king of the sea or something. I didn't get a good picture of him through the crowd. Passengers who chose to participate would sit in a chair and have ice and ice water poured down their backs and be rewarded with a shot of akvavit. They used the brand that crossed the equator twice (more on that later). I did not participate, but decided I would start my akvavit tasting the next day.
