I booked a cruise from Oslo to Southhampton and then arrived in Norway a week before we sailed. My hotel was in Lillestrøm, halfway between the airport and downtown Oslo. The makeshift building had five private rooms, a kitchen area and a shared bathroom. It was cheap! I’m talking foreign labor workers looking for cheap housing cheap. I felt safe enough and saved lots of money.

I did a hotel to cruise dock test run, a few days before the cruise, using public transport. When my departure day finally arrived, I had no problem with taking the train from Lillestrøm to the Oslo Station and then catching the local bus needed. I was happy to find a few fellow passengers there. They had read my post, about catching the bus, via our Facebook cruise group.

The NCL Star is an older vessel. It was remodeled twenty years ago and is clearly ready for another makeover. It was a very different ship from the NCL Bliss that I took, on my Alaskan cruise, in June. Still, given what I paid, for the single passenger rate, (via Expedia) I can’t complain. My cabin was selected by NCL. It was the only room in a hallway separating staterooms from the elevators and staircases. It was great being able to walk out, make a quick right, and take the elevator up to breakfast.

Personally, I didn’t care where the fourteen day cruise was going. I was just trying to increase my Rewards Points with NCL. My seven day Alaskan cruise got me to their bronze level and this fourteen day cruise pushed me to silver. I had planned on a third cruise, thirteen days from Italy to Florida. NCL had other plans. Expedia sold me the cabin for under $700.00. When the payment reached NCL, the reservation was cancelled. NCL never bothered to tell Expedia and the room was resold for more money. So much for the NCL “loyalty” program.

After my seven day Alaskan cruise adventure, I knew enough to skip the specialty dining and other NCL extra costs. This time, I didn’t pay for a spa package, the drinking water package, or unlimited Starbucks. I found that I didn’t really get enough bang for my buck. I booked just one excursion. My newly acquired bronze level got me $50.00 off the price. I selected the London Tour ending at Heathrow Airport.

I found the fourteen day cruise more relaxing than the earlier seven day one. The scenery was similar to Alaska and passengers were on the lookout for whale sightings (well … plumes of water sightings) and the Northern Lights. We were told to keep our televisions on a particular station. If there was a sighting, we would be notified there. Having lived two years, in Sitka, Alaska, I never even bothered. I do not wake up for bears, whales, or Northern Lights.

I purchased some yarn, on sale, in Lillestrøm. My goal was to knit myself a beanie, before the ship reached Iceland. I took most of my meals in the buffet area. As a solo traveler, I picked one of the smaller tables, by the window. I would just sit there and knit, after each meal. I had the beanie completed before Iceland and then made a knit warmer to fit over the cap.

As soon as we landed in Shetland, Scotland, the race for replacement yarn was on. I immediately checked the local British Red Cross donation shop and came away with two skeins. The downside was that I was in town a few days before the annual start of Shetland’s Yarn Week Festival! Come on NCL! Do better! LOL! The Shetland Wool Week is the biggest celebration of Shetland wool and traditional knitting in the world. We missed it by two days. After Shetland, a knitting get together was added to the cruise schedule.

During the two weeks, I barely left the ship. My GlocalMe mobile WiFi device worked perfectly, whenever the ship was in port. And, although I didn’t have WiFi service, during the three sea days, I didn’t miss it. Plus, I had enough streak freezers, on Duolingo, to cover my three missed days. Sometimes, you just have to let go and not pay $30.00 a day, to keep your perfect streak on a language learning app.

On our last major stop, the ship docked a few miles away from Edinburgh. I made my first trip there forty years ago. I decided to sit out the Royal Mile and give both knees, (with bone on bone arthritis), a rest. So, I rode around town on a local bus. I sat upstairs, in the very front, and created my own Hop on (not Hopping off) bus tour. Luckily, a local woman heading to work took a seat across from me. She happily became my free tour guide.

Then, before I knew it, the 14 day cruise was done. My little pink under the seat suitcase and small blue backpack were already packed, before I headed down to the theater for the goodbyes. The next morning, after a light breakfast, my excursion group exited the ship at 7:30 am. The confusion began soon afterwards. A few guests had purchased the Tour London and Heathrow package thinking it was direct transit to the airport. When we reached our first stop in London, things got ugly.

Five passengers were using the excursion to get into London. They explained this to the tour guide and bus driver. Their luggage was put into a separate area. Once we arrived at the Tower of London, the five retrieved their bags and left. Seeing this, we then had a passenger asking for her luggage. She was worried that she would miss her flight, if the bus wasn’t going directly to Heathrow. We also had a couple refusing to leave the bus.

When we finally reached Heathrow, I flew to Charlotte, North Carolina. The plan was to meet two friends, in Boone. By the time my flight arrived, both Boone and Asheville were flooded. Prayers to all those affected by Hurricane Helene! XOXO—GGT