Wednesday, July 26, 2023. Portland, Oregon.
Today I packed forty-three pounds of clothes and etceteras (one pound under the limit) for a trip I didn’t plan for. I am a somewhat reluctant traveler. We signed up for this trip to the Nordic countries because a gap in our summer schedule matched the dates of this trip Bill’s sister Ann and daughter Marianne had signed up for with the Overseas Adventure Travel (OAT) tour company. We have enjoyed a number of OAT trips, including one with Marianne to northern Italy, and they’ve been great. Marianne and Ann have gone on several OAT trips together. This seemed like a perfect opportunity to share a family adventure. Nordic countries, I thought. Stockholm. Copenhagen. Oslo. The Fiords of Norway. Awesome!
Then I started looking at the itinerary and felt like we’d signed up to go to the ends of the earth. Latvia. Estonia. Lapland. Above the Arctic Circle. At least we’d have Helsinki. For a couple of days.
Gotta say, I felt let down. It got worse when I saw there was a tour of a former cod liver oil factory on the agenda. My parents made me choke that stuff down when I was a kid, and I still can’t eat cod because of it. A cod dinner would follow the experience. Great.
It doesn’t help to be leaving Eugene in the paradise weather of summer. Cool mornings. Blue skies and sunshine. Outdoor concerts and festivals. On Sunday evening, we enjoyed a concert by the Eugene Symphony at the Cuthbert with our adventure-loving Missouri friend Rick Brindell who was visiting us for a couple of days. Because everyone wants to be here in the summer, right?
My patio hydrangea is in full bloom. How could I leave these beauties?
But I took a closer look at the itinerary, and our guide called to check on our questions and concerns. Riga, Latvia and Tallinn, Estonia both look very interesting. Art deco in Riga and Medieval streets in Tallinn. A very special library, the National Library of Latvia, known as the Castle of Light. We’ll get to see Huskies north of the Arctic Circle, and who can resist sled dogs? We’ll cruise the waters of the Lofoten Archipelago, which sure looks gorgeous on TV.
Best of all, I can opt out of the cod experience and stay to explore the nearby arts and crafts village of Henningsvaer instead. Smiley face! Love the OAT guides. Thanks, Maria.
I’m sitting now in a lovely hotel in Portland, where we will stay overnight and catch the 6:40am shuttle to the airport. I ate a big salad for dinner. Why? Because when I mentioned salad in our telephone conversation with Latvia/Estonia guide Inese, she said, “What salads? We eat a lot of root vegetables.”
A highway traffic jam on our way here today took us through the Hollywood neighborhood of Portland, an attractive neighborhood I’ve never seen before. The traffic snarls might have been caused by a shooting in the area. We shouldn’t have that problem in the Nordic countries, at least.
Here’s to the unexpected!
