Nearly at Southampton
First glimpse of Aurora
Turn right for dock gate 10 .
Time stands still at dock gate 10
Mayflower terminal ahead
Crowd waiting for check-in.
First pint on the deserted Pennant deck.
The Otterbourne Brass Band play a farewell.
Frank and Irene. Gerry and Sandy. Charles and Brenda. Pat and Margaret. Aurora 2009
The Oscarborg Fortress near Oslo, involved in the sinking of the “Blucher” 1940.
South Kaholmen island in the Oslo fjord. Site of the Oscarsborg Fortress
Aurora negotiates the channel through the Oslo fjord
Approaching Oslo
”Dyna Fyr“ Quaint lighthouse in Oslo harbour. Erected 1857. Now available as a banquet venue.
Aurora's berth lies dead ahead
“Kavringen Fyr” 1892. Decorative little lighthouse marks the channel in Oslo harbour
Mini-lighthouse "Kavringen Fyr" marks the channel
Norwegian Coastgurd
Sentry patrolling inside the Akershus fortress
Posh duck house
The Royal Palace, Oslo
Shy sentry?
The Royal Palace park
Clock at the ferry terminals
Floating restaurants and bars near the ferry terminal
Aurora moored beside the walls of the Akershus fortress
"Norge" The Norwegian royal yacht
Aurora approaching the Great Belt bridge,Denmark
The Great Belt bridge
Leaving the bridge behind
View from moorings in Gdynia, for Gdansk
The Green Gate in Gdansk
The Long Wharf by the Motlawa River in Gdansk
Town Hall clock tower in Gdansk. (Note time. 0845!)
Dutch style gables in Gdansk
Neptune fountain in Gdansk
The Prison Tower in Gdansk
Thick fog clears on the approach to Stockholm
Large ferry going the other way
Island in the stream
Approaching Stockholm
Aurora's berth in Stockholm
Old café in Stockholm
Hot chocolate, and warm blankets on a bright but blowy May morning
Palace sentry
The old guard gets on parade.
The new guard marches on.
The new sentry takes post.
The old guard marches off.
Aurora at the bottom of the street
The hop on - hop off boat
Hop on prices
Café in an Stockholm park
The busy shopping centre in Stockholm
The café tram which runs through Stockholm
Your ship is over there
Result of a barbecue at this summer house which overlooked the mooring.
Barbecues and wooden houses don't get on well together
How many does it take? 8 Firefighters, and one unhappy chef (on the left)
One of "ABBA" owned the house in the background
Aurora leaves Stockholm in convoy
Another large ferry on a converging course
One of the many islands.
A gull flying alongside Aurora. Or is it an albatross?
Great moorings in Helsinki........for golfers!
A quiet Sunday in Helsinki
Little Sunday traffic, other than trams.
Sibelius.
The original Sibelius monument.
Took the trip on this old London bus, run by a very entertaining, and knowledgeable, Australian
Interior of the famous "Rock Church" Helsinki
Exterior of the "Rock Church"
Church in the centre of Helsinki
The sea-lion fountain
The new cruise terminal in St Petersburg, in part use and nearing completion
The terminal buildings at the new cruise port in St Petersburg
AIDAluna beside the new St Petersburg cruise terminal
Long queues to go ashore. Passport control
And long queues to get back aboard.
Fountains at the Peterhof, St Petersburg. Dry until 1100hrs
Fountains at the Peterhof, St Petersburg
Fountains at the Peterhof, St Petersburg. Just beginning to gurgle.
Fountains at the Peterhof, St Petersburg. Now building up to full flow.
Fountains at the Peterhof, St Petersburg in all their glory.
The hydrofoil from The Peterhof back to St Petersburg centre.
War memorial outside a block of flats. Nice!
St Petersburg Fire Station.
Church in the Peter and Paul fortress
Close-up of the spire
Tombs of Russian royalty
Memorial to the murdered Russian royal family
More royal tombs
The great square within the fort
A reminder of the grim past of the fortress
The Naval wing
The "Death Gate" through which those sentenced to death would pass on their last journey
Walls of the bastions
The Neva river
Peter and Paul from the river
The other Aurora
The gunship Aurora
Bridge decorated with equestrian statues
Reproduction of original drawbridge
A sense of Venice in St Petersburg
The Hermitage
The port band bids us farewell.........
.........for a small contribution!
Leaving AIDAluna alone in the new cruise terminal
Old sea fort protected St Petersburg from invaders.
New flood gates will protect St Petersburg from the sea
Tallin skyline
Girl selling sugar spiced almonds in Tallin
Tallin market
The hill from the market to the upper town
Alexander Nevski Orthodox Cathedral
Tallin low town from the upper town viewpoint
Margaret in Tallin upper town
Aurora just visible beyond the turrets
The "Tall Hermann Tower" at Toompea above Tallin
Gateway to the old lower town
Flower stall outside the old town gates
Modern Tallin
Aurora shares the jetty with "Zenith"
The harbour-side market in Tallin
Aurora's mooring in Copenhagen
Copenhagen skyline
Old sea fort defended the approaches to Copenhagen
The little mermaid
The little mermaid looking out to sea
The Huitfeldt Column, Copenhagen
Fountains in front of the Amalienborg Palace
Nyhavn quayside
Aurora on the Langelinie quay, with a Costa ship somewhat further away
Cruise ship Astor was unable to sail, as they had become stuck on a sand bar!
"Dannebrog" The Danish royal yacht
Spire of Vor Frelsers Kirke, with external staircase
Stock exchange spire formed from 3 dragons with entwined tails.
Underwater sculpture
Bishop Absalom. The founder of Copenhagen.
Street café in the Nytorv (New Square) Copenhagen
Enjoying a beer in Copenhagen
Hans Christian Andersen
A mythical Norse creature And me.(I'm the one with the beard!)
Busy waterfront scene in Copenhagen harbour
The top gallant schooner "Maya" under power in Copenhagen
Marco Polo in Copenhagen (Out of Tilbury)
Passengers on Marco Polo watch us sail out of Copenhagen
Marco Polo
A Stena Line ferry passes in the night
The working port of Zeebrugge - for Bruges.
Our quay side companions in Zeebrugge
The fancy gangway that the Zeebrugge port authority insisted Aurora should use
Ancient bridge and gateway near the Groeninge museum, Bruges
Typical tour boat on Bruges waterways
In Bruges
Risque sculpture in garden next to the Groeninge museum.
Clogs on a wall in Bruges
Low bridge
Just somebody's back garden. Bruges style!
Said to be the smallest Gothic windows in the world
The Belfry in the Markt, Bruges
Horse drawn carriages in Bruges market place
St Salvadors Cathedral, Bruges
Weekenders on Arcadia wave goodbye
Arcadia getting ready to follow us home to Southampton
Aurora in Oslo
