Arrived in Tromsø

We are currently in a great location in the city harbour. A jetty further is the sauna - just wonderful to jump directly into the harbor basin.

Picture: Pust (Sauna)

There is quite some traffic in the harbor there with coming and going of fishermen and expedition yachts. As we will stay here for longer, we will take our time to explore Tromsø. A nice little town that becomes more Christmassy every day with its fairy lights, stars and Christmas trees. It's fun to live 5 minutes from the Christmas market with a single mulled wine stand. You can only drink the mulled wine directly at the stand, as drinking alcohol in public is otherwise prohibited. There is still no snow in the city, but because of the cold there is already a lot of frost and ice.

Bild: Tromsø Cityhafen

Walking in the city requires great attention. On the one hand, the sidewalks are heated and at times iced up again. Spikes are popular not only for cars and bicycles, but also for pedestrians. Overall, we get around the city well on public buses, even if we occasionally get on in the wrong direction. A cable car takes us to Fjellheisen in 4 minutes. From here it's time to mount the "Yaktrax" to our shoes and march towards Mt. Bønntuva - at the top we manage to catch a last glimpse of the sun just in time. Now we won't see them again until the new year!

Bild: Mt. Bønntuva

We get asked a lot about the darkness in northern Norway. We don't find it - not yet - uncomfortable. It is a new experience for us, which we experience very consciously and also enjoy. It's still twilight at the moment and it's beautiful, an almost mystical atmosphere.

Bild: Rystraumen

In order to defy the increasing darkness, we also installed a few lamps and candles in the Aegir. It's even more comfortable that way. The cold challenges us to deal with the temperatures, the freezing outside, as well as the heating inside and the condensation water on the windows. Purchasing a dehumidifier has paid off, also for washing on board. And the additional insulation on the windows and the "ship door" is already showing its positive effect. The window insulation project took a bit out of Christine's sewing skills and nerves. The thing with the different fabrics and the thread tension is not that easy. However, Christine has experts from the sailing community in the background with tips and tricks. In the end it worked!

For the winter time we have discovered that the engine compartment is ideal for drying our shoes. The "Fatboy" seating was sunk into the deepest chamber of the ship, into the lead store (Loadbaak), until next summer - whenever and wherever we experience it. We fixed the sun roof (bimini) more firmly and now we use it as a snow roof. It's supposed to protect our cockpit. The anchor box has been reorganized: the skis are at the front and ready for the first tour!

"Vi snakker ikke norsk" (we don't speak Norwegian) and yet we were able to register with the Immigration Service (UDI). Now we are allowed to stay in Norway as long as we want and behave correctly. We are desperately waiting for the snow and our visit before Christmas. We hope then to come even more north to see whales. More on that in the next blog!