Day 8 Thursday, May 18th 2023 Grimsey Island and Husavik

 Today began with a disappointment but ended up not too badly!  We were due to land on the small island of Grimsey which is crossed by the Arctic Circle but when we woke there was quite a swell and a lot of mist making it unsuitable for tendering.  Such is life on a cruise boat and similar situations occur quite frequently in Scilly.  We circumnavigated the island and hence crossed into the Arctic Circle and it was good the captain had a Plan B.  He proceeded to take us to the small fishing port of Husavik on a fjiord on the mainland.  This proved a masterstroke as we were able to dock and walk straight onto the quay.

We were able to have lunch on board and then went to explore Husavik.  We walked along the harbour front where there was a lot of boating activity.  Whale watching activities seemed as popular as traditional fishing boats.  It was good to 

part of the harbour

Husavik harbour

the harbour

see so much commercial action.  Further along we found the pretty church set back from the front.  We went up 

Husavik church

io it hoping to view the interior but again it was locked.  We walked around the rest of the town and found a whale museum which we decided to visit. There was lots of information including the huge skeletons of several types of whale.  In a lecture hall a film was showing narrating the intellectual capabilities of whales.  It was narrated by David Attenborough and proved a very interesting watch for about 40 minutes.  It was now time to make our way back to the Fridtjof Nansen after a successful alternative to the original plan.  We now spent the rest of the afternoon reading and blogging.

We had dinner and later enjoyed another highlight.  One of the boat's crew had previously been a lead flutist in a Los Angeles orchestra and she gave a brilliant performance which was much appreciated.  So ended another good day.