Monday, August 4, 2014

Croissants are Back, Back Again... and so is Reflection Time!

8 countries down! I know how it happened, but how did it happen?!? Time
to reflect on them. And because it has been a while with croissant
ratings, they are from 1-5.

Bergen, Norway:
I loved loved loved Bergen. I did not know what to expect with this
country, but it made its way to my top countries. It was so beautiful
and I was convinced it was pulled straight out of Disney or something.
The views from the mountains were so pretty and we had great weather
here also. I just enjoyed everything about this city in Norway, expect
for how expensive it was. For that reason we opted for eating meals on
the ship, but I did try some black currant ice cream and that was great.
I also tried some red currants and they were also really really good.
Norway also introduced me to trolls and started my love for them. It was
one of those places where I told my parents "I'm not leaving". I could
definitely see myself going back to Bergen some day. I just really fell
in love with the place and it surprised me in a good way. Norway lacked
with croissants, but I forgive the country because they made up for it
with trolls.
Croissant Rating: Don't know

Oslo, Norway:
I don't really have that much to say about this port. We did have a
really cool field program that took us on a ferry through the fjords.
The views were incredible and I think overall some of the best sights
and pictures came from that day going through the fjords. I would really
like to visit the fjords again. As for the rest of the city of Oslo, I
wasn't that crazy over it. Nothing really stood out to me too much and
although I enjoyed my time there, I can't say I really liked the city.
Coming to Oslo straight from Bergen, I found the city to be less
impressive and lacking from what I just had seen. I love the country as
a whole though and would love to see more. Once again Norway failed me
with croissants.
Croissant rating: Don't know

St. Petersburg, Russia:
The place of fear. Or so we thought, the ship built it up so much and
basically scared the crap out of everyone. All the hype sort of put
everyone on edge. I understand for safety reasons why they had to warn
us but, it kind of bothered me that they made it out to seem like the
"scariest" or most "dangerous" of all the ports. Maybe it was
technically, but I've heard of worse things happening in New Jersey. So
once we got into port and I really had no clue what to expect at that
point, I was surprised again in a good way.It was probably one of the
most touristy cities we have been to. It was clean and it seemed pretty
friendly to me. It was extremely hot for us, so that kind of took away
some enjoyment. I liked Russia a lot more than I thought I would have
and I had a good time. St. Petersburg has a lot of history and is a
beautiful city. I loved the Russian style Orthodox churches, they never
got old. Russia was a good country for me, but I'm not sure if I would
make a visit back again. Russia relived the croissant mission! Of all
places, you go Russia. Keep doing what you're doing.
Croissant rating: 4

Stockholm, Sweden:
Another "I am not leaving moment" in this port. Sweden is heavy
competition with Scotland for my number 1 country right now. I loved it.
It was so clean, probably the cleanest so far. It was a beautiful place
and Stockholm was a beautiful city. I usually don't like cities at all,
but this was clean and very safe feeling. Even walking around at night,
we felt comfortable. The people were friendly and all spoke English too.
We had an easy time walking around as well as conquering the bus system.
I had a really good time in Sweden. Everyday was fun and interesting. We
also lucked out with really beautiful weather here as well. The
atmosphere of Sweden was so awesome. It was such a change from the
United States. For example with the pride parade, there were flags
everywhere and all generations celebrated. All of the public buses had
pride flags on them. It was really cool to see how accepting and
together they were as a country. I felt like they were way ahead of the
US in those respects and I would love to live in a society like that.
The city itself was beautiful and they had tiny little old streets in
the old town. They were maybe a person and a half wide and they were
just so cool to walk down. I really loved Stockholm and would like to go
back again.
Croissant rating: 2

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