COVID Revenge World Tour

If you reject the food, ignore the customs, fear the religion, and avoid the people, you might better stay at home.”

James Michener

When traveling abroad, especially to Europe, I usually open up Google Flight Map and look at the least expensive one-way ticket anywhere on the continent. The cheapest destination is where I start my journey. Hopping around in Europe from country to country is pretty inexpensive both by air and by train. Semester at Sea faculty and staff were scheduled to embark from Bremerhaven, Germany, on September 7, but Tim and I decided that we would take advantage of being in Europe and travel a bit prior to arriving on the ship. The flight to Iceland was the least expensive, so we began our COVID Revenge World Tour there – several weeks before we needed to board the Semester at Sea fall voyage. From Iceland, we traveled to Scotland, Northern Ireland, Denmark, Sweden, and Germany. Here are a few highlights.

Iceland: As we began the descent into Reykjavik, it felt like we were landing on the moon due to the gray, volcanic rock that covers the island. Although it may seem obvious to most, I simply hadn’t considered this and was surprised at the coldness of the land; yet, once we got off the airplane, the warmth of the Icelanders quickly changed my perception. We knew Iceland was having its annual Culture Day while we were there, but didn’t expect the importance of this national event. Roads were blocked off and there were many events and live music with an electric atmosphere. We also discovered we were visiting during the 30^th anniversary of the country’s judicial system. The Supreme Court of Iceland is located at the Dómhúsið (courthouse built in 1996) at Arnarhóll in Reykjavík. Prior to that time, the court system was a minor necessity by our standards. The crime rate is extraordinarily low, and Iceland’s is considered to be among the lowest in the world (the lowest in 2019). Our glacier, waterfall, and black sand tour was a highlight for me. We had two great tour guides who kept us entertained for the entire 14 hours! We hiked up to and around the back of Skogar Waterfall, which was spectacular. I especially enjoyed hearing the story of the Mountain Lady of Iceland – Fjallkonan. Tim and I spent another day on a walking culinary tour, where Tim tried fermented shark and stated that he will never ever do that again! However, we both loved the Arctic char, lamb hotdogs, and rye bread ice cream with caramel-rhubarb syrup. Iceland is another country I’d like to revisit. Icelanders are extraordinarily kind people.

Scotland: As we arrived in the heart of Edinburgh, there were posters and signs on every corner advertising performance acts. When we got to our hostel, we were told that Edinburgh was hosting the International Book Festival AND the 75th Edinburgh Fringe Festival, which is a month-long street-performers festival featuring hundreds and hundreds of performers with millions of spectators. So, as we walked through the streets surrounding the castle on the hill, we heard music, comedy, magic, etc. Our hostel was a repurposed courthouse and jail with the oldest portion completed in 1693. The building, located at 1A Parliament Square, was originally designed as the Edinburgh police chambers and contained both holding cells and courtroom facilities including the former district court. Our sleeping pods were immaculate, private, and comfortable. When Queen Elizabeth passed away just a couple of weeks after we were in Scotland, she was lying in state in Edinburgh in a church at the front door of our hostel. We cannot imagine how that would have worked if we were there then. We took a tour of Loch Ness through Glencoe and the Highlands. The absolute highlight of Scotland was attending The Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo. Groups from all over the world performed, including a U.S. military band. What a tremendous night!

Northern Ireland: We were so thankful to have perfect weather throughout our trip, including in Northern Ireland. Apparently, they had only had a half-dozen days of sunshine all summer. While we were there, we had no rain! We took a tour of Giant’s Causeway, which stopped along the way at castles and Game of Thrones filming locations. We have never seen the series, but after walking through The Dark Hedges, we both may start watching. We attended church with my friend, Alfie – where he got permission for Tim to play the pipe organ in the empty church the day prior. We visited Titanic Belfast where the ship was built – the museum is so well-designed for interactive interpretation. It was especially nice spending time again with friends I met in Hungary 12 years ago.

Denmark/Sweden: When arriving in Denmark, we grabbed a map at the hostel and started walking. We spent our first day at Tivoli enjoying the gardens and the famous open-faced sandwiches. Day two included a tour of the famous Kronborg Castle in Helsingor from the play Hamlet. We crossed over to Sweden and visited more cathedrals and museums. We met Tim’s host son, Linus, (from 15 years ago) with whom we spent several hours. We took another food tour where we learned how rhubarb is used in about every type of food and drink. Apparently, The Little Mermaid statue is a must-see in Copenhagen….we walked several miles and were a bit underwhelmed, but we saw her. We ended our time in Denmark with a nice visit with another of Tim’s host sons, Wenjamin.

Germany: In Hamburg, we visited the model railroad Miniatur Wunderland. Tim loved this. My son, David, and I visited in 2017, but they continue to add more and more to the three-story displays. While in Hamburg, we ended up spending an entire day with another of Tim’s host sons who acted as our tour guide and took us all around the best sights of Hamburg. At the end of the day, we walked Mikkel to the train platform for him to catch his train home. While waiting, we heard someone yell, “Tim!” It was Mara – a returnee/leader from EF Language Camp in Rhode Island where Tim and I worked back in 2012. Small world! The next day, we took the train to Bremerhaven to meet up with the faculty/staff from Semester at Sea. We were delighted to be staying in a hotel and not a hostel or someone’s home. We arrived on a beautifully warm day, so we could explore the small port city, shop for ship items we didn’t pack, and start getting to know other voyagers. We ate great meals, got rested, and prepared for SAS. We stayed two nights in the hotel and a full day on board the ship before we embarked on the evening of September 7.

Our COVID Revenge World Tour was a blast, but our adventure together was just getting started.