Argentine Precious Stone

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Rhodochrosite

Rhodochrosite is a manganese carbonate mineral with chemical composition MnCO3. In its (rare) pure form, it is typically a rose-red color, but impure specimens can be shades of pink to pale brown. Rhodochrosite is Argentina's "national gemstone".

Famed for its banding, ranging from light pink to bright red, Argentinian Rhodochrosite is a truly unique gemstone. In ideal specimens of this stone, the banding crosses the surface of the stone in a zigzag pattern, with a sharp contrast between colors.

Inca Rose

Throughout our trip in South America we saw several merchants selling the local semi-precious gem.  These images were taken at Buenos Aires International Airport while waiting for our return flight.

As you can see the gem can be carved into many shapes, including my favorite (you guessed it) - Penguin.

As with any gem, expect to pay a premium based on the quality of the stone used for the setting.   A decent grade stone used in an earring will cost around $125 US at most jewelers.  If you are looking for something special for yourself or a gift, you'll want to check these gems out during your visit.

 

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Inca Rose Gems

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Northernmost City in Norway

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Honningsvåg at 70° 58' N, in Nordkapp municipality, claims to be the northernmost city in Norway and even in the world. It is situated at a bay on the southern side of Magerøya island, while the famous North Cape and its visitors center is on the northern side, 45 minutes away.

The images to the right were from our previous visit to Honningsvåg, where we explored North Cape.  We decided to explore the town instead this time.   Our last visit had an interesting story associated with it.   Read about it in this blog post: Funny Thing Happened on Way to Nordkapp

Colorful Buildings & Trolls 

We arrived around lunchtime and had about 3 hours in port before sailing.  It was a cold but gorgeous day, with blue skies and bright sunlight lighting our path as we walked along the snow-packed streets of town.

We did some window shopping and checked out the local market.  We captured several images around town before purchasing some Norwegian souvenirs and returning to our ship.




Local inhabitants get around town using a
kicksled. The kicksled or spark is a small sled consisting of a chair mounted on a pair of flexible metal runners which extend backward to about twice the chair's length. The sled is propelled by kicking ("sparke" or "sparka" in the Scandinavian languages) the ground by foot. There is a handlebar attached to the top of the chair back.

Additional photos can be found on our Norway Shutterfly page

Journey to North Cape
Honningsvåg

Century - Honningsvåg
North Cape

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Journey Towards North Cape

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Northernmost Part 

 Norway Voyage

On Day 6 we reached the northernmost part of our coastal voyage of  Norway.  At that point we were only about 2000 km from the North Pole.

Hanging out on Deck G in the Panorama Lounge, we enjoyed the magnificent landscape as we continued our journey toward the North Cape.  Snow covered mountains, bathed in bright sunlight, lined our path to Honningsvåg.

This voyage was the second time we cruised in this part of Norway.   The difference was that this time the area was under a blanket of snow, which really highlighted the colorful buildings. In our next post, we'll detail both visits to Honningsvåg.


Additional photos can be found on our Norway Shutterfly page

Journey to North Cape

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Dinner in the High North

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Entering the High North

It was long thought that the Arctic was unsuitable for man, let alone for food production. But while early historians portrayed the High North as a barren land, Norwegians proved then wrong.

Day 5's dinner consisted of Creamed Carrot Soup with crispy cured ham, Baked Arctic Char from Sigerfjord served with pickled vegetable, baked beetroots and Gulløye potatoes from Troms, and Cloudberries from North Norway served with sour cream.  We were sailing just north of Tromsø when we sat down for our dinner in the main dining room.

Arctic Char

While we were sleeping, MS Vesterålen docked at Sortland and picked up fresh Arctic Char from Sigerfjord. The watersytems of Vesterålen , with deep cold waters and rivers, are perfect for these diadromous fish, which migrate between fresh and salt water.

Cloudberries grow all over Norway but it is only at high altitudes or far north that the plants yield fruit regularly.

Additional photos can be found on our Norway Shutterfly page

Norway's Coastal Kitchen


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