Written by Carrie B.
We woke on Day 12 to a bittersweet feeling lingering in our hotel room. Are we happy to travel back to Norway today? Of course! The Lupoli girls are missing their Daddy and Carrie L was eager to be back with her husband. But are we a little sad that our journey is coming to an end? Absolutely!
We woke on Day 12 to a bittersweet feeling lingering in our hotel room. Are we happy to travel back to Norway today? Of course! The Lupoli girls are missing their Daddy and Carrie L was eager to be back with her husband. But are we a little sad that our journey is coming to an end? Absolutely!
Tying shoes for the last time |
Carrie L put on the kettle in preparation for our final mugs of freeze dried instant coffee (yeah!) and we began packing for the last time. We had this packing thing down to a science! Every item we brought in to the hotel room had a specific place and the girls knew their routine by heart. After waking in the morning they were expected to: brush teeth, get dressed (their clothes were pre-picked by us and laid out the evening before), brush hair, complete travel journals, put on shoes (coat if needed) and gather their blankets/stuffed animals. There was no time for complaining, whining or laying around...on this trip they were expected to behave like young adults, which surprisingly, they did very well with most of the time.
Leaving the hotel |
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The girls expressions |
We zipped the last suitcase and stuffed the last bag full of hotel freebies (I was collecting all the hair products and lotions to make a basket full of goodies for my guest bathroom) then quickly went downstairs to check out. While Carrie L was chatting with the lady at the front desk, I asked the girls to pose for a picture since it was the final morning of our trip. As they started to smile I said, “Make a face showing me how you feel about this being the last day of the trip.” Elise and Ellie both made sad faces by sticking out their bottom lips and frowning. Grace, well, she happily smiled as big as she could! I asked Elise and Ellie why they were sad and they quickly answered, in sync, that they knew it meant they would be apart again very soon and they would miss each other. When I asked Grace why she was happy she exclaimed, “I get to see my Daddy!”
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Business Class |
The ferry from Denmark to Norway was three very quick hours. As we sat in our upgraded seats, I realized that there wasn’t much of a difference between Business Class and the Main Cabin. If we would have been traveling without (1) children or (2) the man sitting behind us that sounded a lot like Darth Vader while he snored, then I think the difference would have been peace and quiet. But again, children and Darth didn’t help bring serenity to our ferry experience so we may as well been with the rowdy pre-teen boys in the Main Cabin watching them run around and scare each other. At least then I wouldn’t have had to constantly tell our children to be quiet because people are working!
Enjoying the view |
Carrie and I were working to get pictures uploaded and a blog entry submitted but as you can imagine, the Internet at sea was about as good as having a dial-up connection in your home. While I was waiting for my pictures to upload at the rate of one every 15 minutes, I decided it would be best to curb my boredom by perusing the cafeteria. Another Business Class perk I found was free coffee, soda, cookies and fruit but I had already exhausted those options and not one of them satisfied my hunger...or boredom for that matter. After discussing with Carrie L, she agreed that we needed real food and opened her wallet to find her debit card was missing. We made it this far and lost the debit card?!? Good thing we had a little cash to spare.
Trying to blog |
After filling up on ferry junk food, we packed up our things and went down to the car. For people traveling with children, you must be organized and punctual when leaving the ferry. Once the ferry docks, each car drives off so if you aren’t in your car, you will hold up all the people that are parked behind you. We were a bit behind schedule since we stopped for the girls to have a bathroom break but luckily, we ended up getting to the car on time and not having to deal with our fellow ferry friends being angry with us. In the car we discussed how once again our plan to make good use of our time was shot down due to Internet issues. Unfortunately, the only work I accomplished during those three Business Class hours was taking my daughter to the bathroom twice, cleaning up spilled slush, filling up on junk food and coffee, and watching as my Internet connection mocked me by spinning in circles.
The North Sea |
We walked inside and the dinner table was set with two pizzas ready to eat and a decanter full of wine. Thank God for good husbands...and for friends who have good husbands! After dinner, the girls ran upstairs to play as if they hadn’t seen each other in months, Carrie and Peter caught up with each other, and I sat back with my computer and glass of wine.
Back in Norway! |
Congratulations Girls! I got a little weepy when I read this post, but then I realized that you just came off of a European Road Trip... I hope to see all of your faces this summer.
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