{"product_id":"our-50th-anniversary-trip-to-north-europe-with-a-cruise-to-denmark-sweden-and-finland","title":"Our 50th Anniversary Trip to North Europe with a Cruise to Denmark, Sweden and Finland","description":"\u003cp\u003e“Vikings is the modern name given to seafaring people originally from Scandinavia (present-day Denmark, Norway and Sweden), who from the late 8th to the late 11th centuries raided, pirated, traded and settled throughout parts of Europe.”\u003c\/p\u003e\r\n\u003cp\u003eMy wife and I decided to go to Scandinavia with a Royal Caribbean cruise for our 50th anniversary in December 2020.\u003c\/p\u003e\r\n\u003cp\u003eThe decision was made after we returned from a pilgrimage tour to the Holy Lands and a trip to Alaska.\u003c\/p\u003e\r\n\u003cp\u003eMy wife had recovered from cancer 9 years ago and a knee operation 6 years ago.\u003c\/p\u003e\r\n\u003cp\u003eShe was eager to travel again having regained the function of her knee.\u003c\/p\u003e\r\n\u003cp\u003eFrom a banking promotion we managed to get 445,000 krisflyer miles from Singapore Airlines in August 2018 which was supposed to be sufficient to obtain 2 business return tickets to Europe.\u003c\/p\u003e\r\n\u003cp\u003eWe made plans to go in August 2020 on a cruise in Northern Europe.\u003c\/p\u003e\r\n\u003cp\u003eUnfortunately the Covid 19 pandemic struck in December 2019 and shortly after lock-downs occurred all over the world.\u003c\/p\u003e\r\n\u003cp\u003eTravel overseas was limited with quarantines being imposed in the oversea countries.\u003c\/p\u003e\r\n\u003cp\u003eSo we spent our 50th anniversary in a Singapore hotel and spent it exploring the local attractions.\u003c\/p\u003e\r\n\u003cp\u003eBy 2022 most countries started to open their airports for travel again.\u003c\/p\u003e\r\n\u003cp\u003eWe made plans to travel to Scandinavia in August 2022 when our Singapore Airlines miles will expire.\u003c\/p\u003e\r\n\u003cp\u003eUnfortunately the price of the Krisflyer miles had been decimated by 100% from 2 cents to 1 cent.\u003c\/p\u003e\r\n\u003cp\u003eThe price of airplane fuel had also increased tremendously and the invasion of Ukraine by Russia had made it worse.\u003c\/p\u003e\r\n\u003cp\u003eWe were able to obtain only premium economy seats and still had to pay extra for the insufficient miles.\u003c\/p\u003e\r\n\u003cp\u003eOnce we confirmed our seats on the airline we then were able to book a cruise to Scandinavia with Royal Caribbean.\u003c\/p\u003e\r\n\u003cp\u003eWe had planned on a cruise to 8 countries such as Denmark, Sweden, Finland, Latvia, Estonia, Lithuania, Russia, and Netherlands but that was not possible with the war in Ukraine with Russia.\u003c\/p\u003e\r\n\u003cp\u003eWe were able to visit only Denmark, Sweden and Finland.\u003c\/p\u003e\r\n\u003cp\u003eScandinavia has always fascinated people from Singapore and around the world.\u003c\/p\u003e\r\n\u003cp\u003eIt consisted of three countries Norway, Sweden and Denmark and vast expanses of land and sea, stretching from the Arctic Circle in the north to Denmark’s border with Germany in the south.\u003c\/p\u003e\r\n\u003cp\u003eModern pictures of fairy-tale streets, looming fjords, vast forests, and quaint, bicycle-friendly Scandinavian cities attract the attention of the world not to mention images of the legendary Vikings whose wandering, raiding and sailing prowess are known today far and wide.\u003c\/p\u003e\r\n\u003cp\u003eThe modern Scandinavian descendants of the Vikings may have given up their broadswords and warships but a more sedate life appears to agree with the Scandinavian people.\u003c\/p\u003e\r\n\u003cp\u003eEvery year the Scandinavian cities and countries appear in the top rankings of lists of the world’s happiest people.\u003c\/p\u003e\r\n\u003cp\u003eIn terms of satisfaction with governance, social support, income, life expectancy, freedom and lack of corruption, the Scandinavian countries are invariably in the top ten.\u003c\/p\u003e\r\n\u003cp\u003eThe World Happiness Report saw Scandinavia’s Nordic neighbor Finland rank in first place for the five years in a row but Denmark and Norway were second and third, with Sweden coming in seventh.\u003c\/p\u003e\r\n\u003cp\u003eIn modern times the Nordic countries has prospered, with the economies of the countries among the strongest in Europe and welfare systems considered to be very generous.\u003c\/p\u003e\r\n\u003cp\u003eThis is the main reason for us to visit Denmark, Sweden and Finland but we are even happier to return to the comfort of our home in Singapore.\u003c\/p\u003e\r\n\u003cp\u003eTABLE OF CONTENT\u003cbr\u003e\r\nIntroduction\u003cbr\u003e\r\nChapter 1 Denmark\u003cbr\u003e\r\nChapter 2 Voyager of the Seas\u003cbr\u003e\r\nChapter 3 Stockholm\u003cbr\u003e\r\nChapter 4 Helsinski\u003cbr\u003e\r\nChapter 5 Visby\u003cbr\u003e\r\nChapter 6 Bingo, Casino and Activities\u003cbr\u003e\r\nChapter 7 Coperhagen\u003cbr\u003e\r\nChapter 8 Return to Singapore\u003cbr\u003e\r\nEpilogue\u003c\/p\u003e\r\n","brand":"None","offers":[{"title":"Livre numérique Kobo","offer_id":46448897753298,"sku":"9163e959-2058-3984-8bd3-9cc9ac30b63b","price":4.99,"currency_code":"CAD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0655\/8980\/5233\/files\/image_c888d38b-2b12-4ed0-b32b-a0a6dd63ab10.jpg?v=1763076138","url":"https:\/\/www.indigo.ca\/fr\/products\/our-50th-anniversary-trip-to-north-europe-with-a-cruise-to-denmark-sweden-and-finland","provider":"Indigo","version":"1.0","type":"link"}