The land of waterfalls

Norway’s beauty is unparalleled. The Hot Glass Demo at Sea on the Celebrity Eclipse visited several Norwegian ports where travelers could explore city life at places such as Stavanger, Ålesund, and Bergen, while other ports, like Geiranger and Flåm, brought you straight to nature’s doorstep. Our Hot Glass Team took every opportunity we could to get lost in these amazing landscapes (okay, not literally).

Geiranger has a quaint town center with a magnificent waterfall, just a short, accessible walk down the road. You don’t have to travel far to see this powerful body of water or feel its icy mist. However, stemming from this point are many trails through the mossy green forests, working their way up to greater sights and expansive views. Just past the visitor center of this World Heritage site, we found a trail map that set us on the right path with the time we had. We decided to set out for Storsæterfossen, a waterfall that had a foot path build into the rock underneath it. The hike up was moderate but long, as most of it was on the road to reach the actual trailhead. Walking underneath this massive waterfall, you never knew you could feel so alive. It was stunning! Despite the cold, the dampness, and the hour-long downpour as we headed back down to sea level, the adventure well out-weighed the wet Norwegian weather!

While the funky, vibrant city of Stavanger has a lot to offer in a day, we jumped at the chance to join a crew tour to the famous Preikestolen — also known as Pulpit Rock. Merely image search the web for this incredible rock formation and you too will be lacing up your hiking boots in no time. The day was again cloudy and wet. The grueling, wet and steep trail mostly consisted of rock steps until we gained enough elevation to break out of the woods. Regardless of the fog, and the anticipated limited view from the top, we moved at a feverish pace with excitement. As you can see it was, of course, well worth it and there was a well-deserved nap to follow once we got back to the ship.

The beauty of Norway can be seen from near, far and even the comforts of your own home (also known as the Eclipse)! Gorgeous, inspiring sunsets really help to finish off a surreal day. The richness of color completely inspired the Hot Glass Team with our collaborative piece. This three-part cane patterned incalmo design was created by Michael Beahm, Brianna Barron, and myself. You can see Michael and Brianna here working on their individual patterned cups that we later joined together to create one uniform shape with an incredible linear design. Michael is bringing the line pattern to a termination and Brianna is transferring her incalmo cup onto a solid punty rod to open and shape the mouth of the cup. Finally, here we are, the team at our charity auction with the finished piece, raising money for the World Wildlife Fund.

Until next time!