JustBeingCP

I started a dream of a life time last Saturday (29th July, 2023) when I boarded the Iona cruise ship in Southampton to sail around Norway.

The ship departed the port of Southampton at 18:30 and started to make its way to Stavanger.

That evening I went to a show called the Festival in the ships theatre whilst in transit from Southampton to the shores of Norway which featured some well know classics such as Rule the World.

I spent all of Sunday (30th of July) at sea so visited the onboard cinema Ocean Studios in the afternoon and watched the film Champions.

I visited Brodies bar before dinner that evening and watched Aston Villa take on Brentford in the Premier League summer series.

Aston Villa went into the half time break with a narrow lead thanks to goals from Ezra Konsa, Matty Cash & Mussa Diaby.

I then watched the second half of the match from the comfort of my cabin and witnessed Villa throwing away there narrow lead in Maryland.

Aston Villa ended there time in the states with a draw before heading back to the West Midlands and taking Lazio in Walsall at the Poundland Stadium on Thursday evening.

I then went for dinner at a restaurant called the chief’s table later that evening which was a dinner suit occasion.

I finally arrived in Stavanger at 08:30am on the morning of Monday the 31st of July after a days sailing from the UK.

Stavanger is an incredible place to visit and one that I recommend all wheelchair users visit if they get the chance because of how flat the streets are.

Whilst ashore in Stavanger I nearly got chased by a swan as I sat by a lake near the port.

After lunch back on board the ship I went swimming in one of the various plung pools that were located on each of the 18 decks.

As the Iona prepared to leave our first destination we were to treated to a set of gospel songs from the Stavanger gospel choir.

After spending the day in Stavanger the ship headed to Alesund our second destination on this epic tour of Norway.

Lewis Capaldi’s song wish you the best played as we sailed from the port of Stavanger.

I had Fish and Chips for the second time whilst on route from Stavanger to Alesund which I must say was very delicious.

The Iona arrived in Alesund at 9am local time the following morning and I found that it was another beautiful port.

The conditions were a little different when the ship arrived in Alesund because it was overcast.

There was a crew safety drill at 10am on the 3rd day of the cruise which filled me full of confidence because I knew that if anything did occur whilst onboard I would be safe.

After spending the morning exploring beautiful Alesund I headed back on board the Iona and continued to explore our beautiful home.

I found that Alesund wasn’t very accessible for wheelchair users because it had a lack of dropped kerbs and was very hilly.

Before lunch which I had back on board our ship Iona I headed to Brodies Bar and watched Sarina Wiegman’s England take on China in our final group stage match of the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup down-under in Australia.

Sarina Wiegman opted to start with Aston Villa’s Rachel Daly for the first time in 2023 Women’s World Cup.

England required just a point to win there group and set up a last 16 tie with African side Nigeria down-under.

England managed to achieve there target of a win thanks to goals from Alessia Russo, Lauren Hemp, Lauren James x2, Chloe Kelly, Rachel Daly.

I set sail from Alesund at 5:30pm on Tuesday the 1st of August and headed for Olden, the next destination on this awesome adventure.

The Iona arrived in Olden at 8am local time on Wednesday the 2nd of August and I then spend another wonderful morning exploring another Norwegian port.

It was an overcast start in Olden however this changed in late morning/ early afternoon when sunny spells began to develop.

I spent an hour on an Olden sight seeing tour which was beautiful to witness because of the mountains.

It was also interesting to know that Olden has just 2 churches with the newest one being the colour red, which happens to be my favourite colour.

The bus tour then stopped a Glacer which was an incredible sight.

I left the sight seeing tour bus in Olden town centre and wheeled back to where the Iona was docked, which was about a 10 minute walk away.

The pavement network in Olden was a lot more accessible for those using wheelchairs and mobility scooters than it was in Alesund.

I spent the afternoon catching up on the sun on the 18th deck of the ship after eating a very nice burger from one of the various grab and go outlets on board.

As the ship prepared to sail away from Olden I watched a film called The Father in my cabin which passed the time as we headed back out to the North Sea.

The ship departed Olden at around 5:30pm local time on the 3rd day of this wonderful week long adventure and headed for Haugesund, our final destination on this awesome adventure.

As the ship left port “ Time to say goodbye” boomed out over the public address system which I found quite emotional.

I then headed to the Headline Theatre shortly after departure to watch a show called Skies the Limit, however the production had to be abandoned shortly after the start because of a cast member injury.

I arrived in Haugesund , our final destination of this trip at 9am on Thursday the 3rd of August and spent another wonderful day exploring what this beautiful port has to offer those who visit it.

The pavement network was again very accessible in the port of Haugesund which didn’t cause me any issues.

I also came across a London telephone box which had been turned into a local library whilst exploring the area.

I then stumbled across a local park which featured a pavilion that was built in 1923 and was an incredible site.

I then headed to a local doughnut shop whilst out and about in Haugesund, which I must say wasn’t too expensive.

Once back on board the Iona I headed to the 18th deck and decided to jump a in an infinity pool.

I departed Haugesund at 4:30pm that afternoon and started travelling back to the port of Southampton.

A few hours after our departure I went back to the Headlines Theatre and attempted to rewatch the show called Skies the Limit for the second time after it was cancelled on Wednesday evening.

I then headed for the onboard curry house a few hours after setting sail and had Lamb Cuttlets to start which proceeded a main course of Duck Tikka Malabari that I washed down with a mocktail of Rasberry and Almond Bakewell.

It was awesome that I could get my daily fix of sky sports news in the North Sea.

I started to pack my bags on our final morning of the cruise, which was at sea because they needed to put outside my room for collection that afternoon.

I then just chilled around the ship for the rest of the day and into the evening whilst the Iona continued to make its voyage to our final destination.

The Iona docked back in the port of Southampton at 7am on last Saturday (5th of August, 2023) which was a welcomed relief after a long week at sea.

I had to vacate my cabin at 08:00 on our disembarkment day and move to one of the onboard restaurants where I would be helped to leave the ship.

I would highly recommend taking a cruise as a wheelchair user because once you are on board the ship you have access to everything that you need/require because it is in a single place.

My accessible cabin included a balcony which was easy to access and move around as and when required.

The shower and toilet facilities located within my cabin were incredibly accessible which I loved because it meant that I could he completely independent when on board.

I found that you needed a lot of patience when waiting to use the many lifts on board the ship, however this was be something that I got used to as the week progressed.

I could feel the motion of the ship more than the other passengers on board because I’m lower down than they are to each deck.

There is nothing bad that I can say about this experience because I have absolutely loved for-filling a dream of mine over the last week.

I know that this is a very long blog that contains a lot of information and images. However I wanted to share what I experienced last week on my first cruise with you, my readers and followers.

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I would like to end in my normal way by taking the opportunity to thank my readers and followers for continuing to the time out of your busy schedules to read my latest blog.

Cam