FUN-travel: Scoresby Sound, Greenland – A&K Arctic Cruise Day 10
September 25, 2014 by Susan Clarke · Comments Off on FUN-travel: Scoresby Sound, Greenland – A&K Arctic Cruise Day 10
Day 48 – Sunday, August 17 – Rodefjord & Danmark, Greenland – A&K Cruise Day 9 – morning sun breaks thru clouds then mostly blue skies – 50’s
What I LIKE
- 7:00 – first in line for…
- 1st expedition in 1st group – zodiac tour
- – see sun rise over fjord
- – cloud colors change – really beautiful
- 6000 ft high sheer granite cliffs line narrow fjord
- 7:30 – massive, spectacular icebergs!
- – some w/vivid blue centers – see a ring seal
- – vibrant red/orange miniature flower clusters dot craggy shoreline
- 9:00 – breakfast w/snack for later
- 12:15 – BBQ lunch outside on deck – ribs, hotdogs, lamb chops
- – wind kicks up & have to go inside to finish lunch
- 2:00 – nap
- *4:30 – 2nd expedition 1st group
- – wet landing on Danmark island
- – have no intention going out at 6 PM!
- – get at back of line & go early
- – really boggy w/big squishy tufts of plants
- – big walk to top of rocky hill
- – incredible view of distant snow covered mtns
- – & icebergs dotting the bay
- 6:00 – happy hour martini’s
- **8:00 – typical dinner – causal Deck 6
- 10:30 – more icebergs & ice covered mtns in distance off balcony
- – sky is nice red w/orange colored clouds doting skyline
Sitting on Top of The World!
What I DON’T LIKE
- 6:30 – get up
- *really rough seas – get splashed big time
- – mosquitoes on shore – unbelievable!
- – the rubber boots make climbing on uneven ground cumbersome
- **food is getting boring – didn’t expect that for French ship
BBQ Bar
FUN-fact – There are no trees in the arctic.
Not so FF – Really expected to see lots more ice and calving of the icebergs.
Word Of the Week #529: Empathy
September 25, 2014 by Susan Clarke · Comments Off on Word Of the Week #529: Empathy
Empathy – understanding and identifying with another person’s situation, feelings, thoughts, etc.
Is it easy or hard for you to show emotion? How good are you at recognizing emotions in others? Did you know that the 90% or more of an emotional message is nonverbal?
In Daniel Goleman’s book on Emotional Intelligence he identifies 5 key qualities needed. I have covered 3 of them in several of the past WOW’s. They are self-awareness, self-management and self-motivation. Today I will cover the 4th and that is the ability to recognize emotions in others.
He writes, “Empathy builds on self-awareness; the more open we are to our own emotions, the more skilled we will be in 
reading feelings. People who have no idea what they feel themselves, are at a complete loss when it comes to knowing what anyone else around them is feeling. For all rapport, the root of caring, stems from emotional attunement, from the capacity for empathy.
The key to intuiting another’s feelings is in the ability to read nonverbal channels: tone of voice, gesture, facial expression, and the like. In tests with over 7,000 people the benefits of being able to read feelings from nonverbal cues included being better adjusted emotionally, more popular, more outgoing, and – perhaps not surprisingly – more sensitive. In general, women are better than men at this kind of empathy.
The roots of morality are to be found in empathy, since it is empathizing with – someone in pain, danger, or deprivation, say – and so sharing their distress that moves people to act to help them. By putting oneself in another’s place, leads people to follow certain moral principles.
This week’s focus is on empathy. Would you like to be more popular? How comfortable are you with showing your emotions? How good are you at reading other people’s feelings? How about identifying with another person’s situation?
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FUN-travel: Scoresby Sound, Greenland – A&K Arctic Cruise Day 9
September 24, 2014 by Susan Clarke · Comments Off on FUN-travel: Scoresby Sound, Greenland – A&K Arctic Cruise Day 9
Day 47 – Saturday, August 16 – Ittoqqortoormiit, Greenland – A&K Cruise Day 9 – full sun, blues skies, no clouds – 50
What I LIKE
- 8:30 – humpback whale sighting off starboard!
- 9:00 – typical breakfast
- 9:30 – enrichment lecture Arctic Sea Ice as Wildlife Habitat on TV
- View from balcony window
- – big jagged mtns jutting up from sea
- – w/patches of snow
- 10:30 – briefing in theatre
- – for guests booked on post cruise extension in Reykjavik
- – eavesdrop in back for tips on what we should do there
- – I have my own post extension for a helluva lot cheaper!
Ittoqqortoormitt
- 12:00 – briefing in theatre – landing in Ittoqqortoormiit
- Never ever seen a name spelled so bizarre
- – any idea how to pronounce it?
- Eeto-core-too-may is my best guess!
- 12:30 – lunch – swing out w/pasta bar buffet
- 2:30 – expedition 2nd group – zodiac to shore – wet landing
- Small village of 500 – mostly native Inuits
- – sights include: Lutheran church, school, hospital,
- tourist office & gift shop so small only a handful can go in at a time
Gary’s Sled Dogs
- Most FUN & interesting – meeting Gary who has 25 sled dogs
- – from London originally – has lived here 25 years
- – when asked if they pull a sled he responds with, “Well they don’t push it.”
- – decides he likes me as I am taking notes and not put off by his sarcastic response
- – he has the most dogs in village
- – when asked why he has them responds with, “I like going places I’ve never been before.”
- – he likes me so much he gives me a biz card
- – you can check him out at www.GaryRolfe.com
FUN-Fact – Gary has traveled over 20,000 polar miles with his dogs; more than any living Englishman.
- – A&K gives us postcards to send from the “most isolated/remote village in Greenland”
- 5:15 – return
- 6:00 – special presentation – 2 ladies from village share life experiences
- – funniest story = they fly in a Christmas tree – has to fin inside helicopter
- – saddest story = a lot of alcoholism – beer cans strewn all over front yards
- 8:00 – dinner w/expedition team member Mats & his wife from Norway
- – all married team members have brought wives on this cruise (figured this out on last day)
- 9:30 – humungous icebergs off our balcony
- 11:00 – night night for 7:30 expedition – we’ll see what time I get there!
What I DON’T LIKE
- Whales too far for good pix
- Ittoqqortoormitt looks better from a distance
- No satellite coverage – like having news channels – no internet
- – have watched all of the documentaries
- & had seen all of the movie selections
FUN-fact – The population of Greenland is 56,400 and 80% are native Inuits.
More FF – Their currency is the Danish Krone.
FUN-travel: Keiser Franz-Joseph Fjord, Greenland – A&K Arctic Cruise Day 8
September 22, 2014 by Susan Clarke · Comments Off on FUN-travel: Keiser Franz-Joseph Fjord, Greenland – A&K Arctic Cruise Day 8
Day 46 – Friday, August 15 – Keiser Franz-Joseph Fjord, Greenland – A&K Cruise Day 8 – full sun w/clouds in distance – mid 40’s
Margeriedal
What I LIKE
- 6:45 – wake up
- 11:00 – 1st expedition in 2nd group
- – wet landing @ Margeriedal
- – nice walk up steep hill w/grand view
- – really incredible rock formations and types on beach shore line
- – every color from butter toffee to adobe red, slate & grays some w/sparkles!
- 1:00 – lunch – Indian – cooked by French & Phillipino’s so not very authentic
- 2:00 – open bridge policy – get to go up & check out the captain’s domain
All the Pretty Rocks
- 5:00 – 2nd expedition in 1st group – wet landing @ Holm Bugt
- – more nice walk up hill
- – really pretty teeny tiny flowers in clusters
- – yellow, red, pink, gold, cream purple & cottony white
- – even some miniature mushrooms & cactus looking plants
- 8:00 – dinner – asked for grilled salmon & got swordfish
- 9:30 – lounge Deck 3 for singer
- 10:15 – shows over
Margeriedal
What I DON’T LIKE
- no satellite coverage & internet
FUN-fact – Greenland is the largest island in the world and 80% is covered in ice. 80% of the island is within the Arctic Circle. You think there’s a pattern here?
Holm Bugt
FUN-travel: Day at Sea – A&K Arctic Cruise Day 7
September 19, 2014 by Susan Clarke · Comments Off on FUN-travel: Day at Sea – A&K Arctic Cruise Day 7
Day 45 – Thursday, August 14 – Sea Day – A&K Cruise Day 7 – full sun w/clouds in distance – mid 40’s – Another typical Sea Day
What I LIKE
- 7:30 – typical wake up
- 9:30 – enrichment lecture – Greenland: Exploration & Transformation
- – watch on TV instead going to theatre
- 11:00 – finally get satellite coverage & internet!
- 12:30 – typical lunch
- 2:00 – CNN works!
Ny Alesund, Svalbard
- 2:15 – spa day – steam sauna w/body scrub, hot rocks massage!
- 5:00 – enrichment lecture – sea birds of the arctic
- – watch on TV instead going to theatre
- 6:30 – typical happy hour
- 7:00 – typical expedition recap & briefing on birds theatre Deck 4
- 8:00 – Special Chef’s Dinner – all his favorites
- – feel sleepy from massage – go to deck 6 – more casual
- – get window table & fog rolls in!
- 9:00 – in bed to watch another nature documentary
- Fall asleep early
Monacobreen, Svalbard,
What I DON’T LIKE
- Takes 30 mins just to get emails to come in
- – can’t even respond because it’s
- – really, really slow
- – which makes it really, really expensive!
- All we do is sleep!
FUN-fact – Greenland has the second largest ice cap and contains 7% of the earth’s ice.
More FF – Antarctica has the largest ice cap containing 90% of the earth’s ice.
