Mark H @neonbubble @mstdn.social mstdn.social

Bonus bit of architecture from today while we wait to head out to hunt aurorae in a couple of hours. This is the Northern Lights Cathedral in Alta this afternoon.

A modern building set up a slight rise of deep snow with a white background of snowy clouds and signs that it's still snowing now. The building is grey, almost metallic, and shaped like a loose roll of paper had its centre pulled up and turned. The result is a curved, wider bottom and a series of smaller cylinders of the roll pulled up into a tower. It's all asymmetrical and interesting.

**Mark H** @neonbubble · 16h *

16h *

We're in Alta today and the snow has been persistent. We took a trip to the Sorrisniva ice hotel which is built fresh every year and brings in artists to sculpt artwork in the public spaces and suites on a theme. Stopped in Alta to visit the Northern Lights Cathedral and now we're back aboard and prepping gear to go hunt aurorae on a 4-hour trip later this evening.

We're in a square room constructed almost entirely from ice with lighting that casts everything in purple. A double bed of ice blocks is covered with fur. At the head of the bed an ice sculpture is carved of Eros, the god appearing mostly naked but for a loin cloth, large wings spread out behind him, his arms out wide, gazing down on the bed below.

**Mark H** @neonbubble · 1d

#Travel #Photography #Cruise

We're in Tromsø. It's obviously had a bit of snow recently as we've sunk up to our calves at points. Generally, though, positive temperatures, nice. We hit the Polaria aquarium, hunted down some art sculptures, and are now onto our fourth round at the world's northernmost brewery. Because of course we are.

It's a very white scene. In the foreground there is a stretch of flat, cold, grey water. This meets a sheer bank of snow, lumpy with exposed parts of the covered landscape. In the distance there are snowy-streaked mountains meeting a white-grey blanket of sky. Somewhere in-between there are the distant views of buildings and a triangular, modernist church.

**Mark H** @neonbubble · 3d

Trondheim today. Took ourselves to the art museum first (a Munch and a Vigeland piece were the highlights), then Nideros Cathedral, the Regalia Museum, an archaeological museum, and some time escaping the rain in a craft ale bar. Surprise!

Just leaving now, predicted 4 metre swells tonight so it's going to get rocky aboard. The way we like it. Sea day tomorrow and then we'll be hitting Tromsø.

We're in a cathedral looking along the aisle between rows of empty wooden chairs. Columns rise regularly along the nave, joined by high arches and with smaller arches of stained glass windows above those until the vaulted ceiling appears. In form it's almost like skeletal hands joined at the finger tips. A wide angle lens in portrait orientation gives the view an unnatural stretched look.

**Mark H** @neonbubble · 4d

A purchase today in Ålesund: a jigsaw puzzle of the fjords and a cruise ship. It seemed fitting, and I feel pretty confident that @thegiddystitcher would approve of this impulse buy.

A jigsaw puzzle box with the cover showing artwork of a cruise ship in a narrow fjord, all in an Art Deco style reminiscent of the early posters advertising travel in the 1930s. Some green hills and houses are in the foreground and the sheer cliffs of the fjord are reflected in the turquoise waters.

#Travel #Cruise #Jigsaw

**Mark H** @neonbubble · 4d

Ålesund today. A city we've visited before so we walked to a viewpoint, hit a museum of local architecture, visited a historical building, shopped, then spent two hours in a craft ale brewery right next to the ship. From tomorrow it's all new ports for us and cruising further north than we've cruised before. It's definitely getting chillier.

A cold day with an overcast but light sky. We're standing on one side of what looks like a wide canal, looking along its length where tall white buildings line the edge. A bridge barely above our level crosses over the water for pedestrians and vehicles. In the distance there are mountains with snowy peaks lost in the clouds. On the water, approaching the bridge there is a long wooden boat with a cox standing at one end and with hand on a tiller, and three rows of two rowers sat behind with oars raised.

**Mark H** @neonbubble · 6d

@vinylrecords @beersofmastodon

In #Bergen today, glorious weather, and we're now staying overnight in the city on this #cruise. Walked to the aquarium and now we're in Apollon Platebar, which is both a #vinyl record store and craft ale bar with 40+ taps. We might be a while. Started on an amber ale and a cider; both very good. We do plan to peruse the albums too.

On a wooden table in the foreground are two glasses, one thinner glass with a pale, fizzy cider, and another more rounded glass with an amber ale in it. Behind, out of focus a little, there are racks of vinyl records. Further back to the left you can just make out the word Apollon over a wooden bar backing.

#Photography #Travel #Norway

**Mark H** @neonbubble · Mar 22

Mar 22

#Travel #Photography #Cruise

Norway's Hardangerfjord has not disappointed as a replacement for the Haugesund stop we were due. Glaciers and waterfalls, churches, snow-topped mountains. The fjords are always fabulous.

View from a cruise ship in a fjord. Blue sky gives way to a pale, distant, rocky mountain with snow and ice along its peaks. Closer, a nearly sheer wall of rock in dark shadow and with plenty of tall trees forms a border with the flat blue water of the fjord. It feels cool and quite humbling.

**Mark H** @neonbubble · Mar 22

Mar 22

#Cruise #Travel #Photography

View from our cabin right now. We're cruising up the Hardangerfjord and will get as far as the Furebergsfossen waterfall before heading back and towards Bergen for tomorrow. The distant mountains are part of the Folgefonna glacier.

Choppy, deep blue water leads to several layers of land beyond one another, parts of rocky and tree-filled areas along this wide fjord. Small houses of a village nestle to the right in the distance. The furthest land under this cold, piercing blue sky is a jagged mountain range with deep masses of snow and ice on its peaks.

**Mark H** @neonbubble · Mar 22

Mar 22

#Travel #Cruise #Photography

First port of call should've been Haugesund today but the wind conditions have made that too dangerous. Instead, we're getting some scenic cruising down a fjord coming up then heading for Bergen as planned tomorrow.

A view across dark, choppy sea to a spit of land on the right ahead of a distant, snow-topped mountain range on the horizon. The sky is clear blue.

**Mark H** @neonbubble · Mar 20

Mar 20

Super quick embarkation for our #cruise today and friendly chats with other passengers and our cabin steward. All unpacked, love our balcony room on this old ship. Superb weather here in Tilbury for the departure. On our third drink and haven't even mustered yet.

The pool deck of a cruise ship looking over the pool to a raised section and the ship's funnel behind it. The water is blue, fed by two curved metal fountains either side and a waterfall effect at the end over purple mosaic tiles. An orange letter A is on the tiles. The funnel in the distance is also purple and the sky is clear blue.

#Travel #Photography

**Mark H** @neonbubble · Mar 19

Mad that we decided to break our drive to the far side of London into two with this overnight stay ostensibly to stop us stressing out about getting here on the day of travel when what's actually happened is we've simply extended the stress for longer but with no less intensity of stress. Good job, us. Way to go.

Anyway, Irish group in this last pub also staying at our hotel. One declared he'll be having "tree or four sausages" for breakfast tomorrow. Tree. Go with tree. Always tree.

**Mark H** @neonbubble · Mar 19

Just under two and a half hours drive with over half that on the M25 but we've checked into our Premier Inn and have just grabbed some food in a nearby pub. They've got some ales here I've not had before so that's the evening sorted.

Check out is midday then it's another hour to where we pick up the ship at Tilbury for the start of our 17 day cruise up as far as Alta, Norway. Could've done the drive tomorrow morning but that's needless stress. I get that at work.

#Travel #Cruise

Mark H boosted

**The Void ザ・ヴォイド** @TheVoidTLMB@vivaldi.net · Mar 19

The Void ザ・ヴォイド @TheVoidTLMB@vivaldi.net

@neonbubble …and here is a short, jargon-free explainer of how to do that: https://tlmb.net/blog/connecting-mastodon-and-bluesky-friends/

tlmb.netConnecting Mastodon and Bluesky friends | TLMB

More from

TLMB

**Mark H** @neonbubble · Mar 19

Occasional poking post.

1. Are you following this account on Bluesky?

2. Are you bridged to the Fediverse?

If the answers are Yes and No then I can't see your likes or comments or reply to you or follow you back.

If you address point 2 then I can. Thank you.

**Mark H** @neonbubble · Mar 19

#Photography #Brighton #Beach

A view from Brighton Pier looking back to its pebbled beach for #MeerMittwoch today. This was taken in October 2009 which explains the mostly fully-clothed visitors enjoying Brighton's famous pebbles.

We're on a pier, a little way out to sea from a seaside town, looking over a short stretch of sea to the beach and buildings along the promenade. It feels warm and breezy. The sky is partly cloudy but with plenty of blue patches to suggest the sun comes out periodically to heat everything up. The buildings in the background are tall and wide, typical seaside hotels in the UK, and a variety of different designs. The beach is pebbled, fairly deep, and dotted with families. A rounded, high-walled, stone pier juts out from the beach on the right and we can see its end in front of us. This is being used by a couple of local fishermen with a couple of rods sticking out over the water. The sea is quite rough, foaming thickly as it breaks on the beach and against the stone pier, and is distinctly green in colour with white veins on the wave tops.

Mark H boosted

**Sofasophia** @Sofasophia@pixey.org · Mar 19

~meoralis~ @meoralis@pixelfed.social

Sofasophia @Sofasophia@pixey.org

#Meermittwoch

Weil wir alle zuweilen einen Leuchtturm brauchen …

Rotweiß gestreifter Leuchtturm am Ende einer Straße auf einer Art Damm. Rechts und links der Straße ist je ein mit Kies bedeckter Abhang zum Meer hinunter, das im Hintergund bis zum Horizont zu sehen ist. Darüber wolkenloser Blauhimmel.

Mark H boosted

**~meoralis~** @meoralis@pixelfed.social · Mar 19 *

Mar 19 *

#FotoVorschlag (Metallisch/metallic) meets #MeerMittwoch in #SaintTropez (which was nothing to write home about, sorry)

#anchor #Anker #rustic #weathered #MERcredi #Mittelmeer #MediterraneanSea #France #Frankreich #CoteDAzur #maritime #maritim #alt #old #SeaWednesday

Two large, weathered, rusty anchors are positioned on a rocky breakwater beside a turbulent sea. The anchors lie horizontally, their flukes resting on the dark grey and brown rocks. On the anchor on the left, a heavy, rusted chain connects to the shank and extends towards the other anchor.
Large waves crash against the rocks, creating white foamy splashes. The sea itself is a choppy, grey-green under an overcast sky. In the distance, hazy, low-lying mountains can be seen across the water. A single bird is visible flying in the middle distance.
In the foreground, a paved walkway runs alongside the breakwater, bordered by a low wall constructed from rough-hewn stones. The overall scene conveys a sense of maritime history and the power of the sea on a blustery day.

**Mark H** @neonbubble · Mar 19

Last day of work before we head off this evening to take out a chunk of the travelling before we leave from London tomorrow for our holiday. Such a bad night's sleep. I usually get them if we're about to fly because of all the what-if scenarios but we're not flying and we should have plenty of time to sort out any problems, the way it all works out. Trying to de-stress the process of travelling before the travelling, but it just doesn't work or seem to get easier.

#Travel

**Mark H** @neonbubble · Mar 18

Mar 18