Published: 27.07.2017
Today, the first part of my North Atlantic journey comes to an end and a new exciting part begins. The MS Norröna will pick up Suzi and me at the Tórshavn pier at 6:00 PM and take us overnight to Seyðisfjörður in Iceland.
The day starts as many imagine the Faroe Islands to be. Low clouds, drizzling rain, 11 degrees Celsius.
Jule and Reinhard have arranged a guided tour through Tórshavn. This is offered for groups of four or more people.
If we pay for four people, three can go, there you go.
The start is scheduled for 12:00 PM, meeting a quarter of an hour earlier at the tourist office in the city.
So, I have enough time to have a hearty breakfast and pack. This time I'm being smarter. I will skip the locker. I will pack my backpack beforehand with everything I need on the ferry. I will put on my hiking pants under my motorcycle pants, strap my boots to the luggage rack. I put on my sweater right away, that way I can also fit the filled backpack in the luggage roll. I can also fit the bottle of whiskey in one of the suitcases. It's obvious, I'm already wearing the hiking shoes.
The problem will catch up with me again tomorrow, but that's only tomorrow.
The ample time cushion has turned into a tight affair. I started at the hotel at 11:00 AM. The city isn't that big, I'll find the tourist office. First, I quickly went to Intersport. I learned from my experience yesterday that I need a hiking stick. It's called a hiking stick today. Sounds cooler and not like something for old men.
Also, a dear colleague from our motorcycle forum expressed the wish to own a beanie from the most successful football club on the islands. Although football means as much to me as laying eggs means to a cow, I did some research. If I understood correctly, the club is called 'Víkingur Gøta'.
In Hamburg, it's easy. You go to an HSV or St.Pauli fan shop and get what the fan needs.
I asked in the mentioned store, they don't have it. So, there is still room for improvement in terms of merchandising. By the way, they also didn't have hiking sticks.
Now, off to the tourist office. A round through the city, a second one, found nothing. Quickly back to the port, there's a tourist center here. They should know where other offices are. The lady behind the counter knew and willingly provided information. 'You drive left, then right...', followed by unpronounceable street names..., do you understand? Sure, I nodded in agreement, thanked her politely, and left the building. Now it was getting tight, twenty to twelve. So, another round through the city. All good things come in threes. And right, I spot a signpost that I had passed twice before. Best to now park the motorcycle and continue on foot for the final meters. But where to leave Suzi? There were parking spaces, maximum parking duration 30 minutes. Ten minutes to twelve, so I entered the alley that looked like it could be a pedestrian zone. I parked Suzi between a lamppost and a flower pot and just made it to Jule and Reinhard in time.
With Óluva, our friendly tour guide, we now walked through the capital of the Faroe Islands. Past the parliamentary building, the cathedral, through the old town center, down to the harbor, and back on other paths.
For her, this is a serious catastrophe, as she writes a blog about her planned five-month-long bike trip. At least she can still write texts on her phone and send them to her helpers at home. It's different with the photo and video files. I hope someone can help her on Iceland.
I also pre-booked dinner for this crossing. Extremely delicious again. A sleeping berth is also reserved. But I won't use it. I've decided to sleep on deck.