We are off into the night and sailing east. The sky is without stars. “That’s interesting,” I thought.

The sea begins to change in short order and white caps with frothy tips are passing by us as we climb one swell after another. Our room has a sliding door and a veranda. I can see the sea churning far below me. The wind has picked up and it’s raining again. “We are in for a little rain and some rough seas,” I think.

The captain comes on over the intercom again with his calm, pleasant voice. “We are in a force eight gale with swells from ten to fifteen feet. If we would have stayed in Bergen another day we would have faced thirty foot swells and a much stronger wind.” I watch as the wind carries the white froth from the swells quickly away and to the west.

It doesn’t feel that bad right now. The Vikings were smart enough to stay on land this time of year, drinking and doing other pleasant and interesting things. More about the Vikings later.