The area around the town of Stavanger (pronounced sta-VAN-ger) is known for two things: it is the center of the Norwegian oil industry, one of the most important segments of the country’s economy, and it is the location of arguably Norway’s best known landmark, Pulpit Rock, a rectangular granite outcropping that almost looks like it was cut out. It was the latter that was our focus today.

Our ship docked here after leaving Oslo, and we started out on the guided walking tour offered by Viking, but we soon broke away to head to the boat dock to take the Rodne sightseeing boat up the Lysefjord to Pulpit Rock.

This was a very scenic two and a half hour tour, and we were fortunate to have a beautiful, sunny day to enjoy it. It seems that the entire west coast of Norway consists of idyllic landscapes and breathtaking views, and this did not disappoint.

The highlight of Pulpit Rock is best known in popular culture as the sight of Tom Cruise’s final death-defying scene in "Mission Impossible- Fallout" (aka MI6). Seeing the rock from water level is impressive but not quite as much as the aerial views in the movie.

Still it was a lovely way to spend a few hours. On return, we meandered through some harborside gift shops before returning to our trip for some R&R.

We finished the day at the second reservation- only restaurant, Manfredi’s. The Italian food was really good, and Stefanie and Bob managed to get reservations as well. After dinner, we enjoyed music from the talented quartet on board singing " Music from the Sixties". Wendy happily sang along to almost everything as that was the theme of our Cascades showcase a year ago!