We have been on the Viking mailing list for a number of years now, and when a friend mistakenly sent us his attachment, we jumped at the chance to go. We had traveled with this other couple to the San Juan Islands in Washington and to Ireland three years ago. We flew to Stockholm a day early to get accustomed to the change of time, then boarded the ship the following day. We were promptly greeted by a friendly crew, and headed to our stateroom, which we found to be spotless and larger than expected. Great ship with all the outside balconies, which helped with pictures, etc. The food experience was wonderful and I am happy to report that I didn't gain any weight for the two weeks we were on board. The ship's activities were wonderful as well, especially the nightly music in the atrium before or after dinner. Found some good places to read outside our stateroom, which were quiet. The only rough weather we encountered was on the way into Stavenger, Norway, as we were navigating the North Sea from the Baltic Sea I think. Nothing we couldn't handle. Also, congratulations to the medical staff for attending to my needs (didn't pack enough meds). They were able to replace what I was short of, and our journey continued. The outside contractors for the tours were especially good in Tallinn, Estonia, and in Copenhagen, Denmark. All in all, a wonderful trip to see places in the world we had not experienced. Hope to find another cruise in near future, in which case, we will go VIKING!!!!