For the annual Nordic Rotaract conference 2024 we organized a cruise between Copenhagen and Oslo with 70+ participants from 16 different countries. And here's how it went!
The event started with a pre-Nordact dinner on Thursday in Copenhagen for the early arrivals.
Ready for the Nordact pre-dinner!
Friday 27th of September was departure day from Copenhagen and upon arrival at the Ferry Terminal all of the participants got their name tags, boarding cards and one Norwegian Kvikklunsj chocolate each. We would like to go as far as claiming Kvikklunsj is an essential part of the Norwegian cultural heritage and it's a must for a long trip - whether it's at sea or in the mountains!
HOC team members Dennis and Maria sorting boarding cards and name tags
The ship left the harbour at 15:00 and after everyone got settled in their cabins the first point on the program was a welcome speech by the HOC team and some practical information from DFDS crew members. That was followed by a workshop with Danish Rotaractor Charlotte Melchiorsen on the topic "Why care about values?". The workshop started with a networking session where everyone had to introduce themselves to someone they didn't already know, and choose a value card with the value that meant the most to them. A great way to make new friends!
Charlotte introducing herself and her background before the workshop
The Friday dinner was a Norwegian seafood buffet, which perfectly suited the evening party theme: Nautical. Unfortunately, the weather was not on our side and the waves were coming in high and strong during dinner which resulted in some cases of sea sickness (trauma bonding, as we'd like to call it). Luckily our E.R.I.C President was well prepared and handed out sea sickness pills to those in need! For those not affected by the waves, the evening continued with cabin parties and dancing all night long.
Crowded & cozy cabin party
During Saturday morning the ship cruised into the sunny Oslo fjord offering some amazing views on the approach towards the Norwegian capital city. After everyone enjoyed a lovely breakfast buffet, the ship docked in the harbor at 10:00 and then the entire group walked together to the Sauna Session location across the opera house for a group picture. See the result below!
Nordact 2024 participants & HOC team
We had a total of 5 hours to spend in Oslo on Saturday, and everyone was free to choose from a couple of suggested activities. There was a Sauna Session by the opera, the opportunity to just do some regular sightseeing, or to participate in a Nordic Challenge competition where you collected points by visiting famous sights and taking group pictures/videos of it. Fortunately for us, Oslo was showing off its very best side with sunny and quite warm weather, so it was a great day for exploring! Check out some of the Nordic Challenge photos below:
At 16:00 the ship set sail from the Oslo harbor and we started the journey back towards Copenhagen. After everyone enjoyed some free time on board, it was time for the gala dinner overlooking the sea and the sunset from a private dining room. Some speeches and awards shows were in order before wrapping up and heading to the cabin parties and eventually the night club. At one point the entire dance floor turned into line dancing with everyone moving back and forth along with the waves. A unique experience, in many ways!
During the morning hours we were back in Copenhagen - another sunny day, which is quite unusual for Scandinavia in the fall time(!) - and it was time for an optional city tour around Copenhagen. Thank you to Danish Rotaractor Jesper Hallengreen for organizing the city tour and making sure everyone got snacks!
City tour squad Thank you to all the participants and everyone else who's been involved for making this event a success! See you at Nordact 2025 somewhere else in the Nordics <3 /The Nordact HOC Team
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