Day 274 Mon 16 Jul 2007 Tromso, Norway

After the episode with the tyres we decide to have suspension checked out at the first BMW dealer since Pakistan. Unfortunately the news isn’t good, we’re not going anywhere in a hurry but they can’t fix it for two weeks. But whilst one guy suggests we wont even make it off the island, his colleague says why don’t we get it fixed in Bergen (1500km south). He’s obviously been to the same no-worries-she’ll-be right-mate BMW training school the ones in Greece went to who said the squeak from the rear suspension was only a stone and was nothing to worry about. Applying that logic we book it in for repairs in Inverness. For the technically minded the rear suspension bushes aren’t just worn, they are non-existent. We decide we’ve no choice but to press on, perhaps we’ll get it fixed in Bodo, perhaps, as we’ve a ferry to catch in a week.

Fortunately it’s not a great day for driving weatherwise so we stay in Tromso sorting out phones and internet and visiting the Polaria museum with its seals and Imaxtype film about Svalbard. We’re almost tempted to visit till we learn its 1000km north of North Cape (It's the norweigen name for Spitzbergen.)