Vikingeskibshallen

On our recent trip to the Arctic Circle, we saw some amazing things.  

After riding through North Eastern France and Belgium, we arrived in Germany.  We stopped for the day with friends and had the most wonderful lunch and then wandered around in the town of Bruggen.  A truely delightful day.

The next day we found ourselves in Denmark where we were to spend 3 days in total.  One of those days we had earmarked for visiting the Viking Museum in Roskilde.

It was fabulous!  They have five Viking boats on display which have been found in the grounds of the museum.  One of which you can see here.

There are also a lot of interactive exhibits in the grounds near the museum that encourage people to discover for themselves how the boats were built and many other things.

We minted our own Viking coins.  A unique experience, but a bit of fun, and we gained a nice souvenir each.  You could also paint your own shield and other activities.

One of the displays which had me fascinated was the armourer.  He was fashioning weapons and chainmail.  I could have watched it all day. 

There were a lot of reproductions of Viking equipment and accoutrements in the museum, which normally I do not like so much.  However, in this case it was very well done and "real" things made the replicas.  Real furs, wool, wood etc were used instead of faux fur, synthetics and laminated or particle woods.  


Housed alongside the museum was the marine archaeology unit.  Huge tanks of water held pieces recovered from underwater discoveries in the region, and there was an enormous tank filled with an acid solution holding a beautiful anchor.  I was very impressed at the interpretive displays and method of educating the public in this part of the museum.  An archaeologist was on duty to answer questions and talk visitors through what was happening with the pieces.  Too often important work like this is done behind closed doors and so a false impression is gained by people who view the restored artifacts in the museum proper.


In the grounds of the museum were planted trees and plants that the Vikings would have used in everyday life.  Everything was clearly labelled and you could easily see what each tree was used for and why.  Pretty and informative!  Of course I took many photos of the trees and plants and other "interesting to me" things.  Watch the letter box for examples on this years Christmas card.....

Summer sun versus summer rain

Thought I would share a few highlights from our trip.

The first week the weather was spectacular. Really hot and brilliant sunshine. It was perfect riding weather.

Each stop involved cold rehydration drinks and a shady spot. It was so nice to sit on lush green grass, under a tree, in the shade and enjoy a break.

Every living thing was rejoicing in the sun and warmth. Bees buzzed through the flowers, horses munched grass contentedly in the paddocks, birds sang in the trees.

In Denmark we ate dinner outside, and then returned to the same spot for breakfast the next day. It was impossible to miss a moment of the glorious warmth and sunshine.

Then came day 2 in Sweden......
It rained.

Not just gentle summer rain.

This was gale force freezing cold winds, rain that stung and felt icy cold, and temperatures that made us wish we had every item of clothing we owned on all at once.

This weather continued on and off for the rest of our trip....... thank goodness not all at once like the first day though.

We still made the pilgrimage to Ales Stenar. Walking along the path from the car park to the hill I was astounded at the number of people who were also making the visit. This site is so spectacular and so significant that no amount of bad weather was going to stop the visitors!

A picnic had been packed with the intention of eating somewhere along the cliff tops enjoying a sea view. It was so cold and rainy that we opted instead for a hot meal in the tiny restaurant at the bottom of the cliffs.

I personally am glad we had the change in meal. The fried mackerel that I ate with mashed potato and lingonberry sauce was superb! They had bar be qued the fish on a huge grill plate and it was cooked to perfection. I had never eaten lingonberry with fish, but am now a convert.

The Swedes have a saying "There is no such thing as bad weather.... only bad clothing and equipment". We came to appreciate this saying over the next 2 weeks...

Denmark.... day 4

Just a quick update to say we have reached Denmark.

Arrived last night to a lovely B&B in Majbølle. Definately wish we had a few days here as it is so beautiful and there are so many interesting things to see.

We had a lovely day in Germany also. Lunching with friends and spending time chatting.

On to Roskild today and will be visiting the Viking ship museum.

Then to Sweden......

Stay tuned for more updates