A Traveling Fool

December 31, 2024

Viking British Isles Explorer Cruise: Post Cruise Extension – Scenic Train Ride from Bergen to Oslo

The cruise ended in Bergen. Many people, including Christine and Sherry, were heading home. Others had post-cruise extensions. I had booked an extension that included a scenic train ride from Bergen to Oslo and then a day in Oslo.

The following day, everybody had to be out of their staterooms by 8am at the latest. Then we waited around in the ship’s atrium to have our group called to journey to the train station. Just had my carry-on with me as well as the shoulder bag I used when going on the excursions. That held my camera, my cap, and my jacket.

The route included the following locations where we stopped for passengers to get on or off the train:

Bergen to Voss – scenery of high mountains, deep valleys and narrow fjords.
- Arna
  - Dale
- Voss – a place for skiing and high adrenaline extreme sports.
Voss to Geilo – includes a 35 km long, distinctive mountain ridge (Hallingskarvet) and Norway’s sixth largest glacier (Hardangerjøkulen).
- Myrdal – from which the train to Flåm could be taken. The Flåm Railway is one of the steepest railway lines in the world and passes through some of the wildest and most spectacular scenery in Norway’s fjord country.
- - Hallingskeid
- - Finse – the railway’s highest point.
- - Haugastol – considered to have Norway’s most scenic bike path (Rallarvegen).
- - Ustaoset
- Geilo – one of Norway’s leading ski resorts.
Geilo to Oslo
- - Ål – the train starts coming down from the mountains.
- - Gol – has a replica of a stave church from 1200. The original was moved to the Norsk Folkemuseum in Oslo in 1884.
- - Nesbyn
- - Flå – has a bear park that can be visited. This is an ancient bear habitat.
- - Hønefoss
- - Vikersund – has the world’s largest ski jump.
- - Hokksund
- - Drammen – has an excellent salmon river that can be viewed from the tracks.
- - Asker
- Lysaker – spotted a group of seals hanging out here.

The trip was about six and a half hours with 182 tunnels and the highest point 1,237 meters above sea level (roughly 4,058 feet). There was a café on the train, although lunch was included for those of us who were sightseers. A bag with a sandwich, some crisps, a brownie, and a bottle of water were delivered at lunchtime.

I didn’t really venture from my seat other than to visit the loo a couple of times. Our carry-ons were on a rack above our heads.

I had been expecting one of those domed cars that I have experienced with other scenic train rides and was disappointed that, although the scenery was quite lovely, the train’s car was just a standard car. Since I was in the aisle seat, I found it difficult to see out of the windows that well, much less take photos. I tried and deleted several photos as I mostly had pictures of reflections of the train’s interior. I also felt tired and like I was fighting a cold (likely from being chilled in Shetland), so I was getting grumpy about the time we arrived at Finse.

In addition to being the railway’s highest point. This was also where some of the scenes in the film Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back were filmed. Polar explorers Nansen, Amundsen and Shackleton used the area around Finse as training grounds due to the area’s extreme conditions. This was also where I decided to take a photo of my seatmate’s foot. It was, after all, the only clear photo I could get. He gallantly offered to switch places with me. Although I still got some reflections, the level of my photography improved immediately. We did switch back later after we began to come down from the mountains. By that time, I had some good shots that I could keep and share.

Once we arrived in Oslo, we just had a short walk from the railway station to our hotel, which was the Radisson Blu. Then we needed to get our rooms. By the time I got into my room and got settled in, I was feeling like I was starting to go downhill health wise. I took some cold meds, had some dinner, and went to bed.

Next time – Post Cruise extension – A Day in Oslo

December 23, 2024

Viking British Isles Explorer Cruise: Touring Bergen and Bryggen

Located between the Hardangerfjord and the Sognefjord in western Norway, Bergen was officially founded by King Olav Kyrre in 1070. There was already a trading settlement there as far back as the 1020s or 1030s. By the early 13^th century Bergen (Bjorgvin) had become the capital of Norway and remained so until the 1830s when Oslo became the capital city.

The afternoon excursion for which I had signed up was called Panoramic Bergen. It was a combination of riding on the tour coach and walking around to explore parts of the city more thoroughly.

Just a short walk from the ship was Håkon´s Hall. King Håkon Håkonsson built Håkon´s Hall between 1247 and 1261 as a royal residence and feasting hall. It was the first of its kind built in stone. Good thing too as the mostly wooden Bergen has tended to have a lot of fires and has burned down several times.

Standing a short distance from Håkon´s Hall is the Rosenkrantz Tower, which is regarded as the most important Renaissance monument in Norway. It was built by Magnus the Lawmender in the 13^th century. The original building has been extended several times to increase the fortification of the building and to create offices for the governors of Bergen. In the 16^th century it became the governor’s castle.

When visiting the Rosenkrantz Tower, it is possible to see King Magnus Lagabøte’s bedroom, the chapel with its original altar, and the room on the ground floor where the guards lived. Underneath the guardsrooms are the dungeons, which were in use until the first half of the 19^th century. Up in the attic are several cannons. These were used only once in war, during the battle of Vågen in 1665.

During World War II, in 1944, the Rosenkrantz Tower was badly damaged when a cargo ship loaded with explosives blew up just outside. The upper floors collapsed and were rebuilt in the 1960s.

After a passing glimpse at Bryggen, we headed over to the Nordnes Peninsula to have a wonderful scenic view of much of the city. After taking some photos, we headed to the Nykirken i Bergen, which is the parish church of the Church of Norway in Bergen. The name Nykirken literally means “new church”. It was consecrated in 1622. The church has burned down a few times and rebuilt in the same place on the medieval foundations of the Archbishop’s Palace.

We started with the grave, just outside of the church, of a former pastor of the church who died in the early 1800s. Then we went under the church to take a good look at the old foundations.

Back up inside the church were mainly closed box pews that could seat over 750 people. Plus, there was an angel hanging from the ceiling aways in front of the altar that could be lowered by a pulley system to be just above the baptismal font whenever a baptism was performed. Composer Edvard Grieg was baptized in this church when he was a baby.

After leaving the Nykirken, we boarded the coach again and drove around more of Bergen until we got to the National Theater. The theater was founded in 1850 by Norwegian violinist Ole Bull to develop Norwegian playwrights. Henrik Ibsen was one of the first writers in residence and became an artistic director of the theater. There is a statue of Ibsen in front of the theater in the photo I have included. He looks a bit scary.

Ole Bull (1810 – 1880) was a virtuoso violinist and composer who was considered by some to be on the same level as Niccolo Paganini. Much like Mozart, he showed his talents at an early age. He was only four years old when he could play everything he heard his mother play on the violin. He was just nine years old when he became first chair in the orchestra of Bergen’s theater and was a soloist with the Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra. By the time he reached adulthood, he had also become a major sex symbol of his day. His statue stands in a park a leisurely stroll away from the theater.

When Bergen was founded around 1070, the area in which it began was essentially where the part of the city called Bryggen (Tyskebryggen) is located today. The Hanseatic League was established there in about 1350. Although the area has been burned down many times over the centuries, it has been rebuilt each time on 15^th century stone cellars. Today Bryggen houses mainly museums, shops, restaurants and pubs.

The buildings visible from the water have several more buildings behind them (about 67 in all). Access to these buildings is via walkways through the buildings in front. The area behind is quite interesting – especially the museums, which give an idea of what life was like at the time in Bryggen.

Due to the likelihood of fire, there were ordinances against flames of any kind. This meant no candles or oil lamps. No heating. I would think that cooking wasn’t allowed either.

There was a hospital for lepers with a church next door. The church had a separate section for the lepers to keep them apart from the rest of the congregation.

Some of the houses date as far back as 1703 when they were rebuilt after the 1702 fire. However, there was another fire in the 1950s, so some houses were rebuilt at that time. There is a Radisson Blu hotel there. If I were to return to Bergen without benefit of a cruise ship, that might be a good place to stay.

Headed back to the ship to get packed. Those of us going on the Scenic Train Ride from Bergen to Oslo were supposed to have our large cases outside of our rooms by 10pm so they would be picked up and sent on to our hotel in Oslo. I was done by 6pm and so headed for the World Café for my last dinner onboard the ship. Sherry and Christina met up with me after a bit. They were flying home from Bergen the next morning. I still had a couple more days to go before I flew home.

Next time – Post Cruise extension – Scenic Train Ride from Bergen to Oslo

December 17, 2024

Viking British Isles Explorer Cruise: Farming on a Norwegian Fjord

Our morning expedition in Bergen was called A Taste of Norwegian Farm Life. This was a small farm just outside of Bergen. Ǿvre Eide Farm on Jorval Lake was located on mountainous terrain and had some horses and sheep. They also had some buildings with sod roofs. The roots of the farm date back to the 16^th century.

The first horse to which we were introduced was a Norwegian Fjord horse. It is believed that the Fjord is one of the world’s oldest horse breeds and that they migrated to Norway and were domesticated over 4000 years ago. They were used as war horses by the Vikings and have also been used as farm animals in western Norway for hundreds of years.

Fjord horses tend to be very strong and agile. They are not as small as the Shetland Pony, but they are still relatively smaller than most other horse breeds. They are always of a dun color. I felt that this particular horse and I bonded immediately since we were both small and blonde. But it could have just been because her breed tends to be quite friendly.

Another one of the girls working at the farm brought a lovely Shetland Pony by to say “hi”. He was 30 years old and still looked quite healthy and youthful. He was taken to an area where he could hang out on his own for a while outdoors.

The last horse to which we were introduced was a Dole horse. This is a Norwegian horse breed that was likely descended from the Friesian. The breed is used mainly for agricultural purposes. I thought this particular fellow was quite handsome with his braided mane.

After being introduced to the horses, we were taken to meet some sheep. These were Spælsau sheep which consist of roughly 22% of the sheep in Norway. They are a Norwegian breed that has been domesticated since the Iron Age.

This sheep breed gives both milk and meat of good quality. The wool has two layers. The underlying layer keeps the sheep warm while the outer layer helps protect the underlying layer against the wind and rain. The wool from Spælsau sheep, which is long and glossy, tends to have a beautiful shine. It was used in old Norwegian tapestries during the Renaissance and Baroque periods. Viking ship sails were also made from Spælsau yarn. In clothing it is light, stable, and absorbs very little moisture.

The sheep were much more interested in the food the girls were offering them than in us. One of the males was apparently quite dominant and tended to butt the others out of his way. Their interaction was fun to watch.

After watching the sheep being fed, we were taken to an indoor area often used for weddings. Here we were given some fruit juice as a greeting. I had raspberry. Then we were seated and fed some almond pralines and some pastries with berries and cream while sipping coffee, tea or hot chocolate.

After we had our fill, a couple of the girls showed us their traditional national costumes. These were called “bunads”. The color and style of the bunad was based upon where the mother of the girl was from. Each one is specially made for the female, in Norway, of Norwegian materials, and is supposed to last a lifetime.

When we returned to the ship, we had about 45 minutes before I needed to leave for the afternoon excursion. But I was feeling pretty full from the pralines, pastries, raspberry juice and hot chocolate, so just had a small salad before heading off from the ship again.

I was really liking this part of Norway. It was around in this area and a little further north that my Norse Viking ancestors came from. I have always loved mountains and water. Put me in a location with a mountain on one side and a lake, river or sea on the other and I am content. Up until this point I had felt that it was most likely from my Scottish, Welsh and Swiss ancestry. But obviously, the Norse ancestry has a part in it too.

Next time – Touring Bergen and Bryggen

December 7, 2024

Viking British Isles Explorer Cruise: Shetland Ponies

I met my first Shetland Pony when I was at Texas A&M University at Commerce. My now ex’s grandmother had a small cattle ranch not too terribly far from school and he and I went out there to spend some time with her. In addition to the small herd of cattle, she had two horses. One was a beautiful female chestnut who technically belonged to my ex. She was not very impressed by me. It seemed to me that she thought of me as a rival. I remember her name as being Suzie.

There was a male Shetland Pony there as well. He was quite friendly towards me. While my ex rode around on Suzie, the Shetland and I hung out together. He was the perfect size for me to ride, as I am small in stature and would sometimes struggle a bit with a full-sized horse. Shortly before high school graduation I had been on one who took off with me before the stirrups could be properly adjusted and I had ended up bouncing off of him. I wasn’t seriously injured, just cuts, sprains and bruises. I spent graduation day with bandages and wraps beneath my graduation gown.

I had a child-sized bicycle and a child-sized guitar, so why not a child-sized horse? This Shetland was very affectionate and seemed ready to go home with me.

On one of my visits to the Isle of Skye in Scotland a few years ago, a couple of Shetlands trotted over to me to say “hello” when we stopped up on a mountain to take some photos of the gorgeous scenery from there. They too were very sweet and friendly.

Small ponies have existed on Shetland for more than 2,000 years. They are thought to have been in domestic use since the Bronze Age (between 3500 and 1200 BC). They are very hardy animals who were developed to withstand the harsh climate, rugged terrain, and scarce food. They were first used to haul peat and seaweed and for plowing land. They can easily live for more than 30 years.

Shetland ponies have short, muscular necks, compact bodies, and short, strong legs. They have small heads with wide-set eyes and small, alert ears. Their coats can be any color except spotted, but black and brown are the most common. In the winter, they grow a thick double coat to withstand the cold.

Shetland ponies are known for being friendly, good-natured, and confident. However, they can also be opinionated and headstrong, which can make them challenging for some owners.

Currently Shetland ponies are used for a variety of purposes, including working and recreational riding, dressage, show horses, and driving with small carts.

After having some lunch onboard the ship, we headed out north of Lerwick this time. Some photos of the scenery were included in the post titled “Fascinating Shetland” as I wanted to have just Shetland Pony pictures with this post. The Tingwall Valley, with its Norse heritage, and Girlsta, with its beautiful lochs and hillside scenery, plus Whiteness and Wormdale were some of the areas through which we traveled. We also stopped at Scalloway to take a photo of the castle there.

The Shetland ponies at the location where we stopped to hang out with a few of them didn’t seem to be all that interested in us. It was mid-afternoon and they had been greeting tourists for several hours by that point. So they just went on about their business while we watched them interact with one another and listened to their owners talk about them. I was imagining their conversations with each other about our group. “That one seems nice.” “That one has no fashion sense. Doesn’t she realize that those colors clash?” “Don’t you want to get petted?” “No. I’ve been petted quite enough today. Thanks.” “If one more person tells me what a pretty little horsie I am, I just might barf.”

I took loads of photos, not only for myself, but also to share with one of my sisters-in-law who had owned a delightful horse named George and is still very much a horse lover. I have to agree that they are wonderful animals. Highly intelligent, with clearly individual personalities.

During some free time out in the wilds of North Mainland, I went for a good walk in the area of a golf course. There were some men fly fishing in the river nearby. The afternoon wasn’t near as cold as the morning had been. It wasn’t raining either. So a very pleasant time out in the countryside before heading back to the ship. The following day I would be visiting Norway for the first time since some of my Norse ancestors moved down from a little north of the Bergen area to Orkney in the 10th century.

Next time – Farming on a Norwegian Fjord

November 30, 2024

Viking British Isles Explorer Cruise: Jarlshof – Thousands of Years of History Packed into a Small Space

When Sir Walter Scott visited the site on Shetland in 1814, he called it “Jarlshof” based on it being the “laird’s house”. This was prior to the storm that unearthed some of what was beneath and surrounding the remains of the laird’s house. Once excavations began, it was discovered that the history of the site dated back as far as 2500 BC. It includes Neolithic remains, Bronze Age houses and a smithy, an Iron Age broch and some houses, Pictish wheelhouses, a Norse settlement including a longhouse, a medieval farm, and the remains of a 17^th century castle.

I found that I could actually walk around amongst all of this. I could also touch the walls and actually needed to duck to get inside of some of the buildings – unusual for me.

In a place like this where we were in a limited area, I knew what time to be back at the coach (and knew where the coach was parked), and we had listening devices for the tour guide’s commentary, I could wander away from the group to take photos and explore. That way my back stayed happy as I kept moving and I could get my photos without having loads of others in them or competing with me for them. I could still hear what the guide was saying and could keep track of where they were in case I needed to go back there to see something special they were pointing out. I am sharing 27 photos with this post, but I took 74 photos of Jarlshof (176 total of Shetland).

The earliest finds so far have been Neolithic (2500 – 1500 BC). This was at the end of the same time period as Skara Brae (3180 to 2500 BC). The remains of one oval, stone-built structure has thus far been uncovered from the Neolithic period. In the photos I have included here of that time period, you can see what looks like a stone inside of a stone near an upright stone in the second and third photos. This is a trough quern, used for grinding barley and wheat.

There are three distinct Bronze Age houses at Jarlshof. They are from roughly 2000 to 800 BC and are smaller than the houses at Skara Brae. Otherwise, they are quite similar. People were raising sheep and cattle at this time. They also had access to fish, shellfish, wildfowl and seals. A skeleton of a dog was found just outside one of the houses. Evidence at the smithy (who moved in about 800 BC) indicates that axes, knives, swords and pins were produced there. A bronze dagger was found at the site. The Bronze Age trough quern was smaller than the Neolithic one had been.

The Iron Age settlement was partially built on top of the Bronze Age settlement. This was at about 500 – 300 BC. Internal piers were much lighter than the thick buttresses from the Bronze Age, which gave more space inside of the houses. The style was still of cells radiating out from a central hearth and was entered via a paved passage from the seaward side.

By the Iron Age, the trough quern had been replaced by a saddle quern, which was much smaller and lighter than the trough quern. You can see a saddle quern in the sixth photo I have included here in roughly the bottom left of the photo.

In addition to having better tools, spindle whorls and weaving tools found here indicate that fabric weaving and spinning was increasing. In addition to the sheep and cattle, evidence has been found that people were keeping pigs, dogs, and small ponies.

New underground storage areas for perishable food have also been found there. There isn’t any access to visitors to the large Iron Age souterrain. It is at the end of a long, narrow passage and is actually underneath the visitor pathway. But I took a photo of a smaller one from a Pictish wheelhouse. It is the 21^st of the 27 photos I have included here.

The broch, which was a fortified dwelling, was built during the late Iron Age (100 BC- 100 AD). Part of the broch was lost to the sea. It is thought to have been originally 13 metres (40 feet) in height. It was exciting to me to be able to walk around inside of the remains of an actual broch. I also explored what remained of the stairs within the walls (see the 26^th photo).

The broch was encircled by the wheelhouses. There were four of them. These were built by the Picts from about 200 – 300 AD and were lived in until around 800 AD. I had never seen anything like the wheelhouses before, much less be able to walk around inside of them. I found them to be quite amazing. Many of the wheelhouses that I explored still had a good portion of their roofs. Since I was mostly alone in them, I felt very much like I was transported back in time. Being in out of the wind was helpful too as it was a very chilly, damp wind, right on the edge of the sea as we were. The passages into the wheelhouses tended to curve, so I wasn’t feeling the wind smacking against me much until I came back out of the entrance.

The Norse settled at Jarlshof in about 850. It was quite easy to see the remains of a Viking longhouse (9^th photo). The farmstead lasted for about 12 to 16 generations and had been replaced by a farmhouse (8^th photo) to the east by the late 1200s (about 1275). This included a barn and grain kilns.

Once Shetland became part of Scotland in 1469, it came under the control of Earl Robert Stewart, the illegitimate son of King James V of Scotland in the 1500s. He converted a medieval stone farmhouse into a fortified house in the 16^th century. His son, Patrick Stewart, who by all accounts was not a nice guy, made changes to the property, turning it into a castle, in the early 17^th century. By the late 17^th century, it was abandoned. Although Sir Walter Scott named the site after the “Jarlshof” or earl’s house in his novel The Pirate. Its proper name is Sumburgh, from the Old Norse “borg”, meaning fort.

Since I was so far ahead of most of the group, even with all of the photos I was taking and exploring I was doing, I found I had plenty of time to not only check out the exhibits and the gift shop at the visitor’s center, but to also get some hot chocolate with Bailey’s at the hotel where the coach was parked.

Despite the fact that real Vikings did not wear helmets with horns on them, I couldn’t resist buying a knit helmet with horns to wear in the frosty winters at home at the gift shop. I also got a Viking ship Christmas tree ornament.

Jarlshof is another place I would be more than happy to visit again. I would also like to spend more time in Lerwick, and check out the puffins and other cool birds at Sumburgh Head lighthouse. Also, is it possible to go out to the island of Mousa and venture inside of that broch?

Next time – Shetland Ponies

November 24, 2024

Viking British Isles Explorer Cruise: Fascinating Shetland

Shetland was a place that I had never visited before and was one of the reasons why I wanted to do this particular trip. I didn’t know a lot about Shetland other than what I had seen on the British television series called “Shetland”. It seemed like a pretty interesting place.

Close to where our ship was docked was the Northlink Ferry. This is an overnight ferry that operates between Aberdeen and Lerwick or Kirkwall (Orkney) and Lerwick. People can take their vehicles and even their pets with them and spend the night in a cabin, a sleeping pod, or just a reclining chair. There is a restaurant, a bar, and a cinema.

Once on the tour coach, we drove through Lerwick to see the Capitol of Shetland. The first place of interest was Fort Charlotte. The fort was built back in 1665 to protect the Sound of Bressay from the Dutch during the Second Dutch War. It did hold off the Dutch fleet in 1667 even though the walls were unfinished and there were few guns. But it looked more heavily manned and armed than it was. It was burned out in 1673 during the Third Dutch War. More than a century later, it was rebuilt during the American Revolution, but never saw any military action. Fort Charlotte is an artillery fort with roughly five sides and is presented as it would have looked in the 1780s. It is currently the base for Shetland’s Army Reserves.

We next encountered the home of fictional character, Jimmy Perez, in the “Shetland” TV series. The name of the place is The Lodberrie and is likely the most photographed place in Shetland. The series is based upon books written by the same author who has written the “Vera” books, Ann Cleeves. This building dates to about 1772 and is the last of 21 lodberries lining the foreshore in Lerwick by 1814. They were built with their foundations in the sea and were essentially trading booths, selling the legal goods from the street side shops. Illegal goods were taken into a maze of tunnels running under the streets to bypass the customs men.

The Town Hall has been seen frequently in the series. In the first series, it is where the Up-Helly Aa festival begins. This is an annual festival inspired by the Vikings that takes place on the last Tuesday of January. It consists of a parade of over 1,000 men dressed as Vikings and carrying burning torches. It ends with setting fire to a replica of a Viking longship.

Across the street from the Town Hall are the Court Buildings and Police Station, in both real life and on the TV show. In real life, however, crime is really low in Shetland and serious crimes are quite rare.

Radiating off from the main streets are very narrow lanes called the Lerwick Lanes. Many of the homes, pubs and restaurants seen in the series are located in these lanes.

As we passed the Tesco and headed out of town, we encountered Clickimin Loch and Clickimin Broch. A broch is a circular stone tower built by the northern Caledonian tribes between 400 BC and 100 AD. They are unique to Scotland and are the tallest prehistoric structures in the British Isles. This particular one doesn’t have all of its levels intact but has a pretty decent circumference.

Next we passed a peat bog (several of which are featured in the series) and then had a photo stop for the Mousa Broch. This broch stands on an uninhabited island and is the tallest broch in existence. Its walls are the thickest of any broch yet discovered, but it has the smallest diameter. Perhaps that is why it has survived intact. In the photo, the broch is near the center.

On our way to Sumburgh Head, we passed another location that figured quite prominently in Series Three of the “Shetland” TV series. It was a grouping of abandoned buildings out in the countryside.

At this point, we encountered an anti-littering road sign in the Shetland dialect. Since Shetland was once part of Norway, the dialect seems to have bits of Norwegian as well as bits of Scots Gaelic, Scots and English. I felt the sign’s message was quite clear in its intent.

To get to Sumburgh Head from there, we needed to drive across the runway of Sumburgh Airport. Yup. The road actually crosses the runway. It was rather foggy and raining quite a bit by that time. My photo of crossing the runway shows the raindrops on the coach windows. A plane had landed just before we arrived, so no collisions. Shortly after we crossed the runway, I could hear a helicopter approaching. But the fog was too thick to see it until it got much closer to the ground. Fortunately it didn’t need the runway. It had its own area in which to land and we were far enough away to not cause any problems there either.

We were headed for Jarlshof, to which I have dedicated its own post. Near Jarlshof and visible from it once the rain and fog cleared was Sumburgh Head. This was another location that figured quite prominently in Series Three of “Shetland”. Both the lighthouse, which was built by the grandfather of Robert Louis Stevenson in 1821, and a café that stood in for a hotel were featured in that series. The six episodes of that series were quite spellbinding, both when it came to the characters (and actors playing them) and the locations used.

The afternoon excursion mostly consisted of seeing Shetland Ponies (also with their own post). But on the way there and on the way back to the ship, we saw the landscape of the northern portion of the Mainland island.

Along the way to see the ponies I spotted a crannog. Crannogs were built throughout Scotland, usually in freshwater lochs. In Shetland however, just over half the crannogs were built in coastal waters and all were built during the Iron Age. The crannog is what lies underneath as opposed to the building on top. In the photo, the crannog is in the water to the right.

Crannogs are little islets that are partially or completely artificial. They have been built up with rocks in order to be sturdy enough for a dwelling to be built on top. Most of the buildings were wooden and so no longer exist. The bridge out to the crannog was also wooden. A crannog tends to have a relatively unique look to it and so is fairly recognizable to someone who has seen others. Since I have seen them all over Scotland on previous visits, I have learned to recognize them.

Before returning to the ship, our last stop was for a photo at Scalloway. Scalloway was the former capital of Shetland up until 1838. It has been inhabited since Neolithic times and is only a mile or so from the Viking and Norse parliament site, Ting site, in the Tingwall Valley. The village has a population of about 1,200 and the remains of a castle, which also played a part in the” Shetland” TV series – in Series Five, which had to do with a ring of people traffickers.

Next time – Jarlshof

November 17, 2024

Viking British Isles Explorer Cruise: Invergordon, Inverness, Urquhart Castle & Loch Ness

This was my fourth time in this part of Scotland. On two of the other three trips, I had gone out on Loch Ness on a boat. We had a very pleasant ride both times but hadn’t seen Nessie. That was fine with me. I wasn’t certain that I especially wanted to meet her face to face. I definitely didn’t want to end up as lunch or possibly an appetizer.

On none of those prior tours did I have the opportunity to explore Urquhart Castle. I had taken photos from out on the water or from up above it. I had envied the people who I would see climbing around on the ruins. I guess I just needed to get on the right tour.

We docked at Invergordon and rode a tour coach to Inverness. Along the way, we saw some North Sea oil platforms. We passed by the Black Isle and we drove around Inverness a bit before heading to Loch Ness.

In Inverness, we passed by the old Victorian hotel where we had stayed on the first trip to Inverness. I had fond memories of that hotel and the dinner we had there. It had a lovely atmosphere and good food. We also passed by Inverness Castle on the other side of the River Ness. Shortly before reaching Urquhart Castle, we crossed the Caledonian Canal.

The visitor center and visitor parking are mostly underground except for the side facing the castle. This allows for great views of the castle and the loch from the visitor center.

When heading down to the castle, a full-size reproduction of a trebuchet awaits. This is a counterweight trebuchet, which is a type of catapult that uses a rotating arm with a sling attached to the tip of it to launch a projectile. Its design allows it to launch projectiles of greater weight at a much greater distance than traditional catapults. Although the trebuchet itself is a reproduction, the balls sitting by it are the real thing. They were found at Urquhart Castle.

Although there is some debate about whether or not Urquhart was the location of a Pictish fort that was visited by St Columba in 567 (and where he reportedly encountered the Loch Ness Monster), our tour guide stated that the remains of a Pictish fort were beneath the oldest part of the castle. This is a motte and shell keep built upon medieval foundations that date back to sometime between the 5^th and 11^th centuries. It sits up on the highest mound in the castle complex on what they call the Upper Bailey.

Despite the castle being mostly ruins, it is a fascinating place to explore. Urquhart is one of the largest castles in Scotland. It is also quite old (the actual castle remains range from the 12^th through the 16^th centuries) and sits in a gorgeous location. The day we were there was beautiful. The temperature was mild and there was no rain. A perfect day for climbing around and exploring the ruins of the castle. The upper portions of the Grant Tower weren’t open to exploration, however, due to safety concerns. I was able to go up one level and down to the cellar, but not to the top.

From the Grant Tower (16^th century on 14^th century foundations) I did have some wonderful views of the loch and of the rest of the castle. It was easy to see the remains of the private living quarters plus the Great Hall and the kitchen. There were some good views of the Upper Bailey as well. The castle even had a water gate which allowed it to be supplied from the loch when under siege by land. The way that the Grant Tower was built allowed it to be defended independently of the rest of the castle.

As always when I am exploring a particularly interesting castle, the time for me to remain became short fairly quickly. I decided to give the gatehouse a thorough exploration before heading back up to the visitor center. I found a kiln on one side and a prison on the other. The kiln was used to dry grain before it would be ground into flour. Traces of both oats and barley have been found there.

There had once been a couple more stories of the gatehouse. But it had been blown up back during the Jacobite uprising to keep the castle from being used as a potential fortress by the Jacobites.

The visitor’s center had the obligatory gift shop plus a café. There were also exhibits of several of the archaeological finds from the site. I would be more than happy to visit Urquhart again and explore some more.

I had signed up for a spa treatment, for once I returned to the ship, called Northern Stillness. The description had said that it was a restful massage of neck, shoulders and back, followed by a blueberry mask. While relaxing with the mask, my hands and feet would be massaged. Sounded good to me. But when I got into my stateroom on that first day back in London, the instructions regarding the Northern Stillness said that I should disrobe in my stateroom and go to the spa in just a robe and slippers. It turned out that it would be a full body massage and a blueberry body mask.

When I got back to the ship from our visit to the castle, I had time for a short lunch before undressing and heading to the spa. I did point out the scar next to my spin from surgery just three years ago and mentioned that it was still sensitive. Other than that, I was fine with being pummeled. When I had some physical therapy for my lower back the prior year, my favorite part had been the massage.

I figured this treatment would be quite restful once I got past the fact that I was naked and my masseur was male. I had a sheet over me that was moved around to supply me with some modesty while allowing various parts of my body to be worked on. Once the blueberry body mask was applied, I was essentially wrapped up like a mummy to let it all be absorbed into my pores before having my hands, feet, face and scalp also massaged. Overall it was an 80 minute treatment.

After getting dressed for dinner, I had my usual Lemon Drop Martini at our evening discussion on the Mystery of the Lewis Chessmen, followed by dinner. I felt very relaxed and my skin felt soft and smooth. I would be quite happy do that same treatment or a similar one again. In fact I have one in mind offered by one of the hotels I will be staying in during a trip in 2025.

Next time – Fascinating Shetland

November 10, 2024

Viking British Isles Explorer Cruise: Linlithgow Palace – Birthplace of Mary Queen of Scots

With the many trips I have taken to Scotland over the years, I have been to a lot of places associated with Mary Queen of Scots. Places where she lived. Multiple places where she was imprisoned. Where she gave birth to her son. Where her personal secretary was murdered by her 2nd husband (Lord Darnley) and his cronies. Where her 2nd husband died. But Linlithgow is where Mary Stuart was born.

I had originally signed up to see Scone Palace, but that excursion had been canceled when not enough people signed up for it. Of all of the other excursions, the only other two that I had not done before were Broomhall (the home of the Family Bruce), and Linlithgow Palace. Broomhall was sold out by that time, so I signed up for Linlithgow Palace. This was an included tour. No additional charge.

The site on which the castle stands has been occupied for as far back as Roman times (2,000 years ago). King David I of Scotland founded the town of Linlithgow (meaning “the loch in the damp hollow”) and built a royal manor there in the 11^th century. In 1424 a fire partially destroyed the town and much of the manor as well.

King James I rebuilt the manor as a grand Royal Residence and also rebuilt the Church of St Michael. Linlithgow Palace became one of the principle Scottish royal residences throughout the 15^th and 16^th centuries. Mary’s father, James V, was born there in 1512 and she was born there in 1542.

After Mary’s son, King James VI of Scotland, left Scotland to become King James I of England after Queen Elizabeth I’s death in 1603, the palace was rarely used and fell into disrepair. It was finally ‘accidentally’ burned out in 1746 by the Duke of Cumberland’s men.

During our visit to the palace, we listened to our tour guide give us a history of the palace and point a few things out while we hung out in the inner close by the fountain. There were several benches on which to sit, so I did that for a while and then began to circle the fascinating fountain to take photos of it from all angles. We were then set free to explore the palace at our own pace. I headed up the Queen’s Turnpike to the first floor and the Bed Chamber.

I continued on from there, photographing the Presence Chamber, the King’s Hall, and a statue of Mary Queen of Scots from one of the windows in the King’s Hall. Passing the King’s Turnpike (and taking a photo of it), I entered the museum and explored its contents. When I was done in there, I checked out another Hall and the Chapel, taking a photo of the Church of Saint Michael from one of the windows there.

I found a very interesting old door (but likely not original) that was closed and locked. I wondered where it led. Then I discovered another very interesting set of really old stairs. I wanted to see where they led but they appeared to be blocked part of the way up. That is one of the things about ruined castles. You never know when something may be blocked, falling down, or missing entirely.

Next came the Great Hall, which was also known as the “Lyon Chalmer”. This was the largest room in the palace and had a properly gigantic fireplace at one end. At the other end, I found the entrance to the Court Kitchen.

With a little further exploration and my natural curiosity, I ventured down a long passageway within the wall alongside the Great Hall. That was quite rewarding. I found another turnpike (this one unnamed) and took it back down to the ground floor where I wandered through another interesting corridor, discovered a guardroom, and eventually came out near the entrance (and the gift shop).

At this point, I discovered that Christine and Sherry were also at Linlithgow on another tour coach. They had arrived after me, but were already in the gift shop. Most of my explorations had been a solitary endeavor. I had some company in the Bedchamber, the Presence Chamber and the King’s Hall. But then was entirely on my own in the museum, another hall and the Chapel, until the Great Hall, where I encountered a handful of people. After the Great Hall, I was completely alone again until the gift shop. It was crowded in there.

We still had some time before my coach would return to the ship (theirs would be about 15 minutes after mine), so we left the palace to explore the town. We were pretty far along the main drag (I had purchased a wooden thingy with which to stir my porridge) when it began to rain fairly heavily. We ducked into a café where I ordered a chocolate shake and a pastry while my companions ordered a cream tea (tea with scones, cream and jam). Fittingly, the site where the café now stands was once the location of the bakery for the palace.

Later, after our evening lecture on the Highland Clearances (and my Lemon Drop Martini), the three of us had dinner together again. I had some salmon stuffed with Spinach Florentine and crabmeat, some roasted vegetables, and a very nice Italian rosé.

Next time – Invergordon, Inverness, Urquhart Castle & Loch Ness

November 3, 2024

Viking British Isles Explorer Cruise: 17th Century Orkney – Skaill House

Literally a stone’s throw from Skara Brae stands a 17^th century manor house built over a pre-Norse burial site and surrounded by various burial mounds. It has been enlarged over the centuries. Nowadays the house is open for tours. Parts of the building that have been redeveloped into apartments are available as holiday rentals.

On my first visit there, once I finished photographing Skara Brae, I traipsed through the mud towards Skaill House. I had the very odd experience of being rained upon heavily on one side of the arch next to the house, only to find that the rain ended abruptly when I walked through the arch. I turned around to look back through the arch and could see it was still definitely raining on the other side. Interestingly enough, a large stretch of the pre-Norse burial site lies next to the house right where I was standing. I was walking over graves from that point to the entrance porch on the other side of that part of the house.

When the flagstone floor in the Main Hall was replaced by Oak flooring in the 20^th century, more skeletons were discovered there. There has been a debate about whether the skeletons were Norse or Pictish. They seem to have settled on pre-Norse. Before the Vikings, but maybe not necessarily the Picts. The current owner thinks that either they didn’t know the graves were there, or they weren’t concerned about it. According to my DNA, I have both Viking and ancient Briton. In this part of the UK, that likely would have been the Picts.

When coming from Skara Brae, it seems that the house is being entered at the back. The rear of the house, is actually facing Skara Brae (although that had once been the front of the house). But the main road now comes to the property on the side of the loch, which is the opposite of where Skara Brae sits on the edge of the ocean. The main drive comes up to the house from the loch. The East Porch, which is the front entrance to the house, was built in 1878.

Entering through the East Porch, the Entrance Hall was created from a storage room and pantry when the main entrance was moved. I showed the woman sitting there my ticket and bought a guidebook for £4.00. The Dining Room was the next room. The dishes in the display cabinet were once owned by Captain Cook and were brought to Skaill House in 1780 by Captain King after Captain Cook was killed in Hawaii.

The Library, which had an interesting atmosphere, is the room with the odd round window. The portrait next to the window is of the son of a former owner of the house (Colonel Scarth) who was killed at the age of 14 from an accident with a horse. The round window was created to allow for light while making room for a flue pipe to reach the gable chimney from a boiler that had been installed near the library.

The Main Hall and the wing to the south of it were added, along with the main staircase, in roughly 1790. At that time the road was to the west of the house (on the Skara Brae side), so the main entrance was moved to the Main Hall, where it remained until the road was moved to the east side of the house.

The Main Hall contains a large, dark cupboard, called the Armada Chest. The panels of the chest are said to have come from one of the Spanish galleons which sank in 1588. A similar chest is in the Victoria and Albert Museum. Visitors are sent up the main staircase to see the rooms on the floor above.

The large Drawing Room sits in the south wing (above the dining room and library) and has views of both the loch to the east and the bay to the west. My photos of the room show the doors of a closet containing glassware open on the east-facing end of the room, and a less formal area on the west facing end.

From there the former dressing room and bedroom of Colonel Scarth are used as exhibit rooms. Just before entering the 17^th century bedroom of Bishop Graham, I came across a part of the house I had not seen when I was there in 2009. This was the dressing room and bedroom of Colonel Scarth’s wife. They have been kept as they were from the early 20^th century.

It is said that when visitors were able to enter the rooms and take a closer look at her belongings, her ghost wasn’t happy and let it be known. Once the rooms were roped off at the doorways, she settled down. Skaill House is reportedly very, very haunted with ghosts from many different centuries in many parts of the house. So you never know who you might encounter.

On this visit, as I did on my previous visit, I headed straight for Skaill House after spending loads of time at Skara Brae. After touring the house, I visited its gift shop and bought some beautiful, silver, Celtic earrings before heading to the reproduction of one of the houses at Skara Brae. I still had a decent amount of time before we needed to get back on the tour coach.

I checked out the visitor center which seemed to be larger than I remembered it from 2009. I found a couple necklaces for my sister-in-laws there and had a nice cup of hot chocolate to warm me up. It was quite nippy the closer one was to the sea. So spending so much time at House #1 of Skara Brae, which was right next to the sea necessitated a warming drink. I still got my usual Lemon Drop Martini at that evening’s presentation on “Roman Britain” however.

When we returned to the ship, we found some pipers and Scottish dancers performing for us just before the ship sailed. They were on the same side of the ship as my stateroom so I could get the best view of them from up above. A couple of photos are here with this post.

I was very glad to see Skaill House again, but don’t think I would be interested in spending the night. At least not completely on my own.

Next time – Linlithgow Palace – Birthplace of Mary Queen of Scots

October 27, 2024

Viking British Isles Explorer Cruise: A Neolithic Orcadian Village – Skara Brae

After a quick lunch in the stateroom back at the ship, we headed out for the afternoon excursion of Skara Brae and Skaill House. We drove through Kirkwall on the way and approached our destination from the inland side. I recognized Skaill House from across the loch even though, when I had been there before, we had only been on the ocean side. It is a large, sprawling house — mostly two stories, but with a three story tower. I quickly raised my phone and took a photo.

The tour coach ended up parking just north of the house, not too far from the visitor center. We got off of the coach and immediately headed along the path to Skara Brae. Since it is below the ground, there isn’t much that can be seen until you are right on top of it. Then, what you see is mesmerizing.

This was how regular people lived in this part of the world at least as far back as 3180 to 2500 BC. Skara Brae is on the Bay of Skaill on the largest island in Orkney, known as Mainland. It consists of ten earthen houses, with stone interior walls, clustered together. Some of them have the remains of stone furniture and even sewer systems.

It is the best preserved Neolithic village in Europe. It also happens to be older than both Stonehenge and the Pyramids. I am fascinated by Skara Brae both because of its age and the fact that the buildings were the homes of regular people. Not palaces or tombs.

Skara Brae was discovered when a nasty storm hit Scotland in the winter of 1850. The top of the hill containing the houses was ripped off revealing parts of some of them. Excavations began to reveal the rest of them.

The houses were built into mounds of domestic waste known as middens, which created some stability for the mortarless stone walls while also acting as insulation. They are not certain what was burned in the firepits as peat was not readily available as fuel until after Skara Brae had already been abandoned. Possible fuels could have been animal dung, dried seaweed or driftwood. Trees have never been in abundance on Orkney.

Looking at the photos I took, you can see that the furniture includes dressers, storage boxes, cupboards, and even rudimentary beds. The doors to each house were made of stone slabs which used bars made of bone to shut them. Beads and painted pots were left behind in many of the houses, which suggests that the inhabitants may have left in a hurry.

One of the buildings, House 8, is different from the rest. It has no dresser or storage boxes and has been divided into smaller areas. There also appears to be a flue as well as fragments of bone, antler, and stone. It is thought that this house, which also is a stand-alone structure not surrounded by midden, was used to make tools.

House #1 is the most complete. It has a fire pit in the center. A dresser is against the wall bordering the sea. When facing the dresser, the men’s bed is at the left and the women’s bed at the right. You can see storage boxes scattered around and also see some cupboards built into the walls.

It is believed that the people who built Skara Brae primarily raised cattle, sheep and pigs. Evidence shows that barley was cultivated. Fish bones and shells were also found.

Artefacts include lumps of red ochre (indicating the possibility of body painting), and awls, needles, knives, beads, shovels, small bowls, and ivory pins. These items were made of animal, fish, bird, and whalebone, as well as walrus ivory and orca teeth.

Additional excavations in 1972 reached layers that had remained under water and therefore contained items that would have been destroyed if not having been preserved in the water. These included a wooden handle and a piece of rope made from a twisted skein of heather.

On my previous visit to Skara Brae, it had been raining quite heavily there too. This made the paths and grass upon which we needed to walk to be able to look down into the houses rather treacherous.

On this trip, I was able to take my time and thoroughly photograph everything. It was cold since I was near the sea, but it wasn’t raining. I spent a lot of time both in the real Skara Brae and visiting the reproduction of what one of the houses might have looked like when it was inhabited. It actually seemed rather cozy. It would have been interesting to know how many people lived in a house.

Next time – 17^th Century Orkney – Skaill House