Zach goes Viking

Vikings in Germany?  We were surprised, too until we looked at the maps and discovered Haithabu in the northern finger of German just a few miles from the Danish border.  We loved taking the train all the way to Hamburg (sadly, there was no time to stop for a burger!) and one more train to Schleswig where we spent the night at a fantastic wellness hotel (Hotel Waldschlösschen) before our exploring day.  We spent a long time in December learning about the Vikings, so this was a great way to finish up!

The Wikinger Museum is a series of buildings overlooking a beautiful lake which eventually connects to the Baltic Sea.  Skillfully arranged with artifacts and interactive displays, the museum is well marked to correspond to the English reading guide.  

Upon entering, large maps reminded us where the Frankish kingdom (Charlemagne 742-814 CE) battled the Slavs, Frisians and Danes (Vikings) over hundreds of years for control of this major passageway.

One of the many interesting artifact displays

gold and silver jewelry dating to Carolingians (Charlemagne's time @800 CE)

Haithabu was the largest trading post in northern Europe at the time of the Vikings:  it's unique position made it "simple" (all things considered) to move goods from the Baltic to the North Sea by navigating little rivers and then ox-cart transporting the goods from one ship overland to the waiting ship on the other side.  Evidence of trade (coins, jewelry, weapons, dishes, games (Hnefetafl), iron, furs) from the far reaches of the earth -- Byzantine, Baghdad, China, Russia and Spanish Moors--was discovered by archeologists researching in this area.   The remnants of a viking ship (and a reconstructed model) were displayed in a room looking out over the water and surrounded by videos showing re-enacted scenes from medieval times.

What's left of a Viking ship....

Some aspects of the museum, while not interactive, were certainly interesting to view and learn from.  How does one display small pieces of a culture which existed 1000 years ago and make it engaging?  The curators of this treasure have certainly preserved it well.  

Game treasure chest-original artifact!

All around one room were maps and names of famous cities from the 1000s around the world that came into contact with the people of Haitheby.

Just offshore, archeologists found piles of animal bones in the water:  apparently a medieval trash dump full of clues into the daily lives of these people.

A beautiful walk thru the countryside and down closer to the water, we were able to view a reconstructed model of the original Viking village.  Standing on the 1000 year old rampart overlooking the village, we learned how this giant hill likely helped these folks guard their village for many years.

Reconstructed Viking village        

Viking Leif-Zach

The village was closed for the winter, but in spring/summer, it is a beehive of activity for visitors: showcasing life in a typical village and inviting guests to immerse themselves in the culture:  weaving, iron making, bread baking, etc.  A couple of workers on site allowed us to walk thru the village anyway so we could look thru the windows and admire the setting.  We had to hop the fence when we were finished at their suggestion (or walk all the way around the large enclosure.)  Suffice it to say, I really wish I had not succumbed to the peer pressure of a 10 year old who easily hopped the fence...


The Wikinger Museum definitely stands out among museum greats in Europe and if you're traveling north, it is well worth the time spent!

oven inside a home

 

Rune stone in the village

Wikinger Museum 
Opening hours:
March thru Oktober
open daily from  9:00 to 17:00

November thru  March
Tuesday-Sunday:  10-16:00 (viking houses closed this time of year)

Am Haddebyer Noor 5
24866 Busdorf

Istanbul 2: Museum Day

We enjoyed visiting a few interesting museums in Istanbul, although we wished they were more interactive!  The Science & Technology Museum was full of models of ancient technological marvels with  brief translations in English about their creators.  Perhaps the most intriguing part of this place was the introductory propaganda video about the contributions of the ancient Muslim scientists to the advancement of the world and their ultimate loss of stature when the Romans took over the world, which is apparently now our fault (as evidenced by the many American references in the video!)

   

Entrance to the Science & Technology Museum

Alex was most interested in pretty much everything in this museum *Chemistry*...the rest of us...hmmm....

Archimedes Screw!  It was a long, long year in World History for this boy...

Having walked a few miles in the blistering heat, cooled off only slightly in the museum (have I mentioned few places in Europe have AC?  Their contribution to stop global warming I guess) I convinced the boys we needed to head down into the cistern to cool off.  The Basilica Cistern was featured in the James Bond movie From Russia with Love . Originally built by Emperor Justinian in 532 BCE to store water sourced from near the Black Sea via 20km of aqueducts!  It was neglected for many centuries, even forgotten for awhile, rediscovered and then finally cleaned up, restored and opened to the public in 1987. 

Amazing how every time the ancients built columns they add frilly Corinthian tops even underground!  336 marble columns inside this space roughly the size of of 2 football fields!

For some unknown reason, there are 2 medusa heads at the bottoms of 2 columns; one upside down...

A column of eyes --always rub your hands on the eye for good luck.
Turkey is full of "eyes" to ward off any evil!

Last museum was the Istanbul Archaeological Museum, boasting their position as 1 of the top 10 museums in the world, (I may argue that, but the sheer amount of old stuff in there likely supports their claim).  We were I was captivated by the ancient Greek artifacts and many more interesting pieces from ancient Rome as well as Byzantine era items.  Probably most interesting in all of Istanbul was the plethora of columns strewn about the city streets, as if time had not really bothered with the falling down of yesterday, but rather just moved on to tomorrow, caring just enough to preserve pieces of history under the shade trees.

All these columns had us regaling stories of 6th grade ancient world history
and remembering fondly, Mr. Fleck, at Harman Elementary School in Oakwood!  

Cool artifact #1:  Funeral Stele from Persia 5th century BC

Cool artifact #2:  Late Classical (about 450BC) Greek Lion Statue discovered in Bodrum, Turkey
outside a tomb at Halicarnossus

This beauty once held up a Greek temple with her comrades.

Gergiev Concert & a Pancake (Feb 2015)

The evening program we attended

Here we are, 2 musicians, living in the land where western music began and we haven't taken the opportunity to seek out amazing concerts!  And, what's even more sad, it took a humorous facebook post by a couple of trumpet players, to prompt our visit to the Gergiev Festival!  I had no idea who Gergiev was, but after a little research into the festival, the price was right and the weekend was on.  We found seats in the orchestra so that our view was of the conductor's face:  it was awesome to watch all the facial expressions of Maestro Gerghiev and have a bird's eye view of the pianist.



Zach accompanied us while the other boys stayed home to "study" (video games, no doubt!)  We had a blast taking Mike's  BMW to new speeds on her inaugural autobahn road trip.  On the drive, we listened to NPR's "Meet the Composer" and learned about the story of the Wooden Prince --what a great way to help Zach get involved in the musical story.

A hundred years after the outbreak of the First World War the 2014 edition of the festival paints an impressive picture of big industrial, social, cultural and musical developments in times of fierce conflict. 
The recurring theme is a symphonic triptych with iconic works by Ravel, Prokofiev, Shostakovich and their contemporaries. The Festival programme also features chamber music, lectures, a night concert, jazz and theatre. 

Central Station

Rotterdam is an interesting and eclectic city --an architects' dream, I suppose:  a conglomeration of old and new styles as Hitler virtually flattened the city and used Rotterdam as his example of what would happen to Amsterdam if they didn't give in.  Not surprisingly, the St Laurentius Cathedral was heavily damaged by fire during the bombings; only the walls and tower remained.  It was decades before the reconstruction was completed.  The citizens of Rotterdam decided to rebuild with new ideas, hence, much of the architecture is very different:  including the much photographed Central Station.

Just around the corner was an eclectic street market with many interesting stalls: fish, clothing and treasures.  The best find was a Netherlander pancake called "poffertjes" --translated "heart attack in a napkin"!  It was absolutely dripping with butter....

A peek inside the St Laurentius Cathedral (ca.1495) revealed a sanctuary overflowing with an art show!  I guess to keep the bills paid, they rent out the church space to outside venues.  The organ was installed in the 1970's.

A beautiful Calliope parked nearby with it's little musical serenade was another treat to stumble upon, too. 


Just outside the city were miles of pasture land filled with sheep grazing just beyond the busy highways.  A round about trek (as the bridge was out!)  to find a famous pancake place on the water was our last destination before the drive home.  After many detours thru quaint, tiny villages, we found the old windmill --peacefully turning in the breeze and just beyond, the houseboat pancake place.  Not sure they were my favorite food ever (think pancake pizzas), but the view and the experience were worth the time!