Originally, I was going to combine this post with the one about the volcano, but I had so much to say about each, that I am now on post #2.
Our 2nd stop after an excellent lunch (Iceland had good food, in the city anyway), was Viking World. This is a little museum that is probably missed by many, and was actually pretty interesting. The main feature is Viking Ship Íslendingur, which was built in 1996, as an exactly replica of an almost completely intact Viking ship excavated in Norway, in 1882. This ship was built by Captain Gunnar Eggertsson, who is a shipbuilder and sailor (he is on LinkedIn!), copying the original nail by nail. In 2000, with support from Iceland he sailed to New York, which is 4200 nautical miles, making 24 stops. This to prove it could be done and to validate the sagas of Leif Eiriksson and Bjarni Herjólfsson’s discovery of North America.
The ship is suspended in this museum, and is 23 meters long, 5.25 meters wide. There is an 80 ton holding capacity. It is powered by a sail, made of pine and oak.
The rest of the museum detailed the extent of the Viking reach in Europe and on this sunny day was fascinating. The boat is suspended from the ceiling, but on the 2nd floor you can climb into it. Wow.
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