Category: Travels

Theme Day: Zest

Zest

I freely admit that I’ve taken a different direction in interpreting today’s City Daily Photo theme. “Zest” is often taken to mean hearty enjoyment, relish, or fervor. But, you see, there was a giant lemon sitting at the Inner Harbour in Victoria, B.C. last week. It was conceivably covered with zest, the piquant flavor which shares the same noun. And one cannot turn one’s back on expanding one’s view of things. That, too, can be, well, zestful.

Click here to see how others have interpreted today’s theme. I hope you heartily enjoy them.

Viking extortion

Collage Vikings

Viking ships, shown in yesterday’s post, enabled great mobility for Viking warriors. Fierce and well-armed, they became so feared that eventually all they generally had to do was show up. Those they invaded had two choices: pay up or fight. Plunder became extravagant as the countries they invaded paid the Viking pipers. The Viking exhibit at the Royal B.C. Museum in Victoria shows both sides of the extortion equation: the weaponry and the booty. Gold and silver, of course, were prized. And so was glass, which was very rare in the Viking era. A replica sword in a plastic case is accessible to grasp and hold for weight and balance. Though the swords I’ve photographed look crude, the originals held a justifiably fearsome place in history.

The Vikings

Viking ship

We went to Victoria B.C. last Sunday to visit “The Vikings,” a new exhibit at the Royal B.C. Museum. In particular, DH and I are both drawn to the beauty and utility of Viking boats. And this one, Krampmacken, greeted us at the front door. Its form based on boat remnants from an archaeological discovery, Krampmacken proved that Viking boats could handle both the waves of the Baltic Sea and shallow rivers in eastern Europe. With a crew of 10-11 and four rowing stations, this boat journeyed from Gotland, Sweden to Istanbul, Turkey in two stages between 1983 and 1985.

Viking sail

Krampmacken uses a braided square sail, something I’d not seen before.

Viking ship 2

A second, smaller boat was on exhibit inside the museum.

Sea Stallion

The boats in Victoria reminded me of the most spectacular Viking ship I’ve had the pleasure to see. This is Sea Stallion, a ship that we saw on display in Dublin in 2007. Its lines are based on a Viking ship, Skuldelev 2, that was excavated in Denmark in 1962. Scientists traced the oak in its timbers to Ireland in the year 1042. Sea Stallion was reconstructed from a survey of the excavation, then built as closely as possible to match materials that the Vikings had used, including paint on the hull. After a variety of shorter sailings, Sea Stallion was sailed 1,000 nautical miles from Roskilde, Denmark across the North Sea, around the Atlantic coast of Scotland, down the Irish Sea to Dublin. As you can see, this is a big ship, with room for 60 oarsmen. Click here for more information about the Sea Stallion.

Sea Stallion 2

The Vikings knew what they were doing. This and the others I’ve seen are truly beautiful vessels.

Hungry for color

After winter days of grey skies and bare foliage this shot take at the Skagit Valley Tulip Festival last year looks like a Technicolor miracle. It’s not too soon to start planning a day trip if you’re local, though if you’ve got cabin fever an overnight trip sure appeals. The festival runs through the month of April.