JULY 5, 2022
Lofoten is the name of the island meaning flat land and the city is called Leknes. There are 300 islands around this community and only 5 are inhabited. Lofoten (Leknes) is an island city that sits in a very green valley surrounded by high mountains. Fishing is the number one industry for the 25,000+ inhabitants of these islands followed by tourism with about 500,000 visitors annually.
Here is a bit of history for you. Vikings never had horns on their helmets. This folklore was created by a German playwright in the 1800’s who wanted the Vikings in his play to look like barbarians so he added horns to the helmets. Amazing how art and folklore can distort history.
The scenery you’ll see is very green, lush and mountainous. There a a few farms and most raise either cattle or sheep.
The second half of the day was spent visiting the largest and oldest Viking longhouse ever discovered in Norway dating back to 450 A.D. It was just over 60 meters long with 4 large rooms each varying in size. One room was a “drying/aging” room for meets and other foods, then a very large dining/cooking area with a huge fire pit with hanging pots and the like, followed by living area and then sleeping quarters. It is believed this was the house of a chieftain for his family and invited guests. They believe they lived and explored here for centuries until Norway became a kingdom around 872 A.D. At which point the chieftain picked up and moved to Iceland.
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